Why is Lemonade Free But Not Soda Beverages?

[Hawaiidan]

16 hours ago, TAD2005 said:

On "O" you pay for most things upfront, with the cruise fare (except alcohol), even if you don't use them.  On HAL, you pay ala-carte, only paying for the items or services that you want.   I would rather pay for the things I really want and value instead of paying for it all upfront and not using much of it.

You have a good point..If you use nothing but the main dining room and buffet and drink Lemonade and Ice tea..i f you can  have the discipline...    and go bare bones...   your right. 

.   However  the list of all the extras HAL charges for is vast- nickel dime,, dinners soda, coffee, menu items.. bottled waters. pictures, . . and the  average cruiser  can get a big surprise  on the last day.    One thing you pay for on O is  a fantastic array of fantastic cuisine and the pleasure of  having  almost 2000 less passengers to deal with...  That to me is worth it.....        

[Hawaiidan]

On 7/14/2019 at 8:44 PM, CruiserBruce said:

I am sure many more cruise lines charge for soft drinks as opposed to those who don't. So the fact that Oceana doesn't isn't really a statistical reason that HAL shouldn't. 

 Bruce  is right.....  it is really not a fair comparison the compare HAL a  middle of the road nice mass market line  with any Prem and Luxury lines   

  Its like comparing economy  coach to First class.... they are 2 different animals, for  2 very different  types of people ,who value totally different things.

[Hawaiidan]

15 hours ago, kazu said:

 

Sorry for your experience - sounds like mine on Oceania 😉 

Sadly it looks like things change on any cruise line from week to week and ship to ship.

 

Over half my cruising days are on Prinsendam and I have never have anything less than stellar service, good food, extras on Gala night, etc.  they do it (did it now, I guess) up right.

 

A lot of lines could have learned a lot from them.  I, for one, will miss the ship, it’s itineraries and fabulous crews.  

You should have been on her  when she was launched as The Royal Viking Sun... before seabourn and HAl  began adding cabins 

[sail7seas]

On 7/15/2019 at 11:32 AM, Sir PMP said:

It's just sugar water with a lemon flavor, stick with iced water, better for you...

 

 

 

 

OR  sugar free and in its place, artificial sweetener....  😉

 

 

 

 

 

 

sail.noordam@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited July 16, 2019 by sail7seas

[Stateroom_Sailor]

Good grief, we all know that the luxury market is more inclusive.  If the bill at the end of your HAL cruise matches your Oceania trip, I guess you have two lines to choose from where money isn't a factory.

 

Or you could start paying for your lemonade, that way they match the soft drinks.  😂

[Tampa Girl]

On 7/15/2019 at 1:38 PM, RedneckBob said:

 

Ditto; let see I can get free Diet Cokes and bottled water on Oceania and I only pay $300 a day per person for a balcony while on HAL I pay for the drinks and pay $130 a day for a balcony. Economic 1 on 1!  Say hello Walmart. 

 

$130/day for a balcony?  I wish.  It is $272/day for our forthcoming balcony on a 22-day SA/Antarctica cruise.  

[GUT2407]

21 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

You are welcome to bring sodas onboard at embarkation.....or leave them with a porter with your room tag on them.

 

Most cruise lines have a similar policy.

 

Purchasing sodas onboard, or even pre-purchasing in some cases is an option

 

David

 

 

Varies by line.

[GUT2407]

Just looking at a cruise on Regent, includes just about everything, but talk about expensive up front cost. About $700 a day. But includes shore excursions, drinks, greats, specialty restaurants and flights Aus to LA.

[TAD2005]

22 hours ago, DAllenTCY said:

You are welcome to bring sodas onboard at embarkation.....or leave them with a porter with your room tag on them.

 

Most cruise lines have a similar policy.

 

Purchasing sodas onboard, or even pre-purchasing in some cases is an option

 

David

 

 

HAL's regulations require that you must hand carry all bottled water, wine and soda on with you, and NOT in your checked luggage.   With a flat of cans of soda, there is too much of a chance that it can be squashed or punctured in the steel cages that your luggage is placed in, even if you pack it securely in a piece of luggage.   Yes, you may have gotten away with it in the past, but all it takes is your luggage being on the bottom of the huge pile of bags in the steel cages they use to fork-lift luggage into the ship.  If it gets squashed and a can of warm soda bursts, not only will your clothes be ruined, but so will all others who were unfortunate enough to have a bag under yours.  The rules say carry it on.  If that is too much trouble, then buy a beverage card.

Edited July 16, 2019 by TAD2005

[cowmilker]

7 hours ago, Hawaiidan said:

You have a good point..If you use nothing but the main dining room and buffet and drink Lemonade and Ice tea..i f you can  have the discipline...    and go bare bones...   your right. 

.       

 

And that is exactly what we do. We book inside guarantee cabins. If we want a glass of wine, we buy it. Occasionally, we purchase a wine package.  We've once (on a TA) booked the spa for that portion of the cruise.  If I want a cocktail, I buy it.  We've never eaten in a specialty restaurant and unless it's free, we never will.

It's not about discipline. It's about the fact that neither of us need all those extra things, and we can cruise way more often and for way longer if we don't buy everything in sight and if we keep the dollar/per/day figure down.  We're perfectly happy in an inside cabin. We've been upgraded twice to OV cabins and they're nice but neither of us is willing to pay any sort of big bucks for that, and certainly not for a balcony.

We tend to DIY when it comes to ports, and have only ever taken one ship's tour, ever. We do private tours if it's warranted, but look for a way to DIY first.

I suspect we're not alone.

[davy jones]

Perhaps it is because you can mix the lemonade with iced tea to make an Arnold Palmer.

[DougK]

14 hours ago, TAD2005 said:

HAL's regulations require that you must hand carry all bottled water, wine and soda on with you, and NOT in your checked luggage.

 

Where are you seeing those rules? I can't find them.

[kazu]

3 minutes ago, DougK said:

 

Where are you seeing those rules? I can't find them.

 

It’s in their FAQs - know before you go.  Here’s a screen shot of the key part.  It carries on.

 

 

 

You’ll see it soon enough when you print your luggage tags 😉 It’s right on there as well.

[DougK]

7 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

It’s in their FAQs - know before you go.  Here’s a screen shot of the key part.  It carries on.

 

 

 

You’ll see it soon enough when you print your luggage tags 😉 It’s right on there as well.

 

That FAQ, and the luggage tags, only mention alcoholic beverages. I've searched, and can't find any mention of non-alcoholic ones (e.g., soda and water). Given how hard it is to find anything on the HAL web site, I wouldn't be surprised if there is a rule saying that soda/water have to be carry-on, and I'm just missing it. But I'd like to see a pointer to it.

[kazu]

3 hours ago, DougK said:

 

That FAQ, and the luggage tags, only mention alcoholic beverages. I've searched, and can't find any mention of non-alcoholic ones (e.g., soda and water). Given how hard it is to find anything on the HAL web site, I wouldn't be surprised if there is a rule saying that soda/water have to be carry-on, and I'm just missing it. But I'd like to see a pointer to it.

 

Non alcoholic beverages are carry on as well.  I couldn’t find it on the HAL website at one time and saw on FB where the question was asked.  HAL answered the question explaining all beverages are carry on.

 

AT the time that post was put on CC on this board several time.  The rule came out shortly after the new wine policy was put in place.

 

 

 

[Paulinda]

I would imagine that having beverages being carry on by passengers is to avoid the risk of the stewards destroying cans/bottles by dropping them and ruining luggage and items within.  And I surely wouldn't want my stuff damaged by a case of other people's Coca-Cola exploding all over my stuff.   I've seen it happened in the terminal and it's not a good way to start a cruise.   

[DougK]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

 

Non alcoholic beverages are carry on as well.  I couldn’t find it on the HAL website at one time and saw on FB where the question was asked.  HAL answered the question explaining all beverages are carry on.

 

AT the time that post was put on CC on this board several time.  The rule came out shortly after the new wine policy was put in place.

 

 

 

 

Hmm... seems like HAL must not care all that much about this "rule," if they don't have it on their website and don't have it in materials provided to passengers. It seems like the only way a passenger would know is if they happen to read the appropriate thread on Cruise Critic, and we all know that only a small fraction of passengers are on CC. And even there, there's no statement by HAL, just a thirdhand statement that HAL once answered a question that way on another site several years ago.

 

It may be best practice to carry on soda, but I'm hard pressed to view it as a rule unless HAL actually communicates it to its passengers.

[dot73]

6 hours ago, davy jones said:

Perhaps it is because you can mix the lemonade with iced tea to make an Arnold Palmer.

I've been doing this for years but never knew there was a name for the mix.  I find the lemonade is a bit too sweet and when you add the tea, it's just right.  The price is also right and leaves a bit more of my beverage budget for martinis.🍷

[TAD2005]

3 hours ago, DougK said:

 

Hmm... seems like HAL must not care all that much about this "rule," if they don't have it on their website and don't have it in materials provided to passengers. It seems like the only way a passenger would know is if they happen to read the appropriate thread on Cruise Critic, and we all know that only a small fraction of passengers are on CC. And even there, there's no statement by HAL, just a thirdhand statement that HAL once answered a question that way on another site several years ago.

 

It may be best practice to carry on soda, but I'm hard pressed to view it as a rule unless HAL actually communicates it to its passengers.

Posted or not, please be considerate of other passengers luggage and clothes.  We have all seen how the gorillas handle the luggage in some ports, especially Ft. Lauderdale.   They throw them into the steel cages and all other bags are thrown on top of your bag until the cage is full, possibly hundreds of pounds squashing your bag full of hot Coke cans which can burst and destroy everyone's clothes.   Carry it on !!!   Nothing ruins your cruise quicker than getting your luggage all sticky with somebody else's coke.

[bEwAbG]

I've seen it explained that some ports will not allow you to check soda or water for delivery to the ship and since it could be an issue, cruise lines are now increasingly telling people to do carry on only so that you're prepared to do so.  I believe it was a Celebrity rep on FacePlace who provided that particular answer because Celebrity recently changed the wording of their policy to indicate you could no longer check nonalcoholic drinks as luggage (putting a luggage tag on a case of soda, for example). YMMV

[briangl]

Always funny to see the people justify the high prices on Disney by saying they get "free" soda.   LOL

[AtlantaCruiser72]

A quench beverage package is about $20 bucks a day pp and includes almost all non alcoholic beverages. A soda only package is even less at about $9/day. Save the hassle of schlepping stuff and just buy a package. 

 

And I'm sure the per day rate on any room on Oceania far exceeds $20 more per day than an equivalent room on HAL for most comparable cruises, even if you exclude air and their O-Life promos and go room only. 

[terrydtx]

18 hours ago, Paulinda said:

I would imagine that having beverages being carry on by passengers is to avoid the risk of the stewards destroying cans/bottles by dropping them and ruining luggage and items within.  And I surely wouldn't want my stuff damaged by a case of other people's Coca-Cola exploding all over my stuff.   I've seen it happened in the terminal and it's not a good way to start a cruise.   

Nor is having a bottle of tequila that explodes in a suitcase because a passenger was trying to smuggle it on board. That happened to someone I know and he smelled like stale tequila the whole cruise. 🤣

[gigianne]

On 7/15/2019 at 8:17 AM, harryw said:

I love having the lemonade with a customized pizza! 

Having to buy soft drinks at inflated prices deters me - it's a good thing!

Edited July 18, 2019 by gigianne

[harryw]

I think that on my next cruise, from Fort Lauderdale, I will bring bottled water onboard if feasible. Those charges for cabin bottles add up.