Are plastic water bottles about to be discontinued on celebrity ships?

[chengkp75]

I've always wondered why they never put up recycling bins next to the garbage.

 

Because the garbage is always sorted for recycling, incineration, etc., once it gets below the passenger decks. Even the waste from cabin waste baskets, which is put into large trash bags by the stewards, must be sorted by them before it goes into the waste stream.

[Merly]

I agree. There needs to be bottled water available for those who want it, especially at the bars in the evening. They have glass bottles of sparking water, I’d rather see them switch to glass bottles of spring water than not have it as an option.

 

 

Vickie

We just ask for a glass of water st the bar when we order our drinks. Always get it. Sometimes we just ask for the water, if we don’t want another alcoholic beverage.

[hcat]

We never have the ship's water. For some reason it makes my legs balloon so I have never tried it since and avoid and buy bottled water. It really frightened me once --- just one of those things.

 

Have no problem at all buying water in glass bottles and am 100% behind the drive to get rid of the plastic contamination that threatens our oceans.

 

I just hope that the cruise lines remember that not everyone wants to use / can use the ship's water.

 

PS Re straws --- it'll be like the old days when they were made from paper and went all soggy ;-)

 

I agree about ship's water and puffiness..cannot tolerate it at all. Something in it causes bloat. Auto refill system sounds alot like water fountains...too germy and inconvenient having to fill up at the community well.

 

Guess we'd bring our own water on board , recyclable plastic or glass like Perrier..or switch to club soda or or vitamin water. We have already stockpiled plastic straws as.they are next in line where we live in the " war on plastic " paper straws simply do not hold up..

[PelicanLvr]

In theory the refillable station should be great. BUT, how often have we all seen disgusting actions by fellow passengers in the buffet? Just picture them at the drinking station!

 

All I know is: If I do not have easy access to an unlimited amount of drinking water that I am comfortable drinking, I will sail elsewhere.

 

Be careful Celebrity!

[TheGinBoy]

I fully support this initiative by Celebrity (and hopefully by the wider RCCL family) to reduce reliance on single-use plastics.

 

Many bars and restaurants in London have switched to paper straws (they're much better than they used to be) and compostable plant/wood coffee stirrers.

 

As for the refillable water bottles I'm all for that too. There's been a lot of panic on this thread about the machines being unhygienic. The ones we have in our offices are much like the Coca Cola Freestyle machines - you place your cup/bottle inside the glowing hole and it auto-pours water, you couldn't get at the dispensing spout even if you tried it.

 

The thing is many of you will have been drinking filtered tap water in fancy restaurants and hotels and enjoyed it. That still and sparking water in the fancy glass bottles (either hotel branded or not branded) didn't come from the Evian springs they came from a filtration and carbonation system in the kitchen. That refreshing ice water you have in the Main Dining Room - you enjoy it then, so why not enjoy it the rest of the time?

 

We have finite resources on this planet. The oil will (eventually) run out so we need to use it wisely rather than creating single use bottles. The seas are becoming rapidly polluted with micro-plastics even being found under the polar ice-caps.

 

We're on these cruises to see the beautiful planet and the stunning oceans. I think having filtered water in a glass or reusable bottle, as opposed to overpriced spring water shipped around the world in a bottle that'll be used once and chucked is a TINY price to pay to keep enjoying the world.

[B x]

Found on another site:

 

I'm all for recycling and cutting down on waste, but for anyone such as myself with a severely compromised immune system, refilling water bottles is a step too far. By all means make the option of refill available but don't remove the option of sealed bottles and leave the passenger to decide which is for them.

[TheGinBoy]

I have a compromised immune system thanks to my HIV - but I've no issue using refillable bottles.

 

I doubt pre-bottled water will ever go away, but I expect to see it move in more of a 'premium' direction with large glass bottles of Perrier and Evian for example. For a fee obviously.

[phoenix_dream]

This is slightly off topic - but references some of the comments. I hear so often on these boards people who think the ship's water makes them bloat. I wonder - has anyone ever tested the saline level of the water to prove or disprove this theory? It's not a level playing field for comparison. On cruises you eat differently (often more, and likely ingest more salt than normal) , drink more (usually), and often exercise less. You may be in areas (like the Caribbean) where the heat and humidity affect you and cause swelling. Could these not cause the infamous bloat? I honestly am curious to know once and for all if it is in fact the water rather than these other factors that cause the bloat mentioned so often.

[Iamthesea]

Which fancy restaurants do this? Name and shame them,

 

 

Lol You would not recognize the names...they are local here where I live in the U.S. Privately owned, not chain restaurants.

 

This is slightly off topic - but references some of the comments. I hear so often on these boards people who think the ship's water makes them bloat. I wonder - has anyone ever tested the saline level of the water to prove or disprove this theory? It's not a level playing field for comparison. On cruises you eat differently (often more, and likely ingest more salt than normal) , drink more (usually), and often exercise less. You may be in areas (like the Caribbean) where the heat and humidity affect you and cause swelling. Could these not cause the infamous bloat? I honestly am curious to know once and for all if it is in fact the water rather than these other factors that cause the bloat mentioned so often.

 

I noticed a significant different once I started drinking the bottled water and refusing the poured glass water in the restaurants. Doesn't matter which climates we are cruising in. ;) As I said before. The only time I notice any swelling, now, is in my fingers after having a particularly salty sauce or soup in Luminae or Blu. The filtered water would cause swelling in my feet and ankles.

[CruisingChick]

I just want to know how many of these stations they need to have on any ship to fully accommodate all passengers, especially on port days when virtually everyone will want a full bottle of water to take off the ship with them. Will we now have to get up at 4 am to fill our water bottles so we can get off the ship?

 

I also too have a problems with swelling, only happens on cruises. Even though I drink mostly bottled water and don't eat the soups any longer, it's still a problem.

 

I can see this affecting the classic package, they will take bottled water off it. If you want it you must buy the premium package.

[frontdesklady]

I guess I am showing my age here but I wonder how I lasted this long and never felt the need to carry a bottle of water around. When I grew up we used "bubblers" which for the youngsters here are fountains. We drank water out of glasses (tumblers) and seemed to be pretty healthy. Off subject, but we also existed without constantly communicating with our friends on cell phones or I phones. People in the USA, where we live, are avid fans of Poland Springs water which FYI is not from a cute little spring in the forest but from the same aquifur (SP?) as we have here in the White Mountains of NH.

[daisy-mae]

"Will we now have to get up at 4 am to fill our water bottles so we can get off the ship?"

Why not just fill them the night before and store them in the cabin's mini-fridge?

[CruisingChick]

"Will we now have to get up at 4 am to fill our water bottles so we can get off the ship?"

Why not just fill them the night before and store them in the cabin's mini-fridge?

 

Because I'll probably be too drunk and forget.

[Merly]

In theory the refillable station should be great. BUT, how often have we all seen disgusting actions by fellow passengers in the buffet? Just picture them at the drinking station!

 

All I know is: If I do not have easy access to an unlimited amount of drinking water that I am comfortable drinking, I will sail elsewhere.

 

Be careful Celebrity!

 

I think if one cruise line can do it, the others will follow.

[C-Dragons]

For those questioning the problems others have with bloating and swelling problems, I can confirm, at least for myself, that it is indeed caused from drinking the ship's water. The situation is compounded by the fact that all foods cooked with the ship's water adds to the problem.

We have a water purification system at home since we have well water. I agree that plastics are a worldwide problem and welcome all attempts to “fix” the growing situation. But X's desalination systems on the ships are not adequate enough for my needs. At least the bottled water available now helps tremendously. If X were to add these water systems would the amount of saline be reduced significantly? If not, I would hope that they would continue to offer bottled water for those of us who need it for medical reasons.

[flyingv4me]

Because I'll probably be too drunk and forget.

 

LOL! :D:DLove it.

[C-Dragons]

Because I'll probably be too drunk and forget.

 

Too funny ! 😁

[jagoffee]

IMO the best idea would be for Celebrity to implement the water refill tools and also sell bottled water. The consumer can decide which they prefer. If Celebrity can assure that there is no contamination, then perhaps more people will use them.

 

Refilling a water bottle from regular dispensers or water fountains should not be allowed and must be a contributor to the spread of germs. Personally I think it is gross. I cringe when I see people doing it. Please use a clean glass.

 

To answer the question. I certainly hope Celebrity never eliminates single use water bottles.

[Anita Latte]

I don't want to carry around a large Nalgene bottle, but suppose I could bring my own.

 

Nalgene also makes a very handy dandy 16 oz sized bottle. This would be the most logical sized bottle to provide and many single use water bottles are 16.9 oz? Smaller bottles would also take less time to refill allowing more people to refill their bottles. This also fits better in many bottle sized pockets on backpacks, handbags, etc.

[markeb]

Many Marriott lounges around the world that always had water bottles have gone to filtered water dispensers (and cups; no carry away). The dispensers are common in airports post security (even though bottled water is also sold). If disposal of the plastic starts costing more than sales; they'll go away.

 

The most intriguing thing I've seen lately is at a Marriott property in NYC where they have a plain white, milk container like "Box of Water". Presumably the paper waste is more easily managed. And, they're rectangular so they fit more efficiently into a shipping box...

[chengkp75]

This is slightly off topic - but references some of the comments. I hear so often on these boards people who think the ship's water makes them bloat. I wonder - has anyone ever tested the saline level of the water to prove or disprove this theory? It's not a level playing field for comparison. On cruises you eat differently (often more, and likely ingest more salt than normal) , drink more (usually), and often exercise less. You may be in areas (like the Caribbean) where the heat and humidity affect you and cause swelling. Could these not cause the infamous bloat? I honestly am curious to know once and for all if it is in fact the water rather than these other factors that cause the bloat mentioned so often.

 

While I will never dispute individual anecdotal experiences of swelling and water retention when drinking ship's water over bottled water, I do have some alternative thoughts on the matter. The first is that when you are carrying a bottle of water around with you, you are more cognizant of it, and therefore you may unconsciously drink more water, which actually helps with water retention.

 

As for your question. Water onboard comes from 3 sources: municipal supply bunkered in port, flash evaporators, and Reverse Osmosis (RO) filters. Flash evaporators make distilled water, typically with a total dissolved solid (so, sodium and every other element dissolved in the water) content of 1ppm, and it will divert the distillate away from the storage tanks and send it overboard if the TDS reaches 10ppm. RO units make water at about 10ppm TDS, and divert the "permeate" (the fresh water) away from the tanks and sends it overboard if it reaches 20ppm. In comparison, a couple of cities where a number of cruise ships load water show significantly higher sodium levels (not TDS, but just sodium) in their annual water quality reports:

 

NYC: 30-50ppm sodium

Miami: 20-40ppm sodium

 

Since the water onboard becomes a mixture of the three sources, the sodium content of the ship's water will be significantly less than that of the municipal water loaded.

 

People who have water softeners at their home, and who are on sodium restricted diets, are told to install RO filters after the softener to remove the small amount of sodium added by the softener.

 

What people don't understand about refilling from a water dispenser is that even when a water bottle does not touch the dispensing spout, most of these use a "push bar" to dispense, and the rim of your water bottle or glass touches this push bar, as does every glass before and after you, and this is also a very large vector for spreading germs. The "water filling stations" have sufficient height and a recessed spout, and require that the bottle be on the platform (hence away from the spout), and you push a button with your finger, not the glass or bottle, to dispense.

 

For C-dragons, what filtration systems do you have at home, so I can compare it with what is used on the ship.

[cruisestitch]

For those who suffer from fluid retention onships, I always ask “do you regularly salt your food at home?” Most reply “oh no, I don’t add salt to food as a rule.” So then you come to a ship where for three meals a day you eat food that is salted, sometimes a little, but often quite a lot. That is most probably the culprit, not the water.

 

(And if you find that changing to bottled water for drinking gives relief, what do you do about the coffee, tea, soup, reconstituted juice, etc.? All are made with the ships’s water you think you need to avoid:confused:

[cb at sea]

I guess I am showing my age here but I wonder how I lasted this long and never felt the need to carry a bottle of water around. When I grew up we used "bubblers" which for the youngsters here are fountains. We drank water out of glasses (tumblers) and seemed to be pretty healthy. Off subject, but we also existed without constantly communicating with our friends on cell phones or I phones. People in the USA, where we live, are avid fans of Poland Springs water which FYI is not from a cute little spring in the forest but from the same aquifur (SP?) as we have here in the White Mountains of NH.

 

 

So true...before someone came up with the idea to SELL water, everyone was fine....heck, we drank out of the hose! Egads! Yet, here we are!

You don't need "special" water...water is H2O...and that's all that's required by your body. As long as it's clean, it's fine.

[grandgeezer]

If you have a water softener and worry about the salt being add by it, change to potassium chloride in it. It's a lot more expensive but you can't put a value on your health.

[SupAl]

All you people trying to use logic need to just STOP IT!!! It couldn't possibly be the two mains and three desserts at every meal, or the fact that their alcohol consumption went up exponentially that's causing the swelling. It's the damn tap water that has turned them into an human puffer fish.:eek::p:eek::p:eek: