Is drink pkg worth it if Elite? if AQ?

[MetravelUtoo?]

Couldn't have asked for a better "break down" of decision on drink package! I had all the same thoughts as you after reading many discussions on the matter. Thanks to your "review" I will now just wing it with the ala-a-carte on my upcoming 10 night Roman Empire cruise.

 

While the care-free freedom of no signing, etc is very inviting..I, unlike some others here, would probably feel like I needed to be sure I was (at least) breaking even and that is not a good idea for someone trying to limit the "spread" that can occur on a cruise!!

 

Thanks again for coming back to share your experience!!!

~Jyl :D

[p2lockhart]

Thanks for all the info and different ideas. I am evaluating the same thing and am leaning toward not doing the package.

[cruiseerf]

For us we make out on the premium alcoholic drink package....easy. We are usually in a suite same as you and water is not included in suites......

 

Cappuccinos and espressos at the cafe in the AM....Then Mid morning coffees. $25 normal cost....

 

Lunch with Pelegrino water and sometimes a vitamin water.... $15

 

Mid afternoon sometimes a latte or another cappuccino.....or a Snapple depending on where we are. Sometimes a cool frosty drink. $20

 

Early evening Martini/molecular bar fun....2-4 drinks depending..... $55

 

Wine with dinner...at least a bottle for the two of us..... $40

 

More Pelegrino with dinner.... $10

 

After dinner wine or drinks.....Scotch etc. $30

 

During the day we drink on average 3 bottles of Evian each....so 6 bottles. $30

 

When we add all this up with the occasional blow out night.... It is $225 per day and we are paying.... $135 plus we dont have to sign anything anymore....just swipe and go! Easy.

 

For us.....we enjoy this very much and not drinking the water that comes purified from their tanks.....

 

Cheers! Happy Sails...

[Buranogal]

Hi if we are boarding in Rome will we be able to find a bottleshop and even understand the labels? Also pardon the dummy mummy but what is a Mimosa? We dont think we will buy the drink package either as I dont like paying extreme prices onboard prefer a glass of wine before dinner and water. Wheras on the river cruise all wine and drinks were included. I suddenly found a likeness for reds and European beer.

[potterduck]

Hi if we are boarding in Rome will we be able to find a bottleshop and even understand the labels? Also pardon the dummy mummy but what is a Mimosa?

 

Just check out Italian wines before you leave home to find out which you like, then look for similar grape names on the labels. You should get some decent stuff for about €5-6.

 

For us in the UK a mimosa is a Bucks Fizz, sparkling wine or champagne with orange juice.

[uktog]

We have decided on our next trip not to get the premium package which we had on the last one

 

We were probably marginally ahead on our last trip but it was a 16 night trip with 8 at sea days. We were in a suite so had no water perk - a bad idea in my view X

 

On our next trip, a 7 nighter to Bermuda which includes 2 nights/3 days in port we are not getting the package. We are in Aqua so the water is taken care of and may use the Elite lounge a little more. What I have done is topped our onboard credit up to 75% of the cost of a drinks package as an experiment as we do like to do some pre paying of costs. I will let you know in June what the end result is

 

We plan to drink as we would want to and sign away but may bring sodas back on board each night. We will also bring 2 bottles of wine on at embarkation for lunch time drinks on the balcony. It will be interesting to see what our final account looks like

[beverland]

I'm interested in the order of mimosas at breakfast. We are Elite.

 

Is it typical to get a complimentary drink with room service breakfast? I know we can get Mimosa, Bloody Mary, etc. in the Elite lounge at breakfast, but I didn't know you could order one without being charged from room service.

 

Has anyone else done. Would love to get a "free" bloody mary in the room!

 

Thanks for the info Sugar - we won't be ordering the package.

 

Thanks!

[Lsimon]

I'm interested in the order of mimosas at breakfast. We are Elite.

 

Is it typical to get a complimentary drink with room service breakfast?...

 

The post above that mentioned this is the first time I've ever heard or read of this happening, and believe it or not I've read a lot of posts in this forum over the years.

 

On the other hand we've never ordered such a beverage at breakfast time. None the less I wouldn't count on this as it is not a published perk - except for Elite Captains Club and then only if one goes to the Elite Coffee morning event.

[jdvmd]

The post above that mentioned this is the first time I've ever heard or read of this happening, and believe it or not I've read a lot of posts in this forum over the years.

 

On the other hand we've never ordered such a beverage at breakfast time. None the less I wouldn't count on this as it is not a published perk - except for Elite Captains Club and then only if one goes to the Elite Coffee morning event.

Never have heard of this either. Agree that no one should assume that they are getting this.

Thank you for the thorough review.

[Kellie Poodle]

I'm interested in the order of mimosas at breakfast. We are Elite.

 

Is it typical to get a complimentary drink with room service breakfast? I know we can get Mimosa, Bloody Mary, etc. in the Elite lounge at breakfast, but I didn't know you could order one without being charged from room service.

 

Has anyone else done. Would love to get a "free" bloody mary in the room!

 

 

Thanks!

 

 

I like a made to order omelet for breakfast which one can't get at the Elite lounge's continental breakfast. Believe me I inquired everywhere on my last Celebrity cruise about ways to get a free espresso with my omelet.

 

Unless one is in a suite with a butler, I've been told, it isn't going to happen.

[SugarLover]

For us we make out on the premium alcoholic drink package....easy. We are usually in a suite same as you and water is not included in suites......

 

Cappuccinos and espressos at the cafe in the AM....Then Mid morning coffees. $25 normal cost....

 

Lunch with Pelegrino water and sometimes a vitamin water.... $15

 

Mid afternoon sometimes a latte or another cappuccino.....or a Snapple depending on where we are. Sometimes a cool frosty drink. $20

 

Early evening Martini/molecular bar fun....2-4 drinks depending..... $55

 

Wine with dinner...at least a bottle for the two of us..... $40

 

More Pelegrino with dinner.... $10

 

After dinner wine or drinks.....Scotch etc. $30

 

During the day we drink on average 3 bottles of Evian each....so 6 bottles. $30

 

When we add all this up with the occasional blow out night.... It is $225 per day and we are paying.... $135 plus we dont have to sign anything anymore....just swipe and go! Easy.

 

For us.....we enjoy this very much and not drinking the water that comes purified from their tanks.....

 

Cheers! Happy Sails...

(It should be noted that the figures above are for TWO people, not a per person analysis, which is what most of us have been addressing in this particular thread.)

 

This is true... As every other single drink package thread on this forum says, it all depends on what and how much you drink, absolutely. However, for this thread, I was specifically addressing pax that were both Elite and in AquaClass, AND (drinking) solo (so ordering full wine bottles at dinner isn't really an option).

 

• The Elite perk provides espresso/cappuccinos and 'morning cocktails', and also cocktails/wine for happy hour.
  
• Being AQ adds on all the bottled water you want all day long (and we also pack extra to go ashore), and fresh oj. or grapefruit etc in Blu as well.
  
• The Elite perk again provides cocktails/wine for happy hour.
  
• (One thing I forgot to mention in my breakdown) Depending on how Elite you are, there are several parties that are all hours of the day... cocktails for sure, but also mid-day, etc, where you are offered drinks/coffees.
  
• Being solo, the two bottles (4 days worth of refreshment) allowed to be brought on board also figure into the calculations, again, for a single drinker.
  
• The Elite lounge is very nice opportunity for people traveling solo too... (not necessarily an alcohol issue, but still a plus instead of drinking alone)
  

The bottom line, IMO:

If you are solo (or your partner doesn't drink much or at all), and you are happily satisfied with taking advantage of the above, as Elite AND AQ (not suites), (and not even every day) in addition to still ordering the occasional martini and wine- then you still are saving considerably. In my most recent case, I saved about $50/day (a la carte) as I outlined above, so just paying a la carte for the additional things, such as wine by the glass or a martini or afterdinner drink, I still didn't approach the $40-50-60 EVERY day for a package.

 

Cruiseerf, I go out a lot, and like to order and do drink all the things you mention but certainly not every single day! and definitely not for 12 or 15 days in a row!!! Yikes, I'd be 'floating away' to rehab...:eek: with all that liquid and booze in me. Oh, and also I'd be wired to the hilt if I had more than 3 coffee drinks in a day. Plus, (this is not the case for everyone else), my cruises are half-work, half-vacation, so I like to keep my wits about me... :cool: (For you Cruiseerf, yes, you both being drinkers, and not AQ, and not wanting to socialize in the Elite lounge, then yes, for you it makes sense. I'm not bashing you, just pointing out the topic here.)

 

Let's also not forget half the days most of us aren't on board the ship even, so lunches or cocktails ashore are also consumed (and therefore you might not be running off to the bar as soon as you're back on board), so cannot be considered in the calculations for

the eternal $64,000 question of:

 

Drink package: do I, or don't I??? :D

(and in MY case/experience that I came back to report on,.....I don't find it justified)

[dmk]

The best way to know if a package is right for you is to try it. You can cancel it while on your cruise and they will prorate the package for you.

On our last cruise my husband tried the Premium Package. After 2 days, he realized that he was drinking more beverages (alcohol and non alcohol) than he usually does. So he cancelled his package and for the the remaimg 12 days of our cruise, he ordered beverages as he felt like it. Doing it this way the cost was much more reasonable for him.

No one can tell you if a package is right for you...only you...so try one and cancel it if it is not working for you.:)

[cherylroslyn]

Sugar,

 

Wow - thanks for not only "coming back" to the thread, but posting such valuable information and going into great detail. I really appreciate it.

 

My better half and I have been pouring (no pun intended!) through the oh-so-many beverage package threads trying to make an intelligent decision for an upcoming 15 day voyage.

 

As Elites, and sailing in a Sky Suite, I think we'll stick to the a la carte system. Your comments, as well as many others (thank you, too, LSimon ;) ), were very helpful in making our decision. While I fully understand the comments of many who said they weren't so much concerned with "breaking even" but couldn't put a price tag on the freedom and convenience of buying a beverage package, we do tend to gravitate more toward premium liquors and wines, so I think a la carte is the way to go for us. Now having said that, we are sailing the Hawaii round trip on Century where you have several sea days going over, followed by consecutive ports in the middle, then all the sea days back to San Diego. If during the crossing from San Diego to Hawaii we don't find ourselves all that happy with the Elite happy hour, then we have the option of buying a beverage package for the remainder of the voyage. Talk about options! ;) It's all good.

 

Everyone has to evalutate their own drinking patterns in order to make an intelligent decision and we've gained valuable insight from everyone's comments.

 

Thanks again, Sugar, for coming back and updating this thread with your experiences. Sounds like you had a wonderful 12 day voyage. :)

Beav - If I can put in my two cents? I am a huge proponent of the beverage packages.....and I am one of those people that "LSimon" referred to when he said some people think $110.00 per couple per day for a couple's bar bill is a "bargain". and I'm not elite so I son't get the Michael's cocktails..............

 

But even I would not take the package for a 15 night cruise. I did it for a ten day and even that was a little much........ I don't think it is necessary especially if you are elite.........

 

 

Sugar Lover we miss you on the roll call.....

 

 

Do you still want to do the wine tasting thing that we talked about earlier??? I thought your idea was so great......... I'm going to bring nicer bottles from home or try to find a better liquor stor in San Juan......if of course we are still doing it.

[cherylroslyn]

We have decided on our next trip not to get the premium package which we had on the last one

 

We were probably marginally ahead on our last trip but it was a 16 night trip with 8 at sea days. We were in a suite so had no water perk - a bad idea in my view X

 

On our next trip, a 7 nighter to Bermuda which includes 2 nights/3 days in port we are not getting the package. We are in Aqua so the water is taken care of and may use the Elite lounge a little more. What I have done is topped our onboard credit up to 75% of the cost of a drinks package as an experiment as we do like to do some pre paying of costs. I will let you know in June what the end result is

 

We plan to drink as we would want to and sign away but may bring sodas back on board each night. We will also bring 2 bottles of wine on at embarkation for lunch time drinks on the balcony. It will be interesting to see what our final account looks like

Just to let you know Bermuda is a very expensive Island. The soda on land is basically as expensiveaas onthe ship. You might want to consider a non-alcohol package. the premimium non-alcohol package is a great deal especially if you like the gourmet teas and specialty coffees, smothies, bottle water, and canned soda...... You can take sealed soda and water off the ship in port......it might make sense depending on what you like to drink.........

[CruisingChick]

We are elite and find that we would not benefit at all from any of the packages.

 

They are way overpriced unless you are going to drink all day long.

[obxgirl]

I've spent quite some time searching for the answer, but never found a good answer, so forgive me if this has been asked before...

 

I am newly Elite, so have not yet experienced the Elite lounge and its perks. I keep waffling as to whether to buy the Premium alcohol package (so as to get martinis and better wines), or just go a la carte.

- I can bring aboard 2 bottles,

- then AQ will give me a cheap bottle of bubbly upon arrival, and

- 2-4 bottles of spring water in the cabin daily, which i drink all up, and also take on shore with me

- Eating in Blu provides the fresh o.j.

- My past cruises in AQ, for my daily rm service breakfast I/we always ordered two mimosas (but they both were for me!) and I never once was charged :confused:.

- Being Elite now includes not one, but two cocktail parties with beverages

 

So now, I can go to the lounge in the a.m. for mimosas or bloodys and cappucinos, right? And in the pm happy hour, I can also have a glass of wine, sparkling, cosmos, martini etc? (But I do understand you can't walk out with them... they must be consumed there.)

 

I am not a 'lush' but when on vacay, I do enjoy champagne before dinner, wine with dinner, rum drinks by the pool, a cappucino or espresso sometime during the day, and a martini or nightcap before or after the show. Toss in an occasional vitamin water, smoothie, spa cafe carrot juice blend, and few ginger ales... but certainly not all of these every day.

 

Price value aside though... I have always been very tempted to do the pkg for the 'freedom' and 'choice' I get, as well as not having to be constantly waiting on and signing the tab.

 

For those of you who are Elite, and especially also AQ or CC, do you find you now pass on the pkg because you don't get the value out of it?

 

[* I should add that my traveling companion does not drink, so those 3 bottles in the cabin won't be shared, and he usually always grabs a glass of freebie champagne upon boarding, at the capt's welcome, etc, and then hands it to me (he's well-trained!). It's not that I am trying to max out on the free stuff, but if/when I drink those things, that cuts down on my appetite for something else like a martini down the hall upon exiting.]

 

Bottom line is that it all depends on what is important to you. We love the freedom of no signatures and knowing that whatever we get we have already paid for it. We enjoy Pelligrino and cappucinos with all meals, the coffee bar several times a day, and the occasional soda in addition to wines and mixed drinks. We especially love it when we are on a ship with a Molecular Bar.

[SugarLover]

Bottom line is that it all depends on what is important to you. We love the freedom of no signatures and knowing that whatever we get we have already paid for it. We enjoy Pelligrino and cappucinos with all meals, the coffee bar several times a day, and the occasional soda in addition to wines and mixed drinks. We especially love it when we are on a ship with a Molecular Bar.

Thanks obxgirl! I appreciate your input. I started this thread over 3 months ago, and I've already gone and come back from my cruise. I have my answer myself... as I came back to report -- by request from someone with the same quandry yesterday. (see top of page 2, post # 21)

[Kellie Poodle]

We are elite and find that we would not benefit at all from any of the packages.

 

They are way overpriced unless you are going to drink all day long.

 

I'm Elite, too, but we do benefit from my soda package. I consume huge quantities of Coke Zero and if not available, Diet Coke. It is not unusual for me to have 4 cans of soda with dinner and the wait staff knows to start me off with 3 cans. On our last cruise the DH decided that I drank about 7 cans per day. At home I go through a 12 pack in 2 days.

 

I have a medical problem that requires a lot of liquids for me to swallow my food and I don't like water or ice tea. Lemonade is also out of the question. The cruise ship is not making a bundle on my soda package.

 

I pre-ordered my soda package for my upcoming cruise when they had the sale a couple of weeks ago.

 

The other package that works for us is the wine package. We like a glass or two of wine with dinner and find it less expensive to order 3, 5 or 7 bottles, depending on the length of the cruise, from one of the packages than by ordering by the glass or individual bottles.

 

I do agree that the Elite perks kind of negate the necessity for a premium beverage package for a lot of folks.

[FLsunshinegal]

for just part of the cruise???? I thought you had to sign up and pay for the entire cruise, not just the first week and then if you like it, an additional week.

[Wine-O]

for just part of the cruise???? I thought you had to sign up and pay for the entire cruise, not just the first week and then if you like it, an additional week.

 

When you sign up, you have to take it from then to the end of the cruise. That's why a lot of folks on Westbound transatlantics will sign up after the last port visit for the 7-day trip across the pond.

[FLsunshinegal]

When you sign up, you have to take it from then to the end of the cruise. That's why a lot of folks on Westbound transatlantics will sign up after the last port visit for the 7-day trip across the pond.

 

I'll pass this along to our friends who are taking a Westbound TA this fall. It makes sense to have it for the latter half of the journey. I think I'll pass on purchasing it for the eastbound TA in the spring.

[SPF 350Z]

Greetings All!

 

Does anyone know if they are still serving the morning cocktails? We were on Eclipse in Feb and it was not offered. I was quite surprised. We are going to be on a 17 night Sydney to Singapore cruise in November and I have been trying to decide what to do about the drinks pacakges.

 

I really hope that between now and then that Celebrity will offer another "discount" to pre order! :D

 

 

Many thanks for your responses!

[BeeSkip]

Hi everyone...but I am getting confused..TMI???

 

What does the regular everyday Elite cruiser get in the complimentary drinks dept?

 

Bee

[Lsimon]

Hi everyone...but I am getting confused..TMI???

 

What does the regular everyday Elite cruiser get in the complimentary drinks dept?

 

Bee

 

There is a two hour Elite lounge most nights from 5 to 7 with a small selection of complimentary beverages and hors d'oeuvres.

 

There is also a coffee hour most mornings that has complimentary espresso based coffees and some other beverages along with a continental breakfast.

 

All of these are only for consumption within the lounge chosen for elite events and unfortunate take always are not allowed nor are non-Elite guests per than those sharing a cabin with Elite guests.

[FLsunshinegal]

Greetings All!

 

Does anyone know if they are still serving the morning cocktails? We were on Eclipse in Feb and it was not offered. I was quite surprised. We are going to be on a 17 night Sydney to Singapore cruise in November and I have been trying to decide what to do about the drinks pacakges.

 

I really hope that between now and then that Celebrity will offer another "discount" to pre order! :D

 

Many thanks for your responses!

 

They had mimosas and bloody mary's available at the Elite breakfast every day - and martinis (basic ones plus cosmopolitans) plus well brands of everything else in the evening.