Price of wine of Grand Princess

[Fletch1]

Greetings,

 

Anybody currently on or who has recently cruised on the Grand Princess.........could you tell me the price of cheapest bottle of wine on board? Someone recently told me $53 was the price of the cheapest bottle of wine on the wine list and I was just wondering if this was the case? 

 

Thanks in advance for any information. 

[OzKiwiJJ]

Bear in mind the wine list could change some time in February when the new Plus / Premier options come into play 

[NSWP]

1 hour ago, Fletch1 said:

Greetings,

 

Anybody currently on or who has recently cruised on the Grand Princess.........could you tell me the price of cheapest bottle of wine on board? Someone recently told me $53 was the price of the cheapest bottle of wine on the wine list and I was just wondering if this was the case? 

 

Thanks in advance for any information. 

That would be the Mcwilliams Markview Range, $8 in Dan Murphys, $16 at my golf club and it was $55 or so on Coral Princess in Sept or $9 a glass. Drinkable, just.🍷
 

Yes, the Markview was the cheapest on menu. So Grand would have the same pricing.

Edited January 19, 2023 by NSWP

[OzKiwiJJ]

15 minutes ago, NSWP said:

That would be the Mcwilliams Markview Range, $8 in Dan Murphys, $16 at my golf club and it was $55 or so on Coral Princess in Sept or $9 a glass. Drinkable, just.🍷
 

Yes, the Markview was the cheapest on menu. So Grand would have the same pricing.

Coral never had McWilliams wines. The ones you are thinking of are De Bortoli Willowglen wines. They are $53, as are the two Masterpeace wines. The 19 Crimes Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay are the cheapest at $52.

 

I imagine the same wine lists are on Grand at the moment but hopefully things will change sometime next month. And even more hopefully for the better!

Edited January 19, 2023 by OzKiwiJJ

[NSWP]

21 minutes ago, OzKiwiJJ said:

Coral never had McWilliams wines. The ones you are thinking of are De Bortoli Willowglen wines. They are $53, as are the two Masterpeace wines. The 19 Crimes Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay are the cheapest at $52.

 

I imagine the same wine lists are on Grand at the moment but hopefully things will change sometime next month. And even more hopefully for the better!

Correct Julie, it was De Bortoli Willowglen range, about the same quality as Markview Range, commercially sound.

[Tripmode33]

1 hour ago, NSWP said:

Correct Julie, it was De Bortoli Willowglen range, about the same quality as Markview Range, commercially sound.

Yes, off Grand Princess last month. De Bortoli Willowglen is commercial range I feel equivalent drinking to De Bortoli Sacred Hill retail range which we can buy for $4.50 at our bottleshop (or 6 for $25). $53 on Princess overpriced in my opinion and poor drinking at that price point.

In another recent post here, a fellow poster said on Grand very recently they could buy a 'wine package' for $179 consisting of 2 red, 2 white and one rose. And stated wines sounded better quality than Willowglen. Works out around $36 bottle.

 

[NSWP]

Princess is marking up the Willowglen by almost $50 a bottle.   Totally over the top in my opinion.

[RobinBancs]

I am currently on board and here is the wine list from tonight’s menu. My personal thoughts (as a tight arse) would be to BYO and pay corkage. You can bring two on ship from day 1 and a new bottle at every port, so if you only drink it in your state room then it’s much cheaper

 

My reference point is Brown Brothers Moscato which is listed as $59 a bottle and you can pick one up at Dan Murphy’s for $13 plus $15 corkage makes it $28

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cruiser3775]

After you read that wine list, with the totally rip off prices, and the  bottom shelf selection, you can see why BYO is a good choice on Princess at the moment. Those De Bortoli Willowglen range are roughly about $6/bottle retail in Australia.

I took 4 bottles on a recent cruise, wine I actually liked, purchased for between $15 and $21 per bottle just before boarding. I wrapped it in bubble wrap and sealed the bag against breakage. I expected to pay the $15 corkage for three of the four, but I was never charged it, I think because I didn't put it in my carry on bag.  When I received my small roll on bag in my room, It had been opened and had a polite note inside saying that they would contact me, but that never happened.

[Fletch1]

12 hours ago, Tripmode33 said:

Yes, off Grand Princess last month. De Bortoli Willowglen is commercial range I feel equivalent drinking to De Bortoli Sacred Hill retail range which we can buy for $4.50 at our bottleshop (or 6 for $25). $53 on Princess overpriced in my opinion and poor drinking at that price point.

In another recent post here, a fellow poster said on Grand very recently they could buy a 'wine package' for $179 consisting of 2 red, 2 white and one rose. And stated wines sounded better quality than Willowglen. Works out around $36 bottle.

 

 

I agree. Very overpriced for very average wine. The wine package is a much better alternative. 

 

[Fletch1]

2 hours ago, RobinBancs said:

I am currently on board and here is the wine list from tonight’s menu. My personal thoughts (as a tight arse) would be to BYO and pay corkage. You can bring two on ship from day 1 and a new bottle at every port, so if you only drink it in your state room then it’s much cheaper

 

My reference point is Brown Brothers Moscato which is listed as $59 a bottle and you can pick one up at Dan Murphy’s for $13 plus $15 corkage makes it $28

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks for posting the wine list. Some of those prices are ludicrously high.

I think I will take my own on board and pay the corkage. 

 

[Fletch1]

31 minutes ago, cruiser3775 said:

After you read that wine list, with the totally rip off prices, and the  bottom shelf selection, you can see why BYO is a good choice on Princess at the moment. Those De Bortoli Willowglen range are roughly about $6/bottle retail in Australia.

I took 4 bottles on a recent cruise, wine I actually liked, purchased for between $15 and $21 per bottle just before boarding. I wrapped it in bubble wrap and sealed the bag against breakage. I expected to pay the $15 corkage for three of the four, but I was never charged it, I think because I didn't put it in my carry on bag.  When I received my small roll on bag in my room, It had been opened and had a polite note inside saying that they would contact me, but that never happened.

 

I have read similar stories about some being charged the corkage and some not. I am happy to pay the corkage knowing that the wine I am drinking is wine I like.

Edited January 20, 2023 by Fletch1

[Fletch1]

Thanks everyone for your information and comments. Very much appreciated. My original information was correct, so I will definitely BYO on board and replenish at different ports and just pay the corkage.  Luckily, we are cruising New Zealand so plenty of excellent choices and availability.

 

Thanks again.  

[cruiser3775]

23 minutes ago, Fletch1 said:

I will definitely BYO on board and replenish at different ports and just pay the corkage. 

Are you sure you can replenish in ports en route?  I though that was only available when you go on one of the ship's excursions (overpriced) to a NZ winery, like in Picton or Napier?  Even then, I recall it was only one bottle per passenger allowed. Happy to be corrected on this.

Edited January 20, 2023 by cruiser3775

[RobinBancs]

One bottle per passenger per port. They are not very thorough checking people at the security point

[cruiser3775]

The Princess Terms and conditions says:

"Any alcoholic beverages purchased duty free from The Shops of Princess, or at any port of call, will be collected at the gangway for safekeeping and will be delivered to your stateroom on the last day of the cruise. A member of the ship's staff will be at the gangway to assist guests with the storage of their shoreside alcoholic purchases."

I saw this guy sitting at a desk just next to the stairs and the lifts when you re-boarded at shore stops. He didn't seem to be doing much business. 

Everyone who brought a bag back on board had to put it though a scanner.  I suppose you could stuff a bottle down your underwear, but it would be uncomfortable.

[arxcards]

8 hours ago, cruiser3775 said:

The Princess Terms and conditions says:

"Any alcoholic beverages purchased duty free from The Shops of Princess, or at any port of call, will be collected at the gangway for safekeeping and will be delivered to your stateroom on the last day of the cruise. A member of the ship's staff will be at the gangway to assist guests with the storage of their shoreside alcoholic purchases."

I saw this guy sitting at a desk just next to the stairs and the lifts when you re-boarded at shore stops. He didn't seem to be doing much business. 

Everyone who brought a bag back on board had to put it though a scanner.  I suppose you could stuff a bottle down your underwear, but it would be uncomfortable.

It is much like embarkation. They treat wine differently to beer & spirits. Wine is OK in restricted amounts, especially on the ships that visit for the summer. Those Aussie T&Cs can also apply to wine on their fulltime ship(s), currently Coral Princess. The Aussie policy originates from Carnival Australia, not Princess.

 

If unsure, it pays to ask on the ship if it is OK to bring a bottle of wine back aboard with you.

[NeilonBoard]

On 1/20/2023 at 12:03 PM, cruiser3775 said:

The Princess Terms and conditions says:

"Any alcoholic beverages purchased duty free from The Shops of Princess, or at any port of call, will be collected at the gangway for safekeeping and will be delivered to your stateroom on the last day of the cruise. A member of the ship's staff will be at the gangway to assist guests with the storage of their shoreside alcoholic purchases."

I saw this guy sitting at a desk just next to the stairs and the lifts when you re-boarded at shore stops. He didn't seem to be doing much business. 

Everyone who brought a bag back on board had to put it though a scanner.  I suppose you could stuff a bottle down your underwear, but it would be uncomfortable.

We were on Coral Princess to NZ in December and the above rules applied. The guy at the desk usually had bottles or cartons of wine that had been confiscated from passengers on port stops. I am aware of the old rule regarding the $15 corkage fee but I don't believe we had that option. I've paid it before and would have paid it again if I had been allowed.

[cruiser3775]

The $A15 corkage fee is still in force.  While I somehow managed to avoid paying it,  I met others on Coral Princess in November who had paid this corkage fee for bottles they brought on board.  The first bottle is free.  One man I met had brought a dozen box of wine with him.

[emlb81]

We sailed around New Zealand last November 2023.  I found the price of $29:00 for 1 GLASS

[emlb81]

aBSOLUTELY isgusting, I could even buy a bottle or 3 for that price, and I mean really nice wine.

The bottles in the Dining room were also well overpriced.  Do they want us to purchase the drink packages?? encouraging peope to drink even more??

 

[OzKiwiJJ]

The problem is that these days they are pricing the wine in USD, regardless of what it cost, then converting it to AUD, which makes the prices totally unrealistic compared with local prices. In the past they just used the same prices - if it was US$30 a bottle it just became AU$30 a bottle. 

 

The other issue is that they haven't really catered for current Australian wine trends. The Plus list appears to be suited to US tastes rather than Australian - oaky chardonnay, straight merlot, Cab sauv blends. No straight shiraz, no unoaked or lightly oaked chardonnay, no pinot grigio nor any of the other Italian wine varieties that are becoming popular here. 

 

But the Plus package does make it possible to buy wines by the bottle at a slightly better price since you get 25% discount on those.

 

But having a drinks package does not mean people necessarily drink more. Of course some will "to get their money's worth" but others, like us, prefer the convenience of not having charges for every single drink, be it wine, cocktails or mocktails, bottled water, espresso, soft drinks, etc - showing up on their account. Our habits don't change no matter whether we have a package or not.  

 

 

[cruisermsoon]

Regarding the $179 wine package - yes, 5 wines - 2 red, 2 white, 1 rose - but no choice. You have to have those 5 wines, so if you are a red, or white, wine drinker 3 of the 5 wines are of no  interest, 

Compare that miserable offering with the wine packages Holland America offer. Three different price structures, and a good selection of wines to choose from - yes, choice [or in the Princess case, lack of] is the key word here.

[OzKiwiJJ]

1 hour ago, cruisermsoon said:

Regarding the $179 wine package - yes, 5 wines - 2 red, 2 white, 1 rose - but no choice. You have to have those 5 wines, so if you are a red, or white, wine drinker 3 of the 5 wines are of no  interest, 

Compare that miserable offering with the wine packages Holland America offer. Three different price structures, and a good selection of wines to choose from - yes, choice [or in the Princess case, lack of] is the key word here.

I suspect the only wine I'd be able to drink would be the rose. 

 

It was interesting on our recent Cunard cruise. I asked our sommelier about their wine package - he just shook his head and told us that most of the wines were out of stock. I believed him - I had that happen on Princess cruise once except Princess were quite happy to sell us the package knowing most of the wines were unavailable.

[Jensue9]

I hope you don’t mind me asking this question here, it just didn’t seem with making a new topic. We are cruising next year on crown princess world cruise and trying to decide between the cheapest pricing or princess plus. Can someone please give me a rough idea on how much a glass of wine might be? A gin and tonic?