Evaluating a beverage package? Here is a beverage list with prices, as of mid-2010.

[*kittykate*]

Can anyone tell me if it is possible to buy one type of drinks package prior to sailing, for example, a non alcoholic or classic alcoholic and then upgrade to another package during the duration of the cruise, for example the premium alcohol package?

 

We're thinking of purchasing drinks packages prior to cruising and I think I'd probably be ok with the classic alcoholic one, but it would be nice to know that I could upgrade to the premium one half way through the cruise if I so wished. If it is possible, would we just end up paying the difference between the two packages or would Celebrity over charge us?

[UFgrad]

I'm a coffee drinker so was wondering if thre is there regular coffee available all day and evening for free? Do they have latte's and specialty coffees? Anyone have a price list for the specialty coffees?

Regular coffee, decaf coffee, hot water and a selection of tea bags are available all day for free in the buffet area. There are several stations in each buffet area that offer these beverages. The bar in the buffet area also offers espresso and cappucino for a fee (unless you have a drinks package).

I don't have a list of the specialty coffees and teas, but they are available in the Cafe Bacio and were priced in the $4-$7 range and therefore are included on the drinks packages. Most of them were variations on espresso and cappucino with and without different types and quantities of milk, cream, or foam. There were various flavorings available also. Not being a coffee drinker I am not familiar with the terminology but one specialty coffee was served over a scoop of vanilla ice cream and it attracted quite a lot of attention. The person who ordered it declared it was excellent.

[UFgrad]

Can anyone tell me if it is possible to buy one type of drinks package prior to sailing, for example, a non alcoholic or classic alcoholic and then upgrade to another package during the duration of the cruise, for example the premium alcohol package?

 

We're thinking of purchasing drinks packages prior to cruising and I think I'd probably be ok with the classic alcoholic one, but it would be nice to know that I could upgrade to the premium one half way through the cruise if I so wished. If it is possible, would we just end up paying the difference between the two packages or would Celebrity over charge us?

You will be able to upgrade if you so desire but be forewarned that you will need to keep close check on your onboard account to make certain the correct credit is applied.

 

In my opinion if you drink primarily spirits as opposed to beer and wine, you probably will be happier with the selection offered to you on the premium package. For example, are you OK with any type of tequila (classic) or do you want Patron (premium)? Is Seagram's 7 OK (classic)or do you want Crown Royal(premium)? Do you really want to try a lot of different martinis served in a large glass (premium) or is a smaller glass OK (classic)? If you drink primarily beer and wine you will probably be OK with the classic. Or just say the heck with it and buy the premium package and you won't have to continually check price lists during your cruise.

 

I also booked dinner in two speciality restaurants prior to sailing. Once onboard, I upgraded to the dining package offered at a discount that allowed one meal in each of the three specialty restaurants. They charged the full amount of the new dining package to my onboard account. The amount I had already charged on my Visa prior to sailing was credited to the onboard account rather than refunded to my Visa. It took three days for this transaction to appear on my shipboard account and even then I had to visit the customer service desk several times because the proper credit amountwas not applied. I eventually got it straightened out but consider how much time you want to spend as an accountant during your vacation.

[nijh]

Do you really want to try a lot of different martinis served in a large glass (premium) or is a smaller glass OK (classic)?

 

We only saw one size of Martini offered on the Constelation last month - $10 (Premium Package).

[*kittykate*]

Thanks UFgrad - I will bear that in mind. On a separate notre I have not come across the speciality dining package, could you please explain that a bit more, are the three speciality restaurants Murano, Qusine and Tuscan Grill? And how much is that package compared to paying to dine in each restaurant separately? Thanks!

[marieps]

I just started a new thread to alert all to this:

 

Dear James,

 

There's no better way to enhance your Celebrity cruise vacation than with one of our beverage packages. With a wide variety of innovative and trend-setting packages available, there's definitely one to fit your specific thirsts. And what could be more convenient? Pay one set price to enjoy a wide variety of beverage choices, including your favorite cocktails, premium coffees, wine by the glass, endless refills of sodas, featuring Coca-Cola® products, and unlimited bottled water. Our beverage packages allow you the freedom to try something new while on vacation or stick with your tried-and-true favorites.

 

Due to popular demand, and guest feedback, we're enhancing our Soda Package to feature both fountain and canned soda–now available in all bars. In addition, we'll be expanding our soda selection to include exciting new flavors such as Coke Zero, Barq's Root Beer, Sprite Zero and Caffeine Free Diet Coke. With more variety and convenience, it'll be easier than ever to quench your thirst on your Celebrity cruise. To support these enhancements, a small price increase for all beverage packages (except Wine and Stateroom Bar Set Up packages) will go into effect starting on May 22nd, 2011.

You can enjoy our enhanced beverage packages at the current pricing if you purchase your packages by May 21, 2011*.

[JetCruister]

I just started a new thread to alert all to this:

 

Dear James,

 

There's no better way to enhance your Celebrity cruise vacation than with one of our beverage packages. With a wide variety of innovative and trend-setting packages available, there's definitely one to fit your specific thirsts. And what could be more convenient? Pay one set price to enjoy a wide variety of beverage choices, including your favorite cocktails, premium coffees, wine by the glass, endless refills of sodas, featuring Coca-Cola® products, and unlimited bottled water. Our beverage packages allow you the freedom to try something new while on vacation or stick with your tried-and-true favorites.

 

Due to popular demand, and guest feedback, we're enhancing our Soda Package to feature both fountain and canned soda–now available in all bars. In addition, we'll be expanding our soda selection to include exciting new flavors such as Coke Zero, Barq's Root Beer, Sprite Zero and Caffeine Free Diet Coke. With more variety and convenience, it'll be easier than ever to quench your thirst on your Celebrity cruise. To support these enhancements, a small price increase for all beverage packages (except Wine and Stateroom Bar Set Up packages) will go into effect starting on May 22nd, 2011.

You can enjoy our enhanced beverage packages at the current pricing if you purchase your packages by May 21, 2011*.

 

 

Thanks for the information!! We bought ours two months ago for our upcoming cruise in November! Our Celebrity Rep told us that the prices would be going up soon at that time, but did not know when. I am assuming that the max price of the drinks will go up too??

[brandba]

Thanks for the information!! We bought ours two months ago for our upcoming cruise in November! Our Celebrity Rep told us that the prices would be going up soon at that time, but did not know when. I am assuming that the max price of the drinks will go up too??

 

We're sailing on the Eclipse on July 2. Does anyone know the current price of a martini at the martini bar? I'm wondering if the Premium package covers that -- I suspect that the Classic would not.

[Feelin' Nauti']

We're sailing on the Eclipse on July 2. Does anyone know the current price of a martini at the martini bar? I'm wondering if the Premium package covers that -- I suspect that the Classic would not.

I posted pictures of the menu.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=28994299&postcount=992

[dblane]

We had the premium alcohol pkg last February. Like our martinis. Talked with a couple on that cruise who said they could have smaller martinis on the classic pkg. Some others on the boards have said that also. I never saw it written anywhere and didn't ask any of the bartenders. To be on the safe side the premium pkg is best.

[marieps]

All Martinis at the Martini bar are $10. Classic does not cover them, which is why I upgraded last month on Equinox. You may be able to get a well martini at another venue inside the classic limit of $8, but the Martini Bar is a VERY popular venue and you pay a bit extra for that.

[UFgrad]

Thanks UFgrad - I will bear that in mind. On a separate notre I have not come across the speciality dining package, could you please explain that a bit more, are the three speciality restaurants Murano, Qusine and Tuscan Grill? And how much is that package compared to paying to dine in each restaurant separately? Thanks!

 

The package I upgraded to onboard cost $79 per person. It allowed one meal in each of the 3 specialty restaurants. The price for dining at Murano is $35pp, Tuscan Grille is $30pp. I had already booked these prior to sailing. Upgrading to this dining package allowed us to eat at Silk Harvest for an additional $14pp. One of our party is not very interested in Asian cuisine, but for $14 he made a meal from several servings of the rib appetizer, spring rolls and the orange chicken. He enjoyed it.

 

There are other specialty dining packages available onboard. One included wine pairings with specialty dining. We had premium drinks packages so I did not make note of the details on that. One package included five evenings in specialty restaurants. Regretfully, I did not save the details on prices for those offerings.

[UFgrad]

We had the premium alcohol pkg last February. Like our martinis. Talked with a couple on that cruise who said they could have smaller martinis on the classic pkg. Some others on the boards have said that also. I never saw it written anywhere and didn't ask any of the bartenders. To be on the safe side the premium pkg is best.

 

Agree wholeheartedly! Just get the premium package and go with it. I saw several folks at the martini bar (where all prices are listed as $10) asking for smaller martinis since they were on the classic package. Their request was honored but as I stated in a previous post, I would be uncomfortable asking for something special when bar staff are already working at a furious pace and other folks are eager to be served.

If you drink much at all you will get more than your money's worth from the premium package, including bottled water and other beverages. It's your vacation so allow yourself to try something outside your usual favorite drinks. If you like it, fine. If not, try something else.

[u2cruiser]

Just returned from the Equinox TA. After much deliberation, we prepaid for the premium alcohol package and were really excited to try lots of different drinks.

 

Background: we are not heavy drinkers; we enjoy wine and a G&T and a couple of beers around the pool, so totting up our usual cruise drinking habits came very close to the cost of the daily package, which is why we decided to go for it.

 

Would we buy it again? No. Reason: The drinks were so strong that we couldn't manage to try more than 1 or 2 Martinis without regretting it. The first 2 days we were like kids in a sweet shop, having G&T at the sunset bar, which were so strong we had to ask for smaller measures and more tonic! Calling at the Martini bar on the way to dinner was a bad move as I hardly knew what i ate the first 2 nights, so we had to change that to calling there after dinner, before bedtime. After 2 spoilt mornings with headaches, we couldn't even face a drink for a couple of days.

 

Being a TA, the weather got iffy and it was too wet and cold for pool drinks, so the coffee bar came into its own. We really enjoyed the coffees there, especially as the free coffee was almost undrinkable.

Molecular bar was ok for a change, but involved a lot of fuss making VERY strong drinks. They were delicious, but far too strong and couldn't be adjusted by strength as they were made to a recipe. I should add that the ship's bar staff were the best I have ever encountered anywhere.

 

The wine choices were fine but I hate to admit that I rarely finished a glass. The sommeliers in the DR were generous at topping our glasses up, even trying to convince us to try another kind, or a dessert wine. We normally enjoy our wine, but didn't enjoy it at all for some reason on the cruise. Too much of a good thing?

There was a decent choice of wines by the glass. The only time I saw (and ordered) Cakebread (only white) was in Muranos. The classic choice for red was limited to a Merlot for some reason in that restaurant.

 

It was great to get water whenever we wanted it. We stuck to the Evian as the Pellegrino wouldn't fit in the fridge.

 

I can honestly say that there were no problem at all getting what you wished for and as many times as required with the package. You could drink yourself into oblivion if you so wished :eek:

 

We probably got our money's worth all in all, but only because we chose the more expensive wines and beers. Our final drinks list is endless and I'm not sure we had all those drinks!

 

If I did choose a package again, I would go with the classic package. Our friends we met on board had the classic and had the small Martinis which would have suited me far better. There was no problem as these are the same size as the Martini flight glasses and the Martini guys were more than happy to serve them. I had them a few times on my premium package, so I could try more.

 

One day I enquired about a bottle of Vodka with gold leaf floating in it, which was on the shelf. Next thing I knew a hefty measure of it was in front of me, which I had to waste :(

 

My conclusion: if you can drink large amounts of spirits and prefer expensive wines then the premium package is well worth it.

[sorensson]

On our first cruise - Legend of the Seas in 2009 we spent a fortune on drinks.

Have been looking at Captains package and classic/premium drinks packages ,but can someone explain how they work.

 

 

Can u only buy bottles in the dining room?

Can u buy drinks by the glass at all ships bars & dining rooms ?

Do the alcoholic packages include soft drinks,tes,coffees etc

Presumably u have to buy 2 packages , 1 each ?

 

Overall are the packages cost effective ?

 

Thanks , in anticipation

 

Ray & jan

[marieps]

On our first cruise - Legend of the Seas in 2009 we spent a fortune on drinks.

Have been looking at Captains package and classic/premium drinks packages ,but can someone explain how they work.

 

 

Can u only buy bottles in the dining room?

Can u buy drinks by the glass at all ships bars & dining rooms ?

Do the alcoholic packages include soft drinks,tes,coffees etc

Presumably u have to buy 2 packages , 1 each ?

 

Overall are the packages cost effective ?

 

Thanks , in anticipation

 

Ray & jan

 

The alcohol packages on X come in two versions, Classic and Premium.

The classic affords you soda, non-premium bottled water, smoothies and specialty coffees, domestic and lower priced import beers (not Peroni or Stella) and cocktails up to $8 in value, and wine up to $8 per glass. The only chardonnay that fits is St. Francis. I don't like it myself.

 

Premium is $10 more per day. Cocktails and wine up to $12 per glass plus premium bottled water (evian, perrier and San pelligrino).

 

As I previously posted, the price goes up at the end of the week. Another poster said each cat. was going up $5 per day. Currently Classic is $39 plus 15% gratis and premium is $49 plus the 15%.

 

You can buy in all bars. You need not buy only bottles in DR, in fact it doesn't cover bottles. Fact is, get as many glasses as you want and it's like having a bottle. We find it cost effective for premium, as my DW enjoys San Pell very much and we hit the Martini Bar ($10) each night before dining.

 

It does not cover the mini bar, fyi.

 

Hope this helps, and that I didn't screw it up. Please fellow CCers, correct me if needed.

Edited May 18, 2011 by marieps

[beachbuddy]

Does anyone know if the premium package can be used when we're at Labadee since it's their island?

Edited May 19, 2011 by beachbuddy

[sorensson]

Fantastic.. Many thanks for that

 

Think I will go for the premium and book it tonight before the increase goes on.

 

I'm sure it will save us lots of dollars :)

 

Thanks again

[Feelin' Nauti']

X's site doesn't show the price increase. :rolleyes:

[808cruise]

I have a copy of several recent wine lists:

• Wine List – Celebrity Constellation – April 2011 (Main Dining Room)
  

This list is similar to the MDR lists from the Eclipse below and hasn’t changed much in terms of general selection or prices from the

Constellation’s Sept. 2008 Wine List

• Wine List - Main Dining Room – Celebrity Eclipse February 2011
  

The above wine list is missing a page of red wines, see following two lists which duplicate many of the wines on the list

• Wine List – Murano – Celebrity Eclipse February 2011
  

The “Rare Wines” section of this menu is not shown here but was identical to that section of the Tuscan Grill Wine List below

• Wine List – Tuscan Grill – Celebrity Eclipse February 2011
  

The biggest variations I've noticed on sailings are which wines are available by the glass, and which are included in the wine packages. The Wine Package options are on the last page of the Constellation wine list above. To me the wine packages seem to offer a small discount in exchange for limiting ones self to a small selection of wines within a similar price range. If this fits your style that is fine but we prefer the wide variety of the entire bottled wine list so the packages don't work for us - similar thinking on the alcoholic beverage packages as the by the glass list is just too limiting. We might enjoy several different inexpensive wines for a few nights and some nicer wines on other nights. Also, we tend to stick to white wines so we don't need to be able to switch varieties between courses.

 

Thanks for posting the lists Larry.

I just purchased 2 Premium Alc Pkgs

The slection of wines offered by the glass does appear quite weak...since wine with meals and wine as apertifs/"cocktails" is the way we would most use the package...I need to re-evaluate...I know...I know, how bad can it be, we'll be cruising the Med/Greek Isles on Solstice for 12 nights....

I do plan to drink (a lot) of Pellegrino and/or Evian and am looking forward to trying some martinis, specialty coffees...decisions..decisions...:)

[u2cruiser]

Thanks for posting the lists Larry.

I just purchased 2 Premium Alc Pkgs

The slection of wines offered by the glass does appear quite weak...since wine with meals and wine as apertifs/"cocktails" is the way we would most us use the package...I need to re-evaluate...I know...I know, how bad can it be, we'll be cruising the Med/Greek Isles on Solstice for 12 nights....

I do plan to drink (a lot) of Pellegrino and/or Evian and am looking forward to trying some martinis, specialty coffees...decisions..decisions...:)

 

Here's a wine list from Equinox MDR last week. (sorry if it's previously posted). Hope you can enlarge it enough to read. We found most of the reds very acceptable, especially the Pinot Noir at $10 and the Super Tuscan at $10.5. I usually started off with the Pouilly Fuisse white Burgundy at $9. That was very crisp and full of intense flavour. Worth a try even if you don't usually drink whites. There is always a sommeliers recommendation on the MDR menu which we tried occasionally.

 

Instead of a dessert wine, we had a very nice little port (sorry I didn't get the name) and it was served in a beautiful little glass with a silver bottom in the MDR. The glasses were available for sale. The sommeliers are very good and will help you select a wine by letting you taste them. I don't think you'll be disappointed with the premium wines. Our only problem was too much of a good thing and we lost the taste for all of them :(.

 

Another little tip, if you eat at the Aqua Spa cafe and fancy a crisp wine with your healthy lunch, they don't have a bar there but they will happily get you one from the pool bar. :)

[Fhorchu]

Can a 7 bottle Wine Package be purchased with X ? (as with RCCL) I only drink wine.... generaly just a couple of glasses with dinner.

 

Apologies if this has already been covered in previous posts - but there are too many to scroll through!!

 

Cheers....

[zeenichka]

Hello all,

 

DH likes manhattans and we decided to do a bar set-up in our room with knob creek. My question is, will celebrity supply us with sweet vermouth and cherries or is this something we have to bring on board or purchase?

I'd love some feed back from those who have done this.

Thank you!!:)

[rubyted]

"The slection of wines offered by the glass does appear quite weak"

 

I was on Connie in January and made the most of cellarmasters - they have some extra wines by the glass which are not shown on the MDR menu and which could be included in the premium package. The sommelier was also amenable to collecting refills for me in the MDR as well :)

 

Overall, I had doubts about buying the package initially - however I am booked on two further X cruises in the next 8 months and have booked the premium package again for each trip.

[mom0f3]

I just returned from a 7 day Summit cruise. I bought the premium non-alcoholic package, because I'd looked at the list of non-alcoholic beverages on the sticky thread, and wanted to be sure I could get flavored waters such as Hint as well as some of the specialty coffee drinks. As it turned out, the selections of non-alcoholic beverages on Summit was very limited--only flavored water available was Vitamin Water, which has 50 kcal/serving. Only diet soda regularly available was diet coke (the pool bar didn't even have Coke zero most days). Coffee bar (Cova Cafe) only had coffees (capaccinos, lattes, etc), which were covered under non-premium package. The cost difference was only $3/d, so I'm not kicking myself too much, but unless you plan on drinking a lot of smoothies, virgin pina coladas, etc, the premium package isn't really worthwhile on the Summit.