Corkage Fees

[Organized Chaos]

5 minutes ago, Jenny in TX said:

Once again, I know what the fee is for.  The OP asked for any recent experience on corkage fees and I was just stating my experience.

 

I didn't mean any offense. When you said you didn't need help opening your own bottles, it just sounded like you thought the fee was for popping the cork.

 

Like I said, they do make it sound that way by referring to it as a "corkage" fee. And it confuses a lot of people. That's why some people think it's asking way too much just to take 5 seconds to pop a cork, but there's more to the fee than that. Again, I meant no offense.

[Jenny in TX]

Just now, Organized Chaos said:

 

I didn't mean any offense. When you said you didn't need help opening your own bottles, it just sounded like you thought the fee was for popping the cork.

 

Like I said, they do make it sound that way by referring to it as a "corkage" fee. And it confuses a lot of people. That's why some people think it's asking way too much just to take 5 seconds to pop a cork, but there's more to the fee than that. Again, I meant no offense.

No offense taken....thanks for your reply!!

[mapman_2004]

Is there a charge for getting free grapes from the buffet and making wine with them in your stateroom?  We have a suite with a bathtub, so I plan on getting as much usage as possible from it.  Thanks!

[young_ens]

I brought 2 bottles aboard, didn't notice one was corked until I went to open it.  And no corkscrew, didn't think of it when packing.   Bar staff said they'd have to charge me to open it.  But he did say to call room service, they will open it free (in case anyone else finds themselves in the same boat), small tip for the service.

[coevan]

2 hours ago, Organized Chaos said:

but there's more to the fee than that. Again, I meant no offense.

 

 

What would that be? He's opening a bottle of wine. 

[Organized Chaos]

3 hours ago, coevan said:

What would that be? He's opening a bottle of wine. 

 

I think it's been said enough in this thread. Here's Carnival's own words:

 

• A corkage fee is a charge assessed at time of service at a restaurant for every bottle served that is not bought on the premises.

Notice it doesn't say it's a fee charged for having the waiter open the bottle. People can, and have, been charged even when they opened it themselves before bringing it to the MDR. It's not about the act of pulling the cork. You can say it's their way of recouping some of the revenue lost when someone doesn't buy it on board.

[Tracey.kinney425]

7 hours ago, Jenny in TX said:

We just got off the Valor last week.  One morning our group of 12 went to the dining room for the sea day brunch.  We brought 6 bottles of champagne with us to have mimosas.  The waiter had no problem with us and went to get us juice.  A few minutes later he came over and said that his boss had told him that he needed to charge us $15 per bottle.  Needless to say we passed and just took them up to the Lido after breakfast and enjoyed them there.

 

Are mimosas not included in the cheers package? This answer will determine if we carry on champagne or not 

[JaxsMama]

7 hours ago, Tracey.kinney425 said:

Are mimosas not included in the cheers package? This answer will determine if we carry on champagne or not 

They are included. Here's my tip for a jumbo size one....go to the red frog bar on lido and get a champs (they use much larger plastic wine glasses) then walk a few feet to oj machine and add oj.  Much better use of a drink IMO then the splash of champs you get in a mimosa in a normal champ flute. 

[Jenny in TX]

8 hours ago, Tracey.kinney425 said:

Are mimosas not included in the cheers package? This answer will determine if we carry on champagne or not 

They are included in the cheers package.  We didn't buy the drink package, but we brought 12 bottles of champagne on board and then went to the lido and got juice and hung out by the back pool the whole morning and drank our mimosas.

[happy cruzer]

Love all the lines that allow carry on wine with a reasonable corkage fee.  Compared to the lines where the fee is $25 or that no carry on or very limited carry on for cabins only, it is very nice.  Also if you compare to any land based restaurant it is a good policy.  Additionally the wines by the glass on many of the beverage packages are not better choices plus the bottle may have been open awhile.  Carrying one glass of wine to dinner does not work for many that want a glass with each course and sometimes white and then red wine.

 

Think that Carnival has a very accommodating policy as well as good wine package in the Cruise the Vineyards.

 

The only time we were not charged the corkage fee was when we carried on the exact wine that Carnival has on the wine list.

 

Cheers!

[dgreeney]

Will you get charged for bringing an open bottle of wine to any of the restaurants?  I brought two bottles of wine on my Norwegian cruise earlier this month and took the bottles to three specialty restaurants and two free dining rooms.  I wasn't charged a corkage fee.

[Schoifmom]

2 hours ago, dgreeney said:

Will you get charged for bringing an open bottle of wine to any of the restaurants?  I brought two bottles of wine on my Norwegian cruise earlier this month and took the bottles to three specialty restaurants and two free dining rooms.  I wasn't charged a corkage fee.

See post #31.  I think this has been asked and answered several times throughout this thread.

[coevan]

bring a corkscrew

[Organized Chaos]

4 hours ago, dgreeney said:

Will you get charged for bringing an open bottle of wine to any of the restaurants?  I brought two bottles of wine on my Norwegian cruise earlier this month and took the bottles to three specialty restaurants and two free dining rooms.  I wasn't charged a corkage fee.

 

1 hour ago, Schoifmom said:

See post #31.  I think this has been asked and answered several times throughout this thread.

 

I'll go a step further since I didn't include this part in that last post. Dang, wish I knew this question would be next, I would've copied the whole thing. 😜

 

• A $15 USD corkage fee, per 750 ml bottle, will be charged should guests wish to consume their wine or champagne in the main dining room, specialty restaurant or bar.

[Micahs Grandad]

22 hours ago, mapman_2004 said:

Is there a charge for getting free grapes from the buffet and making wine with them in your stateroom?  We have a suite with a bathtub, so I plan on getting as much usage as possible from it.  Thanks!

Not a problem but it will not exactly age much during one cruise, best to do this on a longer cruise such as around the world.

[Joebucks]

Pour yourself a nice sized glass in the room and bring it to dinner.

[dgreeney]

I have yet to be charged a corkage fee for any bottle, opened or unopened.

[coevan]

We have never been charged either and would never pay $15 to open a $15 bottle of wine. 

[jimbo5544]

We do not often bring a bottle to the MDR but when we have we have never been charged. 

[bitemyfly]

Many cruises where we brought wine to the mdr and had it opened , even had one or two decanted.. the last one was oct. 

we have never been charged a corkage fee.

[ah4sail]

We were charged $15 corkage fee on the opened bottle we brought with us to the MDR on our September 4 cruise on the Sunrise.  It didn’t occur to either of us just to bring a glass with us.  As soon as we sat down the waiter told us he HAD to charge us.  Live and learn....

Edited October 19, 2019 by ah4sail
Added date

[coevan]

could have gone to any bar and got 2 glasses and saved $15, never heard of charging for an open bottle

[ah4sail]

1 hour ago, coevan said:

could have gone to any bar and got 2 glasses and saved $15, never heard of charging for an open bottle

We did get glasses from the bar.  Didn’t matter🤷🏼‍♀️

[ed01106]

On 4/23/2019 at 4:45 PM, Organized Chaos said:

 

Again, the "corkage fee" isn't simply for opening the bottle, even though it kind of sounds like it. It's a fee charged for using your own wine in the MDR or specialty restaurants instead of one purchased from Carnival.

 

I suspect that it's allowed to be consumed elsewhere on the ship merely because it's not as easy to enforce the fee. And the average crew member wouldn't know it's not a bottle bought from Carnival. Much like bringing a glass of your own wine to the MDR. For all they know, it came from the bar.

It is a charge to drink wine I already paid for on a ship I have already paid a fare for.   In other words it is a money grab.  

[coevan]

2 hours ago, ah4sail said:

We did get glasses from the bar.  Didn’t matter🤷🏼‍♀️

 

I honestly would have told him, no way. I would have gone back to my cabin, pour 2 glasses and go back to the dining room.