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Freestyle machine

Micky1

By Micky1,
in Royal Caribbean International

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SensFan11

SensFan11

Posted
Posted
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coca-Cola_Freestyle

Mainly in the U.S. And Canada and now a small number of Burger Kings and Five Guys in the UK. The UK ones are significantly different to the U.S. ones in regard to what they stock as well.

 

Up until recently, Coca Cola Freestyle was only in the US. The first Canadian machines showed up in Toronto around 18 months ago. I live in Canada's fourth largest city, and we got our first three freestyle machines (in a city of a million people) six weeks ago.

 

And, like others mentioned, I would only ever buy the soda package on a ship with freestyle.

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Spire2000

Spire2000

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Up until recently, Coca Cola Freestyle was only in the US. The first Canadian machines showed up in Toronto around 18 months ago. I live in Canada's fourth largest city, and we got our first three freestyle machines (in a city of a million people) six weeks ago.

 

And, like others mentioned, I would only ever buy the soda package on a ship with freestyle.

 

Where are the machines here in Ottawa?!? I need to know! :p

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europe4fun

europe4fun

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The problem is being able to get the refill cartridges and other maintenance items. The supplies are plentiful enough here in the US, but not necessarily in foreign ports.

 

I think that is totally correct. However, seems like they could come up with a creative solution - like maybe install the machines behind sliding doors that can be closed, so that they are available when a ship is positioned in the US, and then close the doors and not offer the service when the ship is sailing itineraries in Europe or Asia.

 

Just a thought :)

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Ourusualbeach

Ourusualbeach

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The problem is being able to get the refill cartridges and other maintenance items. The supplies are plentiful enough here in the US, but not necessarily in foreign ports.

 

I think that is totally correct. However, seems like they could come up with a creative solution - like maybe install the machines behind sliding doors that can be closed, so that they are available when a ship is positioned in the US, and then close the doors and not offer the service when the ship is sailing itineraries in Europe or Asia.

 

Just a thought :)

 

I like that idea but the only issue I see is that the machines are leased from Coke at $300 per month. Can't see RCI paying a monthly lease payment on something locked behind closed doors.

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SensFan11

SensFan11

Posted
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Where are the machines here in Ottawa?!? I need to know! :p

 

The only one I've actually seen is in the new food court at Rideau Centre at the gourmet grilled cheese place 'MLTDWN'. Their freestyle machine is behind the counter - not self serve. You tell them what combination you want, and they hit the buttons on the screen. Never seen that setup anywhere else.

 

Apparently, there's also new machines at Carleton U and Ottawa U.

 

My hope is the next one we see is ago he new theatre opening at Lansdowne.

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Clarea

Clarea

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I understand that Freestyle machines are usually installed during dry dock, but I'm wondering if they could ONLY be installed at that time. Would they be able to put a few on board a ship in a few hours between cruises?

Several ships have had Freestyle machines installed without a dry dock.

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A2Mich

A2Mich

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I understand that Freestyle machines are usually installed during dry dock, but I'm wondering if they could ONLY be installed at that time. Would they be able to put a few on board a ship in a few hours between cruises?

 

I was surmising earlier that they would need a dry dock to install them, but apparently that does not seem to be the case. Don't know if they could be installed in a matter of a few hours, though. It may be possible if all of the prep work was done beforehand (plumbing, drainage, electrical, computer interface, etc.), but may be possible during the course of a cruise.

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Folk Singer

Folk Singer

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I think that is totally correct. However, seems like they could come up with a creative solution - like maybe install the machines behind sliding doors that can be closed, so that they are available when a ship is positioned in the US, and then close the doors and not offer the service when the ship is sailing itineraries in Europe or Asia.

 

Just a thought :)

 

I like that idea but the only issue I see is that the machines are leased from Coke at $300 per month. Can't see RCI paying a monthly lease payment on something locked behind closed doors.

 

 

So true.:eek::eek:

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sweetpea1714

sweetpea1714

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http://www.wired.com/2014/01/coke-iot/

 

I find the interesting bit how closely they track what people make. And it's not surprising that machines in the uk and the us would vary slightly. I still recall my shock at the flovors and combinations in potato chips and pizzas that were available when I lived in the uk years ago-things that I had never seen before. Different strokes...

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MICHLEV1974

MICHLEV1974

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a few folks mentioned the taste of coke being different in different parts of the world...

 

i remember taking my son to Disney in Florida and in Epcot, they had a Coke tasting experience ... you could taste test Coke from different parts of the world. it was very interesting. it does taste very different from one country to the next.

 

i am sure the coke machines on the cruise will mirror the US taste ... and it is pretty cook to have one of these machines to be able to experience all the flavor combinations. we have a Wendy's near my employer and we go there just for a 'coke' and chat..like it's a bookstore or coffee house..hahahaha

 

hope everyone gets to experience this. :) it's a nice added perk.

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SensFan11

SensFan11

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a few folks mentioned the taste of coke being different in different parts of the world...

 

i remember taking my son to Disney in Florida and in Epcot, they had a Coke tasting experience ... you could taste test Coke from different parts of the world. it was very interesting. it does taste very different from one country to the next.

 

i am sure the coke machines on the cruise will mirror the US taste ... and it is pretty cook to have one of these machines to be able to experience all the flavor combinations. we have a Wendy's near my employer and we go there just for a 'coke' and chat..like it's a bookstore or coffee house..hahahaha

 

hope everyone gets to experience this. :) it's a nice added perk.

 

Yup, it's called "Club Cool". In fact, Club Cool dispenses different Coca Cola products from around the world - not cola-based soft drinks, but a variety of different flavours from different countries: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Club_Cool

 

Also, one thing to watch for on RCCL - if your cruise isn't always based in the US, there's a chance you may end up with soft drinks from elsewhere. On our 2012 Brilliance of the Seas cruise, I asked for a Diet Coke and was given a can of "Coca Cola Light"...that ship had just returned from a season in the Eastern Med...all sorts of different soft drinks - with slightly different tastes - were on board.

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cmich068

cmich068

Posted
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I've always had trouble believing the "no cartridges outside the US" theory. RCI isn't exactly sailing out of third world countries. Surely it wouldn't be too hard to get the supplies in major European and Asian ports.

 

You'd be wrong. Coca-Cola currently only markets the Freestyle machine in the UK, Canada and the United States, and even in Canada the cartridges are imported from the US and then re-sold. Not sure what the situation is in the UK but it wouldn't surprise me if they're also bringing the supplies in from the US given the low number of machines out there.

 

Not only are the supplies unavailable (as the Freestyle machine can't use conventional BiB Syrup packs that are available practically everywhere else in the world), but the machine itself is available only for lease from Coca-Cola for a hefty premium over a conventional soda fountain. If RCCL can't guarantee a ship will have a steady supply of cartridges, it's not in their interest to pay to lease 4 of the machines for a ship.

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SensFan11

SensFan11

Posted
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Another thought...

 

My first cruise on a ship with Freestyle was on Allure in March 2013. At that point, while Freestyle was generally available in most major cities, I wouldn't say it was all that common...usually only a few outlets in mid-size cities had the machines - they were still novelties. At that time, the freestyle machines were regularly used, but there were never any lineups for them. I think an awful lot of people on board didn't know how to use them or what they were.

 

A year later, on Oasis in March 2014, it was a completely different story...seemed like there was at least one or two people in line at the freestyle machines most of the day. This coincided with the MAJOR rollout of freestyle across the US over that one year period. Now, even smaller towns have a couple freestyle machines, and I'd suggest they're no longer a novelty.

 

With this expansion of freestyle across the US, I think it also draws more people on board to buy the cups. Most folks know what they are now, and as we've seen here, there's lots of people (myself included) that will only buy the soda package if there's freestyle on board. In turn, RCCL sells more cups and makes more money.

 

Now, translate this to overseas markets, where a large percentage of Europeans or Asians will be on board that aren't familiar with freestyle. It's unlikely RCCL will see the same 'bump' in soda package sales due to the freestyle machines. Even if they could fly in and/or store on board adequate freestyle supplies between shipments, it may not be worth the added cost to lease the machines, as RCCL is unlikely to see the same 'bump' in soda cup sales that I speculate they're seeing in US homeported ships with freestyle.

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mollyeilis

mollyeilis

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Yup, it's called "Club Cool". In fact, Club Cool dispenses different Coca Cola products from around the world - not cola-based soft drinks, but a variety of different flavours from different countries: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Club_Cool

 

Yep.

 

You'd be wrong. Coca-Cola currently only markets the Freestyle machine in the UK, Canada and the United States, and even in Canada the cartridges are imported from the US and then re-sold. Not sure what the situation is in the UK but it wouldn't surprise me if they're also bringing the supplies in from the US given the low number of machines out there.

 

Not only are the supplies unavailable (as the Freestyle machine can't use conventional BiB Syrup packs that are available practically everywhere else in the world), but the machine itself is available only for lease from Coca-Cola for a hefty premium over a conventional soda fountain. If RCCL can't guarantee a ship will have a steady supply of cartridges, it's not in their interest to pay to lease 4 of the machines for a ship.

 

Since the US is pretty much the *only* country where coke products are sweetened with HFCS, it's a significantly different product here than it would be elsewhere. Elsewhere, it's proper cane sugar (tastes soooooo different, sooooo much better, but you certainly don't want 20 oz of it!). Very very very different product.

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newparents

newparents

Posted
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We are off on b2b on Freedom , departure dates 5th and 12th Oct and I am just working out our spending budget.

 

We are 1st sitting dining and so have not paid our tips yet and I was wondering if anyone could tell me what our tips will be per week.

 

Its a balcony cabin, 2 adults, 2 kids.

 

Thanks in advance :-)

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