Anyone else wondered how the "free" Classic drinks package will impact service?

[SeaBlu]

With the popularity of the current promotion there are likely to be sailings where a significant proportion of Pax have a drinks package.

 

I'm wondering if X is likely to increase staffing levels in the Café and bars to take into account the likely increase in customer traffic, and whether they will be putting extra alcohol on-board!

 

I'm predicting long lines for specialty coffees!

 

 

I cannot imagine what you are talking about, and you do not. We recently sailed on the Eclipse and both had the premium drink package, this is our 3rd cruise with this package. My DH's favorite place to visit is Café al Bacio he, nor I have EVER waited for service there, or any bar or lounge. In fact there is NO WHERE on any of the Solstice Class ships where we have had anything except exemplary service. The only difference in treatment we have noticed is even better service with our "drink package cards", as they get to know us, and our names, and anticipate what we might like to order. You are looking for trouble and not giving Celebrity its due! Celebrity IS the best and gives the best! We decided after only one cruise with "premium drink package cards" that we would always get them, even if we do not "spend it all".

[SeaBlu]

ALL of you sound like a complaint in search of a problem! We were on a 2 week Southern Caribbean cruise just before Christmas. The ship was at maximum and there were NO backups anywhere! OH - I did have 2 people in front of me for a hamburger one afternoon:eek:

 

I think all of you need to find something to do, you can barely wait to find something to complain about - SURPRISE! THERE IS NOTHING!

[Cruise Junky]

ALL of you sound like a complaint in search of a problem! We were on a 2 week Southern Caribbean cruise just before Christmas. The ship was at maximum and there were NO backups anywhere! OH - I did have 2 people in front of me for a hamburger one afternoon:eek:

 

I think all of you need to find something to do, you can barely wait to find something to complain about - SURPRISE! THERE IS NOTHING!

 

You weren't on a sailing that drink packages were free. Your sailing has no bearing on this conversation.

[MicCanberra]

You weren't on a sailing that drink packages were free. Your sailing has no bearing on this conversation.

Yep, if they had sailed last week, they may have had a point. That said, I think the no sign business with the packages will enable quicker service.:D

[Cruise Junky]

Yep, if they had sailed last week, they may have had a point. That said, I think the no sign business with the packages will enable quicker service.:D

 

I hope so :)

[gek]

I My DH's favorite place to visit is Café al Bacio he, nor I have EVER waited for service there, or any bar or lounge.

 

Our recent cruise on the Solstice contradicts this. We experienced regular delays at Café al Bacio at various times during the day. Some recent reviews I have read have also complained about bar service on the Solstice although I didn't experience this.

 

I'm not sure if the new drink packages were in effect.

[twosit]

ALL of you sound like a complaint in search of a problem! We were on a 2 week Southern Caribbean cruise just before Christmas. The ship was at maximum and there were NO backups anywhere! OH - I did have 2 people in front of me for a hamburger one afternoon:eek:

 

I think all of you need to find something to do, you can barely wait to find something to complain about - SURPRISE! THERE IS NOTHING!

 

Interesting post from someone who I just read complaining about how some people choose to dress on a cruise.

This is a discussion board.

[uktog]

Our recent cruise on the Solstice contradicts this. We experienced regular delays at Café al Bacio at various times during the day. Some recent reviews I have read have also complained about bar service on the Solstice although I didn't experience this.

 

I'm not sure if the new drink packages were in effect.

 

The impact of the free drinks packages will not be hitting cruises yet

 

We hope to be on Solstice in two weeks time so we will report on how we get on with our drinks packages - we have two premium packages - and we expect to be in Al Bacio many afternoons for a coffee. We also plan to test out several other bars as well so we will try and give an assessment of our experiences in each at different times of the day when we get back in March

[u2cruiser]

The impact of the free drinks packages will not be hitting cruises yet

 

We hope to be on Solstice in two weeks time so we will report on how we get on with our drinks packages - we have two premium packages - and we expect to be in Al Bacio many afternoons for a coffee. We also plan to test out several other bars as well so we will try and give an assessment of our experiences in each at different times of the day when we get back in March

 

I do hope your cruise isn't negatively impacted from that extensive bar research uktog ;)

Look forward to your results. Have a great cruise :D

[twosit]

The impact of the free drinks packages will not be hitting cruises yet

 

We hope to be on Solstice in two weeks time so we will report on how we get on with our drinks packages - we have two premium packages - and we expect to be in Al Bacio many afternoons for a coffee. We also plan to test out several other bars as well so we will try and give an assessment of our experiences in each at different times of the day when we get back in March

 

We really appreciate you "taking one for the team":D and doing such extensive research. Looking forward to your report.

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2

[uktog]

It is alright it is a 17 night trip so I will aim to pace myself in the name of all my fellow CC drinking friends :)

[jdvmd]

Curious if most people will upgrade the package?

[alexspepa]

Curious if most people will upgrade the package?

 

am i correct that if you received the free classic package for two and wish to upgrade then:

 

 

• both passengers in the cabin must upgrade, and
  
• you must do so before you sail and not onboard?
  

thanks

[jdvmd]

am i correct that if you received the free classic package for two and wish to upgrade then:

 

 

• both passengers in the cabin must upgrade, and
  
• you must do so before you sail and not onboard?
  

thanks

 

That is the way I understand it as well.

Was trying to see a wine by the glass list to determine if this is worth it for us.

[twosit]

am i correct that if you received the free classic package for two and wish to upgrade then:

 

 

• both passengers in the cabin must upgrade, and
  
• you must do so before you sail and not onboard?
  

thanks

 

I believe you can upgrade onboard, but most parties must do it. There is a sticky at the beginning of the celebrity forum area that explains this. I would link it but do not know how to it it in tapatalk

 

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[u2cruiser]

Funny how the free drinks offer has thrown up a host of new questions. I thought they had been done to death. :rolleyes:

 

Now we have the 'both in a cabin must upgrade' to contend with :eek:

I guess it makes a change from reading the usual questions :D

[MicCanberra]

Funny how the free drinks offer has thrown up a host of new questions. I thought they had been done to death. :rolleyes:

 

Now we have the 'both in a cabin must upgrade' to contend with :eek:

I guess it makes a change from reading the usual questions :D

Here is the link to the 'sticky' on the promo.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1764876

:D

[u2cruiser]

Here is the link to the 'sticky' on the promo.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1764876

:D

 

Thanks, I think I can generate another 1000 questions from that :p

 

Got a bit exciting there when Celebrity said you could pay the difference in price from the classic package, then they changed their minds :(

[gimletgal]

Thanks, I think I can generate another 1000 questions from that :p

 

Got a bit exciting there when Celebrity said you could pay the difference in price from the classic package, then they changed their minds :(

 

Don't think they "changed their minds"! That was an erroneous post from the get-go. Error on the responders part as I think he/she responded only to the first part of the question. :eek: It has always been that you pay full price for drinks over $8 on the Classic package.

[TLCOhio]

Think of all the different ships and sail dates available---I think those that have the package will be spread out among many of them and it will not make that much difference.

 

Hope you are correct that things spread out and do not create any major problems or back-ups. We've got lots of time before our first “down under” visit, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Celebrity Solstice sailing, departing Sydney, doing 14 days on this ship we loved in the Med in June 2011 going from Australia to Auckland/NZ.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 116,184 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

[Porter20]

Here are my thoughts on the subject - I too had concerned how overwhelming it would become with all the drink packages being offered. Our family took advantage of the offer to book a cruise during the period and even are looking booking a second cruise because the drink package is one of the many features we really like about Celebrity.

 

Since booking our first cruise and while still considering the second cruise, I have been monitoring prices of each of these cruises (both in the Carribean). Neither has moved in the last month. I would think if lots of people were booking cruise due to the drink package; wouldn't the prices increase to refect supply going down? I can't speak for other cruise locations - Europe, etc. but I can speak for the ones I have looked at in the Carribean.

 

Just my 2 cents.

[Caymon]

Just back from a Connie full of 1-2-3-ers and with several past trips to compare it to, my opinion is strong on this one:

 

At al Bacio, pool bars, sunset bar, drink service was very slow and number of bartenders/baristas was 1 short at all times. Best bet is to get service from walking waitstaff, not AT the bar. At the pool, hit the freestanding portable bars.

 

Michael's, Fortunes, Martini, Rendezvous were all fine.

 

In summary, service was definitely impacted at high-demand venues if you stood at the bar. I didn't think it was too bad, but very noticable compared to previous experience.

 

This was my first non-S-class cruise so that may have been a factor. Sailing Reflection in 5 weeks or so. That'll make for a better comparison.

[islandchick]

Lets look at this in a different light.

 

1. To the people who are worried that it will become a booze cruise- The drink package has been available for a long time (nothing new) and while it has been given to many people who would not buy it otherwise, the passengers on Celebrity in my experience don't seem to be the booze cruise type in general. (There will always be exceptions, but those people would probably be that way with or without the 1-2-3 promotion.)

 

2. Yes, there may be a little bit longer waiting for a drink, but lets face it we got a free drink package. Even on cruises without the 1-2-3 promotion we have found that we will need to go up to the bar to get our own drinks sometimes as service can be slow - not a big deal.

 

3. Please don't forget that the servers are doing their best and have a lot of people to please. If you are not happy with things please don't take it out on them. We find that the better we treat the servers the better service we seem to get. We also tip a little each time they bring drinks because we usually tip 20% but the drink package only tips 15%.

 

4. Relax and have a good time, the more you worry the less fun your trip will become.

[Eglesbrech]

We were on the Eclipse not long after the drinks packages started on a four day cruise to Cork which was dubbed "the infamous Cork cruise" by Celebrity staff.

 

The vast majority of those sailing had the package and the staff just could not cope. There were constant queues at the bars and angry customers who simply could not get served. Wine service in the main dining room was dreadful as well.

 

A lot of customers complained not only about the lack of decent service but about the fact that the whole tone of the ship had changed. Prior to this cruise I had never seen anyone on Celebrity the worse for drink.

 

I don't have the the letter of apology we got from Celebrity to hand but if my memory serves me they did not intend to sell quite so many packages on subsequent short cruises.

 

So I was concerned by the 123 offer as we are on an 8 day cruise booked before this was advertised and I will not be happy of it is a repeat performance of Cork as it was not pleasant.

 

Celebrity know what happened on that cruise and what caused the issues so perhaps they have contingency in place to deal with any issues.

[happy cruzer]

Recent reports are very valuable. I did not get the offer, I'm in an inside cabin. But I am considering purchasing once onboard... so knowing what to look for is of great value.

 

Those who want to purchase pre cruise will really benefit from people's recent reports. Some are bothered by extra service issues, some aren't. Knowing what might happen is priceless. :)