River Cruising without 'Alcohol Included'

Does anyone know of a river cruising company that doesn't include the cost of alcohol drinks in its up front cost?

 

I don't drink alcohol, and my husband might have a glass of wine with dinner occasionally. On ocean going cruises you have the option of paying for a drinks package, or just paying as you go - much better value for us.

 

I've not been successful so far in locating a cruise that gives us these options, so I'm hoping a more experienced cruiser can help me out!

 

Thank you

Last year we took a Vantage cruise that did not include alcohol, but I believe that may have changed. I don't think the cost of including alcohol with dinner and lunch changes the price much. On most lines, it is usually just house wines and beer. No hard alcohol. You can purchase better wines, but they are not included.

Some policies might have changed, but there was a long discussion of this starting last August http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1874753&highlight=alcohol

I think the bottom line of that long discussion was - Don't fret over the fact that you are paying a little extra for something you may not use. Just pick the itinerary you like and enjoy the trip. Period, end of story.

Does anyone know of a river cruising company that doesn't include the cost of alcohol drinks in its up front cost?...

House wine in bulk is a pretty small percentage of their food budget. A related story: a flat-rate-per-person picnic I went to included keg beer and canned soft drinks. There were complaints from the non-beer drinkers that they shouldn't have to pay for the beer. Turned out that 12 ounces of beer from a keg was considerably cheaper than 12 ounces of soda from a can.:cool:

Just what I was going to say. In many places, particularly Europe, a beer or glass of house wine is cheaper than a soda. Don't fret over this!

We are in the same boat as you We don't drink , Try Vantage ..

Does anyone know of a river cruising company that doesn't include the cost of alcohol drinks in its up front cost?

 

I don't drink alcohol, and my husband might have a glass of wine with dinner occasionally. On ocean going cruises you have the option of paying for a drinks package, or just paying as you go - much better value for us.

 

I've not been successful so far in locating a cruise that gives us these options, so I'm hoping a more experienced cruiser can help me out!

 

Thank you

Welcome to Cruise Critic ..

Yes it will be quite a surprise if you find anyone else on your exact cruise just keep looking.

RachelG is correct across Europe soft drinks are inevitably more expensive than alcoholic drinks. You may still find a company that only supplies wine and beer at lunch and dinner, I think the Russian cruises are thus. I am also not to sure if all cruise companies replenish the bottled water in your cabin every day.

Have you tried going to a travel agent and giving them the task?

Good luck I hope you find something to suite.

We are in the same boat as you We don't drink ' date=' Try Vantage ..[/quote']

 

I recall reading that they now, or soon will, include wine, beer and soda with meals.

I struggle understanding concerns such as this one. On every cruise I have taken, river and ocean, there are things that are included in the price that my DW and I don't use, but are paying for. The only concerns should be what one can get for their budget and the itinerary. Even on a river cruise that doesn't serve wine and beer at lunch and dinner or on an ocean cruise, there are free drinks served on a couple of the evenings. Some of the cost of the cruise takes into account those so called "freebies."

 

Also there are some included excursions that include lunch. Those lunches often include wine. Some excursions may include wine tasting. All of that would be included in the cost of the cruise. There is no way around this.

We just returned yesterday from the Tulip Time Cruise with Avalon on their new boat Poetry II. Haven't had a chance to write the review yet, but if you have any specific questions - fire away.

 

Thought I would jump into this forum and reply saying we only had "all included" tap beer and house wine with dinner, not even for lunch. Service on the alcohol stopped at the main course (ie no more wine was poured or beer served during dessert etc). Soda was included at lunch and dinner.

Hi Shook;

Your comment on Avalon "they stopped serving wine with the main course".

I wonder if this is an Avalon policy over all ships or just happened on your one. Can anyone advise. I will look forward to your review. I haven't sailed with Avalon yet but are considering Grand France.

Avalon do stop filling your wine glass at the end of the main course, however if you order the cheese plate the wine will keep being served. Also some severs are a bit lenient with when they stop.We didn't take up the purchased drink package on our Avalon cruise, we very rarely had a wine with lunch, always went to happy hour before dinner for a cocktail and sometimes went to the lounge after dinner for a drink or too(usually we were too tired from the great day and dinner usually didn't finish till after 9pm). You are allowed to bring your own wine on board, we had some duty free spirits that we would have in our room. I wouldn't take up there drink package on future cruises as we found the cost of drinks we purchased and the free/reduced cost ones adequate for us.

Hi Shook;

Your comment on Avalon "they stopped serving wine with the main course".

I wonder if this is an Avalon policy over all ships or just happened on your one. Can anyone advise. I will look forward to your review. I haven't sailed with Avalon yet but are considering Grand France.

 

We sailed Avalon last year, and they were very generous with pouring the wine and beer. We never had to ask them to fill it. We never noticed that they stopped pouring the wine, we were tipsy already.:D;) Plus the main course takes a while, make sure you ask the waiter to fill your glass before he takes away your dinner plate if you notice that your sailing has that policy. The waiters are very accommodating; but they don't want to get in trouble either.