Increased Cocktail Prices Making Premium Package Not all inclusive?

[LadyBerard]

42 minutes ago, sunonfire said:

I’m on the same cruise. I read on another board that Celebrity allows for just one person in the cabin to upgrade during the cruise. So. I could get the premium and my husband would keep the classic. Does anyone know if that is still true? Also how much would the increase be - I think it is based on remaining days of the cruise.

That is true; although I have never done it.  I think if you call before the cruise, you can upgrade just one of you too.

 

[LadyBerard]

45 minutes ago, sunonfire said:

I’m on the same cruise. I read on another board that Celebrity allows for just one person in the cabin to upgrade during the cruise. So. I could get the premium and my husband would keep the classic. Does anyone know if that is still true? Also how much would the increase be - I think it is based on remaining days of the cruise.

It was about $10 pp pd to upgrade from our Classic to Premium.  If you do it on day 2, it should cost about $50 for just your husband to upgrade to Premium.

 

[Bonnycastle]

49 minutes ago, sunonfire said:

I’m on the same cruise. I read on another board that Celebrity allows for just one person in the cabin to upgrade during the cruise. So. I could get the premium and my husband would keep the classic. Does anyone know if that is still true? Also how much would the increase be - I think it is based on remaining days of the cruise.

I called to a Celebrity callcenter just yesterday and they confirmed me that upgrade for only one person to the Premium is possible while second person keeps the Classic

[sunonfire]

Thanks for the quick response. That is really good to know.

[jg51]

4 hours ago, LadyBerard said:

It was about $10 pp pd to upgrade from our Classic to Premium.  If you do it on day 2, it should cost about $50 for just your husband to upgrade to Premium.

 

,

If we're not mistaken, "LadyBerard," it is $12 per person, per day, after a 20% service charge is applied.  The $2 charge is mistakenly referred to as a "gratuity."

 

As Wikipedia explains, "gratuity" is a synonym for "tip."  A gratuity/tip is an optional (free-will) gesture, which may be given if service is good or better.  When an amount or percentage is forcibly added (in advance, rather than by a free-will act after a service is rendered), that amount/percentage is a "service charge."  The word, "gratuity," comes from the Latin root, "gratis," which means "free/freely" (as in "freely given"). 

 

On our first Celebrity cruise, in 2008, there were no service charges imposed on guests -- neither a daily amount (to be shared by waiters, stateroom stewards, etc.) nor a percentage for each beverage received.  (The cruise line suggested amounts that could be given in cash, at the end of a voyage, to certain crew members directly.)

 

Every dollar that was given by a guest was a genuine "gratuity," because the guest freely determined the percentage or amount that he/she wished to give (if something was deemed to have been earned/deserved).  Besides cash being freely given to certain crew members at the end of, a cruise, other crew members (e.g., bartenders, beverage servers, and specialty-restaurant waiters) were sometimes given cash tips during the course of a cruise. 

 

We believe that tips were given in this old-fashioned form for decades -- perhaps even for centuries.  Now the world of cruising will never go back to that old custom.  Instead, cruise lines impose  service charges, and guests are free to supplement those charges with genuine cash tips/gratuities.

.

[isdoo]

22 minutes ago, jg51 said:

We believe that tips were given in this old-fashioned form for decades -- perhaps even for centuries.  Now the world of cruising will never go back to that old custom.  Instead, cruise lines impose  service charges, and guests are free to supplement those charges with genuine cash tips/gratuities.

You can of course get the 20% service charge (and yes, I agree it is not a tip) removed if you feel strongly about it.

[isdoo]

7 hours ago, groryjm said:

I think there is some confusion as some of the prices quoted are from US sailings and some from UK. In the UK any gratuities must be included in the displayed price and I believe the same for Aus. so for UK sailings the package limit is nearer to $18 and in the US $15 but the onboard prices displayed in bar menus will be different depending on home port

In the UK we have VAT added to the drinks price and as a result the limit is increased for that. 

[jg51]

1 hour ago, isdoo said:

You can of course get the 20% service charge (and yes, I agree it is not a tip) removed if you feel strongly about it.

.

Hello, "isdoo."

We're not sure that we understand your comment.  May we ask for a clarification or two?

 

Are you speaking of guests that have purchased an "Always Included" fare (by which one prepays the daily service charges) ... or are you speaking of guests that have purchased a "Simply Sail" fare (which does not cover daily service charges)?  Or ... could you even be referring to service charges on beverages?

 

If you are speaking of the case of a "Simply Sail" fare purchase (in which you are basically cruising as in the days just before the virus struck), then ... yes, we would agree that a passenger could go to Guest Services and ask them not to charge the daily fee.

 

BUT ... if you are speaking of an "Always Included" fare purchase, we do not see how someone could "get the service charge removed."  That charge is part of the fare and is paid in advance.  Are you saying that, when making an "AI" fare purchase (let's say, over the phone), a person could tell the vacation planner to decrease the fare -- right then and there -- by removing the service charge?   Or are you saying that, having paid the full fare in advance, a person boarding the ship could go to Guest Services and ask them to refund all or part of the (aggregate, pre-paid) daily fees -- causing them to become an on-board credit?  If so, would that credit be usable for on-board purchases (or could it even be refunded in cash at the end of the cruise)? 

 

If one of the above is what you meant, may we ask what is your source of information for this (because we have not previously seen or heard about it)?

 

Finally ... if you were referring (instead, or also) to withholding (or being refunded) service charges for beverages, how would that be accomplished -- and how did you learn of that possibility?

 

Before we say, "farewell," we want to add one thing, lest anyone accuse us of being cheapskates.  We have no desire, nor any intention, to remove the daily service charges (and/or those for beverages)!  In over thirty cruises, we have just once, and only partially, removed daily service charges.  [We were once ill-served on a non-RCG cruise.]  With that one exception, not only have we kept the charges intact, but we have usually added cash gratuities on top of them.

[isdoo]

11 minutes ago, jg51 said:

.

Hello, "isdoo."

We're not sure that we understand your comment.  May we ask for a clarification or two?

 

Are you speaking of guests that have purchased an "Always Included" fare (by which one prepays the daily service charges) ... or are you speaking of guests that have purchased a "Simply Sail" fare (which does not cover daily service charges)?  Or ... could you even be referring to service charges on beverages?

 

If you are speaking of the case of a "Simply Sail" fare purchase (in which you are basically cruising as in the days just before the virus struck), then ... yes, we would agree that a passenger could go to Guest Services and ask them not to charge the daily fee.

 

BUT ... if you are speaking of an "Always Included" fare purchase, we do not see how someone could "get the service charge removed."  That charge is part of the fare and is paid in advance.  Are you saying that, when making an "AI" fare purchase (let's say, over the phone), a person could tell the vacation planner to decrease the fare -- right then and there -- by removing the service charge?   Or are you saying that, having paid the full fare in advance, a person boarding the ship could go to Guest Services and ask them to refund all or part of the (aggregate, pre-paid) daily fees -- causing them to become an on-board credit?  If so, would that credit be usable for on-board purchases (or could it even be refunded in cash at the end of the cruise)? 

 

If one of the above is what you meant, may we ask what is your source of information for this (because we have not previously seen or heard about it)?

 

Finally ... if you were referring (instead, or also) to withholding (or being refunded) service charges for beverages, how would that be accomplished -- and how did you learn of that possibility?

 

Before we say, "farewell," we want to add one thing, lest anyone accuse us of being cheapskates.  We have no desire, nor any intention, to remove the daily service charges (and/or those for beverages)!  In over thirty cruises, we have just once, and only partially, removed daily service charges.  [We were once ill-served on a non-RCG cruise.]  With that one exception, not only have we kept the charges intact, but we have usually added cash gratuities on top of them.

 

I was more referring to the additional charge made over and above included packages. Apologies for the confusion. 

[hcat]

On 7/22/2021 at 10:55 AM, megfla said:

That's the odd thing, we ordered Cosmo's and Dirty Martini's as shown on your menu and were never charged any excess.  So unless this is in fact an increase in the last few weeks, I will be surprised if you are in fact charged that extra dollar.

Many  servers  do not bother with the add on ..esp at the tables on EDGE in the central bar area....too busy for the extra paperwork we were told

[kearney]

All these price increases.... well before you know it...people will be smuggling in booze in plastic containers. I am not actually much of a drinker..and the old...I mean old pricing was such that we never got a package... the Captains club was enough and the bottle of wine at dinner was far less than the old package prices...  Of some 30+ cruises... we had our first drink package as a perk on the last cruise. I did enjoy getting specialty coffees and fluffy drinks during the day... but I really don't need the added calories of the multiple pina coladas...  We have one more cruse with premium package as part of the perks...from a multiple lift and shift....  I don't like the nickel and dimeing (sp?) but I feel for the cruise lines being out of business for over a year while still maintaining considerable staff and crew and needing to maintain ships without solid revenue... They got to make money anyway they can... I suppose this is one way to chip away at it.

[peanut head]

Speaking of drink prices, I was wondering if a charge for a single drink can be split among different guests in the same party?  For example, in Eden the Village Drink is $45 and serves 4.  Does 1 person pay the $45 or can it be split 4 ways so that the 4 people pay $15 each and it is included in the prem. bev. pkg.?

[mayleeman]

1 hour ago, peanut head said:

Speaking of drink prices, I was wondering if a charge for a single drink can be split among different guests in the same party?  For example, in Eden the Village Drink is $45 and serves 4.  Does 1 person pay the $45 or can it be split 4 ways so that the 4 people pay $15 each and it is included in the prem. bev. pkg.?

 

I am sure they would love to collect $60 for a $45 drink (😉), but I doubt they would be willing to do the paperwork to split $45 tab 4 ways ($11.25 each). Just do it 4 times on the cruise and rotate the cost.

Edited July 24, 2021 by mayleeman

[fstuff1]

On 7/22/2021 at 10:50 AM, CruisinCorey2525 said:

That I am aware of, so ultimately I'll  maybe spend $20 more oh no!! Not a big deal at all, but still a bit of a nuisance and mentally not as enjoyable since you are having to pay more in the end.

 

it's nickle and diming. (See my sig.)

ncl has the same stupid policy of making some drinks $1 more than the premium beverage limit.

their CEO has said that his goal was to avg $5 more per passenger in onboard spending.

 

then he made some drinks $2 more than the limit the next year.  

then the pandemic hit

 

Edited July 24, 2021 by fstuff1

[NMTraveller]

Does a glass of Opus One fall under the premium package 🙂   🙂   🙂 🙂

Edited July 24, 2021 by NMTraveller

[peanut head]

4 hours ago, mayleeman said:

 

I am sure they would love to collect $60 for a $45 drink (😉), but I doubt they would be willing to do the paperwork to split $45 tab 4 ways ($11.25 each). Just do it 4 times on the cruise and rotate the cost.

Thanks for picking up the math error. 😳 

[TowandaUK]

We are sailing from the UK in July 22. In the app the wine prices in the MDT are listed according to which drinks package covers the cost. As it is a UK sailing drinks up to $18 seem to be covered by the premium package. I don’t know if sailings from other countries show the breakdown of drinks costs in the same way in the app. 

[jelayne]

6 hours ago, NMTraveller said:

Does a glass of Opus One fall under the premium package 🙂   🙂   🙂 🙂

😂😂😂

[mayleeman]

4 hours ago, peanut head said:

Thanks for picking up the math error. 😳 

 

Sorry....I just couldn't resist! 🥸

[TeeRick]

On 7/23/2021 at 5:15 PM, phoenix_dream said:

Yikes, that's ridiculous.  A pretty significant price increase if you do the math.  I wouldn't mind that much except the Martini Bar is the most popular bar on the ship and getting drink #2 can sometimes take quite awhile.  The stubborn (and maybe cheap) part of me refuses to go the route of ordering a larger size and paying more.  

Yes agree.  Unless you order two at one time.😄

[graphicguy]

On 7/22/2021 at 11:30 AM, bajathree said:

Sailed Edge June 26th and never paid anything extra for any drink with my Premium Package and I was always drinking premium vodka or Tequila. 

My Edge sailing on July 10 was the same, no extra charges (although I do think I paid an extra dollar or two for some drink that came in a treasure chest and had smoke in it, but that was the only one).  I too wonder if this is a regional thing.

 

Aside from that one drink, I drank all kinds of martinis at the Martini Bar, had all kinds of bourbons on the Magic Carpet, had all sorts of beers at the pool bars, and had no extra charges for any of them.

[Sunshine424]

I don't think the premium package every covered everything.  I usually get the premium and I think most of the drinks at the world class bar, and there were other various drinks and glasses of wine not included, not a lot but some things here and there.  I would say everything I wished to try was included so it was never an issue for me, but I would not say it was all inclusive.  Curious now though as I have always been able to get whatever I wanted at the martini bar, but wondering if this will be the case this trip.

 

[hasentreelake]

On 7/23/2021 at 5:50 PM, LadyBerard said:

We had already upgraded to premium for our Nov. Constellation cruise.  I was able to upgrade that to Drinks and More for a total of $90.  I thought it was a bargain!

 

We agree!   We just added Drinks and More to our Sept and Nov cruises.  
@ $9/day (+20%) = done deal.    
Two bottles of wine • $50 in casino free play* • A wine tasting experience • If both adults in your stateroom purchase the Drinks and More Package, the stateroom mini-bar will be included and replenished once a day for your entire vacation.

 

I do wonder what two bottles of wine might be selected.   Does anyone know?

[KonaPoodle]

 

On 7/23/2021 at 1:49 PM, jelayne said:

Bo, Sounds like a good deal to me.  2 smaller martinis - cost 0.  1 large martini- cost $3.60

 

On 7/23/2021 at 5:15 PM, phoenix_dream said:

Yikes, that's ridiculous.  A pretty significant price increase if you do the math.  I wouldn't mind that much except the Martini Bar is the most popular bar on the ship and getting drink #2 can sometimes take quite awhile.  The stubborn (and maybe cheap) part of me refuses to go the route of ordering a larger size and paying more.  

 

I'm thinking the smaller martinis could have to do with people tasting and discarding. No point in making anyone extra large martinis, just order another one. 

[CruisinCorey2525]

On 7/23/2021 at 7:40 PM, sunonfire said:

I’m on the same cruise. I read on another board that Celebrity allows for just one person in the cabin to upgrade during the cruise. So. I could get the premium and my husband would keep the classic. Does anyone know if that is still true? Also how much would the increase be - I think it is based on remaining days of the cruise.

Correct, only one person can upgrade if you want. You can upgrade anytime during the cruise and the cost is just the remaining days. It's $9 a day plus gratuity, if you have the classic drink package included in the always included promotion.