Buckets of beer

[lbfluffy]

Is it less expensive to purchase the bucket of beer prior to when we board? I remember reading if you purchase before you leave port you get taxed more because you aren't in international waters. Thanks. We are close to sailing and I want to buy what I need to.

[WISH84]

Is it less expensive to purchase the bucket of beer prior to when we board? I remember reading if you purchase before you leave port you get taxed more because you aren't in international waters. Thanks. We are close to sailing and I want to buy what I need to.

 

I don't know if this will help you or not, but I can relay to you my experience.

 

If you purchase a Bucket of Beer on embarkation day, they will normally use a sheet of paper to write down your purchase. These sheets are fed into the computer later in the evening after the ship has sailed and there is no sales tax added (your question did not indicate which port you are sailing from and I understand California Sales Tax is added to purchases made while still in port).

 

You will not find a discount from the "pre-order" price versus the "on board" purchase price. Meaning if it's "five for the price of four" and that's $20.. then once on board you will find that is the same price as well.

[Paula_MacFan]

We just got off the Caribbean Princess Sunday, and here's my advice: buckets are fine to save a bit, but the best way to go is the daily 'buy one get one for $1' promotion. Everyday on our cruise they had happy hour in the Fusion Lounge from 3-4pm and Skywalkers from 11pm-midnight. You can buy beer unopened and put it in your fridge for later. We bought 4 and got 4 for $1 each, which makes it $3.88 per 16 oz bottle, versus $5.29 per beer when you buy the bucket of 5. Of course, we still bought one bucket and some singles along the way, so it's not like Princess didn't make money off of us:)

 

We did the math and decided this was more economical for us vs buying the all-you-can-drink package. We did get the Coke card and used it quite a bit too. Also, if you want to keep beer for later, take a bottle opener with you:)

 

Another reason I've been hesitant to pre-purchase alcohol is what if I get onboard and am not feeling up to drinking?? The last night of our cruise we had very high winds and the ship was rolling a LOT....which led to many people feeling poorly. The thought of drinking or eating anything made my stomach turn. I would have hated to have pre-purchased stuff that went to waste.

Edited November 10, 2015 by Paula_MacFan

[lbfluffy]

Awesome advice

[Tedferg]

I have a vague feeling that the gratuity is not added if you pre-purchase. The 'Buy one + 1 for 1$' was not available when we did this, so I think the advice above is good.

[MrSchwump]

I notice on the beverage price list that Dos Eques and Miller Genuine Draft is the same price per bottle. Has anyone ever been able to substitute MGD for XX? I've never been a fan of XX.

[Fat Tuesday]

The last time we pre-purchased a bucket of beer was so we could have it waiting for us in our cabin on embarkation day, instead we found a slip of paper telling us to call and order the beer when we wanted it. Is this always the case or did we do something wrong when we ordered it? Nothing like having a cold beer waiting for you when you get to your cabin after travelling for 2 days:)

[WISH84]

The last time we pre-purchased a bucket of beer was so we could have it waiting for us in our cabin on embarkation day, instead we found a slip of paper telling us to call and order the beer when we wanted it. Is this always the case or did we do something wrong when we ordered it? Nothing like having a cold beer waiting for you when you get to your cabin after travelling for 2 days:)

 

That's the way it is. I agree it would be nice to have that waiting in the cabin but there is really no way for them to know that's what you want.

 

I've never been a fan of XX.

 

Heresy!!! :cool:;)

[Fat Tuesday]

That's the way it is. I agree it would be nice to have that waiting in the cabin but there is really no way for them to know that's what you want.

 

 

 

Heresy!!! :cool:;)

 

Thats too bad:(, thanks anyway.

[JayRich65]

I found using the Buy One Get One for a $1 was most economical for purchasing large quantities of beer. I would go to Happy Hour each day and stock up, and then I drank them the rest of day and evening. I would even take them on deck and ask for a bucket of ice and put the beers that I had previously purchased in the bucket. I always tipped the bar staff when getting an empty bucket so there was never any issues. Having a frig in room also helped to keep them cold.

[Tedferg]

The last time we pre-purchased a bucket of beer was so we could have it waiting for us in our cabin on embarkation day, instead we found a slip of paper telling us to call and order the beer when we wanted it. Is this always the case or did we do something wrong when we ordered it? Nothing like having a cold beer waiting for you when you get to your cabin after travelling for 2 days:)

 

When we ordered ours I ordered two buckets and similarly had the slips of paper. This allowed us to order the second at a later time. Room service brought the first bucket very promptly.

[Fat Tuesday]

When we ordered ours I ordered two buckets and similarly had the slips of paper. This allowed us to order the second at a later time. Room service brought the first bucket very promptly.

 

I'll give it a shot, if they don't come quick enough then I can always have it for later. The happy hour deal sounds good too;)

[Gracie115]

When we ordered ours I ordered two buckets and similarly had the slips of paper. This allowed us to order the second at a later time. Room service brought the first bucket very promptly.

 

We preordered 2 also and when we called for the first one BOTH were delivered in less than 10 minutes......we wound up just putting all the ones that wouldn't fit in one ice bucket in the frig and the stateroom attendant kept the ice fresh for us twice a day......so I had my bottle of wine we'd brought on board and hubby had some beer to enjoy in the cabin whenever he wanted.....very nice....:)

[Woobstr112G]

I found using the Buy One Get One for a $1 was most economical for purchasing large quantities of beer. I would go to Happy Hour each day and stock up, and then I drank them the rest of day and evening. I would even take them on deck and ask for a bucket of ice and put the beers that I had previously purchased in the bucket. I always tipped the bar staff when getting an empty bucket so there was never any issues. Having a frig in room also helped to keep them cold.

 

Great option. I hope it is still around next September.....:):):)

 

Bob

[satxdiver]

If you pre-order the liquor, the tip will be included. They put the slip in your stateroom and you have to call room service to get the alcohol. This is so that they can be sure your are old enough to receive it. I have always had prompt service when I called. I tip the crew member a few dollars for bringing it. In most US ports you will be charged sales tax for that area.

 

The once BOGO is gone now and it is BOGO for $1. Only difference of course is that $1. It usually is in a lounge such as Fusion or Wheelhouse etc from 3 to 4 pm and skywalkers from 11 to 12. Great deal for the pax. Warning though the afternoon happy hour can be extremely crowded making it hard to even get in let alone order.

 

If you sail out of Texas be aware that due to Texas liquor laws (regressive IMO), the beer/wine/liquor available will be extremely limited and they may not be able to deliver your purchase until you are in international waters (several hours). This is because Texas only allows the ship to sell alcohol that was bought in Texas. Since that is expensive for the ship, they choose to not buy a lot of it for a few hours sales. Any pax debarking from the ship in Texas and carrying liquor purchased from the ship or port of call, will be required to pay Texas liquor tax which for hard liquor I believe is $3/bottle. This does not make any difference whether you are a Texas resident or a UK resident. Everyone pays the tax. Like I said earlier, very regressive and anti-tourist IMO.

[LaraTiara]

If you pre-order the liquor, the tip will be included. They put the slip in your stateroom and you have to call room service to get the alcohol. This is so that they can be sure your are old enough to receive it. I have always had prompt service when I called. I tip the crew member a few dollars for bringing it. In most US ports you will be charged sales tax for that area.

 

 

 

The once BOGO is gone now and it is BOGO for $1. Only difference of course is that $1. It usually is in a lounge such as Fusion or Wheelhouse etc from 3 to 4 pm and skywalkers from 11 to 12. Great deal for the pax. Warning though the afternoon happy hour can be extremely crowded making it hard to even get in let alone order.

 

 

 

If you sail out of Texas be aware that due to Texas liquor laws (regressive IMO), the beer/wine/liquor available will be extremely limited and they may not be able to deliver your purchase until you are in international waters (several hours). This is because Texas only allows the ship to sell alcohol that was bought in Texas. Since that is expensive for the ship, they choose to not buy a lot of it for a few hours sales. Any pax debarking from the ship in Texas and carrying liquor purchased from the ship or port of call, will be required to pay Texas liquor tax which for hard liquor I believe is $3/bottle. This does not make any difference whether you are a Texas resident or a UK resident. Everyone pays the tax. Like I said earlier, very regressive and anti-tourist IMO.

 

 

Just wanted to mention an explanation about Texas liquor tax. Many counties in southern states are still dry or semi-dry counties, with strict limitations on alcohol sales. Texas is no exception. The county we live in only began selling alcohol less than 10 years ago, and hard liquor just in the past 18 months. And yes, we live outside one of the major cities. I realize this is different than other parts of the U.S. and other countries, but while you are a guest in our fine state, please keep in mind that we have a chance to vote and make changes.

So if you can vote on alcohol taxation and sales in Texas, great. If not, please enjoy your visit. But I wholeheartedly disagree with the comment that we are regressive and anti-tourist. For many reasons unrelated to the beer thread [emoji3]

[WISH84]

Just wanted to mention an explanation about Texas liquor tax. Many counties in southern states are still dry or semi-dry counties, with strict limitations on alcohol sales. Texas is no exception. The county we live in only began selling alcohol less than 10 years ago, and hard liquor just in the past 18 months. And yes, we live outside one of the major cities. I realize this is different than other parts of the U.S. and other countries, but while you are a guest in our fine state, please keep in mind that we have a chance to vote and make changes.

So if you can vote on alcohol taxation and sales in Texas, great. If not, please enjoy your visit. But I wholeheartedly disagree with the comment that we are regressive and anti-tourist. For many reasons unrelated to the beer thread [emoji3]

 

Hi LaraTiara.. Old time Okie here.. I don't think he was saying "Texan's" are regressive.. the Texas Liquor Tax Law is. And I have to agree with him. Texas is proud of their tourist heritage and spends a lot of taxpayer money on promoting the state. So if you are going to aggressively promote your state, then the state should recognize that a majority of those people coming to visit you do come from regions with much less restrictive laws where alcohol sales is concerned.

 

My experience however is that there is a huge.. HUGE.. contingency of Texans on those ships that sail out of Houston and Galveston and after the Texas contingency you have Oklahoma and Louisiana. So there is a very small percentage of people on the ships who aren't already familiar with the Texas laws and its never an issue. But someone from California traveling to sail on a ship from one of those two ports and realizing that until the ship hits international waters there are restrictions placed on them in this regard, certainly would feel that tax law is a little... regressive. ;)

[Woobstr112G]

Hi LaraTiara.. Old time Okie here.. I don't think he was saying "Texan's" are regressive.. the Texas Liquor Tax Law is. And I have to agree with him. Texas is proud of their tourist heritage and spends a lot of taxpayer money on promoting the state. So if you are going to aggressively promote your state, then the state should recognize that a majority of those people coming to visit you do come from regions with much less restrictive laws where alcohol sales is concerned.

 

My experience however is that there is a huge.. HUGE.. contingency of Texans on those ships that sail out of Houston and Galveston and after the Texas contingency you have Oklahoma and Louisiana. So there is a very small percentage of people on the ships who aren't already familiar with the Texas laws and its never an issue. But someone from California traveling to sail on a ship from one of those two ports and realizing that until the ship hits international waters there are restrictions placed on them in this regard, certainly would feel that tax law is a little... regressive. ;)

 

Well said.....:):):)

 

Bob

[Paula_MacFan]

 

The once BOGO is gone now and it is BOGO for $1. Only difference of course is that $1. It usually is in a lounge such as Fusion or Wheelhouse etc from 3 to 4 pm and skywalkers from 11 to 12. Great deal for the pax. Warning though the afternoon happy hour can be extremely crowded making it hard to even get in let alone order.

 

 

Last week on the CB out of Houston, the afternoon happy hour in Fusion was busy, but not swamped. I walked up to the bar and was promptly waited on, to my surprise. I figured it would be simply packed. I took my Princess tote bag, got my 8 beers, and took them to the cabin. Saved $$ and super easy!

[truckguy]

We just got off the Caribbean Princess Sunday, and here's my advice: buckets are fine to save a bit, but the best way to go is the daily 'buy one get one for $1' promotion. Everyday on our cruise they had happy hour in the Fusion Lounge from 3-4pm and Skywalkers from 11pm-midnight. You can buy beer unopened and put it in your fridge for later. We bought 4 and got 4 for $1 each, which makes it $3.88 per 16 oz bottle, versus $5.29 per beer when you buy the bucket of 5. Of course, we still bought one bucket and some singles along the way, so it's not like Princess didn't make money off of us:)

 

We did the math and decided this was more economical for us vs buying the all-you-can-drink package. We did get the Coke card and used it quite a bit too. Also, if you want to keep beer for later, take a bottle opener with you:)

 

Another reason I've been hesitant to pre-purchase alcohol is what if I get onboard and am not feeling up to drinking?? The last night of our cruise we had very high winds and the ship was rolling a LOT....which led to many people feeling poorly. The thought of drinking or eating anything made my stomach turn. I would have hated to have pre-purchased stuff that went to waste.

 

I too was on Caribbean Princess Nov 4 to Progreso. We really enjoyed the cruise. It was the first time I had experienced happy hour pricing on the cruise. I went to the Horse Races (btw, Paul was a fantastic race announcer - Pee in the Pool won me $6) as planned and ordered my Grolsh beer and received two. After an brief inquiry, I discovered that it was Happy Hour and buy one get one for a dollar. Your idea of a happy hour buying spree is brilliant. I bought a bucket from room service immediately after muster but was limited to the selection (Heineken for me). The happy hour deal is way better as you could get whatever you want and go (genius). I am going on Ruby in two weeks and will definitely utilize your plan. Thank you for the idea.

 

Bryan (truckguy)

[LaraTiara]

Wish84, thank you for a further explanation...Appreciated!! [emoji106]

[Paula_MacFan]

I too was on Caribbean Princess Nov 4 to Progreso. We really enjoyed the cruise. It was the first time I had experienced happy hour pricing on the cruise. I went to the Horse Races (btw, Paul was a fantastic race announcer - Pee in the Pool won me $6) as planned and ordered my Grolsh beer and received two. After an brief inquiry, I discovered that it was Happy Hour and buy one get one for a dollar. Your idea of a happy hour buying spree is brilliant. I bought a bucket from room service immediately after muster but was limited to the selection (Heineken for me). The happy hour deal is way better as you could get whatever you want and go (genius). I am going on Ruby in two weeks and will definitely utilize your plan. Thank you for the idea.

 

Bryan (truckguy)

 

You're welcome. I figured buy 4/get 4 was a reasonable amount. Now if someone requested 20 or something, I'm sure they'd put the brakes on:) We did the math, and even with purchasing the Coke card, this was a better option for us vs buying the all-inclusive package. As I said before, there are days when I might not feel like drinking, so utilizing the BOGOF $1 allowed us to save some money. Enjoy your cruise on Ruby!!

[truckguy]

You're welcome. I figured buy 4/get 4 was a reasonable amount. Now if someone requested 20 or something, I'm sure they'd put the brakes on:) We did the math, and even with purchasing the Coke card, this was a better option for us vs buying the all-inclusive package. As I said before, there are days when I might not feel like drinking, so utilizing the BOGOF $1 allowed us to save some money. Enjoy your cruise on Ruby!!

 

We have done the math after returning from each cruise and have realized a substantial savings "as you go" over the drink package. We have never held back on our drink spending and have always ordered what we want when we want including $12 shots of port wine after each dinner and bottles of wine at the crab shack. On Caribbean Princess last week we saved almost $150 over the all inclusive package. However, we are no longer the drinkers we were once upon a time long long ago either !! Anyway, thanks again for the tip.

 

Bryan(truckguy)

[SoCalMusicLover]

I am also going on the Ruby repositioning cruise at the end of this month. I plan to get the Beverages & More package, to get cokes and ice cream shakes during the cruise. I had been thinking about the All Inclusive package, but for over $165, I wasn't sure it was worth the extra $140 over the beverages & more deal.

 

I've heard that on Embarkation Day, there is no afternoon happy hour in the Wheelhouse Bar. Can anyone confirm that? This is a 3-Day repositioning cruise on Ruby.

 

If so, I plan to definitely do the late night at Skywalker's, probably Buy 4, Get 4 Beers for $4 more, leaving 6 of them unopened. That should keep me covered the next day, and I might get a fancy cocktail or something on the 2nd day happy hour, and keep any remaining beers cold in my mini-fridge.