Corkage fee is apparently alive and well

[cruisegirl1]

Just a bit of wine info from a recent ( Dec 28-Jan 11) Eclipse cruise . On the 4th night we brought an opened bottle of wine to the main dining room (that we had brought on board) to have a glass with dinner. We already had a bottle of purchased red from the night before, but this was white. They immediately came over and informed us there would be a corkage fee if we wanted to drink from the opened bottle of wine. As we only wanted a small glass of it, we decided not to pay the corkage and just drink the red we had purchased from them the previous night. They held the wine during the meal and gave it back to us the end of the meal.

 

We also had a bottle that was gifted to us from Guest Services but we decided not to hassle trying to take it to the dining room.

 

However, there was nothing to keep us from carrying a glass of wine in, just not the bottle.

 

M

 

ps - I am not complaining as they are actually doing their job - just providing info

Edited January 13, 2014 by cruisegirl1

[bigbenboys]

Just a bit of wine info from a recent ( Dec 28-Jan 11) Eclipse cruise . On the 4th night we brought an opened bottle of wine to the main dining room (that we had brought on board) to have a glass with dinner. We already had a bottle of purchased red from the night before, but this was white. They immediately came over and informed us there would be a corkage fee if we wanted to drink from the opened bottle of wine. As we only wanted a small glass of it, we decided not to pay the corkage and just drink the red we had purchased from them the previous night. They held the wine during the meal and gave it back to us the end of the meal.

 

We also had a bottle that was gifted to us from Guest Services but we decided not to hassle trying to take it to the dining room.

 

However, there was nothing to keep us from carrying a glass of wine in, just not the bottle.

 

M

 

From what I understand there would not be a fee for the gifted Celebrity bottles. Richard

[Blue Lagoon]

Just a bit of wine info from a recent ( Dec 28-Jan 11) Eclipse cruise . On the 4th night we brought an opened bottle of wine to the main dining room (that we had brought on board) to have a glass with dinner. We already had a bottle of purchased red from the night before, but this was white. They immediately came over and informed us there would be a corkage fee if we wanted to drink from the opened bottle of wine. As we only wanted a small glass of it, we decided not to pay the corkage and just drink the red we had purchased from them the previous night. They held the wine during the meal and gave it back to us the end of the meal.

 

We also had a bottle that was gifted to us from Guest Services but we decided not to hassle trying to take it to the dining room.

 

However, there was nothing to keep us from carrying a glass of wine in, just not the bottle.

 

M

Our children are very generous supporting our wine drinking habits.:)

We often receive wine that is gifted thru the ship services which we bring to the MDR to enjoy with our meal. We have never had a problem with the wine being opened at the table. We have never been charged corkage fees for gifted wines. As insurance, my DH brings the enclosure tag that is included with the wine with us to the MDR in case we are questioned.

[chamima]

Why did you think the corkage fee had disappeared?

 

 

Unrelated question but it came up on another thread.

Any chance you ever tried to order grilled salmon or tuna in the Aqua Spa Cafe?

There's a whole thread about how disappointed people are that it's gone but one person came on and said they aren't on the menu but you can still order them and get either one.

[cruisegirl1]

Why did you think the corkage fee had disappeared?

 

.

 

 

 

Read it on the internet, on some of the CC threads, so it had to be true, right :D

 

and....as I said on my edited post, I am not complaining, just giving some info that night help others.

 

M

[Fouremco]

Why did you think the corkage fee had disappeared?

 

 

Unrelated question but it came up on another thread.

Any chance you ever tried to order grilled salmon or tuna in the Aqua Spa Cafe?

There's a whole thread about how disappointed people are that it's gone but one person came on and said they aren't on the menu but you can still order them and get either one.

If the discussion on the Aqua-related thread doesn't meet your needs, it might be better for you to start a new thread rather than hijack this totally unrelated thread.

[chamima]

Good afternoon to you, too. :)

 

I only asked because she said she had just gotten off the ship.

[Fouremco]

Good afternoon to you, too. :)

 

I only asked because she said she had just gotten off the ship.

Oops, sorry, that sounded far worse than I had intended. :o I simply meant to suggest that as the Aqua thread is quite broad, you might have better success getting answers with a new thread than asking the question here. Didn't mean to step on your toes...

Edited January 13, 2014 by Fouremco

[jjwoben1]

Was on Nov 30 sailing on Eclipse...did not pay corkage fee for gifted wine or wine from Celebrity in cabin...as to Aua Spa Cafe, you can order the salmon and/or chicken and they make it to order...we did not find that the spa had decreased items but they have added additional pay for items

[Lsimon]

We do not bring wine to the dining room very often but whenever we have they've charged the corkage fee. This has been pretty consistent for at least 5 years and probably longer. Prior to that it was hit or miss depending on your wine steward.

 

The fee only applies to wine you bring on board. It does not apply to wine purchased from the ship directly or as gifts nor to any complimentary wine received from Celebrity.

Edited January 13, 2014 by Lsimon

[cruisegirl1]

We do not bring wine to the dining room very often but whenever we have they've charged the corkage fee. This has been pretty consistent for at least 5 years and probably longer. Prior to that it was hit or miss depending on your wine steward.

 

The fee only applies to wine you bring on board. It does not apply to wine purchased from the ship directly or as gifts nor to any complimentary wine received from Celebrity.

 

Good to know for the future. Thanks, M

[grandgeezer]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

[fussylady]

On our Jan. 4 Reflection Cruise, we received a complimentary bottle of wine from the ship. We brought it to dinner at Murano and it was very graciously opened and served by the sommelier, Michel. NO corkage fee for complimentary wine from ship. We happily gave a nice tip to Michel for his very excellent, professional service.

 

OTOH....we had brought a special bottle of wine from home to celebrate my birthday at the Tuscan Grill, well aware of the $25 corkage fee for bringing your own wine.

 

The Sommelier at the Tuscan Grill was notably ungracious about opening and serving a wine we did not buy from the menu...even though we were paying a $25 corkage fee...which I assume covered a gratuity to him. He approached our table and without even a hello or good evening, very gruffly asked if we wanted him to open the bottle, mentioning the $25 fee.

 

He opened the bottle, poured 2 glasses and left...never returning. For the rest of the dinner, the waitress poured the wine or we poured it ourselves.

 

His attitude was like a toddler in a bad mood.

 

It was a "downer" to this dinner. And we expected much better from service in this restaurant.

 

But it saved us the extra tip we were going to leave for this sommelier if he had been more pleasant. And unfortunately it left us with a bad taste for the Tuscan Grill. We would not dine there again.

[Wine-O]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

What a nice, friendly response. :rolleyes:

[fussylady]

Hi, Grandgeezer: the practice of bringing your own wine to a restaurant is done all over the world. That's why they have a system of corkage fees.

 

Very often, the reason for this is that a diner may not be able to prepare a meal at home that is on the same level of excellence with the wine you would like to drink.

 

Or sometimes, a restaurant may not offer a certain type of wine that you would like to pair with a certain food that is on the restaurant menu.

 

In my case, I knew that we would be dining at the Tuscan Grill. I brought a very special Tuscan wine I had wanted to pair with this menu.

 

Celebrity allows for this practice with their corkage fee. They understand that people with a special interest in wine sometimes want to pair a specific wine with a specific type of food.

 

Please know that people who do this are not doing anything unethical. Thank you for your understanding.

 

Happy sailing.

[cruisegirl1]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

Yes, in most states, restaurants have corkage fee. As a wine maker and collector, we often take a bottle of wine and pay the corkage. Fees runs from a low of $10 to $50, with $20 being average in our city.

 

Liquor is not permitted to be brought on board, but wine is. We are happy to have the opportunity to enjoy some of our finest wine in our cabin or by paying the corkage on board.

 

M

 

ps - actaully the bottle we brought to the dining room was about half full. We decided not to pay a corkage just to drink a glass or so that evening. Had it been a full bottle, we would have paid.

Edited January 13, 2014 by cruisegirl1

[SharC]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

Many times we bring our own bottle of wine to restaurants and then pay a corkage. We have received some very nice bottles of wine as gifts and we like to drink them when going out for a nice meal. The restaurants think this is fine as long as that wine is not carried by them. We have even had servers taste our wine because they were not familiar with that brand or had heard of them but not tasted it.

[Lsimon]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

The practice of bringing one's own bottle of wine to a restaurant isn't real common but it isn't uncommon either. That's why "corkage fee" is a defined term that many people know of. Celebrity specifically allows for this practice in their policies which is why their policies include a set corkage fee. They could just as easily have a policy that wine can not be brought into the dining rooms but they choose to allow it.

 

Some land based restaurants allow it and some do not. It may also depend on your State and local alcohol licensing laws for restaurants. Around the Chicago area it isn't uncommon to see some restaurants advertise "no corkage nights" in order to entice people into their establishments on slow nights. We've also eaten at several restaurants who do not have liquor licenses but who do allow patrons to bring in their own wine. Some of these charge a corkage fee and some don't.

[bigbenboys]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

Yes I have brought wine to a restaurant at home. Yes they had a corking fee. You can also take a bottle bought at a restaurant home with you. Though it may be different in some states in the USA. Richard

[RodPat]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

We always bring our good wine on the cruise and have it for our dinner. I bring on really expensive wine and never mind paying the corkage fee. We travel with friends and on our last cruise we brought a 1.5 liter bottle of Dominus which we had cellared for quite a few years. If you could buy it now it would be quite expensive. We bring wine to several restaurants here at home also. I really don't know of any restaurants here in Jersey that don't allow you to bring your own wine in and charge a corkage fee . Life is too short to drink bad wine.:)

 

Pat

[BosoxI]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

Well, I do bring my own sparkplugs, oil and filter when I get a tune up. Is that a problem?:p

[robtulipe]

Well, I do bring my own sparkplugs, oil and filter when I get a tune up. Is that a problem?:p

Not at all, especially if you are the mechanic who does the work like I do in my own garage.:p

[heathluvsing]

Perhaps it's a cultural thing to some. I'm a former NYer living in Sydney, Australia. We have BYO/corkage fees at most restaurants (unless your not able to bring it in) in Australia. It's not a big deal here.

[notanlinesLizz]

Bringing full bottles of wine to the dining room, Really? Takes a lot of guts. Do you take your wine with you when you go out to eat at home? What's the difference? What's next, packing a lunch and go eating it in a spevialty restaraunt? We drink wine, but always buy it on the ship.Maybe they should not allow any wine or liquor brought on the ship.

 

Call me old fashioned , but that was my first thought? I'd feel weird bringing my own drinks to dinner, but then again, I'm a little new to the big boats and their "rules" (I'm a relatively new wine drinker too lol!)

I can see now it's "normal", good to know...

I've got to say tho, I will still feel a bit odd carrying a bottle of wine past a lot of people to our table , not sure I can do it.. :confused:

Thanks for the education though!!

Edited January 14, 2014 by notanlinesLizz

[Wine-O]

Call me old fashioned , but that was my first thought? I'd feel weird bringing my own drinks to dinner, but then again, I'm a little new to the big boats and their "rules". I guess it's normal, good to know!

I gotta say tho, I will still feel odd carrying a bottle of wine past a lot of people, to our table , not sure I can do it.. :confused:

Thanks for the info tho!!

 

Really? How are you going to get your bottle of sparkling wine down to the dining room to exchange for a bottle of white/red if you don't carry it past lots of people? :confused:

 

Lots of people bring their own glass of wine into dinner, especially if they have the Elite coupons for happy hour. It's normal on the big boats. :D