Bottled liquor from fun shops

[bbtbear]

Is there any difference in price for buying bottles of liquor if you pre purchase vs. buying on the ships?

Thanks!

[Shaded Lady]

in yes there definitely is a difference in price- but in the use as well!

 

If you purchase in advance from the Funshops. you'll pay a premium for allowing you to have it in your cabin during the cruise. If you purchase from the onboard shop, you'll receive it either the night before you leave the ship or the morning of debarkation.

 

If having the liquor during your cruise is important to you, don't buy it from the onboard shop. You'd have better luck buying it in the first port and hope they don't stop you and force you to check it in (if that happens, they'll deliver it to you when you get your onboard liquor).

Edited December 15, 2018 by Shaded Lady

[Shaded Lady]

I could have been a bit more explicit- sorry!

 

If you buy liquor in a port, you go through security and they'll tell you to go to a particular table near there to check in your alcoholic purchases. Sometimes you can just walk in a roundabout way and just avoid the table, or you could have an extra bottle in your backpack and just check one- in my experience they don't search your bag.

 

Before anyone gives me grief, I've never done this personally- I rarely drink, my hubby not at all, so when I buy alcohol in ports, it's as gifts so I don't really care if I have to check it. I'm just sharing my experiences with bbtbear.

[coevan]

so, why would encourage smuggling alcohol?

[bbtbear]

43 minutes ago, Shaded Lady said:

in yes there definitely is a difference in price- but the use is as well!

 

If you purchase in advance from the Funshops. you'll pay a premium for allowing you to have it in your cabin during the cruise. If you purchase from the onboard shop, you'll receive it either the night before you leave the ship or the morning of debarkation.

 

aaaah. That's exactly what I needed to know. Thanks!

[bbtbear]

Also, thanks for the advice about picking it up in port, but that's not something I would ever do. I'd rather pay a premium to be on the up and up. 🙂

[Shaded Lady]

8 minutes ago, bbtbear said:

Also, thanks for the advice about picking it up in port, but that's not something I would ever do. I'd rather pay a premium to be on the up and up. 🙂

I'm glad to hear that! I'd hate to be accused of contributing to the delinquency of a cruiser!

[bbtbear]

😉

[Cobrakev]

1 hour ago, coevan said:

so, why would encourage smuggling alcohol?

Why does Carnival mark up alcohol from the shops 100%

[hockeyluver]

Our last cruise we bought a bottle of vodka from the bon voyage dept.   It worked out great for us.  We carried on our mixers and made our drinks in the cabin.  Hubby would bring some in a water bottle  up on deck and fill our cups with lemonade or our mixer.   We arent big drinkers  so cheers is not an option for us.

[coevan]

59 minutes ago, Cobrakev said:

Why does Carnival mark up alcohol from the shops 100%

 

 

 

first of all, way more than 100%, a $15 bottle of Stoli is $90 or 600% more. It's pretty simple, they want you to buy drinks or Cheers.

[fuddrules]

2 hours ago, coevan said:

so, why would encourage smuggling alcohol?

 

It may not be smuggling.  I've been on 2 Carnival cruises where they didn't care if we brought on liquor purchased in port.

Edited December 15, 2018 by fuddrules

[coevan]

Sorry, have to call you on that statement, clearly not allowed.

[fuddrules]

1 minute ago, coevan said:

Sorry, have to call you on that statement, clearly not allowed.

 

What do you want me to do?  I show them, they waive me through and there's no table to turn in your liquor.  It was allowed without any question from Carnival.

[coevan]

There are at least 4 or 5 security guards who don't want to lose their job. Sorry, if say you are holding up a full bottle of liquor and show it to security and they let you on the ship. Quite honestly I just don't believe you.

[BoDidly]

I have noticed people taking bottles of liquor on in San Juan without security checking them on it.  Don't know why they allowed it, but it happen. 

[robc1972]

Most times the guards are watching the people come on, the booze table is usually a distance away from the security guys and easy enough to just not go.

Never thought of the buy two give one approach.

I do know that nips in pockets of shorts do not set off the metal detector when you get back on.

 

 

[jwjax]

19 minutes ago, coevan said:

There are at least 4 or 5 security guards who don't want to lose their job. Sorry, if say you are holding up a full bottle of liquor and show it to security and they let you on the ship. Quite honestly I just don't believe you.

 

I have been on several cruises, where the people at the liquor check in table,  simply weren't paying much attention to the pax as were re-boarded.  Sometimes, it is strict!  Occasionally,  it is lax?  

 

To say to someone,  they are lying about not having their booze checked in, is showing a  lack of "experience"!   I have also walked right by the "liquor table" even after the Sec. guard announced I had a bottle of liquor in my bag!

 

(15 - 20 total cruises does not make anyone an expert)  Even me at 25-30 total cruises, I still see things that surprise me!!   (San Juan used to have a liquor store after the security check in stations.)

 

😄

Edited December 15, 2018 by jwjax

[fuddrules]

3 hours ago, BoDidly said:

I have noticed people taking bottles of liquor on in San Juan without security checking them on it.  Don't know why they allowed it, but it happen. 

 

Just an FYI, all your mediterranean ports too.

Edited December 16, 2018 by fuddrules

[Joebucks]

18 hours ago, Cobrakev said:

Why does Carnival mark up alcohol from the shops 100%

 

Do you know of any club, restaurant, or entertainment venue selling you alcohol at list price? You can have whatever opinion you want of their prices. To let anyone buy and drink any bottle for cheap would be suicide for their business model. 

[jwjax]

20 hours ago, bbtbear said:

Is there any difference in price for buying bottles of liquor if you pre purchase vs. buying on the ships?

Thanks!

 

If you speaking of purchasing for consumption in your cabin, the prices are the same.  A $20 bottle of Rum will cost about $100, pre-purchased or purchased from Room Service onboard.   It still nets out to a little less than the cost of a drink at the bar, and you don't have to go out to get it.  We usually get around 14-16, depending on how we pour. 

 

Be careful though about pre-ordering liquor.   We just had an incident on our last cruise, where the pre-order apparently didn't go through!      Even though I had a confirmation number on the order, and printed copy,  CCL said it did not get processed and was never charged!  So, no rum in the cabin when we boarded!

 

Bottom line,  if you pre-order, do it early enough that you can take your credit card bill with you on the cruise in case of problems.

[Shaded Lady]

53 minutes ago, jwjax said:

 

If you speaking of purchasing for consumption in your cabin, the prices are the same.  A $20 bottle of Rum will cost about $100, pre-purchased or purchased from Room Service onboard.   It still nets out to a little less than the cost of a drink at the bar, and you don't have to go out to get it.  We usually get around 14-16, depending on how we pour. 

 

Be careful though about pre-ordering liquor.   We just had an incident on our last cruise, where the pre-order apparently didn't go through!      Even though I had a confirmation number on the order, and printed copy,  CCL said it did not get processed and was never charged!  So, no rum in the cabin when we boarded!

 

Bottom line,  if you pre-order, do it early enough that you can take your credit card bill with you on the cruise in case of problems.

bbtbear- jwjax mentioned something I didn't think about when I answered your question- I said you can buy your liquor onboard in the shops and they'll hold it til you get off the ship at the end- it is cheaper than pre-ordering, as I said.

 

What I didn't think about and jwjax rightly reminded me, is you can also order a bottle onboard from room service and they'll deliver it for consumption during the cruise. I don't know how much it costs since I've never done it, but I imagine it's the same or more than buying in advance... in other words, a lot more expensive, but as someone mentioned, probably cheaper and more convenient than being all the drinks at the bar.

[bbtbear]

1 hour ago, jwjax said:

 

If you speaking of purchasing for consumption in your cabin, the prices are the same.  A $20 bottle of Rum will cost about $100, pre-purchased or purchased from Room Service onboard.   It still nets out to a little less than the cost of a drink at the bar, and you don't have to go out to get it.  We usually get around 14-16, depending on how we pour. 

 

Be careful though about pre-ordering liquor.   We just had an incident on our last cruise, where the pre-order apparently didn't go through!      Even though I had a confirmation number on the order, and printed copy,  CCL said it did not get processed and was never charged!  So, no rum in the cabin when we boarded!

 

Bottom line,  if you pre-order, do it early enough that you can take your credit card bill with you on the cruise in case of problems.

Thanks for the info and the warning about pre-orders! Very much appreciated! Curious how close to cruising you ordered so that it did not register on their system?

[bbtbear]

17 minutes ago, Shaded Lady said:

bbtbear- jwjax mentioned something I didn't think about when I answered your question- I said you can buy your liquor onboard in the shops and they'll hold it til you get off the ship at the end- it is cheaper than pre-ordering, as I said.

 

What I didn't think about and jwjax rightly reminded me, is you can also order a bottle onboard from room service and they'll deliver it for consumption during the cruise. I don't know how much it costs since I've never done it, but I imagine it's the same or more than buying in advance... in other words, a lot more expensive, but as someone mentioned, probably cheaper and more convenient than being all the drinks at the bar.

Thanks a lot. I'll pass all this along to my sister, who is the one interested in buying some Crown Royal to mix drinks in the room. Me? I'll take some yummy, frozen, fruity concoction I couldn't possibly mix myself. I don't care if it costs more. It's worth more if I can drink what I like. 🙂

[jwjax]

2 hours ago, bbtbear said:

Thanks for the info and the warning about pre-orders! Very much appreciated! Curious how close to cruising you ordered so that it did not register on their system?

 

3 months at least!   CCL did not charge us for the order, but all the docs I printed and showed them, said I did order the bottles?   I just didn't think I needed the actual CC statements to prove I ordered!   All I had was CCL Confirmation printout and number!

 

Just be aware,  check your pre-orders prior to boarding, a CCL confirmation number is useless!  Bring your CC statement, as proof of purchase.!