free drinks really free?

[nmd18]

I booked a cruise that offered "free" extras, including free drinks.  However, in the fine print, they require prepaid gratuities for the free drinks amounting to $20 per day per person.  Do all cruise lines offering this free drink perk require drink gratuity prepayment?

[Nebr.cruiser]

Was this NCL?  I know that they do add on the gratuities beyond the drink package.

 

Some other cruise lines don't; the tips are built into the price of the drink package.  True, I think, on Princess, RCL and Celebrity.

 

However, we don't really drink and don't get the drink packages so this is just what I have picked up from the cruise line sites and here.

[CruiserBruce]

No, all cruise lines don't charge extra for tips on "free drinks". Holland America and Princess don't.

[John Bull]

1 hour ago, Nebr.cruiser said:

Was this NCL? 

 

My first thought too 😉

 

JB 🙂

[Toofarfromthesea]

Free drinks are never free.  Unless they come with the equally mythical free lunch.

 

AFAIK, NCL in the only cruise line Thay plays this game.

[Doug R.]

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

No, all cruise lines don't charge extra for tips on "free drinks". Holland America and Princess don't.

On those lines the prices of the package, including "free" packages are inclusive of tips. Many who have those packages show confusion and think the bartenders/servers are going without tips.

[MBP&O2/O]

They need the money to pay the boss!

[Joebucks]

It's absolutely incredible that people believe they are giving things for "free". That's not to say that there aren't offers that could save you more money if you were going to buy it anyways. Most offers are there to get you to spend more than you would have normally. All while believing you are pulling a fast one. 

 

Free drink packages like on NCL raise the rate vs not having them "free" and then charge you a hefty gratuity. All in comparison of "well it would cost more out of pocket". Where the average person would not have spent that much out of pocket. 

[leaveitallbehind]

Most beverage packages I am aware of have a gratuity built into, or as an add on, to the package price. 

 

The beverages provided at no charge by way of vouchers with RCCL for their Diamond and higher tier Crown and Anchor members, however, do not attach a gratuity to the voucher.  Any gratuity for these beverages when served is at the discretion of the passenger.  But this obviously is a perk associated with the loyalty program and not part of a beverage package.

[nmd18]

Thank you all for your quicck response to this question.  Yes, it is NCL.  Today I'm going to have a talk with them about this.  I'll let you know if anything significant happens.

[leaveitallbehind]

47 minutes ago, nmd18 said:

Thank you all for your quicck response to this question.  Yes, it is NCL.  Today I'm going to have a talk with them about this.  I'll let you know if anything significant happens.

As others have mentioned - the terminology of "free" simply means no separate charge, in this case, for the beverages.  But the cost of the package is buried in the cruise fare, so it is not "free" in the sense of "no cost" to you.

 

Gratuities are almost always separate as well, and as it is indicated as such in the fine print that you will pay gratuities on the beverages separately, that is a term and condition of that cruise fare.  Unfortunately I am pretty certain your argument will fall on deaf ears as a result.

Edited April 18, 2022 by leaveitallbehind

[hallux]

The thing you need to do to see the "true" cost of the package when it's included with the cruise is to look at the cost of the fare that includes it and a fare that doesn't (the sail-away fare).  But in that case you lose out on being able to pick your cabin and you lose the other 'perks' of the dinners, shore excursion credit and internet minutes.

 

Picking a standard balcony on a random cruise in November, selecting for one person, a sail-away is $2378 while the room with perks is $2698.  Right off the top, the excursion credit accounts for $100 of that difference if you take a ship excursion in each port, $150 if you do one on disembarkation day as well.  2 meal specialty dining is $89 if you buy it (base package price, you pay gratuities when it's included also).  250 minutes of internet costs $105, this isn't the BEST comparison as a solo traveler in balcony only gets 150 minutes now, but it gives you an idea.  The add-ons even WITHOUT the drink package cover the extra cost of booking the room with the perks PLUS you get to choose your room!

 

Oh, and if you need to fly to the embarkation port, there's often a small additional fee for the flight but nowhere NEAR as much as the airfare would normally be.

 

Yes, you "pay" for the perks, but you get them at a discount compared to buying them a-la-carte to add to the 'no perks' fare.  Yes, NCL charges the gratuities on the package, but that $20 pp/pd is canceled out with 2 drinks pp/pd, most people have no trouble with consuming that.

 

Just for kicks I went and looked at a cruise in May.  The sail-away balcony without the perks has a HIGHER fare than the balcony with the perks ($1958 vs. $1663).

[hallux]

1 hour ago, leaveitallbehind said:

Gratuities are almost always separate as well, and as it is indicated as such in the fine print that you will pay gratuities on the beverages separately

on NCL you pay gratuities on the package and no gratuities per-drink once on-board.

[Aquahound]

4 hours ago, nmd18 said:

Yes, it is NCL.  

 

Yeah, we all knew that.  NCL is the only line I'm aware of that advertises drinks for free and then hits you with that gratuity charge.  They do the same with their "free" specialty dining as well.  Not 1 single other line has charged me gratuities when there was a beverage or dining package included with my fare.  

 

[Toofarfromthesea]

4 hours ago, nmd18 said:

Thank you all for your quicck response to this question.  Yes, it is NCL.  Today I'm going to have a talk with them about this.  I'll let you know if anything significant happens.

 

Why bother "having a talk with them"?   Do you think they will change their long-standing practice because you had a talk with them?  Or they'll make an exception in your case?  What, of significance, are you hoping/expecting to happen?

[mjkacmom]

4 hours ago, nmd18 said:

Thank you all for your quicck response to this question.  Yes, it is NCL.  Today I'm going to have a talk with them about this.  I'll let you know if anything significant happens.

Lol I don’t think you are going to change their minds. It comes out to $20 pp per day, drinks average $12 each, just do the math. I don’t think RCL ever offers a free drink package, I just saw something about it being $100 per day now.

[leaveitallbehind]

32 minutes ago, mjkacmom said:

Lol I don’t think you are going to change their minds. It comes out to $20 pp per day, drinks average $12 each, just do the math. I don’t think RCL ever offers a free drink package, I just saw something about it being $100 per day now.

RCCL has never offered a free drink package.  Their packages are always separate and are at a per person / per day charge that typically has been in the $50+ to $60+ range, depending on "sales" at the time.  

 

Celebrity now prices the majority of their fares with their "Always" pricing which includes wifi, gratuities, and their standard beverage package as an all inclusive fare.  It is not promoted as "free" but as always included, hence the fare name.  But with this fare as an all inclusive, there are no separate package charges.

[Turtles06]

6 hours ago, nmd18 said:

Thank you all for your quicck response to this question.  Yes, it is NCL.  Today I'm going to have a talk with them about this.  I'll let you know if anything significant happens.

 

I can't tell if you're joking.  I hope you are, because you will get nowhere.   We can all tell you now that nothing "significant" will come of your talking with NCL, except that you will have wasted a great deal of your time. 

[Joebucks]

20 hours ago, hallux said:

Picking a standard balcony on a random cruise in November, selecting for one person, a sail-away is $2378 while the room with perks is $2698.  Right off the top, the excursion credit accounts for $100 of that difference if you take a ship excursion in each port, $150 if you do one on disembarkation day as well.  2 meal specialty dining is $89 if you buy it (base package price, you pay gratuities when it's included also).  250 minutes of internet costs $105, this isn't the BEST comparison as a solo traveler in balcony only gets 150 minutes now, but it gives you an idea.  The add-ons even WITHOUT the drink package cover the extra cost of booking the room with the perks PLUS you get to choose your room!

 

Oh, and if you need to fly to the embarkation port, there's often a small additional fee for the flight but nowhere NEAR as much as the airfare would normally be.

 

Yes, you "pay" for the perks, but you get them at a discount compared to buying them a-la-carte to add to the 'no perks' fare.  Yes, NCL charges the gratuities on the package, but that $20 pp/pd is canceled out with 2 drinks pp/pd, most people have no trouble with consuming that.

 

Just for kicks I went and looked at a cruise in May.  The sail-away balcony without the perks has a HIGHER fare than the balcony with the perks ($1958 vs. $1663).

 

Do you really believe a single person, on a mass-market cruise line, in a balcony, and the other stuff, is a deal at $2700 (not to mention other fees)? I could legitimately get that same cruise fare for around $1000 on Carnival or Royal and buy anything else I wanted (including the packages) and still come out way ahead. Come to think of it, it would be hard to get to $2700 even if I really tried.

 

If you truly prefer the NCL experience and truly want all of these things, then this is probably the way to go. Methinks you have fallen for their marketing to attract people who want "free things" and will pay through the nose to get them. NCL is a fine product. They attract a ton of suckers though.

 

On my last cruise, I got a "deal" from Carnival and we spent $858 on a 7 day balcony for 2 people. I got a bottle of whiskey, beer in the room, cocktails when I wanted, drinks at port, excursions on our own, social internet, and specialty dining. Did not break $1500 for all of it.

Edited April 19, 2022 by Joebucks

[hallux]

25 minutes ago, Joebucks said:

 

Do you really believe a single person, on a mass-market cruise line, in a balcony, and the other stuff, is a deal at $2700 (not to mention other fees)?

I'm not in any way saying it was a "deal", just using it as an example for the fare comparison on that line between with and without perks.  I had to find a cruise where the sail-away rooms were not sold out so I could compare fares on the same cruise so I picked a random month and ship.

 

I sailed as a solo in a balcony (so solo supplement applies) for under $1,000 last month on NCL, with the perks.

[John Bull]

On 4/17/2022 at 11:19 PM, nmd18 said:

I booked a cruise that offered "free" extras, including free drinks.  However, in the fine print, they require prepaid gratuities for the free drinks amounting to $20 per day per person.  Do all cruise lines offering this free drink perk require drink gratuity prepayment?

 

 

I feel sure that the OP is aware that a "free" drinks package is actually paid for in some other way, such as in the cruise fare.

 

Their query is whether something should be described as "free" when $20 pppd is buried in the small-print and added to the on-board account, something which I see as sharp practice..

Most of us were pretty sure that the cruise line in question is NCL (confirmed by the OP), because NCL are known for their nickel & diming, and nobody on this thread has experienced that example with other cruise lines.

And if on NCL you dine in a speciality restaurant, gratuities are charged on your speciality meal, even though you're  paying the daily gratuity. So when you dine speciality on NCL you're paying double gratuities. 🙄

 

JB 🙂

[hallux]

1 hour ago, John Bull said:

when $20 pppd is buried in the small-print and added to the on-board account, something which I see as sharp practice.

Except it's NOT added to the on-board account.  It's added to the fare when you go to complete the booking.  And it's not really "in fine print", it's detailed out...

 

Here's the breakdown on a Norwegian Pearl cruise to Bermuda on May 6, balcony room with all perks selected.  If you pay attention to what you're doing it's right in front of you.  Selected for 2 people, 7 days, a little less than $20 pppd...

[John Bull]

11 minutes ago, hallux said:

Except it's NOT added to the on-board account.  It's added to the fare when you go to complete the booking.  And it's not really "in fine print", it's detailed out...

 

Here's the breakdown on a Norwegian Pearl cruise to Bermuda on May 6, balcony room with all perks selected.  If you pay attention to what you're doing it's right in front of you.  Selected for 2 people, 7 days, a little less than $20 pppd...

 

Thanks for the correction, Hallux.

I took "in the fine print" from the OP - and NCL's reputation did the rest for me 😉

 

JB 🙂

[hallux]

27 minutes ago, John Bull said:

I took "in the fine print" from the OP

Well, some people will exaggerate just to further their narrative or if they think their argument or complaint is weak.

[Aquahound]

The problem I have with NCL is they openly and blatantly advertise the drinks as FREE in bold yellow font at the top of their website.  It isn't until you click on the terms and conditions, which is in small gray font at the bottom of the screen, that you see the gratuity charge.  So yes, that is the fine print.