two quick questions

[buffalogal]

How much does the soda card cost for a seven day cruise? Also, is I book Aloha 301, is the balcony covered complsetely? TIA

[thechandlers99]

Soda Card- $31.85 per sticker for the week. We bought two of them...one for me and one for DH but in the future I will only purchase one. No one ever checked the name on the card so DH could have gone and gotten one and then given me the card so I could go and get one. It is worth the money if you drink a lot of soda like DH does.

 

Balcony- The only exposed balconies are the ones on the Dolphin deck (completely exposed) and the Caribe deck (1/2 exposed). So, Aloha would be completely covered. This is speaking for the Caribbean Princess only. I am not sure about other ships.

[Tom O.]

You didn't mention which ship, but on most ships the Aloha balconies are covered.

[Merion_Mom]

Soda Card- $31.85 per sticker for the week. We bought two of them...one for me and one for DH but in the future I will only purchase one. No one ever checked the name on the card so DH could have gone and gotten one and then given me the card so I could go and get one. It is worth the money if you drink a lot of soda like DH does.

 

Balcony- The only exposed balconies are the ones on the Dolphin deck (completely exposed) and the Caribe deck (1/2 exposed). So, Aloha would be completely covered. This is speaking for the Caribbean Princess only. I am not sure about other ships.

<<<whooooossssssshhhhh> (That was the sound of a can of worms opening.)

 

That is called "stealing".

[Fuzzyape]

<<<whooooossssssshhhhh> (That was the sound of a can of worms opening.)

 

That is called "stealing".

 

Okay Merion (please take this post with the humor it is intended :) )

 

Let's look at this "stealing"

 

If I use my DW's card (with the soda sticker) at a boutique will they honor it? You bet. Why? because the card has charging priviledges (spelling sorry) on a credit card. Doesn't this make the card a bearer "certificate" (lawyers out there please weigh in), if it does, then as the bearer of that card with the soda sticker, I'm entitled to its privileges. If they won't question my ability to buy items with the card (thus taking advantage of me [we could discuss the moral obligation of the cruise line and the passenger, because I do believe each has moral obligations to each other]). So this now becomes a discussion is it okay for the attitude of an eye for an eye?

 

My DW and I were sitting in the horizon court, and we were served soda by a waiter. I had the soda sticker, and didn't order a beverage but my DW did. We were ready to pay for it, but the waiter waived me off. Should I have protested?

 

What if I wasn't married, and trying to pick up folk of the gentler persuasion, with sodas. Can I use my soda card to buy the young lady a drink?

 

So many questions, and moral dilemas (again I apologize for the spelling).

 

I will say that I have returned excessive change (when I noticed) to tellers. No, I don't think I'm better than others. Just wanted to raise some of those "wormy" issues.

 

Now, remember, this was all in good fun!!

 

So, rip away :)

 

(PS -- Thanks Marion Mom for opening the worms :) )

[Toto2Kansas]

Soda Card- $31.85 per sticker for the week. We bought two of them...one for me and one for DH but in the future I will only purchase one. No one ever checked the name on the card so DH could have gone and gotten one and then given me the card so I could go and get one. It is worth the money if you drink a lot of soda like DH does.

 

Balcony- The only exposed balconies are the ones on the Dolphin deck (completely exposed) and the Caribe deck (1/2 exposed). So, Aloha would be completely covered. This is speaking for the Caribbean Princess only. I am not sure about other ships.

 

And that is why we are now paying so much for the soda card compared to what we used to pay. Too many passengers taking advantage and thinking it is OK to cheat. Tisk Tisk Tisk

[thechandlers99]

I swear, y'all crack me up. People on these boards are so quick to flame people for telling the truth! Have you guys ever broken any rule in your life? People in glass houses should not throw stones!

[thechandlers99]

And that is why we are now paying so much for the soda card compared to what we used to pay. Too many passengers taking advantage and thinking it is OK to cheat. Tisk Tisk Tisk

 

Actually, you are paying more because of inflation! They allow people to bring soda on the ship...how is bringing a soda to the pool any different than using DH's soda card? The ship is NOT getting more money either way!

[panddcruiser]

I swear, y'all crack me up. People on these boards are so quick to flame people for telling the truth! Have you guys ever broken any rule in your life? People in glass houses should not throw stones!

so who's scolding who?

[thechandlers99]

so who's scolding who?

 

Actually, as you can see, I am just defending my previous post. I was the one being scolded!

[panddcruiser]

Actually, as you can see, I am just defending my previous post. I was the one being scolded!

There was a thread going a week or two ago about the soda cards.....I just read it never commented but it got pretty ugly. I think they should just include soda it is not that expensive to make soda. It's in here and it goes on for a while.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=370262&highlight=soda+card

[Fuzzyape]

I've never understood why coffee is free and I have to pay for soda. Isn't coffee more expensive to buy than soda (from a business perspective)

[obnurse]

The more the cost increases for the soda sticker the more people are tempted to share one sticker and the more people share the more likely the price will increase. I drink a lot of diet coke while on board but I'm not sure it's a a good value for me anymore. I can't blame inflation. It's gone way above inflation. The first soda sticker we bought was in 2002 and it was $17.50. Now it's up to $31.85? There's a gratuity built into that cost but we Coke drinkers don't really receive the same service that the alcohol drinkers receive. I've found out the hard way that if I want a soda I'd better hoof it over to the nearest bar and get it myself because the servers in the public areas (pool, etc) don't usually come back with my non-alcoholic drink. Just my personal observation.

[thechandlers99]

It would be really nice if Princess would tier the prices of the cards. Example...1st person $30, 2nd person $20, 3rd and 4th person $15. This way, people could afford to buy cards and not feel like they had to share. If people don't share and they each buy a seperate card, that is $120 in soda for the week for a family of 4...thats a lot of money! But, if it was tiered, the cost for a family of 4 would be $80 and that is much more reasonable!

[FredS]

I don't know if the coffee that is "free" is worth more than a soda? Think about the syrup in the HC and figure it is not worth as much as a soda. Then again, a friend that worked in a campus store said the soda they sold cost about 5 cents a glass and it was very profitable as they could charge a lot more than the cost of the goods. At that time they were selling for maybe 35-50 cents a glass. He said the soda syrup flavoring is very cheap, it was the labor that added to the cost.

[Toto2Kansas]

The more the cost increases for the soda sticker the more people are tempted to share one sticker and the more people share the more likely the price will increase. I drink a lot of diet coke while on board but I'm not sure it's a a good value for me anymore. I can't blame inflation. It's gone way above inflation. The first soda sticker we bought was in 2002 and it was $17.50. Now it's up to $31.85? There's a gratuity built into that cost but we Coke drinkers don't really receive the same service that the alcohol drinkers receive. I've found out the hard way that if I want a soda I'd better hoof it over to the nearest bar and get it myself because the servers in the public areas (pool, etc) don't usually come back with my non-alcoholic drink. Just my personal observation.

 

We sailed on a 25 day cruise just a few years ago from LA to Sydney. The cost of the soda sticker for the entire 25 days was only $21.00. I had sticker shock when I saw what it has gone up to now, for a 7-10 days cruise, it is totally ridiculous.

We have owned restaurants and one of the greatest money makers in a restaurant is the soda you sell from the fountain. Very inexpensive when it is out of a machine or soda gun.

BUT...........in defense of any of the cruise lines. To keep the fares low, they have to come up with the money from somewhere. I keep reading about people getting deals for $400 for a 7 or was it 10 day cruise? Now think about that per diem and that is about the cheapest way to take a vacation around.

But, I still would not think about sharing a soda sticker, that is going just a bit 'over the top' in cheapness IMHO!