Drink package questions- first time carnival sailer.

[Kadieranae]

me and a group of friends are boarding the carnival sunrise in less than a week and I had some questions about the drink package.

I am aware that is 15 drinks per day up to a certain amount, but if we purchase a bottle of wine on the ship, or pitchers/fishbowls/shared drinks as I know some of the pubs on board have, do those count towards the 15 drink limit? We are all in our 20s so we can definitely use up to 15 drinks a day.

[mrbug708]

I dont have an answer for you but wanted to piggy back on it a bit. How much are individual drinks? Like a beer or a pina colada?

[BubbaD123]

1 hour ago, mrbug708 said:

I dont have an answer for you but wanted to piggy back on it a bit. How much are individual drinks? Like a beer or a pina colada?

A pina colada is $10. A 16 oz Bud Light is about $6. 

 

A fishbowl counts as one, but they're about $35 or so, so you'll need to pay the $15 difference. 

[sgttami]

5 hours ago, BubbaD123 said:

A pina colada is $10. A 16 oz Bud Light is about $6. 

 

A fishbowl counts as one, but they're about $35 or so, so you'll need to pay the $15 difference. 

Fishbowl has never been included in the Cheers package at any amount.

[mondello]

8 hours ago, Kadieranae said:

me and a group of friends are boarding the carnival sunrise in less than a week and I had some questions about the drink package.

I am aware that is 15 drinks per day up to a certain amount, but if we purchase a bottle of wine on the ship, or pitchers/fishbowls/shared drinks as I know some of the pubs on board have, do those count towards the 15 drink limit? We are all in our 20s so we can definitely use up to 15 drinks a day.

They offer wine packages/Cruise The Vineyards, that do not count towards a Cheers. Each adult in your group can carry-on 1 bottle of wine or champagne.

[pohlerbear]

I haven't cruise since covid, but I was able to purchase a round of shots for my friends (at cost) while I had cheers in the past. However I've read that Carnival has changed their policy and its a max 15 drinks cheers or purchase.  

 

As prior poster said, you can each bring a bottle of wine on. You can also purchase alcohol bottles online prior to boarding.

 

Not much help sorry. I really think it will depend on the bar tender. Try tipping in cash at the beginning of the cruise and you may find someone willing to work with you. 

 

 

[famof4togo]

The 15 drink limit only applies to alcoholic beverages.  So soda, coffee, milkshakes etc are unlimited and do not count to your 15 limit.  Wine bottles do not count towards cheers but you do get a discount (20% I think) on bottles of wine from having Cheers.  Buckets of beer...pitchers...fishbowls...samplers and drinks in commemorative glasses do not apply for Cheers and you will be charged separately for those.  

[mondello]

Sounds like the whole group has Cheers so, they won't need to buy drinks for others. I'd split the high cost of a bottle of liquor if you really need a nightcap. Don't forget all those drinks on port days off the ship don't count towards the 15 limit.

[BubbaD123]

4 hours ago, sgttami said:

Fishbowl has never been included in the Cheers package at any amount.

Ah I see. I think they look gross and have never boughten one LOL, but I could've sworn that I read that anything over $20, you simply pay the difference. Is that not true?

[mondello]

38 minutes ago, BubbaD123 said:

Ah I see. I think they look gross and have never boughten one LOL, but I could've sworn that I read that anything over $20, you simply pay the difference. Is that not true?

True, but they have no wine by the glass that expensive, don't allow doubles, and probably don't stock the hard to find whiskey that cost more than a cruise.

[hockeyluver]

you can always prepurchase a bottle  to your cabin before the cruise through the bon voyage.   This does not count for cheers drinks but you will need to provide your own mixer.  

[happy cruzer]

On 3/19/2022 at 6:09 AM, mondello said:

They offer wine packages/Cruise The Vineyards, that do not count towards a Cheers. Each adult in your group can carry-on 1 bottle of wine or champagne.

Anyone have recent details about the Cruise The Vineyards package?  Cost and selections?

 

Thanks.

[cruisingguy007]

On 3/19/2022 at 9:26 AM, hockeyluver said:

you can always prepurchase a bottle  to your cabin before the cruise through the bon voyage.   This does not count for cheers drinks but you will need to provide your own mixer.  

 

You can purchase two bottles per cabin actually. OP, Wine bottles, buckets and large format drinks (tubes, growlers, large mugs etc) don't count towards cheers and you will pay separate for those. You do get 20% off wine bottles with cheers as well. Plus each person can carry on a bottle of wine as well. 

[pinto18]

2 hours ago, happy cruzer said:

Anyone have recent details about the Cruise The Vineyards package?  Cost and selections?

 

Thanks.

They have a regular and premium list..we always do the cheaper one. Not the best selection but it saves a bit of money. Plus we like to have a bottle in the room as we are getting ready etc. I think the regular plan ended up at approximately 26 per bottle including "gratuity"

[staceyglow]

On 3/19/2022 at 5:26 PM, hockeyluver said:

you can always prepurchase a bottle  to your cabin before the cruise through the bon voyage.   This does not count for cheers drinks but you will need to provide your own mixer.  

Actually, some of the bottle options come with mixers. When we order a bottle of vodka, we get a six pack of tonic with it. 

[cruisingguy007]

10 hours ago, staceyglow said:

Actually, some of the bottle options come with mixers. When we order a bottle of vodka, we get a six pack of tonic with it. 

 

And it's a better deal for only $5 vs $10 if six-pack bought desperately. 

[cheer25mom]

On 3/19/2022 at 9:37 AM, BubbaD123 said:

Ah I see. I think they look gross and have never boughten one LOL, but I could've sworn that I read that anything over $20, you simply pay the difference. Is that not true?

No, you get a discount on anything over $20. 

[KansasEMT]

I've been doing my homework on the drink package and the daily limit for booze, whether you have the package or not - is 15 drinks per person.  For those with healthy livers, I guess order some buckets/fishbowls for the group lightweight to share when you reach your limit?

 

That said, I've been on some vacations where the drinks are pretty watered down, allowing you to easily consume 20+ per day while barely getting a buzz.  Some drinks are stronger than others - maybe you can request a little more ETOH in yours?

[Ilovesailaway]

On a recent cruise I watched a couple guys have a drinking contest with the fish bowls. They raced to see who could finish their bowl first but they had to use straws. The loser had to pay for both bowls. A crowd formed to cheer them on... it was hilarious.

[Matco]

1 hour ago, KansasEMT said:

I've been doing my homework on the drink package and the daily limit for booze, whether you have the package or not - is 15 drinks per person.  For those with healthy livers, I guess order some buckets/fishbowls for the group lightweight to share when you reach your limit?

 

That said, I've been on some vacations where the drinks are pretty watered down, allowing you to easily consume 20+ per day while barely getting a buzz.  Some drinks are stronger than others - maybe you can request a little more ETOH in yours?

Find a good bar and bartender then tip them well and the pours will get heavier in your favor. Singles turn to doubles real quick

[slavigne5577]

If you plan on buying bottles of wine, buy from the bars and get the 20% off from Cheers. Be aware that you can buy the wine only before you have reached the 15 drink limit. Once you hit 15 you lose the ability to purchase anything with alcohol until 6 am. We bought Cheers and also got the Cruising the vineyard because we like to have wine on the balcony. We each got 5 bottles for 7 night cruise, we took some home. 

[Top_of_the_Cube]

Kinda curious about one of the OP's original questions.  If ordering something like the fishbowl:  we know it isn't covered in the CHEERS program and you have to pay for (all of) it, but does it count against your 15 alcoholic drink limit?   same curiosity with the bucket of beers.

 

This always gets a bit confusing to me, because Carnival has a stated policy of no more than 15 alcoholic drinks for any one passenger  -- CHEERS or not --  in a 24-hour period (although enforcement of the limit for non-CHEERS folks seems spotty at best).  Yet, some talk about getting to 13 or 14 drinks on CHEERS, then buying off-CHEERS for the rest of the night.  People who share their experiences indicate that works for some, but others are cut off.

 

Asking for a friend.

[Matco]

Just depends on your group, the last time we went on carnival it was for my buddies bachelor party and the 4 of us each had cheers, we all ordered a beer and he said he would just bring us a bucket. I have been able purchase specialty cocktails or buy shots for others that don't count against my 15 limit. But again this was in Sept 2019. Things might have changed 

[urbanhawk]

Not trying to hijack this thread, but I do have a "drink package" question. This is for a casino offer, of drinks anywhere on board the cruise. Is there a 15 drink limit, like Cheers? More importantly,  can I order coffee, as the coffee that is served in the dining room/buffet is barely tolerable.  I am the 1st to admit it, that  I am a coffee snob! Thanks in advance.

[Matco]

Yes the DOU card is basically a comped Cheers package, all limits still apply