Purchasing a beverage package onboard

Hi all...

I'll be on the Infinity to Alaska next week and am wondering if anyone has experience buying a beverage package onboard. Say, if you buy your package on the second or third day, do they pro-rate the package (i.e., only charge you for 5 or 6 days)? Or do they charge you for the full week?

It's so hard to gauge how much I'll drink in a week, when we'll be in port so much of the time.

Thanks!

Hmm. Looks like the beverage packages might be new enough that no one has experience with this.

Any insights would definitely be helpful!

Try doing a search on "beverage package".

Some of the most recent replies have information about the experiences of cruisers with the beverage packages. There is a thread started by A Sixth with a lot of information on beverage packages, as he just came back from a cruise, and reported a lot of information about the beverage packages.

Try doing a search on "beverage package".

 

Some of the most recent replies have information about the experiences of cruisers with the beverage packages. There is a thread started by A Sixth with a lot of information on beverage packages, as he just came back from a cruise, and reported a lot of information about the beverage packages.

Here is the thread started by A Sixth:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1201454&highlight=sixth

I actually read that -- but he prepurchased his beverage package.

I was curious about whether or not they get pro-rated if you buy after the first day. I haven't seen any discussion of that.

Actually, it has been discussed, and the answer is NO.... you cannot pro-rate the liquor packages.

They must be purchased for the duration of the cruise.

Actually, it has been discussed, and the answer is NO.... you cannot pro-rate the liquor packages.

 

They must be purchased for the duration of the cruise.

Actually, you CAN purchase pro-rated packages on board. I just got off the Infinity, and if you purchase on day 3, you only pay for days 3-7, not the whole trip.

What you can't do it buy the package ONLY for the at-sea days or other ways of picking and choosing.

...if you purchase on day 3, you only pay for days 3-7, not the whole trip.

So, the package is based on days - not nights, right? If so, why do they charge you for Day 7 (based on a 7-day cruise) when the bars aren't open and you're off the ship in the morning?

So, the package is based on days - not nights, right? If so, why do they charge you for Day 7 (based on a 7-day cruise) when the bars aren't open and you're off the ship in the morning?

The morning you disembark is actually day 8.

Is there any price benefit to purchasing onboard vs pre purchasing it? I thought I read somewhere that there were less taxes or if you bought onboard.

Actually, you CAN purchase pro-rated packages on board. I just got off the Infinity, and if you purchase on day 3, you only pay for days 3-7, not the whole trip.

 

What you can't do it buy the package ONLY for the at-sea days or other ways of picking and choosing.

Thanks so much for posting an update on this. I am hoping to do that on my upcoming cruise. It is 15 nights, so no way do I want to drink several drinks a day for that long, but would love to purchase the package for the last 6-7 nights of the cruise. Hopefully they continue to allow people this option.

We ended up buying right after we got on board, at dock in Seattle. No tax charged to us, but I've read elsewhere that some states will charge tax while docked.

I was sure to ask about the pro-rating, though.

But for us it was worth it to buy right up front. We got the premium package. I have no idea if it ended up being cheaper or more expensive than if we had bought drinks individually, but the great part was not having to think about it! We knew exactly what we were paying, and didn't have to worry about what each drink cost or how much we were spending.

And the martinis on board were fantastic. You'll want more than one! ;)

We ended up buying right after we got on board, at dock in Seattle. No tax charged to us, but I've read elsewhere that some states will charge tax while docked.

 

How is it possible that the state of Washington missed an opportunity to tax something!!?? I'm sure that will be corrected very soon :rolleyes:

I hope you're doing a review ~ we're on the Infinity in August and I'd love to read what you thought about the cruise.

How is it possible that the state of Washington missed an opportunity to tax something!!?? I'm sure that will be corrected very soon :rolleyes:

 

I hope you're doing a review ~ we're on the Infinity in August and I'd love to read what you thought about the cruise.

I'll try to write something substantive up and submit it to CC, but short answer: GREAT! The service was amazing. It's the first time I've ever really thought that people working in customer service really were genuinely happy to see you and genuinely enjoyed helping you have a great time! I could go on and on, but this is the short answer. :)

Food was good, but not astounding. MDR food was like excellent banquet food, but not a fine dining restaurant. Buffet food was... buffet food. Drinks were excellent and plentiful!

The ship looks great. I head so many bad reviews of the ship on here, but I have NO idea what these people were talking about or what they were expecting, but I think the ship was fantastic!

I was a first time cruiser, so maybe other ships are nicer or service like that is standard on all ships/lines, but I had an amazing time and can't wait to book my next one!

Oh, another quick note about the beverage package --

I've seen some people worried that they won't be able to get refills on their wine in the MDR because the sommelier might ignore people with beverage packages. NOT the case at all!

The sommelier scanned our cards the first night, and then every night had a glass of wine waiting for us, that she was happy to refill once it got below 1/3 full. She joked once that she can't just leave the bottle on the table, but we can get the same effect when she comes by every 10 minutes to top it off -- which she did! :)

How were they about having more than one drink?

For example - were you able to have a wine pairing with each course at dinner, or would they insist that you finish your glass before another was served?

I'm so glad to hear this :) I've also been a bit concerned when reading some of the not-so-positive reviews on the Infinity recently. So it's nice to know that you had such a great time and that the ship really IS in good shape. We're looking forward to having a great cruise too!

How were they about having more than one drink?

 

For example - were you able to have a wine pairing with each course at dinner, or would they insist that you finish your glass before another was served?

I never tried to have a different wine with each course. We just ordered one glass, and the sommelier kept it full the entire time -- any time it dropped below 1/3 full she came by to top it off. She even joked one time that she'd be happy to just leave the bottle, but that it's against the rules, so she'll just have to refill everything to keep us happy. :)

I can imagine that it might get a little much for the sommelier to run around and give everyone a different glass of wine with every course, but I bet if you asked nicely, they'd take care of you. Just be sure to tip nicely at the end of the week. :)

I'm so glad to hear this :) I've also been a bit concerned when reading some of the not-so-positive reviews on the Infinity recently. So it's nice to know that you had such a great time and that the ship really IS in good shape. We're looking forward to having a great cruise too!

I actually went LOOKING for problems with the ship because of these reviews, and if you REALLY look for stuff, you can find it. I think I saw one REALLY faint stain in the carpet in one of the hallways. One. On one chair in the MDR I saw a slightly frayed thread around the edge. On ONE chair. One the corner of one of the blackjack tables, the green felt had worn a little thin. Mind you, I had to really dig to find these things.

My mother did overhear a man complaining to high heaven on the deck about how horribly dirty the ship is. She told me about this and thought he was crazy. (She isn't on here, so she hasn't seen the reviews... and she kept commenting on how amazing the ship is.)

But overall, our beds were in great shape, everything was stunning. If you want a ship that's never been used before -- or if your house doesn't have one single spec of dirty -- then maybe you won't like the Infinity because... well... there are 2000 new people on her every week. But I could find *nothing* to complain about.