2 Quick drinking plan questions

[Miloomar]

Right now the plan costs $57 a day which I believe is full price. My trip is almost a year out so I'll keep checking for discounts, but how low can I hope for? 30% off? Any chance for 40% or more? When are the best times to expect discounts?

 

Also, I see that the official policy is that if 1 adult gets the package then all adults in the room need the package. How possible is it for an exception to be made if 1 of the adults does not drink either due to medical or AA reasons. I have read mixed things from no budging to a possible downgrade to the basic drinking package but haven't see anyone be able to get it completely off the bill. Is this something that is best handled over the phone or in person on the ship? 

[nat9511]

They usually have a good sale on Black Friday.

[awestover89]

1) I've seen it more expensive and cheaper than $57 a day. How low it will go will depend on the ship, itinerary, and how many people buy it. There's a cruise planner sale slated to start tomorrow, so check then. Also definitely check on black Friday, there's usually sales around then. Just keep an eye on it; you can always cancel and rebook if the price drops

 

2) You can call and get it reduced to the refreshment package (the mid-tier beverage package). I've not heard of anybody being able to get it lowered to the cheapest soda package or to no package. Officially, even the reduction to the refreshment package isn't allowed, but they seem to always give that as an option when calling, just can't be done online.

[thegraminator]

The  lowest  price  we have seen  is $44 per person.  You  really  have  to  just check  it  often.

 

And to answer your  2nd  question  it's  a crap shoot .   Normally  they are willing  to  work  with you , but if they do ease up  on the rule , please  be aware  that they will  require  the other adults  to at least purchase  the refreshment  package .    The information  I have  gleaned  from these posts is the majority  have been  successful  in buying  only 1 deluxe  beverage package . 

[Miloomar]

3 minutes ago, awestover89 said:

Officially, even the reduction to the refreshment package isn't allowed, but they seem to always give that as an option when calling, just can't be done online.

 

I just don't understand the policy at all. It's not like drinks are being delivered to the room. I understand you can't share a drink with someone not on the plan, but to assume that just because you're sharing a room means you'd be with the other person 24/7 and might sneak a drink to them just seems dumb. It's not like a room upgrade where both people in the room benefit. It would be like if you had 2 rooms in your party for 4 people and 1 person from each room wanted to do a specialty dining one day and the other 2 just went to the windjammer but all 4 get charged for the meal... except in this case someone not participating medically cannot join in. 

[jean-lynd]

Ours dropped to $39 ten days before our cruise in February on Allure.

[awestover89]

1 minute ago, Miloomar said:

 

I just don't understand the policy at all. It's not like drinks are being delivered to the room. I understand you can't share a drink with someone not on the plan, but to assume that just because you're sharing a room means you'd be with the other person 24/7 and might sneak a drink to them just seems dumb. It's not like a room upgrade where both people in the room benefit. It would be like if you had 2 rooms in your party for 4 people and 1 person from each room wanted to do a specialty dining one day and the other 2 just went to the windjammer but all 4 get charged for the meal... except in this case someone not participating medically cannot join in. 

 

They got rid of the policy for a while, but there was just way too much sharing (or that's the official statement anyway). Unfortunately, at least based on a number of threads posted here at Cruise Critic, a lot of the sharing was being done by people travelling together only buying one package and then getting drinks for their spouse. It's a case of the minority spoiling it for everybody else

[Grenouille21]

3 minutes ago, Miloomar said:

 

I just don't understand the policy at all. It's not like drinks are being delivered to the room. I understand you can't share a drink with someone not on the plan, but to assume that just because you're sharing a room means you'd be with the other person 24/7 and might sneak a drink to them just seems dumb. It's not like a room upgrade where both people in the room benefit. It would be like if you had 2 rooms in your party for 4 people and 1 person from each room wanted to do a specialty dining one day and the other 2 just went to the windjammer but all 4 get charged for the meal... except in this case someone not participating medically cannot join in. 

 

My guess is if people didn't consistently and publicly abuse the rules Royal wouldn't need to change them.  

[Miloomar]

Just now, awestover89 said:

 

They got rid of the policy for a while, but there was just way too much sharing (or that's the official statement anyway). Unfortunately, at least based on a number of threads posted here at Cruise Critic, a lot of the sharing was being done by people travelling together only buying one package and then getting drinks for their spouse. It's a case of the minority spoiling it for everybody else

 

Bet there's still plenty of sharing between parties who book multiple rooms if that's the case...

 

selfish people really do ruin things for the rest

[Artemus]

I have a somewhat similar situation. My wife gets free drinks in the casino while gambling so it doesn’t come close to being a viable option for me to buy it since we would both have to. Even if I could buy it and she didn’t have to I probably still wouldn’t buy it because of it being so expensive. I’ve bought it in the past when they allowed only one in the cabin to buy it but it just keeps going up and up. Seems like every time I book a cruise the drink package has increased in price.

[SRF]

10 hours ago, Miloomar said:

 

I just don't understand the policy at all. It's not like drinks are being delivered to the room. I understand you can't share a drink with someone not on the plan, but to assume that just because you're sharing a room means you'd be with the other person 24/7 and might sneak a drink to them just seems dumb. It's not like a room upgrade where both people in the room benefit. It would be like if you had 2 rooms in your party for 4 people and 1 person from each room wanted to do a specialty dining one day and the other 2 just went to the windjammer but all 4 get charged for the meal... except in this case someone not participating medically cannot join in. 

 

Because people WERE sharing drinks.  And not just in the room.  By the pool.  At the bars.  In the restaurants.  At the shows.

[SRF]

10 hours ago, awestover89 said:

It's a case of the minority spoiling it for everybody else

 

How do you know it was the minority?  And even so, how small of one?  1% or 49.9%?

[Nextcruise42]

Going on Anthem in Janurary, and my cruise planner says Sale is on. Up to 30% off. Beverage package is same as last week. $50

[SuiteLady]

I found Royal to be very liberal in allowing ONE person to buy the beverage package, AS LONG AS the other person at least bought the refreshment package.  When I called to inquire, they offered that deal to me versus paying for 2 full beverage packages.  Cheapest deal for my cruise was $45/day.  I leave tomorrow on the Anthem!!  Woohoo!!

[sparks1093]

The full price we saw on board Anthem was $66 pp/pd and they had a BOGO special where the second package was $99pd for two and if that is consistent among the fleet (I have no idea if it is or isn't) then anything less than $49 is better than what you'll get on the ship. FWIW we bought the package at $46 pp/pd and never saw it go lower.

[sparks1093]

4 hours ago, SRF said:

 

How do you know it was the minority?  And even so, how small of one?  1% or 49.9%?

It really doesn't matter what the exact percentage is, it's still a matter of a few ruining it for the rest of us.

[Miloomar]

4 hours ago, SRF said:

 

Because people WERE sharing drinks.  And not just in the room.  By the pool.  At the bars.  In the restaurants.  At the shows.

 

So you go with a party that needs 3 rooms and 1 person wants to buys the package... those same people are going to share with the people in the other room arent they? By your logic they should just charge everyone on the ship for the package since everyone is just going to share with everyone else.

[SugarRush]

I called today and got the alcohol package for me and the refreshment package for my non drinking other half. It wasn’t an issue at all 

[Tasm3n]

1 hour ago, SugarRush said:

I called today and got the alcohol package for me and the refreshment package for my non drinking other half. It wasn’t an issue at all 

 

Very helpful to know.  I wasn't sure what we were going to do on our upcoming cruise.  We have a 2 bedroom grand suite and are traveling with my mother who does not drink.  Having to pay her to have the booze package so we can would have made it cost prohibitive.

[stevetod]

As of today the drink package on Adventure is $49 per day.

[Miloomar]

2 minutes ago, stevetod said:

As of today the drink package on Adventure is $49 per day.

 

Still $57 for my sailing on Symphony

[2Long2NxtCrz]

Our cruise isn't until May 2020 on Liberty and the packages just showed up.  The Deluxe is $50 and the Refreshment is $28.

 

I fully expect them to go down.  I'll keep checking.  Black Friday is usually a good price (but not the only time).

[cb at sea]

I would hold off...and then consider if the cost of the refreshment package + the booze package will still be a "cost-savings".  Might be just easier to buy as you go.  If your "non-drinker" isn't into sodas or fancy coffees, I can't see the point of paying for that.

[Frankmac]

We booked Oasis for September 2019 two weeks ago. At the time of booking the deluxe package was €47.52. I checked it every day and when it went up to €51.04 I booked it in case it went higher. Three days later it came back down to €47.52, so I cancelled and booked again. What was the point of that increase?

 

Incidentally the figures above are without the gratuity which was applied at a rate 16.26%. Don't know where that came from either.

 

[Iamcruzin]

As some one said, the price and sales are based on how the package is selling. If every one purchased the package before it went on sale there would be no reason to lower the price so you should at least wait for a sale. For over a year I have been watching my deluxe drink package go from $52 to $49. My Anthem cruise is 28days out and the lowest price I have seen is $49. This is for a 9 day cruise with six sea days if you count embarkation day and Labadee.  I managed to get one deluxe package combined with surf and stream for one device for $59 and 1 refreshment package for $17 on Black Friday. While I didn't save much on the deluxe beverage package, by booking the combination with Zoom I saved about $5 a day on internet. The refreshment package price has been running between $20 and $26 since I purchased it on Black Friday. All in all I'm happy with the price I paid. If you plan on purchasing a combination such as this look at the whole picture. Compared to other lines $49 a day for a drink package is still a bargain. Celebrity bundles it in the cruise fare but last time I checked if you purchased it on board it was between $65 and $69. My son told me NCL was $99 on board if you didn't book it in a bundled cruise fare. and Princess was $59 the last time I checked. At a year out I wouldn't pull the trigger unless you come across a deep discount before Black Friday rolls around. I booked my June cruise in April last year and didn't see anything that would compel me to make a purchase until the Black Friday deal came around and I haven't found a cheaper price since.