Unlimited Drink Options Included with other lines: will you still book Carnival?

[SNJCruisers]

As for the District Brewhouse, I guess it's a beer lovers dream for cruise ships. But it's certainly not a beer lovers dream as it's not that big of a selection and it's just the volume craft stuff. It's a great venue and it was refreshing to have some decent options, but they are not groundbreaking enough for me to care that much or alter my decision when booking a cruise.

The selection at DBH has about 70-75 choices which is double the choices on the Gastro pubs on Celebrity or the British pubs on RCI. That would make it the best available selection at sea and it certainly blows away the beer selection on any of the Carnival ships. That limited selection on Carnival though is ok to get me through the hot afternoon till the Alchemy Bar opens up.

[BlerkOne]

Means nothing. Those that choose to drink high end wines will buy a bottle package and not settle for the low to mid grade stuff that is available by the glass with Cheers. And if they have the money to burn to invest in both, they should be on a higher grade line than Carnival.

 

We usually do get a wine package. The wine packages on Carnival are hardly high end. Carnival has eliminated the middle package, so choice is down from 3 packages to 2. Occasionally they will run out of one or more selections in the packages and you are SOL.

 

A few of cruises ago, there was a wine maker or two at our dinner table, they were happy with Cheers and were drinking some high grade stuff. Never saw them drinking a cocktail

 

I can see where someone with Cheers would want to purchase a bottle of wine to share.

[Joebucks]

Means nothing. Those that choose to drink high end wines will buy a bottle package and not settle for the low to mid grade stuff that is available by the glass with Cheers. And if they have the money to burn to invest in both, they should be on a higher grade line than Carnival.

 

Perhaps you intended to put that differently, but just had a poor choice of words. There are plenty of Carnival customers who could afford something "higher," but see no reason to. On the other end, there are some people who choose a more expensive brand, but then don't do it again for years at a time or stretch themselves too thin because the price was so high.

 

Many of us actually enjoy the Carnival product. Many of us see no reason to drop more on a cruise. Many of us despise the snobby attitude that sometimes come from the "higher" lines.

[repo-cruiser]

Perhaps you intended to put that differently, but just had a poor choice of words. There are plenty of Carnival customers who could afford something "higher," but see no reason to. On the other end, there are some people who choose a more expensive brand, but then don't do it again for years at a time or stretch themselves too thin because the price was so high.

 

Many of us actually enjoy the Carnival product. Many of us see no reason to drop more on a cruise. Many of us despise the snobby attitude that sometimes come from the "higher" lines.

 

Well at least you just admitted Carnival is the lower line. Many people prefer not to have to pay for everyone in the cabin in order to get package, many prefer quality over quantity. Carnival is like the dollar store, great for certain little things but very cheap.

[LakeWobegon]

Per the District Brewhouse, I counted when I was on Escape and it was 28 "craft" beers on tap and nearly 60 different kinds of cans or bottles. We did two cruises the same week in a row and the second time cruise, I purposely picked our room near the stairs a floor above the establishment. lol. Made it great to bring a brew to the balcony. As for the "super-premium brands," I can't deny that Carnival offers some of those while NCL doesn't but to say they have the worst beverage package confounds me. People on the NCL boards compiled an extensive excel spreadsheet of all the great mixed drinks, martinis, frozen drinks, etc. (all made with branded liquor). Those and the beer appear to be greater in variety than what I see on Carnival on paper doing my research. Again, I am not saying "Carnival sucks." I just don't think you can say "NCL sucks" when it is clear they simply offer different things. NCL, more variety and perhaps fewer super-premiums and Carnival the opposite from what I can see on paper. Each approach has its benefit. And I know I will be happy with Cheers too!

[sparks1093]

Perhaps you intended to put that differently, but just had a poor choice of words. There are plenty of Carnival customers who could afford something "higher," but see no reason to. On the other end, there are some people who choose a more expensive brand, but then don't do it again for years at a time or stretch themselves too thin because the price was so high.

 

Many of us actually enjoy the Carnival product. Many of us see no reason to drop more on a cruise. Many of us despise the snobby attitude that sometimes come from the "higher" lines.

 

Yep, I'm not spending money that I don't have to.

[jimbo5544]

Perhaps you intended to put that differently, but just had a poor choice of words. There are plenty of Carnival customers who could afford something "higher," but see no reason to. On the other end, there are some people who choose a more expensive brand, but then don't do it again for years at a time or stretch themselves too thin because the price was so high.

 

 

 

Many of us actually enjoy the Carnival product. Many of us see no reason to drop more on a cruise. Many of us despise the snobby attitude that sometimes come from the "higher" lines.

 

 

 

You said of so much better.....waiting on confirmation from the poster. We will see if that happens.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[jimbo5544]

Well at least you just admitted Carnival is the lower line. Many people prefer not to have to pay for everyone in the cabin in order to get package, many prefer quality over quantity. Carnival is like the dollar store, great for certain little things but very cheap.

 

 

 

Oh brother..... bashers are out in force. If only they actually made sense. Oh, you did not answer the question the Op posed.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

Edited July 27, 2018 by jimbo5544

[Nein2]

Why would anyone book a cruise for the drinks package? Must be an alckyholic.

[Joebucks]

Well at least you just admitted Carnival is the lower line. Many people prefer not to have to pay for everyone in the cabin in order to get package, many prefer quality over quantity. Carnival is like the dollar store, great for certain little things but very cheap.

 

It's just like anything. I drink a Bud Light Platinum, and the snobs stick up their nose because there's "something better".

 

I agree that some people don't want to all have to buy Cheers. I'm one of them. Many other people don't want to pay for other's drinks in the form of "included drink" offers when you don't drink enough yourselves. Subsidization is no fun. I'd say the two biggest things that matter in cruising are the experience and the bottom price. Pick what you want based off of that. No one wants to hear about what others "perceive" as cheaper. At the end of the cruise, $2000 is $2000. It doesn't matter what was "free", what you paid up front, how much you can gorge yourself to feel like you're getting a lot.

[SNJCruisers]

Why would anyone book a cruise for the drinks package? Must be an alckyholic.

Your English teacher must be so proud of you. :rolleyes:

It's all part of the overall package, which includes ship, duration, # of ports, # of sea days, entertainment on board, specialty restaurants on board and cost.

[beerman2]

Your English teacher must be so proud of you. :rolleyes:

It's all part of the overall package, which includes ship, duration, # of ports, # of sea days, entertainment on board, specialty restaurants on board and cost.

As far as first sentence, I think it was their intent to be funny!

( al key holic) I've heard it said that way!

 

I do agree it about the total experience though!

[tallnthensome]

Why would anyone book a cruise for the drinks package? Must be an alckyholic.

We did! When the cost between the two drink packages is $950 it made the choice easy with everything else mixed in. I had two Panama Canal cruises picked out for 2019. One was the 14 day PC cruise for the four of us on the older Carnival Freedom with Cheers package. The other was a 15 day PC cruise on the brand new NCL Bliss with their drink promo. Adding Cheers to Carnivals 14 day made it $800 more than NCL's 15 day. In this case, the price of the drink package difference was the deciding factor I will admit and thus a better deal. Like I said before, when you get into 12, 14, 15 day cruises ..... this is where "free" beverage packages shine versus buying a drink package on Royal or Carnival, which I've done. This also helped us choose the Celebrity Silhouette for our 12 day Southern for 2020. We looked at it versus the 14 day Southern on the Carnival Breeze. Celebrity 12 day for four in an A1 Verandah large angled balcony with two classic drink packages was $6118. The 14 day for 4 on Carnival in a standard balcony with Cheers was $7469. Yes, the Carnival is a 14 day versus a 12 day on X but at $1300 more for everything (no grats included on either) Again, using the drink package was a major factor and sailing Celebrity over Carnival is an easy choice. We did choose Carnival over NCL and Royal for Cuba in 2019 though. Don't think alcohol packages don't play a factor in cruise choices. They play a major role for many on longer sailings. Not so much at on 5 day cruises and such.

[v3cruiser]

Free drinks and per port excursion credit plus great price on Panama canal cruise made going with Norwegian an easy choice. We will most likely consider other cruise lines in future for distinct itineraries and price even though we have very much enjoyed sailing with carnival.

[beerman2]

Another example of how close in price Carnival and NCL are.

 

Sailing on NCL Bliss Jan. 5-12, 2019

3,600.00 ( when I booked)

SDP, UBP, Spa Balcony, trip insurance and ALL others fees and taxes.

 

Carnival Magic Jan 6-13, 2019

3,400.00 (as of 2-3 days ago when I checked)

Adding in Cheers and 3 Specialty dining nights, Spa Balcony and ALL other fees and taxes.

 

Magic is 9 years old, Bliss will be 9 months old.

 

More choices for Specialty dining on Bliss.

 

Will miss Guys Burgers though.

 

So is 200.00 more worth it, to us YES to others NO.

 

Let the Carnival Cheerleaders and NCL Cheerleaders fight it out.

 

We are going to enjoy our Bliss cruise, just as we enjoyed our Vista cruise.

 

It is great/funny at times reading the diverse opinions and how adamant each is that "they" are 100% right.

[LakeWobegon]

I would book based on drink package too if price was a factor. I like to have a few drinks (anywhere from 3-6, depending on the day) and two glasses of red wine at dinner plus a dessert (port) wine. Do I NEED to do that? No. But I enjoy my vacation more if I do. It's like saying, why would anyone book based on food. Must have an eating problem. If the ships and ports are comparable and one is $1K less, you better believe I would book the less expensive one.

[mpcaruth]

Since I never have more than a few drinks per day, I do not purchase an unlimited drink package on any cruise line. In that case, the Carnival cruises are almost always cheaper. You see, one actually does pay for the "free" drink package on NCL with a higher cabin rate, and since we don't drink much, it makes the NCL more expensive.

 

I did a mock booking of the Norwegian Escape: IX category cabins (unassigned rooms) do not offer free beverage package. For $200 more per cabin, you can get the lowest class cabin choice, and you get "free" drinks for $249 for "promo service charge" (aka pre-paid beverage tip). So, for my frugal family, I would sail in IX for $449 cheaper than the "free" package. We would not possibly drink $449 in individual drink purchases.

 

I have sailed on 2 NCL cruises with unlimited drinks (when the tips were included and you didn't have to pay the service charge) and never drank more than 3 drinks in a single day, and many days I did not even have one drink. Active port days can be exhausting and all drinking will do is make me sleep my vacation away. I often need coffee so that I don't miss anything.

[BlerkOne]

Another example of how close in price Carnival and NCL are.

 

 

Always possible to cherry pick cruises to make any point you would like to. But if Carnival and NCL are consistently about the same price, and NCL has to "give" perks to fill ships, and Carnival doesn't, that should tell you something about NCL.

[tallnthensome]

Always possible to cherry pick cruises to make any point you would like to. But if Carnival and NCL are consistently about the same price, and NCL has to "give" perks to fill ships, and Carnival doesn't, that should tell you something about NCL.

Carnival gets more first time cruisers on name recognition alone. If you ask the general public to name some cruise lines I'd guarantee Carnival would be first (if not the only), then Royal, then it would taper off. Carnival probably has the most passengers that have only sailed Carnival and will only continue to sail Carnival because they don't know anything else or know better. That's fine but it doesn't actually make Carnival better. We don't like the passenger element on Carnival as the low prices bring out the most undesirables. I don't care how you spin it, how much you deny it, or make excuses for it .... Carnival is the equivalent of a Wal-Mart of the Seas. Will it stop me from sailing them? No, do I enjoy my CCL cruises? Yes I do. .... but it's the honest truth. Wal-Mart doesn't have to give away freebies to get people to shop there just like Carnival doesn't.

[beerman2]

Always possible to cherry pick cruises to make any point you would like to. But if Carnival and NCL are consistently about the same price, and NCL has to "give" perks to fill ships, and Carnival doesn't, that should tell you something about NCL.

 

It's not cherry picking , it was an example of apples to apples comparison.

 

It was specific to same time frame , same perks ( whether purchased) or "free, etc.

[beerman2]

Carnival gets more first time cruisers on name recognition alone. If you ask the general public to name some cruise lines I'd guarantee Carnival would be first (if not the only), then Royal, then it would taper off. Carnival probably has the most passengers that have only sailed Carnival and will only continue to sail Carnival because they don't know anything else or know better. That's fine but it doesn't actually make Carnival better. We don't like the passenger element on Carnival as the low prices bring out the most undesirables. I don't care how you spin it, how much you deny it, or make excuses for it .... Carnival is the equivalent of a Wal-Mart of the Seas. Will it stop me from sailing them? No, do I enjoy my CCL cruises? Yes I do. .... but it's the honest truth. Wal-Mart doesn't have to give away freebies to get people to shop there just like Carnival doesn't.

 

 

You get it! Thanks!

[BlerkOne]

Carnival gets the most bashing and fake, yes, fake reputation as the party line, when all we hear about is the booze packages and free drinks on other cruise lines. Anything bad happen on any cruise line - file footage of a Carnival ship is shown. A brawl on Carnival? That was in Australia.

 

 

Google cruise ship brawl and Carnival (Australia) pops up left and right. Yet fights also happens on NCL and other cruise lines. But everyone likes to pick on Carnival.

 

An example from NCL:

 

 

 

Lots of drunk, classless cruisers on that NCL ship. That alone is enough for me to pass on NCL in the future.

[beerman2]

Carnival gets the most bashing and fake, yes, fake reputation as the party line, when all we hear about is the booze packages and free drinks on other cruise lines. Anything bad happen on any cruise line - file footage of a Carnival ship is shown. A brawl on Carnival? That was in Australia.

 

 

Google cruise ship brawl and Carnival (Australia) pops up left and right. Yet fights also happens on NCL and other cruise lines. But everyone likes to pick on Carnival.

 

An example from NCL:

 

 

 

Lots of drunk, classless cruisers on that NCL ship. That alone is enough for me to pass on NCL in the future.

Now let's talk about cherry picking again. Kinda like the example above It can happen on any cruise line.

 

My first experience on NCL wasn't the greatest, but the last one (Escape) was my best out of the 7 Carnival, 1 RCI, and 2 NCL.

 

Heck for variety I'm thinking about MSC in the future.

[tallnthensome]

Heck for variety I'm thinking about MSC in the future.

Do it, the Seaside was fantastic. She had some bumps and bruises the first 90 days but MSC had that all ironed out by the time we sailed in April. Best deal around anywhere ...

[BlerkOne]

 

Heck for variety I'm thinking about MSC in the future.

 

Please do.

 

Be sure and tell us about the flat iron steak served in the extra cost steak house. :D