Opinion on being able to BYOB on cruise ships.

[Ellanora]

We have booked our first Carnival Cruise, we leave a month from today!! We usually cruise Disney because of our kiddos, but we are leaving them at home. Since Disney allows you to carry alcohol on, there is no smuggling. We carry on, as do many others. There is still a lot of purchasing going on though. When we go to a comedy show, or karaoke, or etc. It is no fun to head back to your room to have to mix a drink and miss the fun. There is something about being on vacation and the ease of being served instead of getting your drinks yourself. Disney also has the advantage of their personal port Castaway Cay- serving alcohol on the beach is nice so they make more profit off drinks there as well. Of course DCL costs more, but I still think they make a lot of $$$ on alcohol too and of course cruise prices. With CCL's low prices, I think it would be difficult to allow people to BYOB. I would imagine that they get the majority of their profit from drinks, including soda as well as alcohol.

I agree with you. On board alcohol sales and gambling is a big reason for Carnival to have lower prices. Disney sells plenty of alcohol on board, but not quite to the degree of Carnival, and gets their profit from the higher ticket price instead. Also, as you say, Castaway Cay is a sort of "captive audience" for alcohol drinkers which is good for Disney and every cruise out of Florida stops there at least once. Conversely, Carnival seems to be lessening the private island stops in HMC. I do think it would hurt Carnival to allow BYOB - certainly the Bon Voyage dept would take a big hit.

 

My dad loves Carnival, and found out about Bon Voyage on his second or third cruise, and has used them ever since. He has no interest in breaking the rules so won't smuggle, and is fine using BV. He also had no interest in cruising any other line, never even considered Disney, especially due to the price. Then my sisters and I bought a cabin for my parents so they could join us on a Disney cruise, and he found out about the free soda and BYOB allowed; suddenly the ticket price seemed a lot more reasonable to him! :D

[PlanoTim]

I actually answered no. My first cruise the S&S was double (for one person) than what we paid for the cruise. The second, we used rum runners, got them on no problem, two different types of booze for less than one BV bottle. STILL had a S&S of about half of the cruise cost. Again, one person.

 

I don't quite understand. Here is what I got from your post:

 

First cruise - without bringing your own booze aboard - S&S bill was double what you paid for the cruise.

Second cruise - with rum runners of 2 different types of booze - S&S was about half of what you paid for the cruise.

 

Wasn't that a substancial reduction in bar purchases by you?

[ocntscha]

I don't drink or gamble so the current arrangement is good by me. I get on the ship dirt cheap thanks to all the boozers and gamblers. If it wasn't for them I know my cruise fare would be much higher.

[wcurry66]

No difference. I've done all three options (just bought from bar, used BV, and smuggled).

 

With smuggling and BV, we had left over alcohol at the end of the trip, so it wasn't about getting as much as cheaply as we could.

 

We ordered at the bars when out of the room - at the pool, watching music, seeing the shows. We've never brought "homemade" drinks out of the room.

 

In the room, we made a drink while we were watching tv or hanging out on the balcony. We've not once left the room to get a drink - even when we didn't have resources in the room.

 

If anything, I think it would impact their BV sales

[millerboy88]

I am not a big liquor drinker, but love some cold beer while out on the deck on the lounge chairs and such. I will have a mixed drink while at the shows and such. What gets me is the out of control prices for the beer. I don't get that part. You are looking at 12 beers (depending on what brand) costing $70.00 or more. To me that is just plain crazy. Also why I will continue to smuggle in beer. If I get caught oh well, if I don't get caught I have saved a pile of $$$

[fonrouge82]

So from what I'm reading you ARE allowed to bring your own soda on board in your luggage?? My DH is a die-hard Diet Pepsi drinker and I believe Carnival only has Coke products on board. Can someone clarify for me? Is there a limit to the amount you can bring?

 

Thanks so much!

[H82seaUgo]

So from what I'm reading you ARE allowed to bring your own soda on board in your luggage??

 

 

nope. carry on only.

[soccersharon]

On our last cruise, we ordered a bottle of vodka through BV. We brought our 1 bottle of wine each, our own cranberry juice, and bought gingerale from two ports of three.

 

Our S&S balance was approximately the same amount as our first cruise, but instead of booze charges, we charged more excursions, and played more bingo etc. Our "balcony booze" really helped cut down on the amount of alcohol we bought around the ship.

[Jimsedge]

I read smuggling posts all the time. And now with the fruit punch mixer being brought back up.

 

Do you really think if Carnival allowed a "reasonable" amount of booze to be carried on it would really effect bar sales.

 

I am using reasonable meaning like 12-pack beer per person just like the allow w/ pop. Or a bottle of liquor as they do wine.

 

"Reasonable" will just be pushed beyond anything that you or I might consider reasonable.

Right now it is forbidden and people compete to see who can bring the most on. If you open the floodgates, be prepared for a flood.

[cwiggy]

I don't think bar sales would go down....because we always have a bottle of rum waiting for us via Bon Voyage.

 

If it was so bad for bar sales....I don't think they would offer Bon Voyage.

 

Hi - I don't see where you can order bottles of rum or vodka through BV ... I only see wines and drink cards ... what I am missing looking at?? thanks!!

[wcurry66]

Hi - I don't see where you can order bottles of rum or vodka through BV ... I only see wines and drink cards ... what I am missing looking at?? thanks!!

 

you have to call them to order these. there are a few price lists floating about here on CC

[jules1121]

Hi - I don't see where you can order bottles of rum or vodka through BV ... I only see wines and drink cards ... what I am missing looking at?? thanks!!

 

 

You have to call the 1-800 number listed on the website to get to the hard liquor sales. They aren't listed on the Carnival website.

 

BonVoyage Dept: 1-800-522-7648

[JaniceB]

I don't see what the problem is with either allowing wine or a bottle of alcohol or a 6 pk of beer, especially if you are allowed to bring soda which cuts down on people buying soda cards. If they don't want to cut into their profits why do they allow wine and soda? The price of beer is outrages, why only the price of beer?

[amy_ammo]

PlanoTim, I could see where I didn't make my post very clear. First that was one person in our group (and not me), second it was our first cruise so we weren't thinking clearly with all of the booze we were drinking and just billing to our room, third, we did more excursions through Carnival, bought photos, etc. on the first one.

 

In the end, it really did even out.

 

This year, i'm just going to do BV and will buy myself some funship dollars to have OBC when I board to cover such costs. I like to drink on vacation and will do so regardless.

 

BUT, I don't think, as one poster suggested, even expanding the bottle of wine to booze or a 12 pack (they said 6 but I'll up it because I think it's fair) would affect the cost.

 

Even with BV, I'll still be buying drinks in the piano bar, lido deck, shows, etc. Heck, usually the more you drink, the more willing you are to just sit there at the bar and not go back to your room, away from the bar to doctor a drink, etc.

[PlanoTim]

PlanoTim, I could see where I didn't make my post very clear. First that was one person in our group (and not me), second it was our first cruise so we weren't thinking clearly with all of the booze we were drinking and just billing to our room, third, we did more excursions through Carnival, bought photos, etc. on the first one.

 

In the end, it really did even out.

 

This year, i'm just going to do BV and will buy myself some funship dollars to have OBC when I board to cover such costs. I like to drink on vacation and will do so regardless.

 

BUT, I don't think, as one poster suggested, even expanding the bottle of wine to booze or a 12 pack (they said 6 but I'll up it because I think it's fair) would affect the cost.

 

Even with BV, I'll still be buying drinks in the piano bar, lido deck, shows, etc. Heck, usually the more you drink, the more willing you are to just sit there at the bar and not go back to your room, away from the bar to doctor a drink, etc.

 

Thanks for helping me understand. It all makes more sense to me now.