Beverage Package? Yay or nay?

[JustJoy]

I think its a YEA for us too!

[easyboy]

Does the beverage package work for room service also?

All-Inclusive Beverage Package$56.35 per person, per day

 

Enjoy the convenience of our All-inclusive Package featuring any drink up to $10 including cocktails, wine, beer, bottled water, sodas, specialty coffees & more! A 40% discount on bottles of wine (below $100 retail) is also offered on bottles purchased in bars, dining rooms or specialty restaurants.

Excludes in-room services, souvenir, mini-bar and vending machine items.

[Jumbo70]

At first I did not think this package would work for me, because I thought I would not drink 8 beers a day.

 

Then I began to think about it. Ok... I have a 2 or 3 beers by the pool, a coffee drink in the morning, a big bottle of water to stay hydrated in the afternoon, a cocktail waiting for everyone before dinner, 40% of the wine bottle for the table at dinner. Then on sea days or at Princess Cays I have a few more beers and water bottles.

 

I soon decided it was worth it for me. My wife on the other had it was not and she went ala-carte.

 

I did find that I ordered more expensive wines by the bottle than usual. I also tried some cocktails that I normally would not have tried. I also found that it I had a few minutes to kill and I was next to a bar, I just ordered an extra drink that I normally might not have ordered.

[Chunder Worthy]

Is it worth it to get the alcohol beverage package for the week?

 

From a person who does enjoy his adult beverages: Unequivocally "no." Besides there really being no huge advantage when the drinks are actually acquired, he'll do better (better value) purchasing his adult beverages one at a time.

[4olivers]

My mom has already purchased the regular beverage package for us all so I think my husband and I will pay the difference to upgrade that to the all-inclusive beverage package. Doing the spreadsheet and calculating for modest drinks, one coffee drink in the morning, orange juice, soda, several bottled water throughout the day and then a cocktail here and there on sea days as well as wine for dinner. I think it will be more than worth it for us.

 

 

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[reedprincess]

My mom has already purchased the regular beverage package for us all so I think my husband and I will pay the difference to upgrade that to the all-inclusive beverage package. Doing the spreadsheet and calculating for modest drinks, one coffee drink in the morning, orange juice, soda, several bottled water throughout the day and then a cocktail here and there on sea days as well as wine for dinner. I think it will be more than worth it for us.

 

 

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"Regular beverage package"? What would that be?

[4olivers]

Soda and More...no alcohol

 

 

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[IECalCruiser]

we will be traveling on our first cruise in Alaska, starting out with four days on land and sailing Saturday, July 16 through Saturday, July 23. I am more of a wine drinker and my husband tends to drink more beer/rum/vodka. Wondering what most people would suggest for us? I haven't been able to locate any detailed pricing from the ship for alcoholic beverages. Is it worth it to get the alcohol beverage package for the week?

It depends upon how much you DW drinks each day but I might suggest he purchase the AIBP and buy bottles of wine for you at 40% off. The bottles can be shared with others and you can bring the wine anywhere on board to enjoy. You could also purchase the Soda and More Package for $7.50/day plus gratuities.

[Cruise Raider]

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Great feedback! Doesn't sound cost affective for us!

 

And since you mentioned you are a wine drinker, they do have wine packages available onboard that are discounted. You can also bring your own wine and pay $15 per bottle and drink it anywhere on the ship. This is beyond the two freebies you can bring onboard for in cabin consumption.

 

There is a twice daily happy hour as well -- buy one and get the same for $1.

 

We usually get the beverage package as a free perk on Celebrity and just love it. However, we could never justify the cost of purchasing one onboard if not offered at a discount. I think it comes to $113 per day if you buy it outright ... for a ten day cruise, adding another $1130 to our onboard account is not in our budget.

[Putterdude]

 

There may have been a time that I could have made sense of a beverage package but sadly I simply can't drink that much any more, so a beverage package has no value to me.

[paddingtonbear]

The soda and more package is great though. The mocktails were wonderful.

 

 

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[rjohn40787]

Does the Soda and More package include milk shakes on those ships that offer milk shakes?

[4olivers]

Does the Soda and More package include milk shakes on those ships that offer milk shakes?

 

 

My understanding is that yes, milkshakes would be included. Anyone know this for a fact?

 

 

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[mph045]

When we purchased the ultimate soda card it did include milkshakes at Scoops on the Crown and Caribbean Princess:D

[sailing_scot]

On our trip to the Canaries on the Emerald - one barman refused to put freshly squeezed orange on the card telling us it was chargeable.

 

I argued the point that i had got freshly squeezed orange on previous cruises - but he refused to budge.

 

I could have taken it further - but just waited until he was not serving and got it from others bar staff instead when he "was not looking..."

 

Comical really - he evidently could not be "bothered" to make it - but easy enough to "get around".

[riclop]

we will be traveling on our first cruise in Alaska, starting out with four days on land and sailing Saturday, July 16 through Saturday, July 23. I am more of a wine drinker and my husband tends to drink more beer/rum/vodka. Wondering what most people would suggest for us? I haven't been able to locate any detailed pricing from the ship for alcoholic beverages. Is it worth it to get the alcohol beverage package for the week?

 

Only you can answer that because no one here knows how much you drink.

[4olivers]

Only you can answer that because no one here knows how much you drink.

 

 

Yes, that's a foregone conclusion that only we know much we drink, but all the feedback has been helpful to determine what would most likely work best for us! Thanks to everyone for all the insight! [emoji4]

 

 

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[floridalover5623]

On our trip to the Canaries on the Emerald - one barman refused to put freshly squeezed orange on the card telling us it was chargeable.

 

I argued the point that i had got freshly squeezed orange on previous cruises - but he refused to budge.

 

I could have taken it further - but just waited until he was not serving and got it from others bar staff instead when he "was not looking..."

 

Comical really - he evidently could not be "bothered" to make it - but easy enough to "get around".

 

I've noticed the same thing. What one guy gets upset about the other can't be bothered. Guess who get the occasional tip? ;);)

[mrt144]

we will be traveling on our first cruise in Alaska, starting out with four days on land and sailing Saturday, July 16 through Saturday, July 23. I am more of a wine drinker and my husband tends to drink more beer/rum/vodka. Wondering what most people would suggest for us? I haven't been able to locate any detailed pricing from the ship for alcoholic beverages. Is it worth it to get the alcohol beverage package for the week?

 

if you average 6-7 drinks a day over the entirety of the voyage go for it. If you drink socially or with meals, don't.

[tinybiny]

What does the soda and more package offer? I don't normally drink sodas, but would have seltzer water with juice. I would probably have a specialty coffee or tea every day and bottled water. I read a previous post that said it includes milkshakes. I'd probably have one of those over the duration of a cruise.

Edited May 13, 2016 by tinybiny

[Tedferg]

I agree with arguments both for and against getting AIBP.

 

We just finished 10 day Mexico Riviera and took the package. We had two friends sailing with us and this made a difference. When we returned from shore visit my buddy and I would have a couple of beers then later the four of us would meet in Crooners for a drink or two before dinner - convenient place to meet. Similarly the four of us would have a nightcap after the show.

 

If we had been just two, I would grab a beer to take to cabin and DW would have a glass from the wine brought on board. We would usually go straight to dinner, though I might have a beer while DW was 'wondering what dress to wear'.

 

Neither of us drink soda but bottles of water and specialty coffees helped justify the package.

 

Also, as has been said, there is a certain convenience of having the package and knowing what the final bill will be.

[mytime53]

My husband and I purchased this 2 years ago on an Alaskan cruise. I was just going to get it for him, and buy my drinks as we went along. He didn't like that idea...said he would feel guilty using it, because he would know that I wasn't drinking something I would like because that's just the way I am about paying for alcoholic beverages that I don't purchase and consume at home (because it's cheaper). So we both got it after much consideration...I loved it! I really enjoy scotch, but would never purchase it by the drink. With the AIBP, I tried most of the more expensive scotches while on the cruise. And I don't like cheap wine, especially if paying a high price for it. And I hate cheap beer. The AIBP allowed me to enjoy the higher priced items I prefer. We would not get it on a cruise longer than a week, but that's us...we wouldn't keep that drinking schedule up! But after experiencing the package, my husband booked a cruise for this winter that offered the package as a perk...the first cruise ever that he researched and booked...obviously he enjoyed the freedom of not worrying about the bill at the end of the cruise! At the end of the month I'll be taking my granddaughter on a cruise. I'll buy the reg. bev. package for her, but I won't be getting the AIBP...won't have more than perhaps a glass of wine with dinner when with her.

 

So, IC coffee in the am, latte in the afternoon, beer or soda with lunch on a sea day, pre-dinner cocktail (which I thoroughly enjoyed but would not do otherwise), nice wine with dinner, maybe port with dessert, cocktail with entertainment after dinner, and then scotch for a nightcap. We easily got our money's worth, and no, we were never blitzed, nor even close.

[4olivers]

I think I have read somewhere that you can purchase the all inclusive beverage package during the first two days on the ship? Is that correct?

 

Just thinking maybe we would have a better idea of which way would be best for us after a good 24 hours on board…

 

 

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[4olivers]

OK another question regarding this package, I see that bottled water is included, is there a limit to how many bottles of water you can get per day or at a time?

 

 

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[reedprincess]

OK another question regarding this package, I see that bottled water is included, is there a limit to how many bottles of water you can get per day or at a time?

 

 

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No limit on how many a day, just like any other drink. One bottle at a time.

We qlways grabbed a bottle each any time we went to the cabin to have it on hand there. Worked well.

Enjoy your sailing.