Outrageous Cost of Alcohol Package

[MattnTricia]

I knew it was expensive but the last time we did it for 7 night it cost like $850. 

 

This go round it it over $1200 for our 7 night Carribean trip on the Allure coming up in November. 

 

They have finally got me to the point where I just wont dot it. I was expecting $1000 but not $1200

 

The total BS part is this is the lower sales price of what I have seen as part of one of their sales.

The normal price was closer to $1400 through my portal. 

 

 

[firefly333]

Get to diamond and free drinks. Probably cheaper to just buy anything extra. 

[baelor]

For 2 people, that comes out to $85 per day.  There are plenty of people who can drink 4-6 cocktails a day and round out with coffee, fresh juice, etc., and break even.  It is not outrageous for them.  Only you can decide whether it makes financial sense for you.

[Biker19]

Don’t you hate it when some business doesn’t price their product the way you think it should be priced. 

[Cigar King]

I'm not a big drinker, so any of the drink packages seem outrageous to me.

 

If you're feeling lucky though, try the casino.  Prime gets free drinks.  My wife got it for a 50 buck "investment".

[matj2000]

25 minutes ago, Biker19 said:

Don’t you hate it when some business doesn’t price their product the way you think it should be priced. 

 

You should try the new Virgin Cruise line.

 

Beers are $5 - $6, mix drinks are $9, Wine under &10...

 

 

[70SS350]

The price of everything is up. Not shocking.

[ONECRUISER]

24 minutes ago, matj2000 said:

 

You should try the new Virgin Cruise line.

 

Beers are $5 - $6, mix drinks are $9, Wine under &10...

 

 

Yet they could never Match Cruise Prices I get with my Discounts get on Royal. Not that Matters, I don't Drink

[Jimbo]

1 hour ago, baelor said:

For 2 people, that comes out to $85 per day.  There are plenty of people who can drink 4-6 cocktails a day and round out with coffee, fresh juice, etc., and break even.  It is not outrageous for them.  Only you can decide whether it makes financial sense for you.

If only to break even why not just order a la carte and not have the pressure/need to get all those drinks each day?   

Most time when you order the package for something you get a discount? Discount is only if you sit and drink all day and night and get plastered each  and every night. Doesn't seem right to me, but some it does they just keep buying at these crazy high prices and that is why Royal keeps raising their prices.

[Mark_UK]

I agree it's now gone too high. In many cases now the 'luxury' to have some drinks costs MORE than paying for your accommodation, a sea view balcony, entertainment, unlimited food, staff and transport...? 

 

I'm D+ and it's now made me consider other lines for the first time. 

Edited May 28, 2022 by Mark_UK

[Mark_UK]

1 hour ago, 70SS350 said:

The price of everything is up. Not shocking.

Cruise fares seem pretty similar, if not lower? 

[billslowsky]

11 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

If only to break even why not just order a la carte and not have the pressure/need to get all those drinks each day?   

Most time when you order the package for something you get a discount? Discount is only if you sit and drink all day and night and get plastered each  and every night. Doesn't seem right to me, but some it does they just keep buying at these crazy high prices and that is why Royal keeps raising their prices.

Completely agree, on our last cruise we "budgeted" for 3 bar drinks per day each, along with our two bottles of wine in the room, and I wanted the soda package.  We came out way ahead.  

 

Four to six bar drinks EVERY day of a 7 night cruise ...  unhealthy doesn't do it justice.

[firefly333]

5 minutes ago, Mark_UK said:

Cruise fares seem pretty similar, if not lower? 

I havent seen price drops in a while. Last of liberty and 3 oasis class ships, plus a 10 day special radiance which imo will only go up as will my 14 day carnival cruise. Good ports or good ships. My prices arent dropping. Guess I booked early and got good deals. 

 

I'm glad I'm not a big drinker. Lol. I'd rather have a nice meal. 

[orville99]

10 minutes ago, firefly333 said:

Guess I booked early and got good deals.

Our August 2022 Bermuda cruise has gone up $2400 since we booked. It always pays to book as early as you can.

[doppelganger2621]

Said this in another thread but after I sat down to do the math, I determined that anything under $65/pp would ultimately be “worth it” to us. That’s both based on my expected consumption, but also the price that even if we didn’t “break even” I would at least enjoy the peace of mind of not having to necessarily budget out our days.

 

I purchased at $60.99 a few weeks ago. At the current price for my cruise at $72.99 I wouldn’t.

[deliver42]

There's jut no way I can justify paying these prices for  a 7 day cruise. If sales drop enough, they'll come back to reality. Or last cruise on the Wonder in March it was $1092.00 for 2 for 7 days. I politely said no thank you.

[Mark_UK]

I was slightly addicted to the DBP as I liked the freedom to order what I wanted, but we decided to go without on a recent 9 night Odyssey and found we didn't really miss it. Had some free C&A drinks, brought some wine onboard and had no hangovers. Def won't be buying again at such high prices.

[alfaeric]

3 hours ago, firefly333 said:

Get to diamond and free drinks. Probably cheaper to just buy anything extra. 

Just got off the Oasis and spend exactly $0 on drinks, and we had quite a few an evening.

 

Another option is to put that drink money to a GS or higher.  Do suites get the same drinks on your account per day?

[AtlantaCruiser72]

For those that like Drink Packages, Internet and pay their gratuities, Royal is NOT a good value - Princess, Celebrity, Holland or NCL often come out at a better value all-in.  This was true even before the recent price hikes for all the ancillary items with Royal, and is why I have stopped sailing with them.  Sad as I'd love to try a Quantum Class ship and really love the radiance and Vision Class vessels.

 

Edited May 28, 2022 by AtlantaCruiser72

[coaster]

Miss my $40 price on Serenade back in December. Diamond here and used to always get it, but not at current pricing. 

[little britain]

1 hour ago, Mark_UK said:

I agree it's now gone too high. In many cases now the 'luxury' to have some drinks costs MORE than paying for your accommodation, a sea view balcony, entertainment, unlimited food, staff and transport...? 

 

I'm D+ and it's now made me consider other lines for the first time. 

I’m D+ and I rarely get through my 5 drinks a day ( and often take 2 out of the 3 bottles of wine home with me) so I wouldn’t even contemplate buying a drinks package 

[vjmatty]

Last cruise I figured out that hubby and I together drink about the cost of one single DBP, so I purchased enough OBC to cover the cost of one drink package.  We ended up using about $50 less of the OBC, so we spent it on lunch at Jamies on the last day.  Given the ridiculous increase in price for the DBP in the past six months, I probably wouldn't even put in for that much OBC, but it will be nice getting a refund for what we don't use.

[topnole]

39 minutes ago, alfaeric said:

Just got off the Oasis and spend exactly $0 on drinks, and we had quite a few an evening.

 

Another option is to put that drink money to a GS or higher.  Do suites get the same drinks on your account per day?

No.  They do not.  

[cb at sea]

I remember when the drink prices were MORE than reasonable.  Like around $2 for beer and $3.50 or so for mixed drinks.

 

You expect ridiculous prices when you're at, say, a ball game or some other "couple hour" event....but when you're a captive audience, it riles me a bit.

[smokeybandit]

You can still get alcohol without a package