Beverage Package Pricing Increase

[yorkyred]

While my husband and I are NOW comfortably above that median income, there was quite a long time when I was in graduate school where we earned less than a quarter of that as a couple. Our vacations were a HUGE splurge. I do know where you are coming from.

 

With that being said, we found many, many ways to enjoy ourselves on a Celebrity cruise that did not involve drinking premium beverages or spending money at all. We made it work with the complimentary beverages that were available, along with a couple of bottles of wine that we brought aboard at embarkation.

 

When we were in that financial place, we were grateful for the opportunity to be on the ship and (mostly) away from work at all. The ambiance, the food, the feeling of being catered to, the ports of call in brand new places, even the shows that people on here love to complain about... all of it was an adventure for us. We barely even thought about things like drink packages or even a la carte drinking because it was just out of our budget. No bad feelings, just not on our radar. It was so easy to not have strong feelings about those hot-button topics because we saw the vacation itself as treating ourselves, and anything that we were able to afford on top of that as icing.

 

I am absolutely not calling you ungrateful. I know that everyone has different vacation priorities and things that make the trip special for them and that perhaps alcohol is a part of that special experience for you in a way that it isn't for us (I have a clotting disorder and was on blood thinners for all of my 20s, so I never got into the habit of drinking often). I'm simply saying that I do understand the perspective of a cruise who is budgeting every single cent, and I understand VERY well how disappointing these changes must be for you.

 

With that being said, however, I think that it is very easy to get caught up in changes like these when you frequent this message board, and that it is equally easy to get caught up in the negative feedback loop that develops whenever those changes are posted. A vacation is supposed to be a time of rest, relaxation, and happiness. Despite some of the recent price increases, I believe Celebrity still does deliver that "product" amazingly well. I do hope that you can still enjoy your vacation once you get there. It sounds like you have earned it.

 

...

 

Now that I write all of that, I have to say that there is actually a part of me that very much misses being in that place. Our recent trip a few weeks ago was the first Celebrity trip that we've taken since our financial circumstances have changed. While I had an amazing time, I definitely cannot say that I had the fierce pleasure and pride in this trip that I have felt in the past when part of our journey to cruising was scrimping and saving to get there. :o

 

Part of the fun is certainly saving for something like this for us, our first time on Celebrity and I'm hoping it's not our last if we can afford it again next year. Every little increase does add up for us still even at our time of life 40/50s. I'm afraid after 20 years supporting adults with learning difficulties I'm aware I'm never going to be well off.

[ailetoile]

Part of the fun is certainly saving for something like this for us, our first time on Celebrity and I'm hoping it's not our last if we can afford it again next year. Every little increase does add up for us still even at our time of life 40/50s. I'm afraid after 20 years supporting adults with learning difficulties I'm aware I'm never going to be well off.

 

I truly believe that in spite of all that you're reading on here before your trip you will have an amazing time. It will be a nice break from what sounds like a selfless career. :)

[TommyD3]

While I do get that for us every bit counts. We're not a couple that earn a huge amount but like to enjoy the nicer things in life when we can. I noticed on a recent poll they worked out the average Celebrity cruiser earned $114000 a year. We're at a whole lower level than that.

 

Are you talking $114,000 per person or per couple?

I can believe per couple but not per person!

[yorkyred]

Are you talking $114,000 per person or per couple?

I can believe per couple but not per person!

 

It did not state which but I would have thought per couple, I was honestly suprised at the amount even if per couple given the amount of cruisers of retirement age.

[yorkyred]

I truly believe that in spite of all that you're reading on here before your trip you will have an amazing time. It will be a nice break from what sounds like a selfless career. :)

 

Yes I'm sure we will have a great time thanks.

[Laurab23]

Are you talking $114,000 per person or per couple?

I can believe per couple but not per person!

 

I wish we even came close to that as a couple.

 

Laura

[robinlynn]

Not that I don't trust Celebrity, but our cruise is not until August, 2016 and who knows what they can do by then. Our travel agent took half of our generous OBC that she had given us and subtracted half of it that from our final payment so we wouldn't be stuck with a very large OBC (we were going to use part of it for the drink upgrade on board) . I called Celebrity and purchased the Premium package for the $10.00 plus tip charge.

 

I am pretty sure it wasn't necessary, but there seemed like very little downside and now I don't have to think about it anymore.

 

My husband thinks this whole thing is a scam someone started, (April Fool's Day) and that there won't even be a price increase, but either way we were going to upgrade so I just assured no issues down the road just in case.

 

Am going to sleep early tonight, after a late night of following this thread!

[Big Friendly Giant]

If you upgrade pre-cruise before April 20th, you’ll only be paying the current difference to upgrade to Premium ($10 per day + 18% gratuity).

 

If you upgrade pre-cruise as of April 20th or onboard as of April 6th, then you’ll be paying the new upgrade rate to Premium ($16 per day + 18% gratuity).

 

Hi Celebrity, as you can see I have 3 cruises booked on Eclipse in next 18 months all with free Classic drinks package as part of the deal. Normally I upgrade to the Premium package on boarding the ship at cost of $10 + 18% gratuity per day. As has been asked above, I presume that the answer

is $10+tips per day as that is still the difference between the two packages on the new pricing. As you know UK customers cannot upgrade free drinks packages pre-cruise unless you are changing the rules?

[groryjm]

As you know UK customers cannot upgrade free drinks packages pre-cruise unless you are changing the rules?

We've always been able to upgrade to the Premium by phoning the Weybridge office :cool:

 

 

Sent from my NGM EXPLORER using Forums mobile app

[loupana]

Just made final payment for my cruise. I then stated I wanted to upgraded the beverage package because the price was going up. She said yes it is but she didn't think it was made public yet. Thanks to CC I got the upgrade before the increase.

[Big Friendly Giant]

We've always been able to upgrade to the Premium by phoning the Weybridge office :co

 

Thanks Greg, useful info. Apologies to all on this thread, did not appreciate that there were 21 pages to read, Celebrity's reply on post 289 is very clear.

Bruce

[Cruise Junky]

Just made final payment for my cruise. I then stated I wanted to upgraded the beverage package because the price was going up. She said yes it is but she didn't think it was made public yet. Thanks to CC I got the upgrade before the increase.

 

You should have just sent yourself OBC at 8.5% exchange and upgraded onboard rather than paying 28% exchange to do it now.

[loupana]

You should have just sent yourself OBC at 8.5% exchange and upgraded onboard rather than paying 28% exchange to do it now.

I should have known better..

[Cruise Junky]

I should have known better..

 

:) lots of good info here.

[hammo]

All true. Since the overall drink prices are so much lower on Princess I am not sure it is worth getting. On our Royal Princess cruise we had to continue to sign a receipt each time we received a drink. One for each of us. Therefore it was certainly not convenient. Perhaps they have improved the process?

 

I hate to admit it, but based on the cost of the individual drinks the Celebrity package is probably still a better deal and the Celebrity options include both the Classic and Premium package and Princess is only one. Celebrity certainly includes a wide range of premium choices.

 

Not when it comes to wine by the glass - it doesnt.

[happy cruzer]

Not when it comes to wine by the glass - it doesnt.

 

But it does cover coffee and bottled water....

[lightning bolt]

But it does cover coffee and bottled water....

 

It does cover coffee and water.

[hammo]

Princess -

All Inclusive Beverage Package†

You can now relax and enjoy the convenience of an all inclusive beverage package featuring any drink up to $10 including cocktails, wine, beer, sodas, lattes, cappuccinos, bottled water & more. All for just $49 USD per person per day!

[MR_T]

We've always been able to upgrade to the Premium by phoning the Weybridge office :cool:

 

 

Sent from my NGM EXPLORER using Forums mobile app

 

 

Us too... Only a couple of days ago!

[riredsox]

The Celebrity Poster said there shouldn't be a problem on board. If they said WILL NOT be a problem I would feel better. I would love to trust what Celebrity says but I don't;)... Either way I will have fantastic cruises!!!

[lightning bolt]

The Celebrity Poster said there shouldn't be a problem on board. If they said WILL NOT be a problem I would feel better. I would love to trust what Celebrity says but I don't;)... Either way I will have fantastic cruises!!!

 

Jill I had already paid for the premium before they told us we didn't have to.:eek: I know for sure I'm going to have a GREAT time.:D

[Killington]

When you upgrade through the UK office do they charge your card in $$ or sterling? If the latter what exchange rate are they using?

[MR_T]

When you upgrade through the UK office do they charge your card in $$ or sterling? If the latter what exchange rate are they using?

 

 

We did our upgrades on Thursday and paid in pounds... [emoji41] nice to know it's all sorted!

 

Don't know what exchange rate was used but it seemed ok?

[vacation fool]

Yes!

Anything under $10 .

It also includes their gelato.

We find the wine markup also smaller on Princess.

Are you serious? The Classic Package includes Gelato? I did not see that in the description of that package. This could be the deal breaker if accurate lol :)

[lightning bolt]

Are you serious? The Classic Package includes Gelato? I did not see that in the description of that package. This could be the deal breaker if accurate lol :)

 

I don't believe it includes Gelato.:(