Why is Celebrity offering the free drink packages?

[slanik]

So I'm a little confused why Celebrity is offering free drink packages? It seems like it would be a costly perk to offer it's guests. Is it trying to attract a different demographic or does it really cost much less than I image to offer free alcohol? Or are other cruise lines offering drink packages and Celebrity has to keep up? Just wondering. I'm not complaining, I'll enjoy the freedom to drink what I want.

[Tugboatbob]

We enjoyed this perk on a 2 week cruise last month, saved a bundle.

[justcrusn]

because it fills the cabins.

If they sell a cabin at full list price, as opposed to discounting it is profitable.

Remember that it may cost you $50 a day to buy the beverage package but it does NOT cost the cruise line $50 a day to fulfill it.

And many people choose a different perk, or take the beverage package only to have 3 or 4 drinks a day anyway.

[Cruising89143]

In most cases the prices have been adjusted up by X to cover this perk program so it's really not a free perk program.

[cherylroslyn]

So I'm a little confused why Celebrity is offering free drink packages? It seems like it would be a costly perk to offer it's guests. Is it trying to attract a different demographic or does it really cost much less than I image to offer free alcohol? Or are other cruise lines offering drink packages and Celebrity has to keep up? Just wondering. I'm not complaining, I'll enjoy the freedom to drink what I want.

From a marketing standpoint it allows them to bring in cruisers from other lines when all things equal, now add drink package for free and scales tip in the favor of Celebrity; Celebrity pays pennies for the liquor that it sell on the ship, look at the process in the on ship liquor store, and that is what we pay...imagine what they pay; and lastly, it may get passengers hooked on the drink package experience.

 

All those passengers who scoffed at the thought of packages three years ago when they launched these new packages are now happily enjoying the packages and realizing they can drink enough to justify the package....maybe not by drinking only alcohol drinks, but overall they are seeing that they can easily consume a combination of wine, soda, coffee, frozen cocktails, martinis and bottled water to make the package make sense in the future.

 

If 10 out of every 100 will but the package in the future......the marketing ploy has been hugely successful.

 

Remember, drug dealers used to give crack away in the late eighties.....

[Cruise_Dancer]

The cruise lines can purchase liquor duty free (hence why passengers can purchase liquor duty free onboard). Consider the price of liquor from the shops on board, then remove the cruise line's mark up (typically at least 50%), then consider how many drinks they can get from each bottle. It actually becomes quite affordable for them to offer this perk for only a small markup per ticket, especially if it gets additional passengers.

[grandgeezer]

If you think it's actually free, I've got some oceanview land in Kansas I'd like to sell you. If you had to buy it, it would cost you about $45 per day per person, but what does it cost them? Me, for example, all I drink is beer. On sale, I get Bud for 60 cents a can. On the ship,it's about $5 per can. If I drink nine beers a day to justify the $45, it cost them $5.40.

You probably could use this same rationale for all drinks. As far as the convience, you're on a cruise, what's the hurry.

On the whole 1-2-3 promo. We're going on a 13 day Med. cruise so my options are $300 obc, prepaid gratuities ($338) or the drink package (about $1170). I got to pick two of the three. I picked the obc, and gratuities. Why? That's real money that's coming out of my pocket, not drinks I'm forced to drink to get my moneys worth.

Savings is only money that you would have spent normally but didn't. Being Elite plus, we'd probably would have spent about $120 on drinks so I will save about $180 of real money.

The other type of logic tells me I just saved $300,000 because I didn't buy a new house. I wasn't going to spend it, but since I didn't I saved it. Can't wait to get my bank statement!

[Voyagr]

Competition drives this promotion I would guess; these marketers are experts at what they do. I hope it's successful, and I hope to get one myself.

 

We need the cruise lines to makes HUGE, HUGE PROFITS every year so they continue to entice us with their wonderful product line.

 

Tom

[Lastdance]

That just shows that the drink package isn't for everyone! It is definitely not for me or my DH, as we drink very little, and want to stay as healthy as we can. However, it is nice once in a while onboard. Everyone has his or her own reasons for drinking or not, but one thing is for sure...it is a big deal on this board, and cruisers seem to think it is very important! Otherwise, it wouldn't be talked about so much. :cool:

[Earthworm Jim]

If you think it's actually free, I've got some oceanview land in Kansas I'd like to sell you. If you had to buy it, it would cost you about $45 per day per person, but what does it cost them? Me, for example, all I drink is beer. On sale, I get Bud for 60 cents a can. On the ship,it's about $5 per can. If I drink nine beers a day to justify the $45, it cost them $5.40.

 

True, but there is also an additional cost to Celebrity as well. Every beer you get included may only cost them 60 cents, but they are losing out on the revenue they would have gotten if you had to pay for it.

 

Put another way, if the average cruiser spends $100 on drinks per cruise (just to make up a number), they are losing out on not just the $5-$10 cost to make the drinks but $90-$95 profit they would have made. So they'd better be getting that $100 back from the price paid on the cabin.

 

It could be that with the free drink package passengers tend to just spend the money they would have spent on drinks on something else though (gambling, spa, excursions, etc.), I don't know.

[rubydoobydoo]

You don't really get anything for free, the cost has been built in somewhere, you just don't notice it as you are happy to pay the price for your cruise and the package is an extra bonus, if there were no packages the cost of the cabins would probably have been lower

[twomoons]

You don't really get anything for free, the cost has been built in somewhere, you just don't notice it as you are happy to pay the price for your cruise and the package is an extra bonus, if there were no packages the cost of the cabins would probably have been lower

 

I had been eyeing a Southern Caribbean cruise on the Summit or Adventure of The Seas for a few months. When Celebrity offered the drink special the cabin prices did not increase ( it did on RCI) so we grabbed it along with friends. It has turned into a group of 35. Some are getting drink package as well as kids free! One family of four booked an oceanview for $1500, including tax & port fees & a Classic Drink package. Plus we all get $75 OBC per cabin as part of the group. Not sure how they can afford to offer that, but it could be the prices were raised on other ships.

 

 

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[RickT]

As others have mentioned, it's basically taking money from one pocket to another pocket with the net cost being the same.

 

I booked a Med cruise last year for $XXX and bought $XXX worth of drinks. If I book a similar cruise this year with the free drink package the total cost will be within pennies of what I paid last year (cruise price plus $ spend on drinks).

 

I'm fine either way.

 

I have two friends who took their first cruise ever due to the drink promo. They are used to going to all inclusive resorts and had been scared off by the "extras" that they'd have to pay on a cruise. Both have said they loved the cruise and will do it again... I'm guessing this is also what Celebrity is trying to do.

Edited March 24, 2014 by RickT

[Oville]

In most cases the prices have been adjusted up by X to cover this perk program so it's really not a free perk program.

 

Where can this be documented? We've had the perk on quite a few cruises and never saw a rate increase over what we usually spend on our cabin category of choice.

[greydog]

Where can this be documented? We've had the perk on quite a few cruises and never saw a rate increase over what we usually spend on our cabin category of choice.

 

When I search X cruise prices which offer beverage package choice, and also qualify for military discount, the X web price will, for certain cabin categories, offer me the lower military discount price or a higher price with bev pkg (at least $100+ higher pp). Since I know how much we usually spend on drinks, I can do the math to take the better deal. Happy Cruising

[k9x8]

I've seen big increases on plenty of cruises. Generally speaking, the lowest fares were November-ish. You can't just compare last year to this year; you need to study the price history for an itinerary.

 

A1 on the Equinox, 12 night Venice overnight, has jumped $730pp since November, though it's only about $250 higher than when it opened. The price pp (before taxes and fees, gratuities and insurance) is higher than what we paid in 2012 for both of us. That holds true when I adjust the 12 night vs 10 night.

 

 

Celebrity doesn't really need to increase the price to come out on top. If there is a price drop and you grab it, chances are, you will lose your perk. I would much rather get the 40% in price drops and residence rate. The difference was roughly the same as a drink package and gratuities.

[LeftcoastBC]

Where can this be documented? We've had the perk on quite a few cruises and never saw a rate increase over what we usually spend on our cabin category of choice.

 

Having been watching the prices almost everyday (I know get a life) it was quite obvious that the price went up (more than the 1-2-3 promo) on the cruise I was watching and the next day a 1-2-3 came out.

 

I have also read that since the Bev packages the number of waiters in circulation to serve you seems to have gone down. The incentive is not to deliver drinks to you & fewer staff to pay. It's all about the bottom line.

Edited March 24, 2014 by LeftcoastBC

[ghstudio]

Clearly it's built in the price. We booked a transatlantic on a group rate (large agency just groups folks together to get a bulk price..not really a group as you think of groups) without the 1-2-3 package. Celebrity was selling the same cabin on their web site with 1-2-3. The difference in price was $900 per person.

 

The real cost of the 1-2-3 package is about $300 per person (since that's the OBC they generally offer which is more than the gratuities and you could spend this on a piece of jewelry which is a franchise on board so they actually would have to pay $300 to the franchise). They can charge more because folks love the "free" drinks. It's money making marketing offering...and it apparently works.

[2theship]

I think they've set a new price line and are now offering you the chance to decide on the discount you prefer. I'd never drink enough to justify paying for a drink package but getting it for "free" is great. I make it a bigger value by buying cappucinos and bottled water that I never would have done otherwise. When you combine that with the convenience of having the server swipe your card and giving it back without any paperwork to sign, it's just so much easier. I think they're trying to get you accustomed to using a drink package so you will always want one in the future.

[Cruising89143]

Where can this be documented? We've had the perk on quite a few cruises and never saw a rate increase over what we usually spend on our cabin category of choice.

 

It's been posted right here on this very board by members of this board. On our first cruise it was a wash. On our upcoming cruise when the program was announced we had to pay the going rate to get the program. It was an additional $500.00 to add the package. The cruise that we just returned home from was two grand higher exactly one year later for the same cabin. The program was in place.

[BEAV]

In our situation, we had an existing booking that we were able to simply add the drink package to when the promo was announced. So we experienced no fare increase, making it a win-win. We did have to give up our original promotion, however, which was a $600 OBC suite promo. But since the sailing was 18 days, it was a no-brainer to give up the $600 OBC for the Classic package for two, which we paid to upgrade to Premium.

 

(as a side note, when we boarded the ship, we were shocked to see the $600 OBC was still on our account from =X=. Their accounting practices must be about as bad as their website!).

Edited March 25, 2014 by BEAV

[richstowe]

In our situation, we had an existing booking that we were able to simply add the drink package to when the promo was announced. So we experienced no fare increase, making it a win-win. We did have to give up our original promotion, however, which was a $600 OBC suite promo. But since the sailing was 18 days, it was a no-brainer to give up the $600 OBC for the Classic package for two, which we paid to upgrade to Premium.

 

(as a side note, when we boarded the ship, we were shocked to see the $600 OBC was still on our account from =X=. Their accounting practices must be about as bad as their website!).

The charge to upgrade to premium is one way that X has to get back a bit of profit from this promo.

Good for them !

BTW, at the risk of being criticized, congrats on the $600 mistake. :D

[cle-guy]

Where can this be documented? We've had the perk on quite a few cruises and never saw a rate increase over what we usually spend on our cabin category of choice.

 

theres a website that tracks and graphs historical cruise prices. you can see the fluctuations the dates the promos change and expire and again as final payments are due.

 

By ship, by cruise/date and by line you can find this data.

[forceten]

We are taking our first cruise ever this June. I was torn between Celebrity canivale, norwegian and Royal. I knew I didn't want carnivale, but RC and Nor were coming out ahead and I almost booked one of them, but I did like the idea of celebrity being maybe a quieter ship.

 

As soon as I saw the pick your perk, that stopped me looking at the other lines and we went ahead and booked Celebrity. We were originally looking at ocean view, but then looked and balcony and then talked ourselves into aqua to try blu.

 

So not sure if they lose money on the drink package but they earned our booking because of it.

[jkgourmet]

The value of the Bev package is tied to the number of days of the cruise. We have booked an OV on a 16 day repositioning cruise in December. That makes the monetary value of that classic package roughly $800 per person. Hell, our cabin costs just a few hundred more than that.

 

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