Wine $ Saving Tip

[S1drfl]

While aboard the Amsterdam in the Baltic this summer, we learned that if we ordered our dinner wine at the Wine Bar by 4 p.m., we received a 10% discount. The wine would be waiting for us, unopened, on our table. And if we were ashore when the Wine Bar was open, we could order at the Front Desk, as long as it was before 4 p.m.

[xpcdoojk]

We would preorder from our bartender each night for the next night. It is a nice feature.

 

jc

[waterbug1]

Good tip. Thanks!

[griswalds]

Cool, I would not have guessed. If you do not finish the bottle, will they bring it back the next evening?

 

Griwalds

[hammybee]

Never knew this. Thanks

[BobMartha]

I love this BOARD!

One thing we found out/lucked out on this past cruise was that we received a few "gift bottles" in our cabin which we brought to the dining room and WERE NOT charged a corkage fee. We assumed we would be - but was it bacause they were wines from the ship we weren't?

We ended up tipping our wine steward at the end of the cruise since he was always there to keep our glasses filled

[happy cruzer]

Wow They still do this? We thought that they had stopped. Wonderful!

[FinelyRetired]

Prior to 4pm I gather the dinner menu is posted somewhere? Would need that first.

 

Thanks for the tip.

[happy cruzer]

OH yea the menus are posted outside the dining room about 1 hr after it closes for lunch. We always love to check them out. Some one said they are even at the bars. that would be handy!

[hmh]

Prior to our 14 day cruise to Asia, in April, my husband called Ship's Services and they sent him a listing of the wines( by e-mail) which would be available. He pre-ordered 10 bottles (This is not the Wine Navigator pkg. which we had done previously.) Various prices and types were included. The wines were in our cabin when we arrived. By doing this there is no 15% service charge on the wine, no corkage fee, of course, and the cost was actually less than we'd paid for the Navigator pkgs. on our cruise to Mexico last fall. The financing was taken care of by credit card and was paid for before we even left home. The idea for doing this came from someone who posted it on this board, sometime last Feb or March. It was very easy to do and we would do it again.

 

Re: If you don't finish a bottle--usually does not happen to us, but they will recork and serve it again the next night, or you could take it with you to your cabin. hmh

[iceman93]

Re: If you don't finish a bottle--usually does not happen to us, but they will recork and serve it again the next night, or you could take it with you to your cabin. hmh

 

Usually doesn't happen to us either (;)), but just one point of clarification: they will deliver the bottle to your stateroom. You can't carry it back yourself, because they don't want people walking around the ship with open bottles of alcohol.

[peaches from georgia]

I love this BOARD!

One thing we found out/lucked out on this past cruise was that we received a few "gift bottles" in our cabin which we brought to the dining room and WERE NOT charged a corkage fee. We assumed we would be - but was it bacause they were wines from the ship we weren't?

....

Yes the corkage fee is only for wine not purchased from HAL. Purchasing through HAL, either onboard or ordered previously from Ships Services or ordered as a gift for you by someone else, also includes the service of your wine steward, so no separate fee. If you had brought on your own wine the corkage fee is for the services of the wine steward assisting you with uncorkng it and serving it in the dining room. Your wine steward is the one who handles filling these wine orders so he knows exactly what has been purchased by or for you through the ship.

 

Of course if you are drinking your own wine in your cabin there is no corkage fee. I thought that would be obvious, but someone asked the question one time if you paid a corkage fee if you brought it onboard, opened it yourself and drank it in your cabin. (How HAL would ever know is my question.) And you are not allowed to bring an already opened bottle of your own non-HAL wine into the dining room to avoid the corkage fee. So if you have wine with dinner- no corkage fee for wine purchased from HAL and you are charged a fee if you brought on your own bottle(s) for dinner. Seems fair to me. ;)

[happy cruzer]

All the preorder wine lists that I have seen , the price INcludes the 15%.

 

So was there an amount deducted when you ordered? If not I think it was already included. I hope I am wrong.....

[Krazy Kruizers]

There have been times when we pre-ordered wine --- 15% gratuity was added on the price of the wine.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Not all ships offer the 10% off deal.

 

We did not have it on our 15 day Hawaiian cruise on the Amsterdam.