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Ultra Beverage Program is a Ripoff


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They talk about throwing in dining, beverages, internet, excursion, etc as a freebie or a choice of several.

 

But the beverage fee at $89/day, which they calculate service charges on, is a absolute joke. Well over $30/day more than what Carnival and Princess charge per day. plus they add 20% gratuity (other line add 18%) as a service charge. So in essence you pay $60/pp extra in gratuity/service fees for the bloated beverage per diem price. Sad thing is the program is no where near as inclusive as Carnivals.... As I've learned...nothing comes for free. Another example of Norwegian finding away to nickle/dime and over price their so called freebies!!

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They talk about throwing in dining, beverages, internet, excursion, etc as a freebie or a choice of several.

 

But the beverage fee at $89/day,

If is a FREEBIE how do you say there is a FEE? Yes you pay the Gratuity but that is all; at 20% you would pay $17.80 a day. That is 3 drinks a day!!!!!

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The OP is talking about the full price. As they mention it being a freebie, I’m not sure why they are so concerned about what it does cost if purchased. I suppose because it increases the gratuity that they do pay.

 

I don’t think anyone would disagree with their view that full price is extremely expensive for what you get.

 

That fact is so well established around here that my response was just “yeah, we know, so what’s news?”. It’s so obvious that it doesn’t need saying.

 

As most people get it included the only relevance to them is the size of the gratuity (if charged). If you haven’t booked a promo rate and want the beverage package then it’s very relevant, but you probably made a mistake when booking in that case.

 

 

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Well over $30/day more than what Carnival and Princess charge per day

 

I have a Princess cruise booked and so have just looked at the cost per day. It is NZD96.59 per day which at today's exchange rate is USD66.45. So NCL's charge of USD89 is hardly "Well over $30/day more".

 

 

If you don't want all the grog you can drink for USD17.80 a day don't take the "Free" UBC you are offered.

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They talk about throwing in dining, beverages, internet, excursion, etc as a freebie or a choice of several.

 

But the beverage fee at $89/day, which they calculate service charges on, is a absolute joke. Well over $30/day more than what Carnival and Princess charge per day. plus they add 20% gratuity (other line add 18%) as a service charge. So in essence you pay $60/pp extra in gratuity/service fees for the bloated beverage per diem price. Sad thing is the program is no where near as inclusive as Carnivals.... As I've learned...nothing comes for free. Another example of Norwegian finding away to nickle/dime and over price their so called freebies!!

Your post is quite confusing. First you say it is a "freebie" then you say it is $89pp per day plus 20%gratuity.

 

As a "freebie" you do pay a 20% gratuity and that is it. A whole lot less than Carnival or Princess. They don't offer it like that. The only way you can get it on Carnival or Princess is to pay full price which is around $59pp per day or more (don't have the exact amount in front of me) plus 18% gratuity. Also, on Carnival there is a 15 drink limit and Princess there is a 12 drink per day limit. If you pay full price for the package on NCL there is no limit.

 

I doubt there is a large percent of people on NCL that pay full price for the package as most would get it for a promo. We switched to NCL and Celebrity because of the drink packages being included in the promos. Lots cheaper than paying $10 a drink on Carnival or Princess and there is no way I would pay $59pp per day plus gratuity on Carnival or Princess especially when we usually cruise for 21 days as a time.

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They talk about throwing in dining, beverages, internet, excursion, etc as a freebie or a choice of several.

 

But the beverage fee at $89/day, which they calculate service charges on, is a absolute joke. Well over $30/day more than what Carnival and Princess charge per day. plus they add 20% gratuity (other line add 18%) as a service charge. So in essence you pay $60/pp extra in gratuity/service fees for the bloated beverage per diem price. Sad thing is the program is no where near as inclusive as Carnivals.... As I've learned...nothing comes for free. Another example of Norwegian finding away to nickle/dime and over price their so called freebies!!

no need to feel ripped off or nickel or dimed, just don't take the UBP or SDP and just pay as you have a drink or specialty restaurant dinner....issue solved.
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As others have said, don’t select the booze package if you won’t otherwise average $17.80/day for alcohol. How’s that confusing, a ripoff, or nickel and diming? For us, it’s a huge money saver.

 

 

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They talk about throwing in dining, beverages, internet, excursion, etc as a freebie or a choice of several.

 

 

 

But the beverage fee at $89/day, which they calculate service charges on, is a absolute joke. Well over $30/day more than what Carnival and Princess charge per day. plus they add 20% gratuity (other line add 18%) as a service charge. So in essence you pay $60/pp extra in gratuity/service fees for the bloated beverage per diem price. Sad thing is the program is no where near as inclusive as Carnivals.... As I've learned...nothing comes for free. Another example of Norwegian finding away to nickle/dime and over price their so called freebies!!

 

 

 

It’s called Ultimate Beverage Package. And you obviously don’t know what nickel/dime means.

 

 

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Terrible thread title.

 

It is not a rip-off.

 

Some people may feel it is too expensive, and that is a very valid opinion.

 

As to what Princess or Carnival charge.. huh? How about Seabourn - all drinks are free. No charge. No gratuity. Why not sail with them?

 

Rip off? Come on.

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What OP is trying to point out is that this "freebie" is not free at all. The service charges added are probably more than he would spend on drinks/day!

 

Considering that you pay a premium rate to get "the freebies" it truly is a rip-off.

 

IMHO the rate charged is more for the benefit of being able to pick your cabin than anything else.

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What OP is trying to point out is that this "freebie" is not free at all. The service charges added are probably more than he would spend on drinks/day!

 

Considering that you pay a premium rate to get "the freebies" it truly is a rip-off.

 

IMHO the rate charged is more for the benefit of being able to pick your cabin than anything else.

I disagree because OP is saying that Carnival and Princess's drink programs are cheaper than the UBP which they are not.

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What OP is trying to point out is that this "freebie" is not free at all. The service charges added are probably more than he would spend on drinks/day!

 

Considering that you pay a premium rate to get "the freebies" it truly is a rip-off.

 

IMHO the rate charged is more for the benefit of being able to pick your cabin than anything else.

 

When I made my reservation, I would have paid the same rate without the "freebies" as if I had taken them. I believe that OP is in part comparing the Sailaway Rate with the rate you get when you pick your own cabin. Apples and oranges comparison. I want my cabin in a certain location and not leave it up to NCL, if "freebies" are included, all the better! :cool:

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When I made my reservation, I would have paid the same rate without the "freebies" as if I had taken them. I believe that OP is in part comparing the Sailaway Rate with the rate you get when you pick your own cabin. Apples and oranges comparison. I want my cabin in a certain location and not leave it up to NCL, if "freebies" are included, all the better! :cool:

 

I get it...but my point (I guess off topic) is that the premium is just to pick the cabin. If you choose to pay that price...then yes...other things are freebies. But I don't think most people "pay the price" solely for the luxury of picking their location.

 

 

However, as a value shopper and gambler....I pay the least, and if the assignment is bad (happened once) I have the option to upgrade myself.

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What OP is trying to point out is that this "freebie" is not free at all. The service charges added are probably more than he would spend on drinks/day!

 

Considering that you pay a premium rate to get "the freebies" it truly is a rip-off.

 

IMHO the rate charged is more for the benefit of being able to pick your cabin than anything else.

 

When they started charging the gratuities for the drink package they made it optional. I looked at the cost of

the gratuities on the package and decided not to get it as I drink 2 soft drinks and one mixed drink (maybe) per day. This is in the US.

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Moderation is the key:

 

How much does one drink at home? Certainly not nearly $100.00 a day? (at least not in our house)

 

The prices charged on board ship for individual drinks without a package, are quite steep which may inadvertently lead passengers into believing that a drink package is to their benefit. (perhaps for some passengers it is)

 

A nearly $100.00 (approximately) a day drinking package (per passenger per day in the same stateroom), equals to about 6 or more alcoholic drinks a day for each of us. (that's quite a bit)

 

We understand one is on a cruise/holiday but why would anyone want to add an additional X number of $$$ to an already (mostly all inclusive cruise/holiday) ?

 

"Moderation is the key"

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I do NOT want to even be CLOSE to anybody who actually goes on a 7-night cruise and actually drinks 15 drinks every single day. I rather doubt the majority of people who either get the UBP as a perk or pay for it completely actually drink that much. They'll come here and swear they are getting their money's worth because they "like the specialty colored water" (aka coffee) and I'm sure the company loves them.

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I still wish they would just charge the gratuities for the drinks you actually consumed instead of 20% of whatever amount they decide the package is worth. That way even if you only drank 1 drink a day it would still be a worthwhile perk to take and nobody could complain that it’s “not really free”. There would definitely still be people complaining that there’s automatic tips added to their drinks though.

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