New carry on alcohol policy?

[bazzaw]

On 2/6/2020 at 7:41 AM, bodsfanclub said:

On the Cruise Critic Cunard Alcohol Policy page updates 18 Dec 2019 specifically stating no spirits to be brought on board and one bottle of wine per passenger only. 

I have never known Spirits to be allowed to be brought onboard on any cruisline we have been on. 

[Host Hattie]

14 minutes ago, bazzaw said:

I have never known Spirits to be allowed to be brought onboard on any cruisline we have been on. 

Except Cunard.

[bodsfanclub]

On 2/13/2020 at 8:03 AM, Host Hattie said:

Except Cunard.

And P and O

[david,Mississauga]

18 minutes ago, bodsfanclub said:

And P and O

 

I believe P&O have changed their policy a while back and have imposed restrictions which are now typical.

 

Some of us will remember the "pre-security" days when all lines allowed passengers to bring on board anything they want. It was  like boarding a train (I mean the long-distance trains where you have your own cabin) or going to a hotel room.  

Edited February 20, 2020 by david,Mississauga
Clarification

[lissie]

We just came off QE in Sydney  2 days ago. i can confirm that we carried on a bottle of spirits (duty free from flying into Sydney) plus 4 bottles of wine we bought on a Hunter Valley wine tour.  The only issue encounted was forcing the bottles into our already overloaded bag - meant that when someone tried to lift it using the top handle the handle snapped off 🙂

 

We paid corkage on some of the wine to drink it in the MDR - the rest we drank in our cabin. We've booked a 25 day trans-Pacific in May  and are now looking for a carry on option which will save both our luggage and our backs because we'll have to carry lots on to make it across the Pacific. Also I'm  wondering what the prices are like for French champagne are like in Noumea? Or wine in general in Hawaii?  .... @anjo

[Traveller25]

Hi can anyone let me know if the drinks package of $69 refers to Australian dollars. We are doing back to back from 9th to 26th of March.

 

[IB2]

22 minutes ago, Traveller25 said:

Hi can anyone let me know if the drinks package of $69 refers to Australian dollars. We are doing back to back from 9th to 26th of March.

 

Cunard always prices on board in USD.  You'll need to drink a lot to make the package worthwhile.

[Traveller25]

Thanks, not happening at that price. I like coffee and heaps of bottled water, but that’s just too much for us, wouldn’t be worthwhile

 

🤩🤩🤩

[hypercafe]

4 hours ago, Traveller25 said:

Thanks, not happening at that price. I like coffee and heaps of bottled water, but that’s just too much for us, wouldn’t be worthwhile

 

🤩🤩🤩

They have other packages, some for 10$ day pp for coffee and water ect.

[majortom10]

1 hour ago, hypercafe said:

They have other packages, some for 10$ day pp for coffee and water ect.

2 drinks packages at $10pppd Speciality Hot Drinks which includes illy speciality coffees, Tea Forte infusions and hot chocolate. The other is Soft Drinks which includes draught soft drinks, selected fruit juices, squash and cordials but neither of these packages include bottled water.

[CanadianKate]

OOOhhhhh, I don't drink and haven't sailed  Cunard but I know the answer to the reason the terms say one thing and practice says another. On my last cruise the Hotel Director did a Q&A on "Why cruise lines have crazy policies and do things that seem to make no sense." 

 

As I recall the answer: 

 

Apparently, before limits, cruise lines were being sued by passengers who were injured while too drunk on the booze they brought on board. And they were being found liable by courts who pointed out the cruise lines didn't try to limit the amount of booze available. 

 

So these rules came into effect as a compromise negotiated by the CLIA. If the rule is in place, then the defense the Cruise line has is, if sued, that the person broke the rules and over-imbibed on their own without the permission of the cruise line. 

 

All serving staff have the international equivalent of Safe Serve qualifications and ways of slowing or discouraging over-drinking in bars and restaurants. So they are keeping an eye out for passengers and certainly on the lines I usually cruise (which include all alcoholic drinks in the fare) this seems to work well. Of course I tend to cruise on lines where the clientele is more mature both in age and behaviour. 

In general, cruises with such clientele will turn a blind eye to the guidelines unless a passenger proves themselves to be needing the control the limits suggest. 

 

This hotel director also said if you are coming back from tour and someone tries to take away your bottle(s) when you reboard, tell the gangway staff the bottles are for the Hotel Director! And they will find their way back to you (because he can't accept such gifts!) rather than be put aside until you're disembarking. In this case, though, the size of the ship might make a difference since the hotel directors on the ships I sail usually have well under 500 guests to keep track of. 

Edited March 4, 2020 by CanadianKate

[IB2]

52 minutes ago, majortom10 said:

2 drinks packages at $10pppd Speciality Hot Drinks which includes illy speciality coffees, Tea Forte infusions and hot chocolate. The other is Soft Drinks which includes draught soft drinks, selected fruit juices, squash and cordials but neither of these packages include bottled water.

But on the QM2 at least, a lot of these things are free - certainly in the buffet, and on that ship at the self service point down by the Illuminations desk.  As well as in your cabin.  You’d have to be spectacularly attached to a particular type of unusual tea to think of paying $10 per day multiplied by the size of your party for them.  Similarly for soft drinks and fruit juice.

Edited March 4, 2020 by IB2
+

[naturelovergirl]

7 hours ago, lissie said:

Or wine in general in Hawaii?  .... @anjo

Lissie

I adore Hawaii... been on three trips to the islands- so gorgeous... but I can honestly say that everything is quite expensive there.

 

[majortom10]

51 minutes ago, IB2 said:

But on the QM2 at least, a lot of these things are free - certainly in the buffet, and on that ship at the self service point down by the Illuminations desk.  As well as in your cabin.  You’d have to be spectacularly attached to a particular type of unusual tea to think of paying $10 per day multiplied by the size of your party for them.  Similarly for soft drinks and fruit juice.

Speciality coffees are not available in the buffet and can hardly compare Tea Forte infusions the same as tea bags in the buffet equally comparing the chocolate in Sir Samuels compared to buffet. I think the package for speciality coffees/Tea Forte and hot chocolate is good vale for money as far superior but I agree that  Soft Drinks package IMO not so good value. Plus would rather be relaxing in Sir Samuels or Chart Room with a speciality coffee than in the buffet drinking the poor quality they serve there and last place I want to sit drinking to save money is my cabin drinking sachet coffee.

 

Edited March 4, 2020 by majortom10

[lissie]

8 hours ago, Traveller25 said:

Thanks, not happening at that price. I like coffee and heaps of bottled water, but that’s just too much for us, wouldn’t be worthwhile

 

🤩🤩🤩

The water on board was very drinkable - we got in the habit of filling up a drink bottle with ice from the ice bucket in the room and topping it up with tap water. We were in PNG we needed a lot of water. 

[lissie]

1 hour ago, majortom10 said:

Speciality coffees are not available in the buffet and can hardly compare Tea Forte infusions the same as tea bags in the buffet equally comparing the chocolate in Sir Samuels compared to buffet. I think the package for speciality coffees/Tea Forte and hot chocolate is good vale for money as far superior but I agree that  Soft Drinks package IMO not so good value. Plus would rather be relaxing in Sir Samuels or Chart Room with a speciality coffee than in the buffet drinking the poor quality they serve there and last place I want to sit drinking to save money is my cabin drinking sachet coffee.

 

I tend to agree - if my partner drank as much coffee as I did - we'd do the $10/day coffee deal. It's basically 3 hot drinks a day to make it worthwhile. May do it anyway on an upcoming trans-Pacific anyways. 

 

Did notice that in the Britannia restaraunt I could order proper coffee and get the same capuccino that the cafe serves. If you ordered "coffee" you got not so good filter coffee. 

[Roger88]

4 minutes ago, lissie said:

The water on board was very drinkable - we got in the habit of filling up a drink bottle with ice from the ice bucket in the room and topping it up with tap water. We were in PNG we needed a lot of water. 

I wouldn't drink tap water., especially on board. I would also avoid putting ice in the drinks. I am very afraid about water quality? Especially on board. I would rather drink some boiled water (tea) or bottled water. Much safer, trust me. As far as alcohol goes I would only drink hard liquer for the same reasons. Its not the time to risk your health. 

[GeorgiaPeach51]

10 hours ago, lissie said:

We just came off QE in Sydney  2 days ago. i can confirm that we carried on a bottle of spirits (duty free from flying into Sydney) plus 4 bottles of wine we bought on a Hunter Valley wine tour.  The only issue encounted was forcing the bottles into our already overloaded bag - meant that when someone tried to lift it using the top handle the handle snapped off 🙂

 

We paid corkage on some of the wine to drink it in the MDR - the rest we drank in our cabin. We've booked a 25 day trans-Pacific in May  and are now looking for a carry on option which will save both our luggage and our backs because we'll have to carry lots on to make it across the Pacific. Also I'm  wondering what the prices are like for French champagne are like in Noumea? Or wine in general in Hawaii?  .... @anjo

For what it’s worth, we have used “wine diapers”, which can be bought online. They are padded, absorbent, reusable wine containers for wine carried in luggage.  Putting wine in luggage saves your back but not the weight.  They get good reviews. Only other option might be wine in a box with the box folded up flat and the wine in the bag unsealed, which would eliminate the weight of glass.

[lissie]

5 hours ago, Roger88 said:

I wouldn't drink tap water., especially on board. I would also avoid putting ice in the drinks. I am very afraid about water quality? Especially on board. I would rather drink some boiled water (tea) or bottled water. Much safer, trust me. As far as alcohol goes I would only drink hard liquer for the same reasons. Its not the time to risk your health. 

Its desalinated sea water - I thought it tasted good. Do you think a cruise ship would seriously poision a shipload of passengers by using contaminated water?? The law suits would be specatcular. So long as its not labeled "non-potable" I'll drink it. Travelled for many years - rarely got sick - almost certainly from food rather than water 

[Underwatr]

It used to be that airlines served water form onboard tanks which weren't adequately sanitized and could make you sick

 

Shipboard water isn't airline water.

[Roger88]

9 hours ago, lissie said:

Its desalinated sea water - I thought it tasted good. Do you think a cruise ship would seriously poision a shipload of passengers by using contaminated water?? The law suits would be specatcular. So long as its not labeled "non-potable" I'll drink it. Travelled for many years - rarely got sick - almost certainly from food rather than water 

We been on a LA - Hanolulu cruise with my 13 year old son who doesnt eat much. All he ate was breakfast, potato chips, french fries and drank water with ice. He got super sick, was throwing up n stuff. They held him in a medical room for 3 days. I dont know.. I wouldn't risk it. I dont say its bad but I would rather drink bottle water I buy on board. Safety first

[exlondoner]

10 minutes ago, Roger88 said:

We been on a LA - Hanolulu cruise with my 13 year old son who doesnt eat much. All he ate was breakfast, potato chips, french fries and drank water with ice. He got super sick, was throwing up n stuff. They held him in a medical room for 3 days. I dont know.. I wouldn't risk it. I dont say its bad but I would rather drink bottle water I buy on board. Safety first

 

So why blame the water? Have you also started avoiding breakfast, chips, etc? Do you think the problem is chemical or microbiological? And what makes you think bottled water is safer?

[Victoria2]

We have been drinking ship's tap water for decades and have yet to suffer any side effects.

I don’t think we glow in the dark yet!

[exlondoner]

13 minutes ago, Victoria2 said:

We have been drinking ship's tap water for decades and have yet to suffer any side effects.

I don’t think we glow in the dark yet!

 

Same here. It doesn't even taste too bad.

[majortom10]

Done nearly 50 cruises with varying cruise lines over the last 22yrs and always drank the tap water and never had a problem.