Naomigruis Posted July 18, 2015 #1 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Just of the brilliance. (Prices in U.S. Dollars) so add your countries currency conversion to prices. Cocktails $14 plus tip Beer 6.5 to 7.5 plus tip Cheaper wine $9-12 plus tip (per glass) Bacardi $9 plus tip (as are most spirits) The alcohol prices have increase outrageously. For me the worst part was that all the cocktails we out of a cartoon (much like a milk carton) and just mixed with crushed ice. As for spirt prices they where selling 1L Bacardi bottles duty free for $11 hmmm that's some mark up. We got one soft drink package and my partner got the beer and wine for the last 4 days as we have a lot of shore days before this. They are pushing the drink packages by increasing the prices to make us feel like we are getting a 'good deal' with the package. Like wise many sailing from UK have the wine and beer package included in the price of the cruise but on comparison that paid way more than the cost of the cruise for none UK travellers. This was the First cruise we watched what we drank, not one cocktail or just cos drinks and as a result we spent much less. Good for us not for RCI. They have also increase tips (gratuities) to %18 Did this spoil the cruise no, have I rebooked with RCI, yes just means we drink less on a whole and take advantage of the two bottles allowances you can bring on. Another first. Sylva. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casinostreer Posted July 18, 2015 #2 Share Posted July 18, 2015 Just of the brilliance. (Prices in U.S. Dollars) so add your countries currency conversion to prices. Cocktails $14 plus tip Beer 6.5 to 7.5 plus tip Cheaper wine $9-12 plus tip (per glass) Bacardi $9 plus tip (as are most spirits) Sylva. Wow - so the "up to $12" thing with the Premium drink package won't include cocktails? (And by the cocktails that you describe - I assume you're talking about the frozen drinks.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naomigruis Posted July 19, 2015 Author #3 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Not sure about the package as no one I meet had more than the select package. But all cocktails seem to be made this way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark22mac Posted July 19, 2015 #4 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Wow - so the "up to $12" thing with the Premium drink package won't include cocktails? (And by the cocktails that you describe - I assume you're talking about the frozen drinks.) All the frozen drinks are covered with the package in addition to most all top shelf liquor. I drink crown royal ,grey goose or kettle one and they are included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linsifer Posted July 19, 2015 #5 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Makes me glad I'm on a low carb regimen. I certainly won't be wasting my carbs on alcoholic drinks! Yikes. Just of the brilliance. (Prices in U.S. Dollars) so add your countries currency conversion to prices. Cocktails $14 plus tip Beer 6.5 to 7.5 plus tip Cheaper wine $9-12 plus tip (per glass) Bacardi $9 plus tip (as are most spirits) The alcohol prices have increase outrageously. For me the worst part was that all the cocktails we out of a cartoon (much like a milk carton) and just mixed with crushed ice. As for spirt prices they where selling 1L Bacardi bottles duty free for $11 hmmm that's some mark up. We got one soft drink package and my partner got the beer and wine for the last 4 days as we have a lot of shore days before this. They are pushing the drink packages by increasing the prices to make us feel like we are getting a 'good deal' with the package. Like wise many sailing from UK have the wine and beer package included in the price of the cruise but on comparison that paid way more than the cost of the cruise for none UK travellers. This was the First cruise we watched what we drank, not one cocktail or just cos drinks and as a result we spent much less. Good for us not for RCI. They have also increase tips (gratuities) to %18 Did this spoil the cruise no, have I rebooked with RCI, yes just means we drink less on a whole and take advantage of the two bottles allowances you can bring on. Another first. Sylva. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
barneymag Posted July 19, 2015 #6 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Wow - so the "up to $12" thing with the Premium drink package won't include cocktails? (And by the cocktails that you describe - I assume you're talking about the frozen drinks.) When sailing out of the UK all bar prices shown always include gratuity - Therefore the $14 is the same as $12 + tip so covered under the premium drinks package Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark22mac Posted July 19, 2015 #7 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Makes me glad I'm on a low carb regimen. I certainly won't be wasting my carbs on alcoholic drinks! Yikes. No carbs in vodka rum or whiskey. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capella Black Posted July 19, 2015 #8 Share Posted July 19, 2015 Hi, I was on the same cruise, and had the premium package. Every drink I had was included (range of cocktails using premium spirits, frozen cocktails, lots of wines). Simple system - ask for a drink, show card - if not covered they will mention it. Also, if you have a package, feel free to completely ignore the rubbish new menus. There are currently only a few frozen cocktails advertised, I had at least 15 different ones over the course of the cruise. To obtain, either have an old list of cocktails, or sweetly and politely ask if they know any other good frozen cocktails beyond a strawberry daquiri. There are also a lot more types of wine available by the glass than advertised - I had white zinfandel, moscato, and port with dinners, none of which were on the MDR menu. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eldolko Posted July 22, 2015 #9 Share Posted July 22, 2015 Simple system - ask for a drink, show card - if not covered they will mention it. Unless you're unlucky like a table mate of ours on our recent cruise. They had the Premium package and ordered sparkling water along with their wine at dinner. The waiter asked for her seapass and went away. All the sudden he came back with a tab for her to sign. She was a bit confused, but this was her first cruise so she signed it anyway. Afterwards she realized that she had acctually paid for the bottle of water. This was after dinner, so she went to guest service to clear it up. It turned out that the waiter had given her a large bottle of water instead of a small. The small ones are included in the package. Not the large ones. They told her the waiter of course should have realized she wasn't interested in paying for a bottle when she can have as many as she likes of the smaller size. They erased the charge from her account. Next day the waiter rushed to her telling her how sorry he was and that he would never let it happen again. I guess someone had a little chat with him. The other couple at our table also had the Premium package. They thought it was funny that they could watch the bartender pour wine from a bottle and give them as many glasses as they pleased. But they couldn't ask to get the bottle tor bring to their stateroom. In that case they had to pay for the whole bottle. Same wine, same bottle, same couple who emptied it. Just that the bartender had to be the one pouring it for them. I can see their point, but I also get RCI's point of view here. Imagine how many bottles people would get just because they can only to leave them half full around the ship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capella Black Posted July 22, 2015 #10 Share Posted July 22, 2015 Ah, yes, or give you a slip to sign (to me that is the same as telling me it costs money, but that may be because I've cruised a number of times before!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark22mac Posted July 22, 2015 #11 Share Posted July 22, 2015 Unless you're unlucky like a table mate of ours on our recent cruise. They had the Premium package and ordered sparkling water along with their wine at dinner. The waiter asked for her seapass and went away. All the sudden he came back with a tab for her to sign. She was a bit confused, but this was her first cruise so she signed it anyway. Afterwards she realized that she had acctually paid for the bottle of water. This was after dinner, so she went to guest service to clear it up. It turned out that the waiter had given her a large bottle of water instead of a small. The small ones are included in the package. Not the large ones. They told her the waiter of course should have realized she wasn't interested in paying for a bottle when she can have as many as she likes of the smaller size. They erased the charge from her account. Next day the waiter rushed to her telling her how sorry he was and that he would never let it happen again. I guess someone had a little chat with him. The other couple at our table also had the Premium package. They thought it was funny that they could watch the bartender pour wine from a bottle and give them as many glasses as they pleased. But they couldn't ask to get the bottle tor bring to their stateroom. In that case they had to pay for the whole bottle. Same wine, same bottle, same couple who emptied it. Just that the bartender had to be the one pouring it for them. I can see their point, but I also get RCI's point of view here. Imagine how many bottles people would get just because they can only to leave them half full around the ship. Sparkling water is not included in the premium package only still water. With the ultimate package you get sparkling water. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cb at sea Posted July 22, 2015 #12 Share Posted July 22, 2015 (edited) Went out to dinner last night...my Vodka Tonics were $5.25 each....that's reasonable. At some of the bars/clubs in town, a mixed drink is $3.75. $12-14 is gouging in a BIG way. Edited July 22, 2015 by cb at sea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eldolko Posted July 22, 2015 #13 Share Posted July 22, 2015 Sparkling water is not included in the premium package only still water. With the ultimate package you get sparkling water. Sorry, I got them confused. They must have had the Ultimate Package then, since I'm sure sparkling water was included. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iuki Posted July 23, 2015 #14 Share Posted July 23, 2015 If you think that alcohol beverages on cruise ships are expensive, try going to the Disney Parks in Orlando. We went to EPCOT yesterday and thought we'd get some nachos and a beer. The Cantatina's posted menu showed $10.75 for the nachos and $8.50 for a beer! :eek: We decided we didn't it after all. :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare John&LaLa Posted July 23, 2015 #15 Share Posted July 23, 2015 Went out to dinner last night...my Vodka Tonics were $5.25 each....that's reasonable. At some of the bars/clubs in town, a mixed drink is $3.75. $12-14 is gouging in a BIG way. Vodka and tonic is probably more like $7 or $8. $12 cocktails are generally the ones with multiple ingredients Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalliekae Posted July 23, 2015 #16 Share Posted July 23, 2015 Thank you for posting the drink prices. I've heard many on here state that the prices are outrageous, but honestly, they aren't that different from a nice Chicago restaurant. If you go to a sporting event, beer is $9.50 plus tip, martinis are $12, and wine is at least $9 per glass at all the restaurants I patronize. We will enjoy cocktails or wine with dinner on our upcoming cruise, but a drink package would not be a good buy for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luvscruising2007 Posted July 23, 2015 #17 Share Posted July 23, 2015 We don't drink much anymore because of meds we take. The high prices will curtail our purchases, and that is better for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark22mac Posted July 24, 2015 #18 Share Posted July 24, 2015 We drink a lot so individual prices don't matter to us we get the package even when we're diamond in suite. [emoji482]it's well worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
setsail Posted July 24, 2015 #19 Share Posted July 24, 2015 http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=46874032#post46874032 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare rudeney Posted July 24, 2015 #20 Share Posted July 24, 2015 It's been almost 8 years since we cruised. That trip was on FOS and cocktails were $5.50 each, inclusive of the tip. I was actually quite surprised at that reasonable price. To find out that prices have more than doubles is disconcerting. Ironically, I looked back as some of the posts I made on CC about that trip and found a discussion where I myself even suggested that RCCL should offer alcohol drink packages. Well, it seems we got what we asked for! For $50+ per day, we can get unlimited alcohol beverages. Back when cocktails were a reasonable $5.50 each, that would not be very cost effective but pump up the price to over $14 and it starts to seem like a good value. For those who visit Walt Disney World, they have done the same with their "dining packages". Food there was never cheap, but it was good. So now they have jacked up the prices to the point of being ludicrous ($60 per person for a meal that is barely Applebee's quality) but they justify that with the prepaid meal plan that makes it seem like a bargain. Honestly, if I drank $460 of booze (the price of the premium package for a 7-night cruise) at for a week, I'd need a liver transplant! And that's at Alabama prices where we have the highest liquor tax in the nation. If I did that even at bar prices, I'd probably not feel too well, and I'd definitely not be driving home each night. Honestly, I'll probably buy the Ultimate package for my cruise, but I doubt I'll feel it's a good "value". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
American Bear Posted July 24, 2015 #21 Share Posted July 24, 2015 Purchasing drinks or the Drink Pkge. can be easily figured out by each cruiser for what works better for them. There is no right or wrong, just what works out best for you. Those who drink 1 or 2 a day, a drink pkge. makes no sense. Those who drink more may think a drink pkge. is worth it. Others like us who are D+ and get free drinks, along with free drinks in the casino as casino club members, don't see the need for more. That being said, RCL's drink prices are the highest of any cruise line right now it seems, so it will affect some who used to drink 1 or 2, not to drink any. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelinGert Posted July 24, 2015 #22 Share Posted July 24, 2015 (edited) Purchasing drinks or the Drink Pkge. can be easily figured out by each cruiser for what works better for them.There is no right or wrong, just what works out best for you. Those who drink 1 or 2 a day, a drink pkge. makes no sense. Those who drink more may think a drink pkge. is worth it. Others like us who are D+ and get free drinks, along with free drinks in the casino as casino club members, don't see the need for more. That being said, RCL's drink prices are the highest of any cruise line right now it seems, so it will affect some who used to drink 1 or 2, not to drink any. What I find disconcerting is it is clear RCI is making certain the drink package is the only reasonable way to go for as many as possible by spectacularly gouging on the prices. Even the pro league stadiums in the city nearest me don't charge as much as RCI is now charging. Prior to this leap, I was on the fence and probably would have just sprung for the drinks package so as to enjoy whatever I wanted without concern. My mind is now made up. Now I definitely will not be purchasing. I don't like being bullied. If I want frufru coffees and alcoholic beverages other than the two bottles of wine permitted to bring with me, I will get it on shore at more reasonable prices or do without. My upcoming cruise is short, so it isn't like I'd have drank much alcoholic anyways. I was just looking forward to lots of frufru coffees and the ease of a bottled water to take when I disembark. I can easily make do with the included lemonade, water, coffee, and teas as I actually quite like those. I just wanted to treat myself reasonably. Edited July 24, 2015 by TravelinGert Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
George C Posted July 24, 2015 #23 Share Posted July 24, 2015 Purchasing drinks or the Drink Pkge. can be easily figured out by each cruiser for what works better for them.There is no right or wrong, just what works out best for you. Those who drink 1 or 2 a day, a drink pkge. makes no sense. Those who drink more may think a drink pkge. is worth it. Others like us who are D+ and get free drinks, along with free drinks in the casino as casino club members, don't see the need for more. That being said, RCL's drink prices are the highest of any cruise line right now it seems, so it will affect some who used to drink 1 or 2, not to drink any. How do you become a "Casino club member" ?? will are diamond and also in a suite and doing this ship for 12 days next year, was trying to avoid drink package for 1st half of the cruise Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarea Posted July 24, 2015 #24 Share Posted July 24, 2015 (edited) How do you become a "Casino club member" ?? will are diamond and also in a suite and doing this ship for 12 days next year, was trying to avoid drink package for 1st half of the cruise You must be invited by the casino host. They base it on how much money you gamble. See the casino host on your next cruise and ask them to rate you. Edited July 24, 2015 by clarea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare John&LaLa Posted July 24, 2015 #25 Share Posted July 24, 2015 How do you become a "Casino club member" ?? will are diamond and also in a suite and doing this ship for 12 days next year, was trying to avoid drink package for 1st half of the cruise Gamble a lot. :eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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