drink package frustration!

[hallux]

2 hours ago, beerman2 said:

Have you checked solo cabin/rate for your son?

Is there an echo in here?   lol

[beerman2]

3 minutes ago, hallux said:

Is there an echo in here?   lol

Only when one doesn’t read all the posts😂

[Outerdog]

19 hours ago, tallnthensome said:

Tell me you’re not purchasing the package outright? I think only 3 people in history have done or even considered that .....

 

Plenty of people purchased the package when the cost was a reasonable $49 / day.

[Two Wheels Only]

1 hour ago, kollegekreed said:

Can’t say I’ve ever heard of someone losing the package....

 

I've read about it happening.

If it happens on my next cruise, I'll record it with my phone and post it (unless someone else records/posts it before I do).

[KKB]

I get this point of view.

We were looking at 3 of us sailing the Med next summer. We were getting a pretty good price BUT when you are doing an 11 day cruise, it wasn't worth it to get the drink package as a perk since the 3rd person would have to buy it as well & that was just too much, especially on a port intensive cruise.

[Two Wheels Only]

43 minutes ago, KKB said:

We were getting a pretty good price BUT when you are doing an 11 day cruise, it wasn't worth it to get the drink package as a perk since the 3rd person would have to buy it as well & that was just too much, especially on a port intensive cruise.

 

The 3rd person doesn't "have to" buy a package if the first 2 guests get the promo. The 3rd guest can buy drinks a la carte. 

[erdoran]

Here’s another possibility which I think is legit - if one of the parents is platinum, at their platinum dinner they get a free bottle of wine - but I suspect there is no rule that prevents them sharing it with their non-UBP dinner partner.  Now—here’s the trick - the UBP diner can use UBP to drink free throughout the dinner in addition to their included bottle of wine, which they can give to the non-UBP person.

 

Have I got that right?  I don’t think there are any “rules” being broken....

Edited November 12, 2019 by erdoran

[HowardK]

I found it to be a good perk- for the $120 gratuity it came to around $3 per drink for me for the week.

 

However- I am having a hard time fathoming the upgrade to the premium plus or whatever plan- is it worth it?

Free starbucks, etc.. might be good.

[jimdee3636]

I've had drink packages on NCL, HAL, and Princess. The latter two cost about $65 to $70 a day (including the mandatory gratuity), but DO include bottled waters and specialty coffee drinks. However, NCL has a policy that I've seen on no other cruise line. If you want a drink that's above the $15 cut-off (let's say, a $25 glass of nice French wine), you'd pay only the difference, i.e., $10 (plus 20% gratuity on the $10). The other lines charge you the full price of those "over the limit" drinks. I've enjoyed some outstanding wines and Champagnes on NCL because of that policy.

 

All-in-all, I'm OK with the NCL policy, despite the "$99 value" being inflated, and the bottled water and espresso exclusions. Having the package means you don't have to always ask yourself: "Is this drink really worth it?" You're on vacation---simplify your life and enjoy!

[cincicruisers]

10 hours ago, kollegekreed said:

Fact is you are allowed to get two drinks at once. As long as you aren’t overt about it,  none of the bartenders will care if you order him a drink.

 

Here is a good example of why the drink packages keep rising in cost.  Not really setting a good example by trying to defraud the system.  IMO

[beerman2]

11 hours ago, KKB said:

I get this point of view.

We were looking at 3 of us sailing the Med next summer. We were getting a pretty good price BUT when you are doing an 11 day cruise, it wasn't worth it to get the drink package as a perk since the 3rd person would have to buy it as well & that was just too much, especially on a port intensive cruise.

Port intensive cruises shouldn't factor in. Most pax are still ON the ship 8 hours a day.

So you have "1" drink an hour, that's approximately 7 or 8 drinks@ 12.00-15.00 dollars a drink.

 

Having that 1 drink an hour isn't excessively drinking, you're on vacation. Heck start your day with a couple of Mimosas or bloody Mary's or Bailey's and Coffee.

 

There may even be a port or 2 that "might" not be as good as anticipated.

[PTC DAWG]

10 hours ago, jimdee3636 said:

However, NCL has a policy that I've seen on no other cruise line. If you want a drink that's above the $15 cut-off (let's say, a $25 glass of nice French wine), you'd pay only the difference, i.e., $10 (plus 20% gratuity on the $10). The other lines charge you the full price of those "over the limit" drinks. I've enjoyed some outstanding wines and Champagnes on NCL because of that policy.

 

 

Celebrity only charges the difference in the price of drinks that are priced above what their drink packages allow. Plus 20%

[Georgia_Peaches]

On 11/11/2019 at 8:19 AM, Caroldoll said:

I agree completely and I am Platinum Plus and in the Haven Owners Suite and still no water!

Wait!!  I thought water was included in the OS and DOS...no?

[framboesa]

hello!I don't understand the 20% gratuities regarding to the Premium Beverage Package perk. On the NCL website it says:"20% gratuities on the retail value of the Premium Beverage Package ($19.80 USD per person per day) and/or Soda Package ($1.59 USD per person per day) are included." Why do we have to pay more?

[ziggyuk]

9 minutes ago, framboesa said:

hello!I don't understand the 20% gratuities regarding to the Premium Beverage Package perk. On the NCL website it says:"20% gratuities on the retail value of the Premium Beverage Package ($19.80 USD per person per day) and/or Soda Package ($1.59 USD per person per day) are included." Why do we have to pay more?

 

In Europe it's built into the price of the perk so you don't see it as an extra charge when booking.

[framboesa]

Just now, ziggyuk said:

 

In Europe it's built into the price of the perk so you don't see it as an extra charge when booking.

Thank you! I was reading about paying 99 + 20% everywhere! This was driving me nuts 😄 So, i we buy the Premium Beverage Perk, the 99€ is the only thing that we will have to pay if we buy 15$ drinks, right? (I'm asking this because my husband drink but I don't drink, so the package will only be used by him)

[ziggyuk]

1 minute ago, framboesa said:

Thank you! I was reading about paying 99 + 20% everywhere! This was driving me nuts 😄 So, i we buy the Premium Beverage Perk, the 99€ is the only thing that we will have to pay if we buy 15$ drinks, right? (I'm asking this because my husband drink but I don't drink, so the package will only be used by him)

 

Yes that's right, in the UK we pay £99 for 2 perks including gratuities, this is the same as your €99.

I was going to book my next cruise on a US web site but by the time you factored in the extra gratuities for drinks and speciality dining is was more expensive for my cruise than booking on the NCL UK site.

Once on board you will not have to pay any extra unless you go over the $15 a drink limit.

[luckyinpa]

rethinking a trip merely because of the price of booze is amazing to me. if you like the ship. the port, where you are going, but let booze decide the trip then i think the trip really wasnt important. should have gone on sky when they had the free for all. no worries then. the emphasis on booze while cruising is amazing throughout this entire forum. thats how they know how to get you. no one's ever gonna put limits on fruits and veggies 🙂

[david_sobe]

There have been several threads about this over the year.  Yes, NCL has the most expensive and least coverage drink package of the cruise lines.  However, NCL is clever and sort of already indirectly sold you the drink package in the price of the cruise fare.  So if you are a drinker (at least 2 drinks a day), its worth it to pay the gratuities and not spend too much time dwelling on the subject further.  No way EVER would I ever pay $99 per day for a drink package outright.

[Caroldoll]

3 hours ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

Wait!!  I thought water was included in the OS and DOS...no?

My agent said no and bought me a case!  LOL  I don't know what I will do with a case, but at least I will have bottled water.  

[HuliHuli]

It strikes me that focusing on only one element of cost in a complete cruise package is a bit like the parable of the six blind men and an elephant...it misses the big picture.

[BirdTravels]

1 hour ago, Caroldoll said:

My agent said no and bought me a case!  LOL  I don't know what I will do with a case, but at least I will have bottled water.  

Bottled Water is included with the Owners Suites. Your TA wastes their money. 

[HowardK]

The whole promo in and itself is some sort of scheme. The cruise is already expensive and the cruise line gets alcohol at a bulk discount. You then pay a gratuity on the drink on average of $3 a drink maybe more per drink as not everyone maxes out the perk.

You are then sometimes (not always) feeling obligating to tip your server because deep down inside we are compassionate and know the $3 average gratuity is not making its way to the worker.

Then we have this new premium plus pacakge- but to max that out you would likely only be drinking the upgraded items.

 

I was on a cruise in the mid 90's that had the best drink package of all- somehow we brought our bottle or rum around to different bars, asked from coke or sprite to mix it- as well as some ice! Yes we did tip the people who helped us .

 

[bostonfred]

It is just a way to financially support the free beverage package...inflated price, highest gratuity rate on sea...it becomes a math question. In our late sixties we don’t drink like we used to, so some days it is close on wether we come out ahead or not...you have to do the math, most days we still come out ahead, but we have to look at other perks that may save you more...it is crazy for most to purchase the package, remember you will be off the ship a lot and drinking on shore, at the beach ,etc....good luck

[KKB]

On 11/12/2019 at 4:44 AM, beerman2 said:

Port intensive cruises shouldn't factor in. Most pax are still ON the ship 8 hours a day.

So you have "1" drink an hour, that's approximately 7 or 8 drinks@ 12.00-15.00 dollars a drink.

 

Having that 1 drink an hour isn't excessively drinking, you're on vacation. Heck start your day with a couple of Mimosas or bloody Mary's or Bailey's and Coffee.

 

There may even be a port or 2 that "might" not be as good as anticipated.

It ABSOLUTELY factors in, especially a cruise with ports we have never visited.

We have 3 sea days & 8 port days--LONG days in port (10-12 hours), which we plan to spend IN those ports exploring.

I don't drink in the morning before heading to a port. 

We will likely enjoy the local wines & such.

We anticipate being quite tired after a long day of exploring, have a dinner & MAYBE an evening show or activity, but in bed early.

PLUS in Europe lines seem to be quite liberal about bringing wine onboard at ports.

Look, in the Caribbean, we enjoy our cocktails; stops are short. We drink at the pool, stay up late  (and sleep late...). Those cruises are for the cruise & the weather--ports are a perk. We get our money worth out of drink packages there! 

BUT HONESTLY, if we had to pay $100/day pp OOP we would not do it. ESPECIALLY if it doesn't include specialty non-alc drinks.