Cheers Drink Pass...yay or nay???

[mighty13]

The non-alcoholic frozen drinks don't count towards the 15 do they?

 

I have been on a ship with the program and without. The last cruise was on the one without. I had the money to pay for the drinks, but since I had to pay individually I always had to ask, is it really worth $10? I didn't enjoy the cruise very much because I was constantly wondering what else I could spend that money on. I could do the same when I am using the Cheers Program, but it just seems to make the cruise more laid back. I know what to budget, and I know that I will not have to worry while I am ordering a drink.

 

I get tired of people worrying about who drinks 15 a day. Like someone else pointed out, it it the break even point you need to worry about. Some may try to hit that number every day, and honestly, so what if you do! I know I will not get sick off of 15. It is in a 24 hour period of time. I will have a mimosa with breakfast, misc. drinks during the day (while playing cards, etc), martini (chocolate!) at dinner, and some drinks in the comedy club. I also enjoy having the soda included. I hope that the smoothies are included and not counted towards the 15 as well. That would be wonderful!

 

You bring up a great point....if I purchase a cruise 6 months to a year in advance and tell myself 'I will need to set aside $800 for a drink program for two people" it is more relaxing once I get on the ship because that is no longer an additional cost to me. I have saved up in order to have that luxury. Whereas, if I tell myself, 'ok, I am going to save $800 in drink money for the cruise" and by the last day the two of us have averaged 10 $8 drinks/pp per day that is now $160 over budget in just 6 days and now I feel guilty.

 

With all that said, one really must understand themselves and what makes them happy and what is right for their situation.

[ksy8384]

If you are a drinker then it is probably for you. I would like it for the "taste it" aspect as I'm not much of a drinker. There are lots of things I would like to try but don't so I don't waste the money. However, DH is in the cabin with me and had gastric bypass surgery. He does drink but very few and rarely soda. It would be a waste of $$ for him to get it.

 

Only you know your habits and what you want to get out of the package.

[Sisser]

Hello! This is my first post and I'm sailing on the Triumph in November. Love wine. Does the drinks pass cover wine in the wine bar? Also, is it good at all the bars on the ship? Thanks!

[hftmrock]

all drinks under $10 is included so if the wine is over $10 then you would get a 25% discount instead

[Rh2458]

What kills is that everyone in the cabin over 21 has to purchase if one person does. For my husband and myself, on a 7 day cruise, that would be over $800! That's a RIDICULOUS amount of money to spend on booze, IMO. I just don't see how it can save ANYONE any money.

Yes, I agree. As a non-drinker it is ridiculous that I'd have to spend $50+ a day so that my husband could have the drink package. It's interesting, they don't make the entire cabin purchase the bubbles package if one person does.

[Ctlee88]

I think for a shorter day it would've been worth it for my husband and I but for a 9 day cruise it was just not worth it. We felt like we had to drink to get our money worth. We saved money overall but we felt like we had to keep drinking to break even.

[molly5673]

I'm not pregnant and won't be but I think that the no exception rule even for pregnant women is ridiculous. If you have proof of something then you should be exempt.

 

 

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[deborahjo]

I find it to bad that Carnival has the highest drink program and the most restricted one. They need to look at other lines and I think they would sell more.

 

RCCL- Not everyone must buy the drink package in a cabin. They have a beer package and various drink packages that can be purchased. Most expensive being a little less then $360 for the highest level drink packages. That includes tax and grats.

Edited June 29, 2014 by deborahjo

[Laurie S.]

Plus, don't forget that soda is included in the Cheers program, which is an added benefit.

[lola61]

Do any of the rest of you find that 5 minute rule annoying?

LuLu

 

If you tip your bartenders, as we did on the Breeze the 5 minute rule wasn't an issue had buckets of beer all day every day:D:D:D:D

[OCruisers]

If you tip your bartenders, as we did on the Breeze the 5 minute rule wasn't an issue had buckets of beer all day every day:D:D:D:D

 

It's always amazing what a Hand$hake will do. ;) :D

LuLu

[dyson]

Personally I like the program, I am a 6"2" 250lb guy and I dont drink beer. So When I am in the mood I can drink a few... My wife on the other hand is MUCH smaller but she likes it as well because she feels like she can try things that she would normally not. allows her to be more adventurous.

 

On teh downside however I have noticed that the bartenders tend to wait on the pay as you go guests faster and they have told me numerous times that they don't like the program because it cuts into their 15% tip which I fully understand.

So to combat that I tend to find one server maybe two and give them a tip on the side and that helps a lot

[mrrobb]

I'm just overly concerned and curious how early I (mainly my wife) would reach our 15-a-day limit... I really don't drink much now, but when vacationing......

[TruthHertz]

Does anyone know if you can buy the Cheers program prior to boarding? Or is it something you set up on your first day on the ship? I've been told you also set up a type of "cruise" debit card that keeps track of all your purchases on the ship and you load it with money or something?

 

Sorry, I'm a noob and this is my first cruise. Trying to be as prepared as possible. Thanks for the help in advance.

[celestekelly13]

You can only purchase it once you board. It's a good value. My husband and I both purchased it and had cocktails by the pool the wine/cocktails at dinner and it proved to save us money. It's $49.99 per person per day and everyone in your cabin has to purchase it to be able to get it. One drink is usually $8-10 anyway.

 

 

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[TruthHertz]

Thanks! And I assume it takes a lot of hassle out of it. Sounds like the majority, minus those who prefer not to drink or drink very little, even get their money's worth on days they go on excursions or are off the ship for a long time.

 

Are there times of the day when you can't get drinks like early morning or late late night? Say if you had a morning excursion could you grab a drink before you left?

[celestekelly13]

As long as the bars are open and the ones by the pools and buffets are generally always open, I used it at breakfast before to have a Bloody Mary/mimosa too!!! 😃

 

 

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[islandatsea]

I was on the Paradise in June for a 5 day cruise. I either had Dos Equis 12oz or Coors Light 16oz with tip... each was $7.01 or $6.61 each. At that price point I tend to think that the Cheers pkg would be a good idea if you drink 8 beers a day which really is not that much across the day. True if you go on excursions that cuts into your "beer time" but dancing into the night makes a person very thirsty :D !

[islandatsea]

Here is an actual menu showing you the drink prices.....frozen drinks range from 7.25-8.75 and martinis can set you back $9+......hopefully this helps in your decision.

 

Just saw this menu you posted. Looks like the Paradise was getting more for the beers there, than is showing on that menu :confused:. Is that menu before they started with the 16oz size in some of the brands?

[rubysmom]

Keep in mind port days. I'm one that wouldn't buy for two reasons. If I drank that much I'd be sick/tired the whole time, and the calories would kill me.

 

Totally agree wahine.....port days we drink on land mostly...our biggest bar bill...and we like to drink

Was $ 400 on a 7 day cruise...BUT we drank in port...the island beer...etc..by the time we got back it was dinner time and we were done!!!The last thing I want to be is hungover on the ship!!!

[gtalum]

The package runs ~$57 per day including gratuity. You need to drink ~6 cocktails or 8 or 9 beers to make it break even.

[momof3cruisers]

IMO Carnival really needs to include bottled water in this program. The other lines offering similar programs do. Since Carnival doesn't, it's not worth it to me.

[TruthHertz]

With the cheers program, I know it states that gratuity is included, so does that mean when you are getting your drinks you do not add on additional tip to the server? And if it's not included than does the tip get charged to your room? And my girlfriend and I are attending the steak house for one of the nights, do those drinks get covered by my cheers plan? And finally, the steak dinner also said gratuity was included but do we add extra tip for that as well?

[celestekelly13]

Gratuity is included on the cheers plan but I believe it's only 15%, we usually tip 20% and there is a line on the receipt to add more tip. I'm not sure of the steakhouse but it's usually anywhere you go on the boat as long as the drink is less than $10.....you can always leave extra gratuity on the receipts for food or drink.

 

 

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2004 Carnival, Elation

 

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[Gon2hwe]

We're not big drinkers. Maybe a couple a day. We ordered two bottles from The Fun Shop before our cruise and they lasted the whole cruise for us. Still cost way too much money but I think it did save us money. We just brought on sodas for mixers.