Beverage Package is now 2 per cabin.

[fishtaco]

There are exceptions to the rule for things such as pregnancy, medical conditions, recovering alcoholic, religeous and non drinkers. Not sure on how you go about this.

 

They can take away adult alcohol privilege on the sea pass of the non drinker in the cabin (or non buyer lol)

 

Op best to just purchase the drinks package when you board and try to buy just one! When the old rule was all adults in the cabin like it is now some on my VOS cruise were allowed to buy just one drinks package, its all about sales targets once you are onboard so you may get lucky?

[Beanb41]

Its not at all surprising. Up until a couple of years ago on Celebrity one was able to get non refundable OBC returned in cash by paying a 5% fee through the casino. This wrought was again boasted about on social media and has now been closed. The moral is that if you find a way to benefit you on a cruise that is outside the norm keep your mouth shut about it or it will be closed down

[Hunter69]

As in casino's; is with drink's packages The House always win's. :=)

[zowie57]

I think its a good idea. I feel for the bar servers when they get put in a predicament where they know they are serving drinks to the other person not on a package. I've seen them try to speak up and be torn to shreds. Just because you technically can get away with something why should you? I'm not talking about an extra cocktail here and there for another person but when its double double double all the time its crap.

Also, when did cruising become about drinking? LOL!

 

To the person who says their margins go down, methinks they'll be going up!!

 

I still fail to see why illegal drink sharing is so rife and difficult to control. If my wife and I both pay for the package then I present 2 cards and get 2 drinks. Simple! If either card is accidentally left in the cabin then I can only get 1 drink on 1 card and pay for the 2nd drink. (or go back to retrieve the 2nd card) No problems with that! That's how it should work in every bar on board. The package rules are clearly defined and state one drink at a time per cruise card. If somebody wants to order four at a time on 1 card for their friends hiding around the corner then they should be refused. People knowingly cheating will back down pretty quick when they are publicly exposed. They haven't got a leg to stand on.

Whether purchasing a drink package is worthwhile is irrelevant to this topic and is purely up to each persons individual preferences.

[tazza_0712]

I still fail to see why illegal drink sharing is so rife and difficult to control. If my wife and I both pay for the package then I present 2 cards and get 2 drinks. Simple! If either card is accidentally left in the cabin then I can only get 1 drink on 1 card and pay for the 2nd drink. (or go back to retrieve the 2nd card) No problems with that! That's how it should work in every bar on board. The package rules are clearly defined and state one drink at a time per cruise card. If somebody wants to order four at a time on 1 card for their friends hiding around the corner then they should be refused. People knowingly cheating will back down pretty quick when they are publicly exposed. They haven't got a leg to stand on.

 

Whether purchasing a drink package is worthwhile is irrelevant to this topic and is purely up to each persons individual preferences.

 

 

So let’s say that I have one drink package, and my partner does not.

 

I go to the Schooner Bar and order a cocktail. We go around the corner and I give the cocktail to my partner. Now, I go to the Champagne Bar and order another cocktail. We meet up in the casino and salute each other for our successful “illegal” transaction.

 

I’ve demonstrated how your example is limited, and you’re perhaps now more aware of how people can easily take advantage of the single drink package.

 

 

 

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[NSWP]

I still fail to see why illegal drink sharing is so rife and difficult to control. If my wife and I both pay for the package then I present 2 cards and get 2 drinks. Simple! If either card is accidentally left in the cabin then I can only get 1 drink on 1 card and pay for the 2nd drink. (or go back to retrieve the 2nd card) No problems with that! That's how it should work in every bar on board. The package rules are clearly defined and state one drink at a time per cruise card. If somebody wants to order four at a time on 1 card for their friends hiding around the corner then they should be refused. People knowingly cheating will back down pretty quick when they are publicly exposed. They haven't got a leg to stand on.

Whether purchasing a drink package is worthwhile is irrelevant to this topic and is purely up to each persons individual preferences.

 

Don't the devious ones move from bar to bar though to deceive staff? Buy one here, buy one there all on the same card? :halo:

[beatleman]

Sorry, caught by the URL censorship system.

 

It is royal Caribbean blog (all one word) plus other bits and pieces.

Thanks mate, your info and a phone call to RCCL and all is well in the world of drinking and cruising

[Kiwi Kruzer]

Don't the devious ones move from bar to bar though to deceive staff? Buy one here, buy one there all on the same card? :halo:

 

..they dont realise that Big Brother is watching..:cool:

[zowie57]

Don't the devious ones move from bar to bar though to deceive staff? Buy one here, buy one there all on the same card? :halo:

 

 

I don't doubt that is the way they operate. I was told that bar staff can see the time when the previous drink was purchased even if it was in a different bar. I was also told if the time lapse was suspiciously short between free drinks (eg: two minutes later) then service could be refused. Obviously this is hard to police and places bar staff in an awkward situation. I guess the whole problem may well disappear soon if cruise lines admit defeat and abolish all drink packages forever. Most likely the vast majority couldn't care less!

[NSWP]

I don't doubt that is the way they operate. I was told that bar staff can see the time when the previous drink was purchased even if it was in a different bar. I was also told if the time lapse was suspiciously short between free drinks (eg: two minutes later) then service could be refused. Obviously this is hard to police and places bar staff in an awkward situation. I guess the whole problem may well disappear soon if cruise lines admit defeat and abolish all drink packages forever. Most likely the vast majority couldn't care less!

 

Agree with you. If Lines say Princess, did the buy one get one for $1 more often, their sales would go up bigtime. On Island Princess - Panama Canal, last year, they had the BOGO$1 3 or 4 times a day in a couple of bars/lounges, they were teeming. And the pax were 95% North Americans. All about reaching sales targets and they do that with BOGO. If the cruise lines dropped their prices a bit sales would increase. Look how quickly they 'run out' of their lower end wines, i.e. the US$30 ones on Princess, that is what the people want.:halo:

[Andyinmacksville]

There are exceptions to the rule for things such as pregnancy, medical conditions, recovering alcoholic, religeous and non drinkers. Not sure on how you go about this.

 

 

 

You need to call and book the package over the phone to use an exemption.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[Andyinmacksville]

Why should the majority who do the right thing in relation to drink packages be penalised. It is not our fault the cruise lines can't police their own rules. The rules are clearly defined and nobody should get away with drink sharing. It is like most rules on a cruise ship. If they won't enforce them - why have them!

 

 

 

They did enforce it, saw 4 people on my last cruise get their packages cancelled for sharing. Heard quite a few more bragging about sharing. Apparently ripping off businesses is an entitlement these days according to them.

 

Spoke with the bar staff about it, they said it was a big problem and as most are caught through observation it gets hard to dedicate the time to catching them when the bars are busy. Others make it easy as their buying pattern gives them away of example beer, cocktail, beer, cocktail etc which sets off a red flag and they are then watched.

 

 

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[NSWP]

They did enforce it, saw 4 people on my last cruise get their packages cancelled for sharing. Heard quite a few more bragging about sharing. Apparently ripping off businesses is an entitlement these days according to them.

 

Spoke with the bar staff about it, they said it was a big problem and as most are caught through observation it gets hard to dedicate the time to catching them when the bars are busy. Others make it easy as their buying pattern gives them away of example beer, cocktail, beer, cocktail etc which sets off a red flag and they are then watched.

 

 

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So now a new department has been established on the cruise ships...'The Beverage Package Detectives.' Doing covert surveillance of those pax suspected of committing fraud re the beverage package policy.:eek:

[mr walker]

So now a new department has been established on the cruise ships...'The Beverage Package Detectives.' Doing covert surveillance of those pax suspected of committing fraud re the beverage package policy.:eek:

 

I have been racking my brain trying to come up with a 'retirement' job for me, which will enable me to cruise as much as possible. The BP detective role looks to be the solution. I would just sit in the bars and lounges casually drinking & observe the passengers, determining which ones are thieving the grog. No one would suspect me, as that is what I would be doing (sitting in the bars and lounges casually drinking) anyway :D & i would just have to secretly alert the bar manager/security when a possible breach was detected.

 

I would work for my (&DW's) keep and work on a commission arrangement on the money saved by the ship.;)

[NSWP]

I have been racking my brain trying to come up with a 'retirement' job for me, which will enable me to cruise as much as possible. The BP detective role looks to be the solution. I would just sit in the bars and lounges casually drinking & observe the passengers, determining which ones are thieving the grog. No one would suspect me, as that is what I would be doing (sitting in the bars and lounges casually drinking) anyway :D & i would just have to secretly alert the bar manager/security when a possible breach was detected.

 

I would work for my (&DW's) keep and work on a commission arrangement on the money saved by the ship.;)

 

Mr Walker, sir, with all due respect, might I inform you that I have this date applied to Princess Cruises, Santa Clarita, California for the position of 'Chief of Beverage Package Detectives' across the Princess Fleet. Remuneration, 200K per annum, cabin (mini suite or better,) food and beverages provided as well as Business Class Airfares to and from the ships and medical of course. You might have to go with Royal Caribbean for your 'career move,' lol.

 

What a job eh, no 15 drink limit for me either.:halo:

[mr walker]

Uncle Les, as you called 'shotgun' first on Princess, I accede to you on this one, and I will take the RCI role. We can be references for each others application, & maybe our mates on this board can support our applications :D

[NSWP]

Uncle Les, as you called 'shotgun' first on Princess, I accede to you on this one, and I will take the RCI role. We can be references for each others application, & maybe our mates on this board can support our applications :D

 

I concur, where are all our CC mates, are they doing that dastardly thing..'at the work place?' I gave that hobby up in 2003.:')

 

Ladies and Gentlemen, we need some referees, quick smart.:p:eek:

 

Mr GUT will be on here shortly, wanting to be Legal Advisor for the Chief of Beverage Package Detectives. lol. We will pay his fees in Coke Zero, something like that, max 15 per diem.

[fishtaco]

All I can say is last time we purchased the drinks package some 4 cruises ago by day "4" we found ourselves chasing the package value and somewhat giving us a not so enjoyable and more drunken than normal cruise experience!

 

It would be nice to be rich enough to buy the package and not even bother to follow the spend on the cabin tv:p.

 

My drinks package experience showed a cruise account Debit followed by a cruise account Credit. so we naturally wanted to better our normal spend! big mistake if you ask me.

 

On short cruises I believe the package is well worth the money but in "my opinion" anything over 7 nights it best to budget drink prices into the total cruise spend.

[taffy62]

I purchased a package for hubby and I for our cruise on Radiance in March.

My Mum and Dad in another cabin my Mum doesn't drink so purchased one for my Dad only.

This can't be done on line only over the phone.

The gentleman was lovely it was no problem just to pay for the one but I had to pay for it whilst I was on the phone by credit card.

Got the discount price of just under $64 a day AU

Hope this helps :)

 

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[Gwendy]

Just off Voyager, I had a drink package, my companion did not. No problems

[joandian]

I always buy the drink package for my husband but since I rarely drink, I may have one or two in the evening in the D or Concierge Lounge. My TA called RC after this was announced and had no problem buying a drink package for my husband for our cruise next year. He said they didn't even ask about the second person in the cabin. Count me as another annoyed that some have spoiled it for those that do the right thing but so far, it hasn't impacted us.

 

And yes, I do think it is worth it with fresh juice, a couple of coffees, bottles of water, a few wines and then a couple of bourbons to finish off the night and he certainly gets his money's worth without drinking like a fish.