drinking age on ship and is it enforced

[Susan2u]

Hi,

 

We were on the Navigator in April and there was one bartender who would put rum and other alcohol in the kids soda by slipping him some cash. I found this out after I returned home. My son and his friend are 17. My 14 year old daughter said the teenagers were getting bottles of liquor and drinking (not sure if they stole it from the promenade during busy times because it is out in the open as you walk by or had someone purchase it for them. She said the kids stole it. There were also kids smoking pot outside by the kids night club outside one night, (I was talking to the kids counselor outside the club) and security did nothing about it. So it is available to younger kids. I don't understand why Royal Caribbean allows 18 year olds to drink when all of the other cruise lines are 21. In April of 2003 there were a few high school senior class trips on our cruise and most of the kids were wasted, they were getting sick in stair wells, library, etc, not a pretty sight.

[AggieCruiser03]

I'M glad to see I'm not the only one who has been questioned on a ship when buying a drink. I'm over 21 (24 to be exact) and it seems on our last couple trips the bartenders have become more and more strict. On my last cruise on the Mariner in May I was questioned erery time I ordered a drink, I was also asked to show ID each time I went to the casino. One time by the pool I order a fruity drink (with the rum) and the bartender still served it to me without the rum because she didnt think I was old enough. I'm not sure why the bartenders are so reluctant to rely on the system the RCCL has established: 2 holes in the Seapass + under 18, 1 hole = 18 -20, and no holes over 21. Always having to carry a second ID when my card has no holes and having to convince the bartenders that I really am 24 is probably one of my bigget complaints about RCCL. It can be really embarassing to go up to a bar, order a drink and have a bartender tell you he doesnt think youre old enough to drink (they usually arent very nice about it).

[PTarbay]

Hi,

 

We were on the Navigator in April and there was one bartender who would put rum and other alcohol in the kids soda by slipping him some cash. I found this out after I returned home. My son and his friend are 17. My 14 year old daughter said the teenagers were getting bottles of liquor and drinking (not sure if they stole it from the promenade during busy times because it is out in the open as you walk by or had someone purchase it for them. She said the kids stole it. There were also kids smoking pot outside by the kids night club outside one night, (I was talking to the kids counselor outside the club) and security did nothing about it. So it is available to younger kids. I don't understand why Royal Caribbean allows 18 year olds to drink when all of the other cruise lines are 21. In April of 2003 there were a few high school senior class trips on our cruise and most of the kids were wasted, they were getting sick in stair wells, library, etc, not a pretty sight.

It sounds like there was a bad bartender who should have been reported.They are not all like that.From what I have observed on these ships he is the exception not the rule.I don't think you can blame RCCL for kids stealing liquor.They did not make it available to them by having a liquor store onboard.I doubt they handed them the pot or encouraged smoking it either.They can't take care of the problem bartender unless they are made aware of it.Did these kids have parents or chaperones?I understand you can't watch your kids all the time but if they were that out of control you would think the parents would notice something.18 year old kids are not allowed to cruise on their own.There has to be a certain number of parents or guardians per cabin.They are only allowed to drink at 18-20 with their parents written permission.If you allow this permission you are also accepting some responsibility.The ships are not sailing in the US when 18-20 year olds are allowed to drink beer and wine.Almost everywhere the drinking age is 18.They cater to all kinds of people not just US citizens.They don't automatically allow them to drink.There has to be parental permission.Of course there will always be the exceptions and problems but that isn't just on a ship it is everywhere.Do you really think the kids smoking pot and drinking without permission only did it on the cruise ship?

[sweety2788]

the drinking age is 18 for beer and wine and 21 for all other drinks. the age to get into clubs is 18 also. however, i was 16 when i went on the explorer 2 years ago and i was able to sneak into the club some nites and i was able to drink if someone older(i was with several 18-21 year olds) bought it.

[sweety2788]

the drinking age is 18 for beer and wine and 21 for all other drinks. the age to get into clubs is 18 also. however, i was 16 when i went on the explorer 2 years ago and i was able to sneak into the club some nites and i was able to drink if someone older(i was with several 18-21 year olds) bought it. just wanted to give u my personal experience with it...have fun!!!!

~sweety

[beth4652]

On an Alaska cruise in 2004 my children were 18,19 and 22. The 18 and 19 year olds were not allowed to dring any alcohol since we were never in international waters. However, the somalier did serve them wine when we were all together at dinner. We will be on the Mariner OTS at Christmas and New Years. I signed the waiver for the now 19 and 20 year olds to have beer and wine. I also have no problem ordering a mixed drink for them when we are together. That way I do have control over them. As I check our seapass account each day, there will be hell to pay if they are drinking excessively. I don't expect that, though, since they have been pretty responsible up to now. They are all in college so drinking certainly isn't new to them. I believe that those who drink to excess are those who haven't yet developed the maturity to have even the first drink --- whether they be teens or adults.

[phtktz3]

If you didn't try it how do you know it would have been "way easy"? Is it because the bartenders would have served you, or because it would be easy for you to get someone else to buy it for you?

My 19 yr.old thought he was buying the strawberry coladas on one cruise when, in fact, he found out they were selling them to him WITH NO ALCOHOL in them. They never even mentioned to him that they were virgin coladas until he asked one of the bartenders. He was fine with it and this was how he found out he could only drink beer or wine, he told me he just wished he would have none before he wasted money on those drinks. He was not trying to get served the hard alcohol he just didn't know the rule about it, once he found out he stuck to beer.

[negc]

On my past 2 cruises I have never been asked for ID....granted I was 28 yrs old on my first but I was also with my 21 and 23 yr old cousins...they never asked them for ID either...we sailed the Navigator and the Explorer.....we leave for the Mariner next week...we'll see if it changes...

When they asked for your Seapass card to pay for your drinks, you gave them all the ID they needed to determine whether or not you were of age to drink. If you didn't have to give them your card, please tell me which ships and which servers, as my bar bill could go down dramatically.

As with any system, enforcement can vary and there are always ways around the barriers set up to eliminate underage drinking (having over 21 year old guests buying drinks for those underage is just one). That is no different than what happens on land when kids manage to find adults willing to purchase liquor for them. But the cruiselines do make an effort to restrict liquor to those of the appropriate age.

When we were on the Mariner in May, I noticed that they had the card reader machines that are used when you get on and off the ship at its various ports, set up at the entrance to the disco so that they could restrict entrance to those passengers old enough to enter.

[tezbear]

I had heard that last year on the Mariner during Spring Break, there were quite a few drunken, out of control teens. After these incidents, it seemed that they were cracking down more on enforcing the drinking age/rules. We cruised June 2004 and even though my 18 yr old son was cleared w/ drinking permission when we checked in, they always asked for his ID when he entered a club. Even after swiping his card for his age. They did this because during Spring Break I think kids were using someone else's seapass to get drinks or into clubs. I think it's a good idea to double check the ID to make sure it's the same person...like they do for a credit card in the stores. Hopefully this can help keep things from getting out of hand or a few bad apples will ruin it for everyone else.

[hstrybuf]

Hi,

 

We were on the Navigator in April and there was one bartender who would put rum and other alcohol in the kids soda by slipping him some cash. I found this out after I returned home. My son and his friend are 17. My 14 year old daughter said the teenagers were getting bottles of liquor and drinking (not sure if they stole it from the promenade during busy times because it is out in the open as you walk by or had someone purchase it for them. She said the kids stole it. There were also kids smoking pot outside by the kids night club outside one night, (I was talking to the kids counselor outside the club) and security did nothing about it. So it is available to younger kids. I don't understand why Royal Caribbean allows 18 year olds to drink when all of the other cruise lines are 21. In April of 2003 there were a few high school senior class trips on our cruise and most of the kids were wasted, they were getting sick in stair wells, library, etc, not a pretty sight.

 

A good reason to have an age limit, although it obviously wasn't working with that bunch. They weren't drinking responsibly. Of course, there's no guarantee that anyone of any age will drink responsibly, but they at least have some control over underage drinking if it's enforced.