POLL: Are Soda Cards Fair?

[farler05]

BTW, I do think the cards are "fair" & if you drink pop you definitely save money. On my first cruise, we bought one for my former step daughter & my xMIL bought one. We definitely got our money out of it. My DH & I do not drink pop. so we won't buy one. It is just my opinion that they should not charge so much. I know they're in business to make a profit, but I think it's price gouging. Just my opinion.

[DEL67]

Charging for soda is not new. I have been cruising for 25 years and few, if any, ships have had free soda. Therefore soda cards are actually a savings for those that drink a lot of soda.

 

In addition, unlike some other lines, Carnival provides free iced tea, lemonade and fruit punch 24 hours a day in the Lido cafe so I do not feel the need for soda.

[suzy1212]

I wouldn't care if my fare went up by $50 and have soda included in the price of the trip.

That makes no freaking sense! :eek:

A soda card is less than $50 so why would you want to charge EVERYONE on the ship $50 more? A lot of people drink none or very little cokes. If they were free I'd probably drink one or two during the week, since they are not, I drink none. If they offered Dr. Pepper my husband would by a soda card. Since they don't he either brings some DPs or just drinks them in port. :rolleyes:

[ruskatab]

OP, you call your cute little kid "OUR LITTLE MONKEY"????

Poor choice of words, sweeheart!

 

I was always told if you cant say something nice keep your mouth shut. Not today tho......what a jerk!

[Calicruiser101]

I voted that the card was unfair. Not that I didn't purchasse one for myself or my DD because I did. However, I think they should have a number attached to them, say 20 for example. That way the card can be used by anyone, not just the purchaser of the card and people wouldn't argue about sharing a soda card. The plan would be simple, the card is attached to the room, not a person, if you use your 20 then you have to buy another.

Also, my dad used to call me monkey and then shortened it to monk, and my DD is "little Monk" to him. He bought me a stuffed monkey when I was 5, I still have it. It sits on my nightstand, he's a llittle faded and his head hangs to one side, but I love him all the same. I call my DD (10) Miss Chickie or Miss Chic for short.:D BTW I am 34, that is one old stuffed Monkey.:eek:

[Calicruiser101]

Hey Babe/Cali,

Thanks for the warm welcome last night! See you tonight, if I make till then! lmao :D :D :D :D :D

Hey, your welcome. I have read some of posts and you may well not be on here for too much longer. The word is risque.:D

[ParrotRob]

It would be cheaper all around if they sold fountain. Do they use cans for the mixed drinks or fountain?

 

Even if it is a can thing, buying in bulk they pay $.25 or $.30 a can (if that)???? You can't tell me that's not a huge profit margin.

 

Don't forget the cost of transporting it, loading it, all the space it takes up on the ship, the cost of serving it, hauling the cans once they're empty...

 

There are a lot more costs involved in serving a canned beverage than what you would pay for it at your local Costco.

[ParrotRob]

I voted that the card was unfair. Not that I didn't purchasse one for myself or my DD because I did. However, I think they should have a number attached to them, say 20 for example. That way the card can be used by anyone, not just the purchaser of the card and people wouldn't argue about sharing a soda card. The plan would be simple, the card is attached to the room, not a person, if you use your 20 then you have to buy another.

 

They already have that plan. It costs $28.75 for 20 cups of soda, or $40.25 for 20 cans of soda. The best part about it is you don't even need to carry a seperate card for this plan, you simply use your Sail & Sign card. Even better, unlike the fountain card, if you don't drink all 20 of the sodas, you don't have to pay for all of them!

[keishashadow]

Do any cruiselines include soda in the basic cost of the cruise :confused: :confused:

 

Disney Cruise Line began offering it free few years ago, we enjoyed it...

 

of course, our booking on the Legend for this Dec. is 1/3 of what our now-cancelled Disney cruise cost...buys alot of soda.:p

[French_Fry]

Why aren't soda cards fair?

 

You buy card and the holder gets unlimited refreshment for the entire cruise.

 

Also CCL does not put a machete or an Uzi under your neck and FORCE you to buy one now do they.

 

What's next to gripe about?????

 

It's a VACATION folks, you are supposed to be HAVING FUN!

[Solo1959]

Wait, they do?!?!? What else do they charge for that I don't know about?

 

Yup, it's $30 per person for the specialty restaurant. Over and above the price of the cruise. Not including drinks or tips. They offer steaks, I think lobster, and other options. The food in the regular restaurant and the buffet is perfectly fine, very good food and all included in the price of the cruise.

 

Some people like it though; they say the steak is better than the steak on the alternate menu in the regular dining room, and that the service is more attentive.

[Disneycruisers]

I USED to think it wasn't fair, but realize now after reading these posts, it IS a choice.

 

We took our own Dr. Peppers on our Carnival cruise. It saved the price of a soda card, but I probably won't do it again (even though DD and I will go through Dr.Pepper withdrawals) because it was a hassle (one more bag to tote.) I'll gladly pay the price of a soda card for the convenience.

[dan40]

I didn't vote in this poll. How much brain power does it take to decide that if you think the card is too expensive-----DO NOT BUY IT.

 

Do they make money on sodas? Hmmm, another brain strain, YES they do! Wow.

Do you think they make too much profit?---DO NOT BUY IT. Oh the brain pain!

 

And PROFIT is one of the most beautiful words in our language. Without profits, YOU, YOU, YOU, and me would not have even a scrap of food to eat except self grown, or self hunted.

No place to live except self built, which would start by clearing the land by ourselves. And be careful with the trees, you'll need their lumber and a lot more.

No cruise ships except self built and you'll have to drill for your own fuel.

 

Oh yeah! No profits mean NO INCOME AT ALL. Cause no profits would mean no government

 

Do you think any company makes too much profit on their product?-------------DO NOT BUY IT.

 

From early AM, all day and thru the PM, our soft lives absolutely depend on companies making profits.

 

The rash of ill conceived polls lately is unbelievable.

 

Dan

[ginacc]

I didn't vote in this poll. How much brain power does it take to decide that if you think the card is too expensive-----DO NOT BUY IT.

 

Do they make money on sodas? Hmmm, another brain strain, YES they do! Wow.

Do you think they make too much profit?---DO NOT BUY IT. Oh the brain pain!

 

And PROFIT is one of the most beautiful words in our language. Without profits, YOU, YOU, YOU, and me would not have even a scrap of food to eat except self grown, or self hunted.

No place to live except self built, which would start by clearing the land by ourselves. And be careful with the trees, you'll need their lumber and a lot more.

No cruise ships except self built and you'll have to drill for your own fuel.

 

Oh yeah! No profits mean NO INCOME AT ALL. Cause no profits would mean no government

 

Do you think any company makes too much profit on their product?-------------DO NOT BUY IT.

 

From early AM, all day and thru the PM, our soft lives absolutely depend on companies making profits.

 

The rash of ill conceived polls lately is unbelievable.

 

Dan

 

Well, Dan.. How much brain power does it take to READ something before you start judging it?

 

My point of the post is that it seemed silly to charge for non-alcoholic beverages in a situation where all the food and entertainment are FREE.

 

We are not talking about whether or not Carnival should be making profits, but I like your attempt to try to flex some obviously non-existent mental muscles.

 

We all complain about Gas prices. Should we shut up because the oil companies deserve $4 a gallon. I mean, why not??? Those poor companies need all the money we can give them.

 

It's a message board. If you think the posters on here are so stupid, why do you keep coming back? I hope I'm not on a cruise with someone like you.

[crusinmama06]

I am fine with it because my children and I drink the FREE drinks offered. My husband is the only one who buys the soda card. That stuff is bad for you anyway ;)

 

(Copied from another CC poster - Cotton)

 

Beverages included in the cost of your cruise:

 

Lido buffet area - Iced tea, hot water & tea bags, coffee, decaf, hot chocolate, juice varieties, lemonade, fruitpunch. On buffet, milk, skim milk, chocolate milk.

 

Dining room - Iced tea, hot tea, coffee, decaf, milk, chocolate milk, juices, espresso and cappuccino.

 

Room service - MOST of the beverages that are available on Lido, but not lemonade or fruitpunch.

 

Also ...

 

"Tea Time" on sea day afternoons. Look for it in your Capers as to time and location. Nice way to spend some time relaxing w/hot tea, coffee, petit fours, tea sandwiches, scones & lemon curd, etc. No charge.

 

At the art auctions, they serve complimentary champagne

[mattmdv]

I drink more than enough to cover my cost of the Soda Card so we thinks it's very fair.

 

Matt

[suzy1212]

With all the questions about Soda Cards, I want to see how other cruisers actually feel about them.

 

When my husband found out that we have to pay for soda on our cruise where food and entertainment are free, he was confused and disappointed.

 

We've committed ourselves to drinking water throughout the duration of the cruise. I'm not spending my excursion money on soda. In my opinion, charging for Soft Drinks is gouging.

 

What about you?

So what you are actually complaining about is that they charge for soda at all, correct? Not that they give big soda drinkers a break by letting them buy a card to save money... :rolleyes:

 

They offer MANY free drinks along with MANY free foods on the cruise. They have decided for whatever reason to offer cokes, coffee and desserts from the coffee bar, and specialty restaurants for an additional price.

 

gouging... ROFL :rolleyes::D

[French_Fry]

Well, Dan.. How much brain power does it take to READ something before you start judging it?

 

My point of the post is that it seemed silly to charge for non-alcoholic beverages in a situation where all the food and entertainment are FREE.

 

We are not talking about whether or not Carnival should be making profits, but I like your attempt to try to flex some obviously non-existent mental muscles.

 

We all complain about Gas prices. Should we shut up because the oil companies deserve $4 a gallon. I mean, why not??? Those poor companies need all the money we can give them.

 

It's a message board. If you think the posters on here are so stupid, why do you keep coming back? I hope I'm not on a cruise with someone like you.

 

 

Another poster trying to compare a necessity (gasoline) with a non-necessity (soda).

 

CC purged the other soda board, how long before the do the same to this one.

[big_duck]

They're fair because it is not the only way to buy soda.

 

If you drink enough to get your moneys worth buy the card. If not buy 'em one at a time, no problem.

 

If they include soda in the cost of the cruise will the price of drinks go down? I mean I already paid for the mix in my cruise fare, right?

[momofmn00]

Personally I think the soda cards are fair. If you don't want to spend the money on the card then don't. There are other options. You can drink the free beverages, bring some of your own soda on board, or pay per soda so as not to feel obligated to drink your money's worth.

Thanks for the post. VERY WELL SAID! I totally agree!:cool:

[bigphilky]

Well, one might argue that just because you don't use it, doesn't mean it should be eliminated from the cruise to save money, or you should be charged extra for it. Not everyone uses all the services on the entire ship. And Carnival could make money for charging for all shows/food/pool access, but I thought the idea was to have an All-Inclusive vacation.

 

I'm not going to gamble, so does that mean they should charge an entry fee to the Casino for people who do, or remove it from the ship all together? Entry fees, or charging for food would also be a source of income for the ship. If they're charging for simple soda now (which my years in the restaurant industry will tell you costs them absolutely nothing) then how long before they're charging extra for your steak?

 

 

Can Someone please show me where Carnival Advertises and All Inclusive Cruise?? Please!!

[travelgrammy]

I think they're fair, but then I'm another person who doesn't drink sodas. I'm just fine with water, tea and lemonade. When I do want soda, it's likely to be a brand that Carnival doesn't carry, so we'll just bring a sixpack of Hanson's diet soda with us.

[Snoozeman]

As I just posted, Carnival does not have fountain soda - they buy it by the can, which is MUCH more expensive.

 

You say you'd be willing to pay $50 more for your cruise to have soda included - then why not just buy the soda card, and let those of us who don't want soda not buy it? Makes a lot more sense to me.

 

Finally, the rules against smuggling alcohol are not merely to increase Carnival's bar sales (although that is a big part of it). I talked to my PVP about this when Carnival briefly changed their rules so that you couldn't even bring sodas on board. He said there were way too many cases of people getting extremely drunk on board and causing major problems (including jumping overboard, dying from alcohol poisoning, attacking other passengers, etc), and that while the bars can "cut off" a passenger, they can't stop him/her from drinking if they have a cabin full of booze they brought from home. He said people were bringing liquor on board in soda bottles, and that was the motivation for the policy change. Of course the backlash was so great that Carnival very quickly returned to their original policy of allowing passengers to bring sodas on board. I hadn't thought of it from that perspective - but it definitely makes sense.

 

Both good points!

[hubofhockey]

This thread reminds me of the internet thread. Some people believe the prices for use of the internet are too high or unfair. They're not unfair. If you think the internet costs too much, don't pay for it on a ship. If you need to be connected that badly, either pay the cost or go to an internet cafe at port. If you think the soda card costs too much, don't use. You can bring your own soda on board, buy it by the can, or drink something else. The better poll question would be, "do you think the soda card is worth the price?". The answer is that it's worth it to some and not to others.

 

I'm not so sure that lemonade (lots of sugar in that one) is less unhealthy than a can of Diet Coke.

 

I think I'll bring on two six packs of 16 ounce bottles of soda. One of Diet Cokes for me and one of Sierra Mist for the kids and my wife.

[AZaTaz]

CC purged the other soda board, how long before the do the same to this one.

 

 

Nope CC did not purge the other soad board they moved it to ASK a Cruise question where it is still going strong. :rolleyes:

 

 

 

I voted that soda card is fair. I don't drink sodas so I would rather not pay extra for the cruise so others can drink soda.