Beverage package sale but upgrade cost has increased

[webecruzin2]

Celebrity is having a Happy Hour sale on excursions and beverage/dining packages for our upcoming 9 night cruise in September.
We have the Classic beverage package included in our perks.   Normally it's been 10.00 pp pd to upgrade to Premium.
The sale price today for Classic is 47.20 and Premium is 55.20 that's an 8.00 pp pd. difference. 
When I called Celebrity she quoted me 10.00 pp pd to upgrade to Premium, explaining my classic package was free so that was why the new sale price difference doesn't apply to me.
  Ok, I get that.  Sort of.
However the cruise planner shows 12.00 pp pd if I do it myself on line using my OBC.  
Can anyone explain this math to me?    
We're just going to wait until we're on board to decide if and/or when we want to upgrade to Premium at all now.
I just thought I'd throw this out there to see if anyone can explain the rationale to their math. 

[milesfromu]

20% gratuity is added. $12 PPD is the norm now.

[Georgia_Peaches]

So the classic package was free? or was it rolled into the price of your cruise fare?  Meaning if you didn't want the drink package, and they took that perk away, would your cruise fare have been less?

 

If the classic package was in fact free, then you would essentially be paying $90 pp (9 nights) extra for the upgrade.  So $180 for a premium drink package, an $840 savings if you had bought it outright, seems like a pretty good deal to me.  Why wait?

[DirtyDawg]

34 minutes ago, milesfromu said:

20% gratuity is added. $12 PPD is the norm now.

 

Cruise line math, 1 + 1 does not equal 2.

It equals 2.2 because you have to add in the gratuities!

 

 

[killsport]

I called yesterday on this subject. It took a "resolutions agent" to resolve it (a call back an hour or so after the 20 minutes I spent with the initial agent). For us, having the classic as a perk (included in the fare) meant that the upgrade was $10/pp/pd - 10% sale = $9/pp/pd. On top of that, there is the gratuity of 20%. So $9 + 20% = $10.80/pp/pd all in. Hope that "fuzzy math" helps.

 

Also, with the 10% discount, mine show different prices online that the OP had (but the math still works out).

Edited July 26, 2019 by killsport
added picture

[dis2cruise]

Which cruise are you taking...I didn’t see this when I signed into my account.

Im on the Edge 9/20 sailing wondering if this is different promotion then your cruise??

Edited July 26, 2019 by dis2cruise

[killsport]

@dis2cruise I'm on Infinity (late December)

[wendycook22]

I had this offer for 20% off drink poacakges under my Febraury 2020 cruise. When i called the rep said it as no applicable on the upgrades from classic to premium....after waiting on the phone for over an hour 😞  

 

[TeeRick]

Just upgrade on board.

[ghstudio]

There is no consistency in answers.  Don't be surprised if one person tells you that the discount doesn't apply...and then you call back, talk to someone else and it is applied.  I upgraded my classic drinkk package perk on the ship...$10+18% per day (it was before 20%)...when it appeared on my bill, they charged me $9+18%, applying our elite plus 10% discount to the upgrade.  I had asked on the ship earlier and was told that discount didn't apply.

 

I would keep trying....you might call captain's club as well....talk to as many folks as possible....you get the idea....

Edited July 26, 2019 by ghstudio

[Marelaine]

When you board, purchase your upgrade from your favorite bartender. He will get credit for the sale and might remember you when you visit his bar. 

[PTC DAWG]

56 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Just upgrade on board.

More and more, this seems to be the right answer.  

[Scottygirl1]

Can you upgrade part way through a cruise if you find the Classic package isn't what you want?  I mean can you just pay the extra for the remaining days?

[bengaltiger1]

I am in the U.K. and included in the price of my cruises was the classic drinks package. I booked directly with celebrity.  When there was a sale on, I got the sale price to upgrade from classic to premium. The cost was just over $9 per day to upgrade. That included the gratuities.  Since then the exchange rate has changed. Much less favourable to us now.    

[Alakegirl]

Scottygirl, yes you can

[gerelmx]

Different answers for everybody, I just called X to upgrade The Classic Pack (perk), they tell me that I can't do it by phone or online, that I need to wait until being onboard.

[Idratherbeatsea]

17 hours ago, webecruzin2 said:

Celebrity is having a Happy Hour sale on excursions and beverage/dining packages for our upcoming 9 night cruise in September.
We have the Classic beverage package included in our perks.   Normally it's been 10.00 pp pd to upgrade to Premium.
The sale price today for Classic is 47.20 and Premium is 55.20 that's an 8.00 pp pd. difference. 
When I called Celebrity she quoted me 10.00 pp pd to upgrade to Premium, explaining my classic package was free so that was why the new sale price difference doesn't apply to me.
  Ok, I get that.  Sort of.
However the cruise planner shows 12.00 pp pd if I do it myself on line using my OBC.  
Can anyone explain this math to me?    
We're just going to wait until we're on board to decide if and/or when we want to upgrade to Premium at all now.
I just thought I'd throw this out there to see if anyone can explain the rationale to their math. 

I upgraded today. Offer was 10% off, $12 per day plus the 20%. That is Canadian currency so in US$ about $1.50 

[TeeRick]

14 hours ago, gerelmx said:

Different answers for everybody, I just called X to upgrade The Classic Pack (perk), they tell me that I can't do it by phone or online, that I need to wait until being onboard.

Doing it onboard is very easy.  There are staff members set up usually outside the buffet on the first day.  Or go to any bar.  You can use OBC to upgrade if you have some.

[TeeRick]

16 hours ago, bengaltiger1 said:

I am in the U.K. and included in the price of my cruises was the classic drinks package. I booked directly with celebrity.  When there was a sale on, I got the sale price to upgrade from classic to premium. The cost was just over $9 per day to upgrade. That included the gratuities.  Since then the exchange rate has changed. Much less favourable to us now.    

Did you mean $9 or 9 pound sterling (about $11 USD today)?  How long ago?

[gerelmx]

7 minutes ago, TeeRick said:

Doing it onboard is very easy.  There are staff members set up usually outside the buffet on the first day.  Or go to any bar.  You can use OBC to upgrade if you have some.

 

Can you do the upgrade in the MDR during the first night dinner?

[TeeRick]

Just now, gerelmx said:

 

Can you do the upgrade in the MDR during the first night dinner?

Unsure.  It is possible but unlikely the waiter might have extra time to do this for you.  But the bar server certainly would be able to do it.

[spiritkat090909]

I noticed the same 'cruise math' on the 25% off shore excursion offer I rec'd.  The prices are higher and having booked quite some time ago, it didn't even benefit to cancel and rebook!  Gotta watch the sneakiness-bait.

[dp70]

I upgraded to the premium package online using 'Cruise Planner' this morning for an upcoming 10 day cruise in September.

 

The cost per person was CAD$160.80 (including gratuity), which is equivalent to USD$120 or UKP100. I thought CAD$16 per day to drink some fine single malts and wines was a good deal.

 

Interestingly the upgrade option only appeared in 'Cruise Planner' after I had called Celebrity the previous day to get details on the 'sale'.

 

Fred.

[bengaltiger1]

1 hour ago, TeeRick said:

Did you mean $9 or 9 pound sterling (about $11 USD today)?  How long ago?

 

Beginning of December last year and I mean $. At the time the conversion was 1.31 dollars to the pound.  That’s what I have used as the conversion. In fact one of the cruises works out at just over $8 per day.  The other one, just over $9 per day.  

[DorothyLau]

On 7/26/2019 at 6:27 AM, webecruzin2 said:

Celebrity is having a Happy Hour sale on excursions and beverage/dining packages for our upcoming 9 night cruise in September.
We have the Classic beverage package included in our perks.   Normally it's been 10.00 pp pd to upgrade to Premium.
The sale price today for Classic is 47.20 and Premium is 55.20 that's an 8.00 pp pd. difference. 
When I called Celebrity she quoted me 10.00 pp pd to upgrade to Premium, explaining my classic package was free so that was why the new sale price difference doesn't apply to me.
  Ok, I get that.  Sort of.
However the cruise planner shows 12.00 pp pd if I do it myself on line using my OBC.  
Can anyone explain this math to me?    
We're just going to wait until we're on board to decide if and/or when we want to upgrade to Premium at all now.
I just thought I'd throw this out there to see if anyone can explain the rationale to their math. 

You do know that if you have the classic and want a drink/wine that is on premium, you just have to pay the difference.  Typically it is only $1 and since we’re not that such big drinkers, it is more practical to pay the difference than upgrading.