All Inclusive Drink Package available on Star Princess NOW

thanks for the review...disappointed to hear about the wine at dinner which on celebrity really made it worthwhile--even though we got it by the glass on celebrity the wine steward would open a bottle for us and leave it close to the table and just refill the glass--that was a good deal :) i guess made it easier for him also as he didn't have to go far to refill.

Celebrity has a MUCH larger (and nicer) selection of wines by the glass!

There were around 15 or so wines available by the glass in the MDR. We started off trying a few from that list for the first few days or so, but after experiencing the wines that were available at Vines, we opted to stick with those ones.

As for the per drink signing, at first, you would have to present each passengers cruise card when ordering, but as the staff got to know you, you might be asked to show just one and usually no card was required as they had a note of your portfolio number on their order pad.

As for the beer buckets, I never tried ordering a bucket this particular cruise (and I usually do as I prefer not only the convenience, but also the cheaper price!), but when ordering the package upon embarkation, we were told that we could not order spirits as doubles, so it's my guess that the beer buckets are a no go also.

Finally, yes the package does include water, teas, coffees, cans of soda, mimosas, etc.

We got back home a few hours ago and we did indeed sign up for the package. There was definitely some effort given by Princess in promoting the offer. There was a sign up in the entry hallway at the port and there were some fliers lying on the check in desks. As was pointed out above, there were also various placards and fliers dotted around the ship on embarkation day and the first day of the cruise, so people were definitely made aware of the promotion.

 

The fliers didn't show where we needed to sign up for the promotion, so after embarkation and before we hit the lunch buffet, we simply asked at a bar on the pool deck and they pointed us in the direction of Vines Wine Bar which was located on deck 5. There were a few people in front of us, but it didn't take too long for the wait staff to complete the paperwork and attach a sticker to our cruise card. The sticker was good for all bars on the ship and is good for all beverages at $10 and under. On the bar menu, there was only drink that was over $10 (A Remy Martin XO brandy) and all items on the Martini list were under $10 and there were 4 or 5 wines at Vines that were over the $10 limit. It was explained to us that anything over $10 would have to be paid for in full, with no credit given for having the card.

 

6 out of the 8 people at our late sitting table had the beverage sticker and a good time was had by all and just about every Brit of legal drinking age that I met on board, appeared to have signed up for the package too! You still had to sign for each and every drink (inventory control was the explanation), but the value of the sale was recorded as $0.00. There were a few instances where the wait staff incorrectly coded the sale and it would appear on the room statement, but customer services were quick to remove those charges when pointed out to them. None of the $0.00 charges showed up on the room statement, so for the first time in my life, my folio fitted on one page!

 

As I said, the sticker was good at all bars, but I still had a little bit of running about to do over dinner. There was wine by the glass available in the MDR, but the quality of some were rather questionable and others were only just passable. We found a few higher quality wines available at Vines and the Martini bar that were $10 or less, so opted to drink those at dinner. We would grab a glass on the way to dinner and although the head waiter said that the wine steward would be able to get us refills for the wines that were only available at Vines and Crooner's, that didn't prove to be the case. The wine steward was willing to sell us a bottle of our chosen wine, albeit at a 40% discount, but wouldn't go and get us a glass, so we opted to pop out after the salad course and grab a couple of refills to drink with the entrees. The sticker was also good for aperitifs in the MDR.

 

We, along with our table mates thought that we got good value for money and we would all definitely do it again. I drank a little more onboard than I would on a land vacation as the cruise puts a value on the package, rather than having it included in the room rate at an all inclusive land resort, so there was a point to aim at each day to hit that "break even point".

What ship were you on?

What ship were you on?

We had the package on the Dec 20th Star rt Hawaii.

I don't know that both in the cabin have to get it. But if only one does, what keeps the two of them from sharing? I would think Princess would say both in the cabin have to get the same package. After all, they are offering this so they can make money, not for us to save money.

 

And yes, we were out and about with our drinks. Made them in the cabin to our liking and walked the ship with our drinks. Only our stateroom attendant made us feel weird about taking our cabin glasses out of our rooms. :rolleyes: But didn't keep us from bringing other glasses in and out.

 

Even if both in the cabin don't have to get the package, $350/pp vs $103/pp (what we paid for room service bottles). You'd have to drink at least 3x what we did to break even on the package, and that's NOT counting calorie bombs.

It sounds like you don't drink wine at dinner so maybe that's why it's not economical for you. A nice premium wine by the glass (or 2) is not cheap. Not sure if it would work for us, but would love the convenience of it.

OK, everyone, I talked to a couple bar people. There is only one bar where you could buy the package and I talked to the bartender there. He said it is ALL-INCLUSIVE up to $10. That includes bottled water, soda, etc. Also, and this is big, he said if there are two people in the cabin they both must purchase the package. I haven't taken the time to read all the posts on the thread today because of slow computers, but I hope this helps. If you read the Celebrity boards you know people love, love, love these packages. I personally would never get my money's worth, but some people will. Oh, and they said they believe it will go on...that this is not the only cruise it will be on.

 

Just want to remind everyone that they say it's only on the Star Princess right now. I doubt you will find info on the Princess site as it appears to be a trial.

Thank you for this update. I'm disappointed that both people in a cabin have to have the package. My son-in-law definitely indulges with alcoholic drinks, but my daughter never drinks coffee or liquor so would be a waste for her. Oh well, can see both sides.

What ship were you on?

We were on the Star Princess