Unlimited Drink Options Included with other lines: will you still book Carnival?

[Tatka]

99.999% of everything stated on CC is a personal opinion. ;)

 

Some people love NCL.....more power to them. For me, I will sail NCL only when there is no other option available to go where I want to go and even then, I have to seriously rethink whether I want to go there or not.

I don't LOVE NCL, I am OK with this line, but your statement was something about NCL forcing people to pay for additional restaurants with some kind of horrible MDR unlike gourmet line Carnival. :) and this is definitely your opinion and not a fact.

You could've just said that you don't like NCL.

I don't like Carnival and don't sail with Carnival anymore. NCL is also pretty low on our list of preferred lines, but I am not making such statements.

[BNBR]

Ask and yea shall receive. First of all, when I am on vacation, I enjoy a few adult beverages and with the option of packages being available, I have enjoyed them on my last 10 cruises over the past 5 1/2 years going back to my January 2013 sailing on the Breeze. So, without further ado, here is the comparison I just found out using numbers from the NCL and Carnival websites.

One...Epic vs Breeze West Caribbean out of Port Canaveral on 2/2/19. Epic category IF 829 pp, plus 156 port and 125 gratuities on drinks package for a total of 2219, with 50 in OBC....2169 total. Breeze with summer fun rate category 4B 544, plus 124 port and 418 for Cheers.....2171 total. A wash

Two...Magic vs Getaway West Caribbean out of Miami on 2/17/19. Getaway category IB (larger inside cabin) 799 pp, plus 163 port and 125 grats.....2172 total. Magic 4B 589, plus 145 port and 418 for Cheers....2304. Carnival 132 more for two people.

If you don't drink, Carnival will be cheaper most of the time, but after factoring in the drinks package, I just provided you with a situation that was a wash as well as one where Carnival was more expensive. Both of these examples are far from NCL being almost 50% higher than Carnival as you stated.

 

We were discussing bare bones, no drink packages per your own requirements in your previous post! Yes when factoring drink packages it can be closer or NCL sometimes comes out ahead.

 

And $524 compared to $829 is about a 50% premium....

[BNBR]

Since you have admitted to have cruised on RCI, then I am sure you have been on their boards and have read some of the blowhards that bash Carnival without ever having cruised on a single Carnival ship. Credibility, IMHO does come into play when a person who is a veteran cruiser on multiple lines types something versus someone who has all of their eggs in 1 basket and just likes to wave the pom poms of their line of choice.

 

My next 2 cruises coming up is Magic and Allure. My last cruise was Escape. I am not brand loyal but I, without a doubt, like NCL the least from my experience. It wasn't bad, it just wasnt better.

[SNJCruisers]

LOL, as opposed to the NCL Kool Aid that it's all "free". Yep, sure.

I'm just glad to see you're branching out and decided to cruise on a new mega ship. I'm sure that the price was the determining factor and the fact you found a needle in the haystack is a good thing since if I recall, you typically like to sail on the mid level size ships and all of the new bells and whistles out there usually do not float your boat.

[SNJCruisers]

We were discussing bare bones, no drink packages per your own requirements in your previous post! Yes when factoring drink packages it can be closer or NCL sometimes comes out ahead.

I just wanted an apples to apple comparison and I showed you where NCL is cheaper with a drinks package compared to Carnival with Cheers. Having cruised on Carnival 18 times since 1986, I am well aware of the value that the line provides. But after factoring in the cost of Cheers, there are other options available that offer a better value to ME.

 

My next 2 cruises coming up is Magic and Allure. My last cruise was Escape. I am not brand loyal but I, without a doubt, like NCL the least from my experience. It wasn't bad, it just wasnt better.

The only ship I have sailed on 3 times out of my 31 cruises has been the Escape, so it's obvious we will agree to disagree about the experience we each received cruising on her.

[cruise4kicks]

One thing you all have been missing in all the back and forth is that NCL's "free" drink package is not an equivalent product to Cheers. On NCL you get alcoholic drinks up to $15, soda, and water from the tap. With Cheers you get practically anything you can drink, including milkshakes and floats. Not an apples to apples comparison. For me, a not insignificant portion of the value of Cheers will be in the nonalcoholic drinks I'd have to pay for on NCL.

Edited July 25, 2018 by cruise4kicks

[BNBR]

I just wanted an apples to apple comparison and I showed you where NCL is cheaper with a drinks package compared to Carnival with Cheers. Having cruised on Carnival 18 times since 1986, I am well aware of the value that the line provides. But after factoring in the cost of Cheers, there are other options available that offer a better value to ME.

 

The only ship I have sailed on 3 times out of my 31 cruises has been the Escape, so it's obvious we will agree to disagree about the experience we each received cruising on her.

 

 

"If you want a bare bones proper comparison, it needs to be a true apples to apples comparison, which would be a sailing on NCL with the sail away, no frills rate versus a regular cabin on Carnival."

Those were your words :) And even with your own examples, NCL is about 50% more expensive if you aren't interested in the drink package. Which brings us back to the "drink package is NOT a free perk, it's built in to the price" as you can see. Of course, Sail Away is a guarantee cabin, so even that's not a good comparison as a guarantee on Carnival is cheaper than a regular cabin...

But a true apples to apples would also take into consideration that Cheers is better than NCL's drink package. I'm not sure a dollar amount difference, but it is a better program.

Escape was, by far, my least favorite ship. I thought the design was awful. All tight corridors, smoky, extremely crowded, famously tiny pool deck (and no aft pool to help!) and the list goes on. It had some redeeming qualities, too. The waterfront and waterfront dining were really awesome and I think they have the best tube water slide I've been on at sea. But overall I wouldn't sail that ship again, that's for sure.

[BNBR]

One thing you all have been missing in all the back and forth is that NCL's "free" drink package is not an equivalent product to Cheers. One NCL you get alcoholic drinks up to $15, soda, and water from the tap. With Cheers you get practically anything you can drink, including milkshakes and floats. Not an apples to apples comparison. For me, a not insignificant portion of the value of Cheers will be in the nonalcoholic drinks I'd have to pay for on NCL.

 

ESPECIALLY bottled water!

[grandmarnnurse]

Ask and yea shall receive. First of all, when I am on vacation, I enjoy a few adult beverages and with the option of packages being available, I have enjoyed them on my last 10 cruises over the past 5 1/2 years going back to my January 2013 sailing on the Breeze. So, without further ado, here is the comparison I just found out using numbers from the NCL and Carnival websites.

One...Epic vs Breeze West Caribbean out of Port Canaveral on 2/2/19. Epic category IF 829 pp, plus 156 port and 125 gratuities on drinks package for a total of 2219, with 50 in OBC....2169 total. Breeze with summer fun rate category 4B 544, plus 124 port and 418 for Cheers.....2171 total. A wash

Two...Magic vs Getaway West Caribbean out of Miami on 2/17/19. Getaway category IB (larger inside cabin) 799 pp, plus 163 port and 125 grats.....2172 total. Magic 4B 589, plus 145 port and 418 for Cheers....2304. Carnival 132 more for two people.

If you don't drink, Carnival will be cheaper most of the time, but after factoring in the drinks package, I just provided you with a situation that was a wash as well as one where Carnival was more expensive. Both of these examples are far from NCL being almost 50% higher than Carnival as you stated.

That is exactly what I was trying to explain to all the doubters. Thanks for breaking it down that way. 👍

[jimbo5544]

Ask and yea shall receive. First of all, when I am on vacation, I enjoy a few adult beverages and with the option of packages being available, I have enjoyed them on my last 10 cruises over the past 5 1/2 years going back to my January 2013 sailing on the Breeze. So, without further ado, here is the comparison I just found out using numbers from the NCL and Carnival websites.

 

One...Epic vs Breeze West Caribbean out of Port Canaveral on 2/2/19. Epic category IF 829 pp, plus 156 port and 125 gratuities on drinks package for a total of 2219, with 50 in OBC....2169 total. Breeze with summer fun rate category 4B 544, plus 124 port and 418 for Cheers.....2171 total. A wash

 

Two...Magic vs Getaway West Caribbean out of Miami on 2/17/19. Getaway category IB (larger inside cabin) 799 pp, plus 163 port and 125 grats.....2172 total. Magic 4B 589, plus 145 port and 418 for Cheers....2304. Carnival 132 more for two people.

 

If you don't drink, Carnival will be cheaper most of the time, but after factoring in the drinks package, I just provided you with a situation that was a wash as well as one where Carnival was more expensive. Both of these examples are far from NCL being almost 50% higher than Carnival as you stated.

 

 

 

 

How about for the majority of Cruisers who do not want or need cheers? Lots of variables.

 

 

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[sparks1093]

I'm just glad to see you're branching out and decided to cruise on a new mega ship. I'm sure that the price was the determining factor and the fact you found a needle in the haystack is a good thing since if I recall, you typically like to sail on the mid level size ships and all of the new bells and whistles out there usually do not float your boat.

 

Price was the big selling point. As I've said consistently in every thread I've participated of this ilk I'm willing to sail with any line, but I'm not paying a premium to do so. I wasn't in a hurry to try a mega ship but as you say a needle in a hay stack allows me to give it a shot. As a general rule I'm not interested in paying for something that I'm not going to use.

[vanislandcruisers]

Our 2 cents but it's Canadian Funds so it's only about 1.4 Cents

 

We Cruise.

 

We Drink.

 

We LOVE Carnival especially the Staff and the atmosphere but sometimes ‘Money Talks’ especially when it is ours and the Math has to work or the reasons for paying more have to be justified and accepted.

 

We cruised exclusively with Carnival from January of 2008 – December of 2013. Since then we have taken 4 Carnival Cruises all of which were paid for in US Funds (1 was a Free Cruise from the Casino where we just had to pay Taxes and Port Fees) and we purchased the Cheers Package on all 4 even though one or the other of us had a ‘Drinks On Us’ Card from the Casino waiting for us on 2 of those 4 Cruises, 2 Celebrity Cruises where we had the Unlimited Drink Package as one of the Perks on both – 1 of the Celebrity Cruises was booked and paid for in Canadian Funds and 1 was in US Funds – and 1 Princess Cruise paid for in Canadian Funds this past May to Alaska with Free Gratuities and$150.00 US OBC as the Perks and we purchased the Drink Package.

 

We had a GREAT time with the Friends we were cruising with during both of our Celebrity Cruises however both Dee and I decided that Celebrity cruises weren't for us. ABSOLUTELY no complaints about the Food, the Service, the Ship or the Crew – it just wasn’t our Vibe.

We LOVED our Princess Cruise to Alaska and wouldn’t hesitate to book another cruise on Princess. We chose Princess over Carnival for the following Reasons:

• Princess Cruise left out of Vancouver and concluded inSeattle while the Carnival Legend was a Seattle to Seattle Cruise – easier andcheaper for us to get to Vancouver being from Victoria.
  
• Both Cruises finished in Seattle. Princess approved aSector Variation so we could debark in Victoria while Carnival. ThatApproval meant we didn’t have to be in Victoria as a Port Stop on the lastNight of the Cruise, cruise down to Seattle overnight to debark in Seattle and then turn around and have to make ourway back to where we just came from. Carnival said it ‘couldn’t be done’.
  
• Princess was Sunday – Sunday (Sunday to Saturday Eveningin our Case) while Carnival was Tuesday – Tuesday
  

We booked in October of 2017 and Princess was operating at a $1.20 CDN to $1.00 USD Exchange Rate for the Cruise Fare, pre-paid Excursions, pre-paid specialty Dining, pre-Paid Beverage Package, etc (Our Onboard Account was at the going Exchange Rate) while Carnival was at about $1.30 or the going Exchange Rate. With the favourable Exchange Rate the Cruise Fare for the 2 of us on the Emerald Princess was remarkably cheaper for an Aft-Extended Balcony (Cabin C752, Caribe Deck 10) at $3621.60CDN ( + Free Gratuities and $150 US OBC) than the Carnival Legend was for an Obstructed View Balcony (Cabin 5142, Deck 5) at $3316.80 US or about $4300.00CDN. Our original Booking was through Princess (Evening Booking) and when we transferred it to our TA she was able to give us the quivalent of $100.00 US/person off of the Cruise Fare so our Final Total ended up being $3606.00 including Gratuities and we had $150.00 US OBC.

 

So even though we chose Princess for basically non-monetary reasons we ended up getting a Better Deal on Princess including Gratuities and BEFORE Drinks.

 

During our October 2016 Mexican Riviera Cruise on the Carnival Miracle our cruising Group of Friends decided to plan our next Group Cruise for October of 2018 and we wanted to go to back to the Western Caribbean again. Dee and I really wanted to stick with Carnival and go out of Port Canaveral on the Carnival Breeze but we ALL agreed we would do some shopping around and we would go with whatever the ‘majority’ decided.

 

It came down to the Carnival Breeze – departing Saturday, October 20th out of Port Canaveral – and the Norwegian Getaway – leaving Sunday, October 21st out of Miami – with both Cruises visiting Belize, Roatan, Costa Maya and Cozumel – virtually the same itinerary with the exception of where the Ships would stop in Belize and Roatan. We all agreed that we preferred the NCL stop in Belize – NCL’s Private Island, Harvest Caye, vs the Tender into Belize City with Carnival – and the Carnival stop in Roatan – Mahogany Bay vs Coxen Hole for Norwegian.

 

The Carnival Breeze would have cost us $1005.24 US including all Taxes, Fees and Port Charges for a Balcony Cabin on Deck 7 so the Breeze was cheaper by $105.04US/person before Drinks and Gratuities. After adding on Gratuities of $90.75/person and a pre-paid Cheers Program the total would be $1498.34US/person.

 

The Norwegian Getaway worked out to be $1110.28 US/person for a Balcony on Deck 8 including all Taxes, Fees and Port Charges so the Breeze was cheaper by $105.04US/person before Drinks and Gratuities. Included in the NCL Pricing were 2 Perks for each of the 1st 2 Guests in each Cabin. Our TA was able to offer us the now discontinued Affinity Group Status for our Group meaning we wouldn’t have to pay the Service Charge on the Beverage Package or the 4-MealSpecialty Dining Package. The 1st 2 in each Cabin chose 2 (had to be the same 2 Perks for both in the Cabin) from the following List:

 

• Ultimate Beverage Package (Service Charge included for Affinity Group)
  
• Pre-Paid Service Charges (Daily Gratuities)
  
• 250-minute Internet package
  
• $50 Per Port Shore Excursion Credit** ($200.00/Cabin) – Excursions must be booked through NCL
  
• Four-Day Specialty Dining Package (Service Charge included for Affinity Group)
  
• Group Cocktail Party
  
• 20 Image Photo Package ($199.00/Cabin value)
  
• $75 OBC/Cabin
  

So if we chose the Unlimited Beverage Package and Free Gratuities, which we and most of the 25 other Cabins did, we were ‘Everything in’at $1110.28 US/person.

 

So Carnival worked out to be $387.06 US more per person for virtually the same itinerarywhen we factored in the Drink Packages and Gratuities. Now there are differences between the 2 Drink Programs but between the 2 of us we are not going to drink enough Bottled Water, Energy Drinks or non-alcoholic Specialty Coffees to justify the difference in cost…….+ no limits on Alcoholic Drinks on NCL.

 

The majority in our Group are Platinum on Carnival; several are Diamond, but the difference – in our case a little over a $1000.00 CDN with a $1.30 Exchange Rate (we just paid an Exchange Rate of $1.36 for an Excursion on the Sensation ) was just too significant to justify going on the Carnival Breeze. So our next Group Cruise ‘Friends with Beverages’ on the NCL Getaway was born.

 

We have a 5-day Carnival Sensation Cruise to Nassau, HMC and Grand Turk booked (Didn’t Price compare to other lines because this was the Cruise we wanted to do) before the NCL Cruise this October and the Carnival Panorama booked for December of 2018 (the 1st 7-day Cruise) which we didn’t compare to anything else because this is the Cruise and Ship and Time we wanted.

 

Will we still cruise on Carnival? Of Course as the Carnival Sensation and Carnival Panorama Bookings show. But we are not buying the "Carnival is the Best Deal' anymore

 

Will we ‘try’ other Cruise Lines?Yes

 

Will we return to Princess? Most definitely

 

Will we return to Celebrity? Not on our own however with Friends it would be solely based on whether or not the Itinerary is a 'must-do' but it is highly unlikely we will.

 

[BlerkOne]

Keep drinking the Carnival Kool-Aid, wave those pom poms and pray at the altar of John Heald. I know that 125 for NCL grats is cheaper than 418 for the entire Cheers experience comparing drink packages. We can agree to disagree regarding whether mandatory tips no longer makes an included perk free. Happy cruising on all of your future Carnival sailings.

 

Keep drinking that Alt-NCL-Kool-Aid and fake stats. Include bottle waters, specialty coffees, and all the rest that Carnival covers and NCL doesn't and listen to the NCL cash register sing. Cha-Ching.

 

Enjoy your mega-ships and smoke blowing. You are only posting to yourself.

[susan1957]

I have no interest in a drink package or in subsidizing drink packages for others.

 

 

The increase in liver cancer deaths, especially due to alcohol consumption, is alarming.

You are KIDDING,,,right?

[Warm Breezes]

I currently have 2 cruises booked right now. An 8 night Eastern on Carnival Magic out of FLL to San Juan, St. Maarten, St. Kitts, and San Juan in a Cove Balcony for 2 in May. No OBC, no Cheers, no Specialty Dining. Cost $108.65 pp/pd. A 7 night Eastern on NCL Getaway out of MIA to Tortola, St. Thomas, and Nassau in an Aft Balcony for in October. $350 OBC, UBP, 3 SDP. Cost (including gratuities on packages) $183.93 pp/pd. If I were to add the Cheers Package and 3 Steakhouse dinners for 2 to the CCL Cruise cost it would be $181.51 pp/pd. Apples to apples we are basically paying $2.42 pp/pd more for an upgrade from a Cove Balcony to an Aft Balcony on NCL.

 

Having said that we like sailing on Carnival and sailing on NCL and are not loyal to any cruise line. The ship we choose for our vacations is dependent on when we can sail, where we want to sail to, where we want to sail from and the budget we set for that vacation.

 

Our upcoming NCL Cruise is for our 30th anniversary. We are splurging on an Aft Balcony. We loved our Escape cruise last year and purchased 2 cruise next certificates that we used to book this cruise (The pp/pd cost above does not take into account the OBC we received on Escape for purchasing these). We wanted this itinerary since it was the one we were looking forward to last year but got rerouted due to the hurricanes.

 

Our upcoming CCL Cruise we are choosing to spend less on our room and not get the packages because we are bringing our adult kids with us and are splurging on them by getting them an inside room and having them along for a family vacation. We chose Magic because it fit our timing, was an 8 night, went to a new port for us (St. Kitts) and we loved our Dream Cruise that we took a couple years ago so we thought we would like to try her sister ship.

 

So will I still book Carnival? Absolutely. I’ll book whatever SHIP best fits our wants and needs for our vacation at a price we are willing to pay. Carnival has met our wants and needs many times...especially when budget is one of our top needs for a vacation and splurging on extras is not.

 

 

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Edited July 26, 2018 by Warm Breezes

[SNJCruisers]

How about for the majority of Cruisers who do not want or need cheers? Lots of variables.

 

 

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Read the first sentence of my last paragraph Jimbo. Fully aware that Carnival is cheapest if you don't drink alcohol.

[tallnthensome]

Read the first sentence of my last paragraph Jimbo. Fully aware that Carnival is cheapest if you don't drink alcohol.

I've also said this, it's about alcohol. If you don't drink then Carnival is cheapest. However, I'll admit we love our cocktails and buy or receive a drink package on every cruise on every line. When we receive a "free" drink package on a cruise itinerarys we want to sail the promotions have made their lines pricing better than th eone where you have to purchase it like on Royal and Carnival. This was the case for our upcoming15 day Panama Canal and our 12 day Celebrity Southern. Why people that don't drink a lot even reply to an "unlimted drinking" thread is pointless. We don't care if you don't drink and feel it's of no value to you ..... These posts are pointless to this thread.

[jimbo5544]

Read the first sentence of my last paragraph Jimbo. Fully aware that Carnival is cheapest if you don't drink alcohol.

 

 

 

You both missed the point, I drink alcohol on every cruise, just not enough to justify cheers. The point is the VAST majority of Carnival cruisers do it just that way. I was basing my comments on the thread title question. Oh....I forgot, read all four sentences.

 

 

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[Retired_to_Cruise]

FWIW - My wife and are drinkers and we are not big fans of the 15 drink limit. I know. What! 15 isn't enough in a day?? Well yes and no.

 

Number one issue, is having to keep count and planning the difference on sea and port days. As I have said before, from my experience 15 drinks (not beer) is 15 ounces of booze. I watched and if anything, they might short you. Most people when you go out, or especially make your own drinks at home, pour more than one ounce per drink.

 

But, if you are not big drinkers and are just looking to know your all-inclusive experience is covered and there will be no surprised at the end, go for it.

 

We're giving Celebrity a try in January.

 

Sorry, but 15 drinks can be more than 15 ounces of booze. It depends on what you are drinking. Long Island Ice Teas and Margaritas are examples of more booze than an ounce per drink. And I am sure there are others.

[tallnthensome]

I've sailed multiple times on Carnival with another booked, NCL, MSC, Royal, Holland a couple times and Princess. The food we had last year on the Vista in the MDR and buffet was by far the worst food we've ever experienced in a cruise by far. Food is subjective to personal preference but I've never had any Carnival food that was better than any other line. Your experience may differ.

[sparks1093]

On our Glory cruise DW and I didn't hold back, if we wanted a drink we purchased one. Our total bar bill for the week was $600. That's the number I would use when considering booking an NCL cruise over a CCL cruise, not the price of Cheers. So if the NCL cruise were $800 more than CCL it likely wouldn't make the cut unless there were something in the itinerary we wanted.

[Tatka]

I have never stated that NCL forces people to use their specialty restaurants. I stated that NCL pushes people to wanting to use those restaurants by giving sub-standard service in the MDR. I have stated several times that this is purely my opinion but it is a logical one. Considering I have sailed various lines over my life I think I have the ability to make a fair comparison between the MDRs on those lines and Carnival beat the hell out of NCL in almost every single way (to be fair, NCL does have a table cloth on the table every night but a table cloth has yet to be the highlight of my dinner experience).

 

Whether you make the same statements as I is really immaterial as we aren't the same people and aren't expected to be.

 

Again, it is your opinion.

I've not noticed that service in Carnival MDR was better than in NCL MDR. Both MDR are full, so in my estimate majority isn't forced.

There are more additional restaurants yes to try different cuisine. They aren't full or even better in quality in some cases. They are there for variety.

 

If I ever felt forced out of any MDR on any cruise ships of 8 companies we sailed it was MDR on Carnival Miracle with its mind boggling color scheme. We did survive :) , but that's not something you'd expect from the evening restaurant. Haven't seen this on our last two Carnival cruises, but remember red-white-blue competition in MDR on Liberty.. also isn't necessarily a regular thing in fine restaurants.

[BlerkOne]

You are KIDDING,,,right?

 

Not at all. Liver cancer and cirrhosis are way up. You can google it.

 

Liver cancer is now the fastest-increasing cause of cancer death in the U.S. Incidence rates began rising in the mid-1970s, and they are expected to go up through at least 2030

 

 

another article

https://www.everydayhealth.com/liver-cancer/deaths-from-alcohol-related-liver-disease-deaths-liver-cancer-on-rise-among-young-americans/

[BNBR]

This was just a news story like a week ago, so now everyone is an expert.

[BlerkOne]

Read the first sentence of my last paragraph Jimbo. Fully aware that Carnival is cheapest if you don't drink alcohol.

 

Best value.