Drinks/internet packages

[Justin8571]

Hello,

 

I'm new here and hopefully I'm posting in the correct place.

 

We're first timers with Royal Caribbean. This will be our first cruise with the kids, aged 12 and six.

 

A few months back I began to look at the various packages and decided that we'd get ones for refreshments and internet. I made a note of the costs and at that time they were;-

 

Voom surf & stream £459

This is four devices for one passenger, which is cheaper than us all having one device per named passenger. I'm assuming this is allowed?

 

Refreshments package £920

 

The prices have since shot up by an extortionate amount. As of today these two packages would cost £1799, an increase of £420.

 

With all that in mind I've got a few questions for you please...

 

Are these prices likely to substantially decrease with some kind of sale before the sail date in August?

 

In your experience are the refreshment packages worth it or should we just pay per drink on board?

 

If I pay for the packages now, but then they become cheaper in a future sale, am I allowed to get a refund and re-book at the cheaper price?

 

Any other advice you think might be helpful would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you

 

Justin

 

[Merion_Mom]

24 minutes ago, Justin8571 said:

1.    Voom surf & stream £459

This is four devices for one passenger, which is cheaper than us all having one device per named passenger. I'm assuming this is allowed?

2.     Are these prices likely to substantially decrease with some kind of sale before the sail date in August?

3.     If I pay for the packages now, but then they become cheaper in a future sale, am I allowed to get a refund and re-book at the cheaper price?

 

1.  Yes, that's how it is meant to be used.

2. "Sales" are hard to predict.  

3. But yes, you can do this.

[Biker19]

48 minutes ago, Justin8571 said:

Are these prices likely to substantially decrease with some kind of sale before the sail date in August?

 

In your experience are the refreshment packages worth it or should we just pay per drink on board?

Welcome to CC.

 

Unlikely.

 

The break-even is about 5 upper limit drinks (~$7). If all four of you will drink all those drinks every day, maybe.

 

BTW, you can save even more by cutting back to maybe a two device Voom package and share.

Edited May 26, 2022 by Biker19

[cruiseguy1016]

1 hour ago, Justin8571 said:

Hello,

 

Voom surf & stream £459

This is four devices for one passenger, which is cheaper than us all having one device per named passenger. I'm assuming this is allowed?

 

Thank you

 

Justin

 

 

Welcome to CC!

 

You might be able to save yourself some money depending on your needs. How often will all four of you need to be connected at the same time? With a four-device package, four devices can be connected at the SAME TIME. If you don't need four devices connected at the same time, you can get a 2 (or maybe even 1) device package. When you buy any package, you will get a login and password assigned to that package. You can share that information with anyone. Anyone can log in to that account using those credentials. The only stipulation is that only 1 device can be logged in at a time. If one person is logged in and another tries to log in, they will kick the first person off. So with say, a 2 device package, 2 people can be on for a while and then get off and the other 2 can log on. This method is totally legitimate and allowed by RCI. They don't care how many people you share with as long as you all know that there is a limit to the number of people that can log on at the same time.

[Justin8571]

Hello,

 

Thanks to all three of you for taking the time to reply and for answering my questions.

 

Kicking myself for not booking the packages a few months back! Good to know though that I can book now and at least get a refund, and then re-book if a cheaper plan becomes available.

 

Also very helpful advice on the internet plan thanks as I wasn't sure how it worked. I'll have a chat with my wife tomorrow to see whether we'd actually need four devices connected at once. I might have to mention the dreaded 'share' word to the kids. In reality what it'll mean is that they have permanent access while we're stuck in the dark ages.

 

Back to the question on drinks, are there any free drinks on board or is everything charged, therefore making a package necessary?

 

Anyway, thank you all for your help, it's greatly appreciated.

 

Justin

 

[taglovestocruise]

19 minutes ago, Justin8571 said:

Hello,

 

Thanks to all three of you for taking the time to reply and for answering my questions.

 

Kicking myself for not booking the packages a few months back! Good to know though that I can book now and at least get a refund, and then re-book if a cheaper plan becomes available.

 

Also very helpful advice on the internet plan thanks as I wasn't sure how it worked. I'll have a chat with my wife tomorrow to see whether we'd actually need four devices connected at once. I might have to mention the dreaded 'share' word to the kids. In reality what it'll mean is that they have permanent access while we're stuck in the dark ages.

 

Back to the question on drinks, are there any free drinks on board or is everything charged, therefore making a package necessary?

 

Anyway, thank you all for your help, it's greatly appreciated.

 

Justin

 

Water, coffee, milk, chocolate milk, lemonade, ice tea, some watered down juices in the morning. All included and available throughout the ship.  Usually much cheaper to pay as you go for Cokes or smoothies unless all the mentioned drinks are shunned by everyone.   25 + cruises with and without kids and never a refreshment package. 

Edited May 26, 2022 by taglovestocruise

[Justin8571]

14 minutes ago, taglovestocruise said:

Water, coffee, milk, chocolate milk, lemonade, ice tea, some watered down juices in the morning. All included and available throughout the ship.

Hello,

 

Thanks for this, that's really interesting. I'd just assumed we'd need some kind of drinks package.

 

I'm assuming for water there are fountains around the ship and easily accessible? Are the other free drinks easily available too please?

 

Thanks for your help

 

Justin

[Biker19]

45 minutes ago, Justin8571 said:

I'm assuming for water there are fountains around the ship and easily accessible? Are the other free drinks easily available too please?

Yes, and you can also get water from any bar. The availability of the free drinks varies by venue with the WJ having the most of them.

[taglovestocruise]

59 minutes ago, Justin8571 said:

Hello,

 

Thanks for this, that's really interesting. I'd just assumed we'd need some kind of drinks package.

 

I'm assuming for water there are fountains around the ship and easily accessible? Are the other free drinks easily available too please?

 

Thanks for your help

 

Justin

You can just walk into Promenade Cafe, Vitality Spa, the Bistro, Sorrentos Pizza, Windjammer, El Loco fresh, Park Cafe, any bar in the pool area and get a drink any time as long as they are open. Free ice cream most of the day near the pool area.  No charge in the morning for most mentioned drinks from room service.  If things are not to your liking you can get a prorated refreshment package on day two or three. 

Edited May 27, 2022 by taglovestocruise

[Justin8571]

Hello,

 

Thank you both for your replies, that's really helpful.

 

Although I thought £920 for the refreshments package was steep, at that time I was prepared to pay it and looking back I wish I'd booked. Currently that same package is going to cost £1261 and I just can't see the value in it.

 

I need to talk to my wife and kids to see what they think, especially my lad who's happier drinking water than anything else. That's a lot of money to waste if we're not using it fully.

 

Thanks again, you've been a great help 

 

Justin