Wines and corkage and bars, Oh my! (Signature Beverage Pkg, Beverage Cards & Corkage)

[honey-bunny]

Not only can the SBP Card be used on a sea day, it can be used hard. ;)

 

You can use it any day of the cruise, but I am pretty sure that it won't work at breakfast on the day you are leaving the ship. We didn't check that.

that's fantastic news!!!! thank you very much for taking the time to do all the research and for the reply ;)

[Watson's aunt]

Hi

 

I have a question On my next cruise I will be traveling solo again. Will I have to pay double for the package as I am paying for two to be in my cabin and does this mean I will get to drink 30 drinks a day rather than the 15. (which I will never drink) :)

 

Mary

[Lotsasmiles]

First up - thanks POA1 for your continued research on this topic from a 'serial lurker'. Looking for forward to your next cruise report on the Zuiderdam. We will try and warm the bartenders up for you.

 

On our up-coming cruise (20 days) we looked seriously at purchasing the SBP (we Aussies don't get it free :() and did our 'sums' based on a 14 day journey last year and decided that it was probably worth it given our use of several $250 beverage cards and a room card account. :eek: My - they do add up!

 

However, what we were concerned about was the lack of flexibility of the card. We enjoy a beer on our balcony and usually purchase a 'bucket' of beer which is very convenient. Having to purchase one beer at a time would be counter productive to drinking time (it would however be better for the waistline!) and we usually only have a cocktail at happy hour anyway. Also, having to be confined to house wines that may not be to our taste was somewhat of a deal breaker.

 

So, we have decided to purchase some $250 cards - enough hopefully for no end of cruise shocks - (I can justify the number of cards as I can class them as pre purchase of on-board credit ;)) and 2 x wine packages (woo hoo finally get a discount). At the end of this cruise, we will again do 'our sums' taking into account the flexibility of how we like to use the cards and work out whether the SBP would've been worthwhile or not.

 

If anyone is interested enough I will report back on our findings (sorry tho - I don't have the 'gift' like POA1 does so it will be more factual than funny)

 

Anne-Marie

[POA1]

If anyone is interested enough I will report back on our findings (sorry tho - I don't have the 'gift' like POA1 does so it will be more factual than funny)

 

Anne-Marie

 

Thanks Anne-Marie. I'm sure that everyone would love to hear about your adventures. :)

[clogaltocruise]

Sadly, the answer is no. I normally drink Maker's Mark which is $7.95, so I switched to Jim Beam instead. Other options would have been Jack Daniels (not a Bourbon) or Wild Turkey since those are below the cutoff.

I'm not a bourbon drinker, at the risk of embarrassing myself, if Jack Daniels isn't bourbon, what is it?

[POA1]

I'm not a bourbon drinker, at the risk of embarrassing myself, if Jack Daniels isn't bourbon, what is it?

 

Tennessee Whiskey. For all intents and purposes, it's the same except that Tennessee Whiskey passes through about 20 feet of charcoal filtration.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bourbon_whiskey

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennessee_whiskey

 

Some people will tell you that they can taste the difference between the two. While you can certainly taste the difference between different brands of Bourbons or Tennessee Whiskeys, it's not like you take a sip and say, "Hmmm... tastes like Kentucky!"

 

I prefer Maker's Mark (a Bourbon), but if someone hands me a glass of Jack Daniels, I would still call him "friend." :D I drank either Jim Beam or Wild Turkey (Bourbons) or Jack Daniels on the Signature Beverage Package.

Edited July 31, 2014 by POA1

[clogaltocruise]

Interesting ... thank you. I always learn something new on CC.

[magandab]

DH has moved on (up) from Jack Daniels to Gentleman Jack and the occasional splurge on JD Single Barrel. Sadly, neither of the latter are served on HAL.

[fuzzywuzzy]

I have a question and sorry if this has been asked before but we haven't sailed since the new wine policy came into effect.

 

I understand that we each can bring on one "free" bottle of wine. Any others we have to pay a corkage fee. My question - is this for the whole cruise? Or can we bring one bottle of wine onboard at each port of call free of corkage fee? If not, how do they know we have already brought on one bottle of wine as we reboard from the ports of call? Thanks of any advice.

[jtl513]

Or can we bring one bottle of wine onboard at each port of call free of corkage fee?

All wine brought on at ports of call are subject to the corkage.

.

Edited July 31, 2014 by jtl513

[fuzzywuzzy]

All wine brought on at ports of call are subject to the corkage.

.

 

Oh I see. Thank you.

[Alberta Quilter]

First up - thanks POA1 for your continued research on this topic from a 'serial lurker'. Looking for forward to your next cruise report on the Zuiderdam. We will try and warm the bartenders up for you.

 

On our up-coming cruise (20 days) we looked seriously at purchasing the SBP (we Aussies don't get it free :() and did our 'sums' based on a 14 day journey last year and decided that it was probably worth it given our use of several $250 beverage cards and a room card account. :eek: My - they do add up!

 

However, what we were concerned about was the lack of flexibility of the card. We enjoy a beer on our balcony and usually purchase a 'bucket' of beer which is very convenient. Having to purchase one beer at a time would be counter productive to drinking time (it would however be better for the waistline!) and we usually only have a cocktail at happy hour anyway. Also, having to be confined to house wines that may not be to our taste was somewhat of a deal breaker.

 

So, we have decided to purchase some $250 cards - enough hopefully for no end of cruise shocks - (I can justify the number of cards as I can class them as pre purchase of on-board credit ;)) and 2 x wine packages (woo hoo finally get a discount). At the end of this cruise, we will again do 'our sums' taking into account the flexibility of how we like to use the cards and work out whether the SBP would've been worthwhile or not.

 

If anyone is interested enough I will report back on our findings (sorry tho - I don't have the 'gift' like POA1 does so it will be more factual than funny)

 

Anne-Marie

 

Just a thought that you may want to consider with respect to the SBP - you could stock up on beer as you go through the day(s). There only has to be a five minute delay between purchases on each card. Take both cards to the bar, onder a beer on each card, make sure to order them unopened, and take them back to your cabin. You can order again 5 minutes later. Keep the beer in the fridge until you are ready to enjoy them. You can do this with pop, too. You may want to have the contents of the fridge removed upon embarkation, to make room for your stock.

 

This would give you the flexibility that you desire so, if the "sums" work out, the SBP card could still work for you.

 

For cocktails, well, you might have to go to a bar, get the drinks and take them back to your balcony. Or just stay in the bar, and have a second drink!

[fuzzywuzzy]

Just a thought that you may want to consider with respect to the SBP - you could stock up on beer as you go through the day(s). There only has to be a five minute delay between purchases on each card. Take both cards to the bar, onder a beer on each card, make sure to order them unopened, and take them back to your cabin. You can order again 5 minutes later. Keep the beer in the fridge until you are ready to enjoy them. You can do this with pop, too. You may want to have the contents of the fridge removed upon embarkation, to make room for your stock.

 

This would give you the flexibility that you desire so, if the "sums" work out, the SBP card could still work for you.

 

For cocktails, well, you might have to go to a bar, get the drinks and take them back to your balcony. Or just stay in the bar, and have a second drink!

 

All this sounds WAY too complicated!

[POA1]

Just a thought that you may want to consider with respect to the SBP - you could stock up on beer as you go through the day(s). There only has to be a five minute delay between purchases on each card. Take both cards to the bar, onder a beer on each card, make sure to order them unopened, and take them back to your cabin. You can order again 5 minutes later. Keep the beer in the fridge until you are ready to enjoy them. You can do this with pop, too. You may want to have the contents of the fridge removed upon embarkation, to make room for your stock.

 

This would give you the flexibility that you desire so, if the "sums" work out, the SBP card could still work for you.

 

For cocktails, well, you might have to go to a bar, get the drinks and take them back to your balcony. Or just stay in the bar, and have a second drink!

 

Some may say that this is a bit complicated, but I say that this is the type of innovative thinking that makes Canada a great nation. That, and Tim Horton's.

[fuzzywuzzy]

Some may say that this is a bit complicated, but I say that this is the type of innovative thinking that makes Canada a great nation. That, and Tim Horton's.

 

 

LOL....eh to that!!

[Alberta Quilter]

I can't take the credit for the innovative thought. I got the idea from POA in this thread. It worked well for me on our Alaskan cruise with pop. My mother wasn't well some of the time so I kept getting ginger ale for her to settle her stomach. We didn't have a fridge though.

 

Glad you like our Timmies, though. I have one here in the building and have only been there once. Of course, not drinking coffee (and being gluten sensitive) has a lot to do with my not going there.

[Lotsasmiles]

Just a thought that you may want to consider with respect to the SBP - you could stock up on beer as you go through the day(s). There only has to be a five minute delay between purchases on each card. Take both cards to the bar, onder a beer on each card, make sure to order them unopened, and take them back to your cabin. You can order again 5 minutes later. Keep the beer in the fridge until you are ready to enjoy them. You can do this with pop, too. You may want to have the contents of the fridge removed upon embarkation, to make room for your stock.

 

This would give you the flexibility that you desire so, if the "sums" work out, the SBP card could still work for you.

 

For cocktails, well, you might have to go to a bar, get the drinks and take them back to your balcony. Or just stay in the bar, and have a second drink!

 

Yes, we thought about that for the beer, and also maybe just buying one to drink while waiting for the next one to be available. However, doing that we just may never even get out of the bar! :D

[Alberta Quilter]

Yes, we thought about that for the beer, and also maybe just buying one to drink while waiting for the next one to be available. However, doing that we just may never even get out of the bar! :D

 

Well, you could try buying them in the morning, when you may be less likely to drink beer... Of course, success may depend on if you find the Bloody Mary cart (aka the breakfast salad) in the Lido.:D

 

Whatever you decide to do, I hope you have fun trying!

[Lotsasmiles]

Well, you could try buying them in the morning, when you may be less likely to drink beer... Of course, success may depend on if you find the Bloody Mary cart (aka the breakfast salad) in the Lido.:D

 

Whatever you decide to do, I hope you have fun trying!

 

We found that on our last cruise and I must say it is a very very civilized way to start the day. :D

[honey-bunny]

would be fun to have mimosa for breakfast with SBP so far I had seen on other tread that some of the sparkling wine (Prosecco ) is part of SBP it is under 7$ per glass ! what a great way to start of your morning with some bubbles and orange juice :):o :D

[Alberta Quilter]

We found that on our last cruise and I must say it is a very very civilized way to start the day. :D

 

would be fun to have mimosa for breakfast with SBP so far I had seen on other tread that some of the sparkling wine (Prosecco ) is part of SBP it is under 7$ per glass ! what a great way to start of your morning with some bubbles and orange juice :):o :D

 

I'm sad to say that I do not partake of either Bloody Marys/Caesars/Sparkling Wine or even OJ. Nor coffee (unless it has copious amounts of alcohol to kill the coffee taste).

 

The SBP was still a success for me because I received it as part of the Explore4 promo. So, what I had to drink was free. I didn't have to worry about getting my money's worth out of it.

 

However, my mother did enjoy her Caesar at the BM Cart one morning. She chose not to indulge in a Caesar on a daily basis (once we found the cart). Well, that, and she wasn't feeling good some of the time, hence stocking up on the ginger ale previously mentioned.

 

Enjoy your cruise, and the SBP should you purchase it!

[clogaltocruise]

We're looking forward to the SBP. Just the specialty coffees, sodas & a few cocktails ... but add in the bottled waters we usually purchase, this will be a nice savings. All those various beverages add up. Thank you HAL.

[POA1]

We're looking forward to the SBP. Just the specialty coffees, sodas & a few cocktails ... but add in the bottled waters we usually purchase, this will be a nice savings. All those various beverages add up. Thank you HAL.

Just remember to pick up your bottles of water at breakfast or before you head down to the gangway. You can't use your SBP card on the gangway because there's no computer terminal.

[clogaltocruise]

Thank you!!! I would not have thought of that.

[POA1]

Thank you!!! I would not have thought of that.

 

We didn't either. That's why I mentioned it. Here at the Institute of Cheer, we mess up so you don't have to! :D