Drink packages

[olemissreb]

I usually upgrade my drink package because it includes bottled water, specialty coffees, fresh squeezed juice and soft drinks. Plus just about every wine/bourbon on board. ☺️ I usually get a specialty coffee in the morning and fresh oj with breakfast, then grab a bottled water for a day in port. That combined with a drink by the pool, a glass of wine before dinner, 2 glasses with dinner and a decaf with a shot of Baileys after dinner and a nightcap while listening to muaic somewhere on the ship...yep I get my monies worth.

[CruiserBruce]

4 hours ago, Mr.TedEBear said:

Thank you! I wasn’t looking for a reprimand for how much I drink! Just wanted to understand how much drinks cost and the value of a drink package. 

The issue is knowing the rules of the drink package for the cruise line you are asking about, and your needs or desires and habits. I saw one of your favorite cruise lines is HAL...there are dozens of threads on the HAL board on how their drink program works. In our opinion,  it is definitely worth it.

 

Rest assured the cruise lines make money on the deal

 

 

[DarrenM]

On 5/25/2024 at 5:49 PM, ldubs said:

 

I think you need help.  Who voluntarily runs 5km every other day on a cruise!   

Lol.

 

Me and my wife.

 

Wasn't many others.

 

Still put on 3kg over the holiday.

[DarrenM]

On 5/25/2024 at 6:19 PM, olemissreb said:

I usually upgrade my drink package because it includes bottled water, specialty coffees, fresh squeezed juice and soft drinks. Plus just about every wine/bourbon on board. ☺️ I usually get a specialty coffee in the morning and fresh oj with breakfast, then grab a bottled water for a day in port. That combined with a drink by the pool, a glass of wine before dinner, 2 glasses with dinner and a decaf with a shot of Baileys after dinner and a nightcap while listening to muaic somewhere on the ship...yep I get my monies worth.

This.

 

I went to cafe al bacio many many times, and these were included in the premium package.

 

Also the cocktails there were something else.

[DarrenM]

On 5/25/2024 at 5:49 PM, ldubs said:

 

I think you need help.  Who voluntarily runs 5km every other day on a cruise!   

Also I forgot how GPS works. And on one run on a sea day, I did 5k in about 12 minutes according to strava

 

I have kept the record and now I am officially faster than mo farrah. 

[DarrenM]

No drinks package on virgin voyages but already put 3 300 dolllar drinks tabs on my account.

 

For each 300 tab bought virgin are adding another 50.

 

So I have 1050 dollars on my drinks tab.

 

Does anyone want a beer?

[navybankerteacher]

Of course, while it is possible for a heavy drinker to save money by buying a package, does anyone really believe that a cruise line wants its customers to SAVE money?  Pretty much everything they do is to encourage on board spending - and the concept of a drinks package is to put more money in the line’s pocket - by encouraging you to spend more on drinks than you would if there were no package.

[sparks1093]

15 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

Of course, while it is possible for a heavy drinker to save money by buying a package, does anyone really believe that a cruise line wants its customers to SAVE money?  Pretty much everything they do is to encourage on board spending - and the concept of a drinks package is to put more money in the line’s pocket - by encouraging you to spend more on drinks than you would if there were no package.

Yes, I've pointed out several times that the cruise lines don't sell the packages to save the passenger money, that their goal is to make money. That's one of the reasons that most lines require both adults in a cabin to purchase the package. I have also pointed out that one needn't be a heavy drinker to save money by buying a package, since most packages include non-alcohol selections as well. A few specialty coffees, sodas, and waters plus 3 or 4 mixed drinks each day is roughly enough to save money. (Of course, a heavy drinker will save more, but a non-heavy drinker can still save some.) There are many drink package calculators on this board that can help figure it out.

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, sparks1093 said:

Yes, I've pointed out several times that the cruise lines don't sell the packages to save the passenger money, that their goal is to make money. That's one of the reasons that most lines require both adults in a cabin to purchase the package. I have also pointed out that one needn't be a heavy drinker to save money by buying a package, since most packages include non-alcohol selections as well. A few specialty coffees, sodas, and waters plus 3 or 4 mixed drinks each day is roughly enough to save money. (Of course, a heavy drinker will save more, but a non-heavy drinker can still save some.) There are many drink package calculators on this board that can help figure it out.

It makes no difference (except, perhaps, to one’s liver) if it’s Wild Turkey, OJ or Perrier — the drinks packages are offered to get the passengers to spend more on liquid intake; so talking about “saving” because of drinks packages is kinda…

[MacMadame]

5 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

It makes no difference (except, perhaps, to one’s liver) if it’s Wild Turkey, OJ or Perrier — the drinks packages are offered to get the passengers to spend more on liquid intake; so talking about “saving” because of drinks packages is kinda…

If I would have spent $65 a day without a drinks package and the drinks package is less than that, I have saved money. That's just math.

 

What the cruise line makes on me is irrelevant to this discussion. But I don't agree that drinks packages exist to trick pax into spending more. They exist because they give the cruise line a more reliable source of income and it's worth it to them to perhaps lose a bit of money from the heavy drinkers because reliable income makes it easier to plan which helps them save money.

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, MacMadame said:

If I would have spent $65 a day without a drinks package and the drinks package is less than that, I have saved money. That's just math.

 

What the cruise line makes on me is irrelevant to this discussion. But I don't agree that drinks packages exist to trick pax into spending more. They exist because they give the cruise line a more reliable source of income and it's worth it to them to perhaps lose a bit of money from the heavy drinkers because reliable income makes it easier to plan which helps them save money.

Is it your habit to spend $65 a day (or anything near that) on drinks?

 

When the cruise line gets “a reliable source of income”, whose pockets do you think that income comes from?  
 

With the built in limitations on the drink packages (or bar tenders’ discretion to not over-serve), combined with the fact that the lines’ largely tax-free,  very cheap, purchase of inventory, do you really think that a line could conceivably lose money on even the heaviest drinker?
 

I am not saying the line is trying to “trick” passengers into spending more - just that the primary purpose is to encourage increased spending on drinks - because such spending has a huge profit margin - and, at best, the fares paid by the majority of cruises barely covers the costs of carrying and feeding them — so they must be encouraged to spend above and beyond the fare - and selling drinks offers the lines the best profit margin.

 

For a lot of passengers the daily cost of a drinks package comes close to (and sometimes surpasses) the fare paid.

[MacMadame]

2 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

Is it your habit to spend $65 a day (or anything near that) on drinks?

The number is an example. You are missing the point. Whatever amount I would spend, if there is a package that gives me those things for less money, I'd be really dumb to not get the package and spend more money for the same things. Who does that??

[navybankerteacher]

28 minutes ago, MacMadame said:

The number is an example. You are missing the point. Whatever amount I would spend, if there is a package that gives me those things for less money, I'd be really dumb to not get the package and spend more money for the same things. Who does that??

If you had paid attention to my point (to which you are responding)  you would realize that I did not “miss” that point —- which was (and remains) that the lines do not offer drinks packages to help passengers SAVE money, they offer drinks packages to encourage the maximum spending (ie to get as much of the passengers money as possible)  by offering attractive choices:  different ways to SPEND money on drinks.

 

Yes, you are able to pick the way which gives you the most drink for the dollar - so of course you do that — but do not kid yourself into thinking that they are trying to help you save money - they are trying to get you to spend money.

[sparks1093]

21 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

It makes no difference (except, perhaps, to one’s liver) if it’s Wild Turkey, OJ or Perrier — the drinks packages are offered to get the passengers to spend more on liquid intake; so talking about “saving” because of drinks packages is kinda…

Yes, that is their underlying premise but if I can use the drink package to my advantage then I will. But there are a considerable number of people that will blindly buy it, just because it will save them money.

[sparks1093]

14 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

Is it your habit to spend $65 a day (or anything near that) on drinks?

 

 

In everyday life? Absolutely not. On vacation for 7 days? Yep.

[K32682]

2 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

Yes, that is their underlying premise but if I can use the drink package to my advantage then I will. But there are a considerable number of people that will blindly buy it, just because it will save them money.

 

The way to make the most advantage of a drinks package is to drink more perhaps more than you might normally even when on vacation. The daily limit on the package for some cruisers becomes a goal to reach to maximize their "savings" meaning more drunk passengers on a cruise than if drinks were paid ala carte. 

[sparks1093]

12 minutes ago, K32682 said:

 

The way to make the most advantage of a drinks package is to drink more perhaps more than you might normally even when on vacation. The daily limit on the package for some cruisers becomes a goal to reach to maximize their "savings" meaning more drunk passengers on a cruise than if drinks were paid ala carte. 

I am sure that there are people that do try to take the most advantage they can of the drink package, it's only human nature. But I cannot control what they do so I don't worry about it. 

[ldubs]

On 5/31/2024 at 11:58 AM, navybankerteacher said:

Of course, while it is possible for a heavy drinker to save money by buying a package, does anyone really believe that a cruise line wants its customers to SAVE money?  Pretty much everything they do is to encourage on board spending - and the concept of a drinks package is to put more money in the line’s pocket - by encouraging you to spend more on drinks than you would if there were no package.

 

I'm in general agreement.   Bundling a package together should always be a better option to the customer compared to the separate cost of all the individual parts.   Others might view a package as only a worthwhile convenience feature.  Or it might even be considered a desired must-have luxury because after all we are on vacation.  The beauty is, regardless of the reason someone buys, it promotes revenue growth.  If it did the opposite there would be no more packages.     

 

[MacMadame]

 

23 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

Yes, you are able to pick the way which gives you the most drink for the dollar - so of course you do that — but do not kid yourself into thinking that they are trying to help you save money - they are trying to get you to spend money.

They are trying to get me to spend money but having me spend less money than if there was no package. Got it. 🤣

 

12 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

Yes, that is their underlying premise but if I can use the drink package to my advantage then I will. But there are a considerable number of people that will blindly buy it, just because it will save them money.

There is nothing blind about choosing to save money.

[George C]

I always used to buy drink packages ,  on many lines suites get package included in price, also some suites have suite lounges with free drinks all day. On rccl we get 5 free drinks a day because of our status.

[sparks1093]

54 minutes ago, MacMadame said:

 

They are trying to get me to spend money but having me spend less money than if there was no package. Got it. 🤣

 

There is nothing blind about choosing to save money.

I put it badly. Just because they think it will save them money.

[navybankerteacher]

3 hours ago, MacMadame said:

 

They are trying to get me to spend money but having me spend less money than if there was no package. Got it. 🤣

 

There is nothing blind about choosing to save money.

If there were no package, are you sure you would spend more money?  Certainly not on sea days - and you might be inclined to think a bit before shelling out $60-$75 on each sea day.

 

Yes, the package may mean that you spend less per drink - while you have more drinks, so you wind up spending more overall —- which is what the cruise line wants.

Edited June 3 by navybankerteacher

[MacMadame]

3 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

If there were no package, are you sure you would spend more money?  Certainly not on sea days - and you might be inclined to think a bit before shelling out $60-$75 on each sea day.

 

Yes, the package may mean that you spend less per drink - while you have more drinks, so you wind up spending more overall —- which is what the cruise line wants.

I have a spreadsheet. Trust me, I've run every scenario.

[sparks1093]

8 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

If there were no package, are you sure you would spend more money?  Certainly not on sea days - and you might be inclined to think a bit before shelling out $60-$75 on each sea day.

 

Yes, the package may mean that you spend less per drink - while you have more drinks, so you wind up spending more overall —- which is what the cruise line wants.

We've done it both ways and yes, without the package we would spend more. Could we make it through a cruise without drinking alcohol? Yes, we could go the 7 days only drinking what is included in the cruise fare. We could even make it through the cruise and only have one or two drinks per day. But we are on vacation, so we don't. The fact is people do drink on cruises and many of them drink more than they would normally, whether they have a package or not. 

[navybankerteacher]

6 hours ago, MacMadame said:

I have a spreadsheet. Trust me, I've run every scenario.

I get it: you believe that cruise lines offer drinks package to reduce passengers’ spending on drinks.