Drink package upgrade

[mklions]

Upgrading is IMHO does not make any commercial sense.

If you want a drink not included in the classic package then you only pay the difference in costs

 

. In most cases that will be a couple of dollars.

 

You have to drink a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade, or am I missing something?

Mklions

[Keys Kathy]

16 minutes ago, T^2 said:

I offer the following analysis for the group to critique:

 

I added the 20% gratiuty to the drink package upgrade to "get more" value out of the deal, since it is a cost savings.

 

Obviously, I did not include just the upgrade from Classic (All Included) to Premium as a separate line item at either $10 or $12 / day.

Tim

Darn, that's the one I need!

[AlbertaCruisers]

13 minutes ago, mklions said:

Upgrading is IMHO does not make any commercial sense.

If you want a drink not included in the classic package then you only pay the difference in costs

 

. In most cases that will be a couple of dollars.

 

You have to drink a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade, or am I missing something?

Mklions

Unless it has changed, it used to be that if you have classic package you pay the full amount of any drink over the limit. If you have premium you only have to pay the difference. 

 

EDIT: I just looked at the FAQ on the Celebrity site and for classic it says you only get charged the difference, so it does look like this has changed from what it used to say.

Edited August 7, 2021 by AlbertaCruisers

[kathynorth]

9 minutes ago, AlbertaCruisers said:

Unless it has changed, it used to be that if you have classic package you pay the full amount of any drink over the limit. If you have premium you only have to pay the difference. 

This has changed. Now you just pay the difference between cost of drink, plus tax and gratuity on that drink. However, some people upgrade to the premium drink package to access a different level of bottled water, specialty coffees, etc. It’s not just alcohol based drinks.

[T^2]

Classic drink package covers drinks up to $9 each, excluding expressos/teas, vitamin water, etc.

Upgrade charge from Classis to Premium = $12 / day with gratuity

Appears least expensive martini per Celebrity app is $13
Out of pocket per martini with classic drink package = $4.80 with gratuity

Expresso or specialty tea $4.80 to $6 with gratuity

Vitamin water = $5.40 with gratuity

One martini, expresso, and vitamin water (classic drink package) = $15 /day vs $12 for upgrade

 

Edited August 7, 2021 by T^2

[terrydtx]

2 hours ago, T^2 said:

Classic drink package covers drinks up to $9 each, excluding expressos/teas, vitamin water, etc.

Upgrade charge from Classis to Premium = $12 / day with gratuity

Appears least expensive martini per Celebrity app is $13
Out of pocket per martini with classic drink package = $4.80 with gratuity

Expresso or specialty tea $4.80 to $6 with gratuity

Vitamin water = $5.40 with gratuity

One martini, expresso, and vitamin water (classic drink package) = $15 /day vs $12 for upgrade

 

Exactly, but make the martinis $15 in martini bar and two of them a day pays for upgrade cost.

[T^2]

Concur on the two $15 martinis.  My selection of drinks was more to address the comment "a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade."  I thought about just using non-alcoholic drinks, but figured might was well throw in one martini.

[terrydtx]

35 minutes ago, T^2 said:

Concur on the two $15 martinis.  My selection of drinks was more to address the comment "a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade."  I thought about just using non-alcoholic drinks, but figured might was well throw in one martini.

Also a $15 glass of nice French Champagne or red wine or two pays for upgrade. 

[D C]

5 hours ago, mklions said:

Upgrading is IMHO does not make any commercial sense.

If you want a drink not included in the classic package then you only pay the difference in costs

 

. In most cases that will be a couple of dollars.

 

You have to drink a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade, or am I missing something?

Mklions

A $12 drink vs a $9 drink is $3.

An upgrade is $12, or the equivalent of 3 drinks. 

 

A 4th drink, or one of those three being more than $12 is a net savings.   That is a very low bar for a lot of people. 

[jelayne]

You can get regular sized martini’s at bars other than the Martini bar that are covered by the Classic package.

We upgrade because we drink wine more than liquor and prefer the wine selection on the Premium package. 

[mklions]

On 8/8/2021 at 1:57 AM, D C said:

A $12 drink vs a $9 drink is $3.

An upgrade is $12, or the equivalent of 3 drinks. 

 

A 4th drink, or one of those three being more than $12 is a net savings.   That is a very low bar for a lot of people. 

Point taken.

Is the PP upgrade $12 on every sailing? 

[terrydtx]

3 minutes ago, mklions said:

Point taken.

Is the PP upgrade $12 on every sailing? 

Currently, yes

[D C]

On 8/7/2021 at 8:57 PM, D C said:

A $12 drink vs a $9 drink is $3.

An upgrade is $12, or the equivalent of 3 drinks. 

 

A 4th drink, or one of those three being more than $12 is a net savings.   That is a very low bar for a lot of people. 

 

1 hour ago, mklions said:

Point taken.

Is the PP upgrade $12 on every sailing? 

I must have been drinking because my point was wrong... or at least my math. 😄

$3/drink savings = 4 drinks to get $12, not 3 like I said.

 

So 4 $12 drinks gets you to break even.  Or just 2 $15 martinis puts you ahead.

 

 

[lnuzzo]

On 8/7/2021 at 10:04 AM, taylortime05 said:

I am in the process of finalizing a 9 night cruise on Equinox 9/17/21.  I know we want to upgrade the Beverage package.  Are you saying it's a better deal to just upgrade the package versus take their elevate or indulge package?    Once I finalize the cruise I can compare all the options.  

in our situation, it made better sense to just upgrade the Bev package and the wifi ($496 for 2 for 9 nights) rather than spend $1080 for 2 for the elevate.  we already had $300 OBC from when we originally booked prior to the always included change.  we would loose our original OBC, and it would be replaced with $600 instead.  so we would be paying $584 for an additional $300 OBC.  I suggest you check the number both ways to see if it makes sense based on your booking package.

[lnuzzo]

On 8/6/2021 at 8:38 PM, T^2 said:

 

 

Has anyone cruised lately that can confirm there are now at least three different drink packages?  Is there an "Elevate" drink package that gets more expensive drinks than the Premium drink package.  I posted on the Dec roll call that several of the martinis (again on the app) are showing a price of $16.  I know it is only $1.20/drink extra with the premium package but ...

 

Tim

when I called CC to upgrade, I was give a choice to upgrade to Premium or Drinks and More.  I believe the Drinks and More adds 2 bottle of wine, mini bar and casino credit.  We don't touch the Minibar, and we don't gamble so it was a non starter.

 

so I would say or alcohol your options are Classic, Premium and Drinks and More

Edited August 12, 2021 by lnuzzo

[PTC DAWG]

On 8/7/2021 at 3:40 PM, mklions said:

Upgrading is IMHO does not make any commercial sense.

If you want a drink not included in the classic package then you only pay the difference in costs

 

. In most cases that will be a couple of dollars.

 

You have to drink a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade, or am I missing something?

Mklions

Yes...2-3 drinks a day could easily cover it.  Plus better wine, etc..sparkling water is not on the classic..Bailey's not on the Classic..it goes on and on..I know, just disembarked the EQ...

 

we took the drinks and more upgrade...turned the $100 chips into a real $90...the math was easy for us.  Didn't touch the wine in the room, did come home with some mini bottles of Tito's.

 

I think we covered the price difference on the 2nd trip to the Martini Bar.  🙂

Edited August 12, 2021 by PTC DAWG

[T^2]

As I posted on one of these boards, I am not trusting the Celebrity app data until I board in Dec but maybe not even then.  It seems to change every time I check it.  Maybe Celebrity is telling me not to be so anxious about the cruise...

Anyway, on the app, for the MDR menu on the wine option, the following Elevated wines are being offered.  It appears to me that (maybe) with the Elevated package, a $16 glass of white wine or $28 glass of red wine would be "included" without additional cost.

Anyone have any experience with the Elevated package and a possible different drink package?

[HskrCrsr]

2 hours ago, T^2 said:

As I posted on one of these boards, I am not trusting the Celebrity app data until I board in Dec but maybe not even then.  It seems to change every time I check it.  Maybe Celebrity is telling me not to be so anxious about the cruise...

Anyway, on the app, for the MDR menu on the wine option, the following Elevated wines are being offered.  It appears to me that (maybe) with the Elevated package, a $16 glass of white wine or $28 glass of red wine would be "included" without additional cost.

Anyone have any experience with the Elevated package and a possible different drink package?

Opting for the "Elevate" package from Always Included gets the Premium Drinks package. There is a listing in the app menu for Premium drinks, such as the "Red By the Glass Premium Package" shown in your post. I think this use of "Elevated" is something else, perhaps meaning more expensive and not included with the drinks packages?

 

But I do not have experience with the app menus and I have not cruised since AI came about, so consider my opinions accordingly.

[publicpersona]

If you are a wine drinker, you'd want to know that there is often a difference between the wine you order and the wine you are served, particularly at the bars that don't get too many wine drinkers.

 

Order the specific $12 New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc on the menu at the Sunset Bar, and you'll probably get whatever bottle of Sauvignon Blanc that is in the dishpan full of ice, which is probably the $6 California one. If you ask politely, they will sometimes get you the one you ordered, but more often I've been told "It's the same thing" or "That's the only one we have". One time I pointed out (politely) that it wasn't the one I ordered from the menu and was told "That's not a menu. That's just a guideline."

 

This is why I don't upgrade based on wine alone. With Cellar Masters gone, there is less opportunity for wine drinkers to get something good outside of dining/specialty. I have found sometimes in MDR, the converse is true .. order a chardonnay from the Classic level and get served something quite a bit better just because someone else nearby just ordered a glass of it.

[LGW59]

48 minutes ago, publicpersona said:

If you are a wine drinker, you'd want to know that there is often a difference between the wine you order and the wine you are served, particularly at the bars that don't get too many wine drinkers.

 

Order the specific $12 New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc on the menu at the Sunset Bar, and you'll probably get whatever bottle of Sauvignon Blanc that is in the dishpan full of ice, which is probably the $6 California one. If you ask politely, they will sometimes get you the one you ordered, but more often I've been told "It's the same thing" or "That's the only one we have". One time I pointed out (politely) that it wasn't the one I ordered from the menu and was told "That's not a menu. That's just a guideline."

 

This is why I don't upgrade based on wine alone. With Cellar Masters gone, there is less opportunity for wine drinkers to get something good outside of dining/specialty. I have found sometimes in MDR, the converse is true .. order a chardonnay from the Classic level and get served something quite a bit better just because someone else nearby just ordered a glass of it.

This is where an early tip may pay dividends at a favorite bar or two.

[publicpersona]

34 minutes ago, LGW59 said:

This is where an early tip may pay dividends at a favorite bar or two.

 

I have made that correlation in the dining room when I had Classic and found a "sommelier" who wasn't interested in looking up wine prices and tipped appropriately to keep 'em coming.

 

For the converse scenario, though, I would find it difficult to tip at a bar just to get the drink I'd ordered.

[m8zenblue]

I'm not a wine expert, I only play one on tv, lol 🤣

Anyway, we cruise with friends and one is a sommelier, she knows wines !

She has sent back wines after tasting what were served.

Our last cruise in July on the Edge we had a wonderful sommeliers in both Tuscan and Cosmopolitan.

[Purplsmurf]

On 8/7/2021 at 2:40 PM, mklions said:

Upgrading is IMHO does not make any commercial sense.

If you want a drink not included in the classic package then you only pay the difference in costs

 

. In most cases that will be a couple of dollars.

 

You have to drink a lot of premium drinks to warrant the upgrade, or am I missing something?

Mklions

Depends on what one drinks. I enjoy the martinis ($4 upcharge) and champagne ($6 upcharge). One of each/ day breaks me even…..and I definitely have more than one glass of champagne! 

[jg51]

33 minutes ago, Purplsmurf said:

Depends on what one drinks. I enjoy the martinis ($4 upcharge) and champagne ($6 upcharge). One of each/ day breaks me even…..and I definitely have more than one glass of champagne! 

.

Hello, "Purplsmurf."

You enjoy a $15 glass of champagne on board?

What is that -- the Domaine Chandon Brut, or something else?  (If it is something else, where do you go to obtain it?)

Thanks.

.

[canderson]

5 hours ago, publicpersona said:

If you are a wine drinker, you'd want to know that there is often a difference between the wine you order and the wine you are served, particularly at the bars that don't get too many wine drinkers.

 

Order the specific $12 New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc on the menu at the Sunset Bar, and you'll probably get whatever bottle of Sauvignon Blanc that is in the dishpan full of ice, which is probably the $6 California one. If you ask politely, they will sometimes get you the one you ordered, but more often I've been told "It's the same thing" or "That's the only one we have". One time I pointed out (politely) that it wasn't the one I ordered from the menu and was told "That's not a menu. That's just a guideline."

Did you report your experiences to the Food & Beverage Manager aboard ship?  Were those experiences with the same bartender, or did the problem occur more broadly?  That sort of behavior is really unacceptable in any hospitality industry, and the AI/premium situation on X doesn't make it any less so. 

 

We've never had that kind of problem on X, but that's been some years back when we were still doing ocean cruises.  The idea that I'd have to be shown the bottle at the table during the pour, or walk up to the bar during the pour wouldn't set well. 

 

For those that are less familiar with wines, and wouldn't question the difference, it also provides the opportunity for a better vintner to develop a horrible reputation due to lesser wines being passed off as theirs -- and if THEY discover that this is happening on a regular basis, there's some hell to pay!