corkage fee?

What is the corkage fee on Princess? Seems like it was $10 a couple of years ago. And it used to be that if the bottle you brought to dinner was a brand Princess carried, no corkage fee was charged at all. Still true?

On the bacl of the Princess brochure, it says $10.00 per bottle corkage fee. We've never paid this, as we bring the bottle opened to the table when we celebrate birthdays and anniversaries.

Hit or miss on whether you'll be charged or not.It's the waiter's decision but you are correct about the no charge if it's on their list policy.

Elliair,

Smart thinking! I've never thought of that but I will give it a try on my next cruise!

Awwww man and here I went and let the darn waiter open my wine....and paid $10 per bottle for all three bottles (which we drank over the course of a week and not in one night I might add!!).

We have had the waiter open the bottles for us, but never paid the corkage. I think it all depends on the waiter.

marc

We have 13 bottles to bring to the dining room for one night (for our rehearsal dinner), I hope we get a "generous" waiter too! :)

We have 13 bottles to bring to the dining room for one night (for our rehearsal dinner), I hope we get a "generous" waiter too! :)

Give the Maitre D' one of the bottles. He is in a better position to comp.:)

Is the Maitre 'D the person who greets you at the door? If we bring him a really good bottle from a CA winery that isn't available onboard do you think that might work? We'd be happy for them to comp even one or two of the fees. :)

Since you will be having your party at Sabatini's, you might be talking to an assistant Maitre D'. Ask to speak to them both the day/night of your party and tell them you collect fine California wines and would like to serve them at the wedding and present each one with a bottle.. That should do it.. BTW, What kind of wine are you bringing onboard?

Largin-

We're actually having the rehearsal dinner in the dining room (wedding reception in Sabatini's). My parents live in CA near Napa Valley and are the ones so generously providing the wine. I think they mentioned bringing a variety of wine red, pinot, and chardonney, I think the red is from Hush? I think. We're also brining some Schramsburg champagne.

On past cruises my parents have often shared the wine they bring on board with the wine maitre 'D as they love sampling the CA specialties. I'll just have them pick up two more bottles (extra special) and bring them specifically to woo the maitre'D of the dining room. I'll request to meet with him the day of the rehearsal just to ensure our table will be reserved as requested and present the wine to him at that time. We'll see if it works. :)

Thanks for the advice!!

On the bacl of the Princess brochure, it says $10.00 per bottle corkage fee. We've never paid this, as we bring the bottle opened to the table when we celebrate birthdays and anniversaries.

The corkage fee is not just for removal of the cork - it is technically a charge for use of the servers and barware since you haven't purchased your wine in the facility. Cork in or out, you can still be charged a corkage fee. Hopefully the amount some have saved has turned up in the waiters' tip envelopes. That's where the corkage fees go, anyway. To do otherwise is kind of tacky.

If one buys wine at dinner, part of the service charge goes to the dining staff pool. So last month on the Dawn, I asked our waiter whether they get a percentage of corkage. According to him -- Yes, they do. And we got a very savvy waiter (traditional dining) who knew that the vintage year that the ship carried was different from the one we took to the dining room although the wine was the same. He did not charge us though. /Sultan

I've allways been charged a corkage fee and have brought wine to every dinner on each of my last 3 princess cruises. Upgrade fairy has also never visited.... did hit a royal once in the casino though!

I must totally agree with Spongerob; don't try to stiff your wait staff by bringing a already open bottle of wine to dinner. You would not bring an open bottle of wine to a nice restruant on shore, why be so tacky onboard a ship. If the waiter does not charge you a corkage fee, increase the amount of tip accordingly. I can certinly see that bringing an unfinished glass from a bar is one thing, but a whole bottle of wine opened is not proper and you may just be charged anyway. If you can afford the cruise and you can afford the wine, then you can afford the corkage fee if charged, or increase the tip.

fair winds

Dave

Just off the 11/6 Diamond. Went to Sabatini's twice. Both times, brought a bottle of very good champagne (which is offered by Princess). Was not charged a corkage fee either time. However, in the other restaurants (Sterling & Vivaldi), we were charged a $10 corkage fee, including the time we gave 2 bottles of champagne to the Maitre D' to hold in advance of our reservation (along w/a tip).

I didn't push it. We bring our own champagne at a fraction of the cost we pay onboard. Incidently, we bought additional bottles twice while at dinner, once at Sabatini's and once at Vivaldi - just got caught up in the moment I guess!

I agree that the waiter seems to have the final say in this matter. At least in our experience. Also, the reason it sometimes seems to depend upon whether you bring a type of wine offered on the ship is because it doesn't "stick out" as your personal wine, requiring a corkage fee. We did, of course, tip our waiter extra for the two times we did bring our own wine for NOT charging the extra $10 per bottle. And now, when so many lines automatically charge a certain amount for a "tip" (aka service chg.) that must be split a certain way between the waiters, I don't know if this has changed or not.

The way I understand, corkage fees and the 15% gratuity on wine and bar purchases are split 50/50 between the waitstaff at your table and the pooled tips that go to all crew members.

The way I understand, corkage fees and the 15% gratuity on wine and bar purchases are split 50/50 between the waitstaff at your table and the pooled tips that go to all crew members.

You are correct...

Do you check the bottles of wine in when you board the ship or do you bring the bottle to the table that you want to drink that night? Also, if you bring several bottles in your suitcase, is there any special packing material you can buy to reduce the chance of breakage?

Jammie,

They have wine shippers available in either 6 or 12 bottles that have styrofoam inserts to cushion the bottles during shipment.These should be available at any fine wine shop.Just put a luggage tag on it and ship it through as your luggage.

Good luck!

We have always taken the bottle of wine to the dining room and handed it over to the waiter before sitting down at the table. If it is a chilled white, the waiter then immediately puts it in the ice bucket. A few times we have caught the eye of the Maitre De as we entered!

On a related issue -- on the Dawn Princess we requested a couple of wine glasses for our cabin. But when they took it away, they never replaced it with clean ones. From another couple we learned that the cabin steward told them that wine glasses have to be requested from the cabin food service each time. Next cruise, we will take our own wine glasses for our cabin use. We sometimes drink a glass before dinner and then order in the dining room as well. /Sultan

Do you check the bottles of wine in when you board the ship or do you bring the bottle to the table that you want to drink that night?

Hi sultan;

We do as you do, for the dining room. I would suggest you give it to your waiter, and not to the head waiter.

Just tell your cabin steward you want clean glasses each day, and they will be provided. We have never had any problem with that, and always had clean glasses sometimes replaced several times a day! Packing crystal seems like a waste when they have so much of it already onboard.

Fair winds

Dave

I too have never had a problem with getting fresh wine glasses.I think if you tell your steward you would like fresh glasses daily,they'd be happy to oblige.

On the bacl of the Princess brochure, it says $10.00 per bottle corkage fee. We've never paid this, as we bring the bottle opened to the table when we celebrate birthdays and anniversaries.

Neat idea. Is this wine you have bought in the bar? And the wine stewart doesn't say anything?

Neat idea. Is this wine you have bought in the bar? And the wine stewart doesn't say anything?

In all the years we have sailed, we have never been charged a corkage fee when we bring a bottle of wine to our table already opened. The wines we bring are from the Napa Valley or Monterey area and they aren't available on the ship. For drinking by the pool or spa, we like the 2-buck Chuck that we get at Trader Joes. We bring plenty and we have even given bottles of wine away to tables around us towards the end of the cruise.

I would never take an opened bottle of wine to a restuarant. It's illegal to have an open alcoholic container in your car, and it's also not a good idea to drive under the influence.