Can You Explain Azamara's "Included" Drinks Policy?

[BrendaJ]

Jimdee - you might also check into the Experience More packages, which include an upgrade to the beverage package.  It’s probably not worth it for a shorter cruise, but a transatlantic might be long enough to make it a good value for you.

 

Experience More Packages

[jaxw17]

On 2/21/2020 at 3:40 AM, laurieb said:

We don’t find bringing our own wine a bother at all; we can drink what we like at dinner for a very reasonable corkage.  I also appreciate that we can bring whatever and as much as we like onboard at our ports and be able to enjoy them, not have them taken away until we disembark.  

What is the corkage cost ?

 

[laurieb]

1 hour ago, jaxw17 said:

What is the corkage cost ?

 

10.00 a bottle; very reasonable!!

[takemewithyou]

1 hour ago, laurieb said:

10.00 a bottle; very reasonable!!

That is reasonable, compared to other cruise lines.  Hope it stays that way! 

[Bloodaxe]

Just received a email from a large UK travel agent advertising Azamara as all inclusive with unlimited drinks, no mention of the restricted drinks menu or charges for speciality restaurants.

I was under the impression that Azamara had stopped travel agents giving false information to clients.

Edited February 25, 2020 by Bloodaxe

[uktog]

5 minutes ago, Bloodaxe said:

Just received a email from a large UK travel agent advertising Azamara as all inclusive with unlimited drinks, no mention of the restricted drinks menu or charges for speciality restaurants.

I was under the impression that Azamara had stopped travel agents giving false information to clients.

Happens all the time. I get them regularly I’m surprised Azamara don’t deal with it, probably don’t want to upset the big agencies. Surprised there aren’t more upset folks onboard with all these adverts 

[Grandma Cruising]

7 minutes ago, Bloodaxe said:

Just received a email from a large UK travel agent advertising Azamara as all inclusive with unlimited drinks, no mention of the restricted drinks menu or charges for speciality restaurants.

I was under the impression that Azamara had stopped travel agents giving false information to clients.

They also advertise hotels in Egypt and the Maldives where the spirits are all unbranded local spirits as ‘all inclusive’. 

[excitedofharpenden]

2 hours ago, Bloodaxe said:

Just received a email from a large UK travel agent advertising Azamara as all inclusive with unlimited drinks, no mention of the restricted drinks menu or charges for speciality restaurants.

I was under the impression that Azamara had stopped travel agents giving false information to clients.

That is very bad. I thought this had been sorted out. Azamara have many connections with travel agencies. No excuses. 

 

Phil 

[luv2travel90266]

What do they charge for corkage in the dining room? We are going on our first Azamara cruise but are Celebrity regulars. Have in the past been buying bottles at dinner and haven't taken advantage of their drink  packages as we aren't day drinkers. Celebrity only allows 2 bottles per stateroom brought at the beginning of the cruise. 

 

[Mackdogmolly]

24 minutes ago, luv2travel90266 said:

What do they charge for corkage in the dining room? We are going on our first Azamara cruise but are Celebrity regulars. Have in the past been buying bottles at dinner and haven't taken advantage of their drink  packages as we aren't day drinkers. Celebrity only allows 2 bottles per stateroom brought at the beginning of the cruise. 

 

You can bring on as many bottles as you like. Corkage is $10

[laurieb]

19 hours ago, luv2travel90266 said:

What do they charge for corkage in the dining room? We are going on our first Azamara cruise but are Celebrity regulars. Have in the past been buying bottles at dinner and haven't taken advantage of their drink  packages as we aren't day drinkers. Celebrity only allows 2 bottles per stateroom brought at the beginning of the cruise. 

 

They don’t charge a corkage for bottles you purchase on the ship; the charge is for bottles you bring onboard with you, either when you embark or from ports you visit.  Azamara has a very liberal and generous alcohol policy

[luv2travel90266]

I of course understood that corkage is not added to bottles bought on the ship.  $10 corkage is definitely a deal. I have a wine  cellar and have been paying as much as $30 corkage at some of the local restaurants.  Will pack a 6 bottle cloth carrier with me on our trip. 

 

[Tranquility Base]

6 hours ago, laurieb said:

......the charge is for bottles you bring onboard with you, either when you embark or from ports you visit.

Is this corkage charged even if you just drink the wine in your cabin, and do not bring to a restaurant ?

[luv2travel90266]

What you consume in your room is without a charge. You can pour and walk through the ship with your glass. Corkage is charged on bottles brought to the restaurant. A very generous policy in my opinion. 

[spiritoftravel]

On 2/20/2020 at 8:18 AM, Host Grandma Cruising said:

There is a smoothie bar...

Yes there is but you cannot always get what you want, I tried and was told my choice was not available, although the guy making them was friendly and said come back tomorrow!

As for drinks, they are OK-just for the wine, and we and some friends tried to ask for wines from previous nights and it was not available, the cocktails, etc were OK, my husband is a coffee drinker and said the coffee in Mosaic was very good, better than in other places.

The wine they have is disappointing as only one come from Australia and we travelled through New Zealand, shame, but they do go for cheap stuff, at a winery someone looked up the Azamara red wine and it was 7$ a bottle!

[spiritoftravel]

On 2/20/2020 at 12:09 AM, jimdee3636 said:

We're also considering a Barcelona-to-Miami transatlantic on the Oceania Marina that same month. Prices are, on paper, roughly comparable for similar cabin types (although I know that the "basic" Marina cabins are quite larger than those on Azamara, and of course the ship itself is larger and newer).

The wines are OK - just, cocktails OK but all basic. However having just returned can I suggest you stick with Oceania, a far better experience all round 

[jimdee3636]

5 hours ago, spiritoftravel said:

The wines are OK - just, cocktails OK but all basic. However having just returned can I suggest you stick with Oceania, a far better experience all round 

Thanks. I've decided to take your advice, not just because of the wine and drinks but also because I love the "O-Class" Oceania ships (Marina and Riviera). I guess I just don't see a compelling reason to switch to Azamara for this particular transatlantic sailing.

[spiritoftravel]

1 hour ago, jimdee3636 said:

Thanks. I've decided to take your advice, not just because of the wine and drinks but also because I love the "O-Class" Oceania ships (Marina and Riviera). I guess I just don't see a compelling reason to switch to Azamara for this particular transatlantic sailing.

Enjoy your trip, I hope you post some news on food, etc we are travelling on Marina for 3 weeks next year, so hope the food and general service, etc is still as good as it was 18months/2 years ago on Regatta, we could not fault it, the passengers were all so friendly, we made freinds with a lovely couple from USA in the 80's who asked if they could join us for all the quizies. 

[mj_holiday]

On 2/26/2020 at 7:39 PM, luv2travel90266 said:

What you consume in your room is without a charge. You can pour and walk through the ship with your glass. Corkage is charged on bottles brought to the restaurant. A very generous policy in my opinion. 

Only if you bring it to your room.  In a veranda suite, the liquor/beer in the mini bar will cost you.  I am still unsure about what kind of drink package you need to purchase or what kind of suite you are in to get wine delivered to your suite along with a meal.  

 

On the positive - the wines offered in the dining room have been good, and they had two red and two white each night that they had for us to select from.

[Baynanno1]

1 hour ago, mj_holiday said:

Only if you bring it to your room.  In a veranda suite, the liquor/beer in the mini bar will cost you.  I am still unsure about what kind of drink package you need to purchase or what kind of suite you are in to get wine delivered to your suite along with a meal.  

 

On the positive - the wines offered in the dining room have been good, and they had two red and two white each night that they had for us to select from.

 

On the rare occasions I have been confined to quarters, I have been able to have a (generously poured) glass of wine of the day included with dinner in an Oceanview stateroom.

Edited February 29, 2020 by Baynanno1

[tv24]

There's good news and bad.  First the good:  The coffee drinks at the Mosaic coffee bar and in the restaurants are terrific and included.  Forget the Nespresso.  The included wines are OK, drinkable, never bad.  The included spirits are also OK, and if mixed with something else, no problem.  And, IMHO, if you drink on Oceania, you have to buy a package, which is quite expensive per day.  So AZ is a better buy for us folks who like to have a drink.  

 

On our last AZ trip we were lucky to have an obscene amount of OBC, so we bought the top drinks package and we drank great stuff to our hearts content.  And I think it was still cheaper than than Oceania.

[excitedofharpenden]

On 2/29/2020 at 7:59 PM, Baynanno1 said:

 

On the rare occasions I have been confined to quarters, I have been able to have a (generously poured) glass of wine of the day included with dinner in an Oceanview stateroom.

I noticed on the interactive TV on Journey that boutique wines were included on the in stateroom room service menu.  I’m not sure if this is a policy change or a mistake. I’ve always understood that included drinks were not available through room service.  Perhaps Bonnie could clarify because wine with zero charge was definitely on there.

 

Phil

[BBMacLaird]

6 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

I noticed on the interactive TV on Journey that boutique wines were included on the in stateroom room service menu.  I’m not sure if this is a policy change or a mistake. I’ve always understood that included drinks were not available through room service.  Perhaps Bonnie could clarify because wine with zero charge was definitely on there.

 

Phil

The complimentary wine is now available with Room Service meal delivery. 

 

[Grandma Cruising]

56 minutes ago, BBMacLaird said:

The complimentary wine is now available with Room Service meal delivery. 

 

Thanks for the information, Bonnie. I’ll add that to ‘Tips’

[laurieb]

On 3/3/2020 at 9:02 AM, BBMacLaird said:

The complimentary wine is now available with Room Service meal delivery. 

 

That’s a great inclusion!