Are we the only ones who decline the free drink pkg on NCL?

[pokerguy90]

My wife and I do not drink alcohol for religious reasons. So when we booked our cruise our TA said  “your the first of her clients to ev br er decline that offer”.  I told her we don’t drink alcohol because of religious reasons.  She said you can get Pop, or other non alcoholic beverages.  We said OK. Well then that could work.  The we noticed that we would prepay a 20% service fee on that drink package $140 each.  Our bar bills for the occasional mocktail or pop, juice never exceed $100 for both of us for the entire cruise.  For me to pay almost $300 is money wasted, we could not possibly drink that much pop in 7 days.  Boy was she  confused at us over this one.   

[bostongal965]

My son is diabetic and his wife doesn't drink much, so they decline it. You're not alone!

[Rusty Shacklefjord]

I booked online and turned it down. I’m alcohol free and I need to stay sharp while traveling. The break even point for the gratuities would be five sodas per day. And it doesn’t include fancy coffee or bottled water.

A la carte for me.

[craftygrandma]

We always decline the drink package on NCL.  

[julig22]

I don't take it.  Allergic to wine, don't drink at all.  Even the soda package is over priced for me.  The water out of the faucet is just fine and you can pay individual price for anything you want.

[mslaabs]

I declined it on NCL because I don' t drink alcohol and I'm not a fan of Pepsi.  I figure I'll be drinking water and ice/hot tea the entire cruise.  

[MsTabbyKats]

Never took it......never will.  I don't drink,; DH rarely drinks.

[PATRLR]

The soda package is only $66.78 per person for a week.  If all you are going to drink is the soda, that would be much better deal than the tips on the drink package.

 

[jennjess]

1 hour ago, ChC said:

I drink little alcohol. I am the occasional drinker. And I prefer Coca Cola than Pepsi. I also refuse to pay overpriced water.

 

But I do take the drink package only because from UK point of sale there is no gratuities to be paid. Otherwise I will be the first one to refuse it. Not worth it. So I totally understand all you guys above me here.

Yes the drink package is worth it if booking from Europe since the gratuities are included.  I also drink very little alcohol or soda but several juices a day and a glass of wine at dinner it is worthwhile.

[EllieinNJ]

We do not get the drink package either.  All those wasted calories. 

[ontheweb]

Also, a no here. I do not drink that much and DW can't drink due to a possible side effect with prescribed medication. Won't drink soda that much if at all, but might get bottled water for going on shore, but not enough to account for the charged tips on the package.

[SomewhereGirl]

No drink package for me.  Even the one time I had it years ago when it was actually more free (no gratuities), I had maybe one drink a day and that was probably because I figured I might as well use it.  NCL beverages prices are ridiculous compared to a recent Princess cruise, so I refuse to purchase any beverages on NCL.

[shadow73]

We (myself, husband, 16 year old) are going on a 10 day this summer and we declined it.  Husband doesn't drink at all and none of us drink soda.  I will have a cocktail or perhaps some wine with dinner, but not every night.  Since there seemed to no way to limit the package to just me, the added service charge was more money than I would spend just paying for my occasional drink a la carte. 

[dcipjr]

I decline it for long cruises. The gratuities add up, and honestly I’m not much of a drinker. For 7-day cruises, the cost tends to be low enough that I can justify it (“I can get a beer whenever I want”). 

[che-vos]

We decline it also. Neither of us drink alcohol. I wish they offered the soda package instead.  I sometimes will purchase the soda package, but honestly I can just go without.  

[Langham1865]

One of my friends whom I sometimes travels with always declines.  I usually decline on the port intensive itineraries, as I do not drink enough to warrant the service charge on those.

 

Enjoy your cruise the way you want 

[HowardK]

I had it on my last 2 NCL cruises, but not the previous 4. When I sail again I will decline as well- it wasn't worth it. I found myself trying to get my money's worth.

what then happened was i got sick on both cruises due to lack of sleep and probably too much alcohol even though the drinks were spaced apart.

[1025cruise]

I'll get it if its included, but I won't go out of my way to purchase it.

 

For me, having it is a convenience. It's nice to not have to worry about it, and the price of the gratuities doesn't bother me. If I had to buy the package separately, I'd skip it. I can be happy with just the included beverages. My wife, on the other hand, needs her soda.

[ontheweb]

1 hour ago, HowardK said:

I had it on my last 2 NCL cruises, but not the previous 4. When I sail again I will decline as well- it wasn't worth it. I found myself trying to get my money's worth.

what then happened was i got sick on both cruises due to lack of sleep and probably too much alcohol even though the drinks were spaced apart.

That is a problem. I have a feeling that if I took it, I would drink to try to justify the cost and definitely get sick. 😢

[jimsig]

13 hours ago, pokerguy90 said:

... She said you can get Pop, or other non alcoholic beverages.  We said OK. Well then that could work.  The we noticed that we would prepay a 20% service fee on that drink package $140 each.  Our bar bills for the occasional mocktail or pop, juice never exceed $100 for both of us for the entire cruise.  For me to pay almost $300 is money wasted, we could not possibly drink that much pop in 7 days.  Boy was she  confused at us over this one.   

It sounds like your TA gave you the wrong info for the service charge cost for the soda package.  We just got off the 7 day Pearl Bos/Bermuda cruise and the service charge on the soda package was only $11.13 for my daughter.  It was about $140 for the Alcoholic drink package for me.  

Edited May 7, 2022 by jimsig

[PTC DAWG]

14 hours ago, pokerguy90 said:

My wife and I do not drink alcohol for religious reasons. So when we booked our cruise our TA said  “your the first of her clients to ev br er decline that offer”.  I told her we don’t drink alcohol because of religious reasons.  She said you can get Pop, or other non alcoholic beverages.  We said OK. Well then that could work.  The we noticed that we would prepay a 20% service fee on that drink package $140 each.  Our bar bills for the occasional mocktail or pop, juice never exceed $100 for both of us for the entire cruise.  For me to pay almost $300 is money wasted, we could not possibly drink that much pop in 7 days.  Boy was she  confused at us over this one.   

Math is easy. 

[PTC DAWG]

3 hours ago, HowardK said:

I had it on my last 2 NCL cruises, but not the previous 4. When I sail again I will decline as well- it wasn't worth it. I found myself trying to get my money's worth.

what then happened was i got sick on both cruises due to lack of sleep and probably too much alcohol even though the drinks were spaced apart.

If two drinks a day is too much, no doubt you should decline the package. 

[PATRLR]

1 hour ago, jimsig said:

It sounds like your TA gave you the wrong info for the service charge cost for the soda package.  We just got off the 7 day Pearl Bos/Bermuda cruise and the service charge on the soda package was only $11.13 for my daughter.  It was about $140 for the Alcoholic drink package for me.  

But adults won't be given for "free" the soda package.  So, they would have to buy it for 66.78 per adult - still way better than the $140 per person.

 

[yankprintster]

I always decline it, and then buy the soda package due to the large gratitiues on the "free" alcohol package.  I wish there was a way to downgrade it to the soda package versus declining it.

[insidecabin]

9 hours ago, jennjess said:

Yes the drink package is worth it if booking from Europe since the gratuities are included.  I also drink very little alcohol or soda but several juices a day and a glass of wine at dinner it is worthwhile.

They increased the price last week.

The dinner count got reduced in Jan

 

It's about £20pppd now.