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Pre-purchase of liquor not on list

psantho

By psantho,
in Holland America Line

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psantho

psantho

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I was wondering if anyone has tried to order a "spirit" that is not on the list published on the HAL website. I'm wondering if I would be able to pre-purchase something not on the list if I call in to the Indulgences customer service group, or if they strictly adhere to the published list.

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sail7seas

sail7seas

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I have tried several times to order Haig Dimple Pinch Scotch and I have never had a bit of success. They just tell me sorry, its not available. Its nothing special, but its what I like and they don't have it and wont get it. :(

 

 

That was my DH's favorite scotch and he never could get it on HAL ships. Then again not a lot of restaurants in our area has it either. He 'made do' with Chevas. :)

 

 

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POA1 "Live from...." Rare

POA1

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I was able to pre-order Makers Mark (not on the list of liquor) and it was in the cabin when we arrived.

Same here. It's a stock item, though. As long as you want something that is readily available in most of the bars and lounges, you're okay.

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jaguarstyper

jaguarstyper

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That was my DH's favorite scotch and he never could get it on HAL ships. Then again not a lot of restaurants in our area has it either. He 'made do' with Chevas. :)

 

 

Yeah, I do the same thing at a lot of places. But you eventually get to a point in your life where you get tired of having to "make do" with things you don't want. I'm at that point in life, so I pack a bottle in my luggage now. I have a pelican case for it and it fits perfectly. :o

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crystalspin

crystalspin

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Anyone know if any of the Captain Morgan rums are onboard for this 'special ordering'? The preorder list has Bacardi White & Gold and Myers (which appears a spiced rum). We enjoyed having a bottle of rum in the room last cruise; it can be drunk so many ways and rum just seems to go with sailing!

 

Elizabeth AKA crystalspin

 

1995 Marco Polo, Cape Town to Buenos Aires

2000? Statendam, Ensenada to Hawaii and back

June 2009 Statendam, Vancouver to Seward, Alaska

June 2011 MS Russ, St.Peterburg to Moscow

Sept/Oct 2012 MS Russ, Astrakhan to Moscow

Dec 2013 Norwegian Star, Panama Canal & Mexican Riviera

Nov/Dec 2014 HAL Zaandam, Santiago to Buenos Aires

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InTheWASide

InTheWASide

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I was wondering if anyone has tried to order a "spirit" that is not on the list published on the HAL website. I'm wondering if I would be able to pre-purchase something not on the list if I call in to the Indulgences customer service group, or if they strictly adhere to the published list.

 

Depends but others are right... sometimes just depends on if the ship already has it, etc.

 

Only time I ever needed to do this I had the Suite Amenity Package and got the 2 bottles of liquor. The only Absolut Vodka option they had besides regular was Citron. I prefer Mandarin.

 

I didn't call ahead of time but got down to the Front Desk onboard and since they were the same price and they had an adequate supply onboard otherwise (guests wouldn't "miss out" if they accommodated my request) they had no problem doing it and I had it within about 20 minutes of leaving the Front Desk.

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PathfinderEss

PathfinderEss

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Anyone know if any of the Captain Morgan rums are onboard for this 'special ordering'? The preorder list has Bacardi White & Gold and Myers (which appears a spiced rum). We enjoyed having a bottle of rum in the room last cruise; it can be drunk so many ways and rum just seems to go with sailing!

 

Elizabeth AKA crystalspin

 

Absolutely, I have seen Captain Morgan's onboard. I have a friend that drinks it, so for some reason I pay attention to it being on board.

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jaguarstyper

jaguarstyper

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Give them a call. They may be able to accommodate your request. Rest assured, it won't be cheap.

 

HAL's liquor by the bottle is very reasonably priced. In many cases, its not a lot more than what you might pay in some land based liquor stores. It depends largely where you live. Liquor prices at retail vary greatly from state to state in the USA. And all bottles on HAL are full 1 liter bottles, not the 750ml bottles typically sold in the USA.

 

Now wine is another story. HAL's wine prices are borderline ridiculous.

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psantho

psantho

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Typhoon1, you are certainly correct that it could be pricey! I called guest services, who had to check with the ship. I received a quote of $102 for a bottle of Patron Silver! Guess I won't be pre-ordering that tequila for my cabin. Thanks for the responses, everyone!

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sail7seas

sail7seas

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Typhoon1, you are certainly correct that it could be pricey! I called guest services, who had to check with the ship. I received a quote of $102 for a bottle of Patron Silver! Guess I won't be pre-ordering that tequila for my cabin. Thanks for the responses, everyone!

 

 

How much do you pay for it in your local liquor store or wherever liquor is sold in your state?

 

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BJzink

BJzink

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I was wondering if anyone has tried to order a "spirit" that is not on the list published on the HAL website. I'm wondering if I would be able to pre-purchase something not on the list if I call in to the Indulgences customer service group, or if they strictly adhere to the published list.

March 2014 we were on the Veendam, my husband wanted Bacardi Gold. I called ahead the number for the "indulgences", I think, & got a generic office for Carnival. They checked their list & said that they could only provide Bacardi Silver, but I could check onboard with one of the bars to get a bottle of the gold if they had it. We decided that he could order his rum/Coke by the glass, it would't really be worth the hassle. I think that if you made 10 calls, you'd get 10 differet answers.

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AACJ

AACJ

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I agree, the liquor is priced VERY reasonably. Wine and BEER especially is NOT. Looking at my upcoming cruise for "indulgences", beer is 28.75 for a six pack, this is Miller, Miller Light, Bud and Bud Light, NOT including the 15% gratuity. The "imported" beer, Amstel Light (have you ever heard of an Amstel regular??), Corona, and Heineken, are all 32.50, not including gratuity.

 

I am considering bringing my own 7up or ginger ale on board on embarkation and having some 7 and 7's. A 1 liter bottle of Seagrams 7 is 33.75, not including gratuity.

 

 

HAL's liquor by the bottle is very reasonably priced. In many cases, its not a lot more than what you might pay in some land based liquor stores. It depends largely where you live. Liquor prices at retail vary greatly from state to state in the USA. And all bottles on HAL are full 1 liter bottles, not the 750ml bottles typically sold in the USA.

 

Now wine is another story. HAL's wine prices are borderline ridiculous.

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detroit70

detroit70

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Typhoon1, you are certainly correct that it could be pricey! I called guest services, who had to check with the ship. I received a quote of $102 for a bottle of Patron Silver! Guess I won't be pre-ordering that tequila for my cabin. Thanks for the responses, everyone!

 

We had a similar problem with ordering a bottle of Vermouth so we could make Manhattans with the bottle of Jim Bean we buy from HAL (at a reasonable price.) We normally pay from $4.50 to $7 for a bottle of Vermouth at home. HAL wanted $56 when we asked in advance of departure. And when we asked on board, it was even more.

 

We bought the Vermouth in Copenhagen, before boarding the Eurodam, and the "wine checker" at embarkation said it was clearly not wine, but she said she would let us go and hope she didn't get fired (her words) This was despite the email we had from our PCC (and research on the web) that Vermouth IS wine.

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Krazy Kruizers

Krazy Kruizers

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March 2014 we were on the Veendam, my husband wanted Bacardi Gold. I called ahead the number for the "indulgences", I think, & got a generic office for Carnival. They checked their list & said that they could only provide Bacardi Silver, but I could check onboard with one of the bars to get a bottle of the gold if they had it. We decided that he could order his rum/Coke by the glass, it would't really be worth the hassle. I think that if you made 10 calls, you'd get 10 differet answers.

 

 

You are right -- different calls produce different answers from Seattle.

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POA1 "Live from...." Rare

POA1

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We had a similar problem with ordering a bottle of Vermouth so we could make Manhattans with the bottle of Jim Bean we buy from HAL (at a reasonable price.) We normally pay from $4.50 to $7 for a bottle of Vermouth at home. HAL wanted $56 when we asked in advance of departure. And when we asked on board, it was even more.

 

We bought the Vermouth in Copenhagen, before boarding the Eurodam, and the "wine checker" at embarkation said it was clearly not wine, but she said she would let us go and hope she didn't get fired (her words) This was despite the email we had from our PCC (and research on the web) that Vermouth IS wine.

Time to go to super extra dry martinis. That's where you pour in the vodka or gin and have a moment of silence for the vermouth.

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