Lowest price to expect

[pudy68]

Hello!

I have an upcoming cruise in Aug and am watching the app for non-alcoholic beverage deals.

 

What is the best discount they normally offer? I saw $26.99 pp/pd and now it's at $29.99. Will it drop again or did I miss out on the better deal?

[Liljo22]

The price is going to bounce around every couple weeks so you didn’t miss it.  Even if you buy it and it goes lower, you can cancel it for a refund and rebook.

[RD64]

$3 is a make or break issue?

[ARandomTraveler]

For the last year or so, the lowest price I've seen myself and the lowest price I've seen reported for the refreshment package (non-alcoholic) is $23.99/day (plus 18% gratuity).

 

My next cruise is booked for July and the lowest I've seen the price go is $27.99/day when it's "on sale," and then it goes back to $31.99/day, so I don't know if that's the new price, or if I'm getting higher prices because I'm on an Asian sailing where there aren't as many alcohol drinkers, and so the non-alcoholic price is higher because they know more people will want it.

 

The alcohol price is $54.99/day when it's "on sale" and $58.99/day when not on sale, which is the lowest I've seen on any of my cruises in at least 7 years. 

[Jasukkie]

It's hard to say. Historically, I've bought it as low as $18 but those days are gone. I can't imagine it being worthwhile at $30/day but you should consider how many port days and how many beverages you would consume. There are also water bottle packs you can pre-order for your cabin if that's of interest.

[ARandomTraveler]

10 minutes ago, Jasukkie said:

It's hard to say. Historically, I've bought it as low as $18 but those days are gone. I can't imagine it being worthwhile at $30/day but you should consider how many port days and how many beverages you would consume. There are also water bottle packs you can pre-order for your cabin if that's of interest.

I haven't seen (or heard of) a refreshment package for $18 since 2018.

[Jasukkie]

1 hour ago, ARandomTraveler said:

I haven't seen (or heard of) a refreshment package for $18 since 2018.

Yes, I consider that in the historical range. And yes, those days are gone.

[Kathscof]

I’m almost positive I saw it for $18 or $19 for my last year’s Radiance....but I still had to remind myself that I didn’t need to spend $150 on non alcoholic drinks haha

[S.A.M.J.R.]

I think we spent right around $20 for our cruise on Mariner last year.  We got the deal during Black Friday sales. 

[shadesofgrey]

I got $18 a day last may.  $20/day for my upcoming May cruise. Both were Black Friday deals, and I never saw it drop that low any other time.  

[akcruz]

Ours was 19.99 on Black Friday, cruising in March.  Lowest other times has been 26.99.  Of course 18% gratuity is added to both.

[Illbcruzn4life]

10 hours ago, ARandomTraveler said:

For the last year or so, the lowest price I've seen myself and the lowest price I've seen reported for the refreshment package (non-alcoholic) is $23.99/day (plus 18% gratuity).

 

My next cruise is booked for July and the lowest I've seen the price go is $27.99/day when it's "on sale," and then it goes back to $31.99/day, so I don't know if that's the new price, or if I'm getting higher prices because I'm on an Asian sailing where there aren't as many alcohol drinkers, and so the non-alcoholic price is higher because they know more people will want it.

 

The alcohol price is $54.99/day when it's "on sale" and $58.99/day when not on sale, which is the lowest I've seen on any of my cruises in at least 7 years. 

Do the prices vary by ship? I am booked on the Oasis and the drink package is $77.99 and refreshment package is at $31.99

[ARandomTraveler]

3 hours ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

Do the prices vary by ship? I am booked on the Oasis and the drink package is $77.99 and refreshment package is at $31.99

Yes, not only is it priced by ship, but it's also priced by sailing. So you might see a totally different price than people sailing Oasis the week before you.

 

As a general rule, the prices seem fairly consistent within a range of prices, with a few exceptions. 77.99/person is a pretty standard price for the drink package that a lot of people report seeing for their sailings. The low price on my sailing is most likely due to the fact that it's sailing from Asia. 

[Tree_skier]

13 hours ago, ARandomTraveler said:

I haven't seen (or heard of) a refreshment package for $18 since 2018.

I got that price a couple of times in 2019.  The best price I've seen since the restart is $20 but mostly it's been bouncing between $23 and $26

 

 

[jbrinkm]

$32 (i.e. $31.99) for refreshment package on my April Allure sailing now. REALLY glad I got it at the Black Friday price. Deluxe is now $73 but I saw it a week or two ago for $68 - thought that was a pretty good price but it wasn't there for long. 

[ramja96]

4 hours ago, akcruz said:

Ours was 19.99 on Black Friday, cruising in March.  Lowest other times has been 26.99.  Of course 18% gratuity is added to both.

I picked it up for $19.99 last November.  Lowest I've seen in a long time.

[pudy68]

On 2/8/2023 at 7:34 PM, RD64 said:

$3 is a make or break issue?

LOL. I was already trying to justify $26.99 pp/pd (and struggling, at that), so yes, the extra $3 pp/pd means another $48 plus 18%, so I would definitely take a pass at that.

 

I see that it's bounced back to $26.99.  Thanks to everyone for their helpful input!

[ARandomTraveler]

48 minutes ago, pudy68 said:

LOL. I was already trying to justify $26.99 pp/pd (and struggling, at that), so yes, the extra $3 pp/pd means another $48 plus 18%, so I would definitely take a pass at that.

 

I see that it's bounced back to $26.99.  Thanks to everyone for their helpful input!

I feel the same way. It's not a lot of money, but I just don't value non-water drinks that much. We don't get our dollar-for-dollar value out of the package when it's $23.99/person, but I'm fine buying it at that price because there's some intrinsic value in having the option to just grab stuff whenever I want and not think about it. 
 

More often than not, when I get a frozen drink I take a few sips and then toss it because it's too much sweet at once, plus it makes me full. I rarely drink my whole specialty coffee, and although I like the novelty of the freestyle soda machines, I only filled my cup twice on my last trip, and I didn't finish the soda either time.
 

I'm just a boring water drinker. But I like the idea of grabbing something because it sounds good, and then not caring that I didn't finish it. If I didn't have the package, I might not buy it at all. But I do like having those drinks in moderation throughout the week, and for that, the refreshment package at $23.99/day has value to me.
 

At $27.99/day the value is lost. Even though it's just a measly $28/person extra, in reality it's $28 plus the other $10 or $12/day that I'm already "overpaying" for the drink package based on the fact that I'm not really drinking most of the drinks I order. At that point I'll just pay out of pocket. 
 

My next cruise is a 12 day, so at 27.99 I'm spending $396 per person on soda and coffee etc. We'll pay out of pocket. 

Edited February 10, 2023 by ARandomTraveler

[crewsweeper]

Keep watching the regular price.   Royal deals have recently been 35% off.  But that's "up to".

 

So expect $18-$25 per day for regular N/A  drink package.

[Illbcruzn4life]

42 minutes ago, crewsweeper said:

Keep watching the regular price.   Royal deals have recently been 35% off.  But that's "up to".

 

So expect $18-$25 per day for regular N/A  drink package.

Usually when then have a sale they just raise the base price and the sale price is the ssme gave or take a dollar or so.

[ARandomTraveler]

1 hour ago, crewsweeper said:

Keep watching the regular price.   Royal deals have recently been 35% off.  But that's "up to".

 

So expect $18-$25 per day for regular N/A  drink package.

 

25 minutes ago, Illbcruzn4life said:

Usually when then have a sale they just raise the base price and the sale price is the ssme gave or take a dollar or so.

Agreed, aside from a couple anecdotal reports of seeing the refreshment package on a Black Friday sale for $18 or $19, I really highly doubt anyone is gonna see a price that low. $23.99 seems to be the current "low" price, and right now it kind of sounds like even that doesn't happen anymore.
 

From what people have been posting for the last 2 weeks, $27-$32 sounds like the new "normal" range. 

[Illbcruzn4life]

1 hour ago, ARandomTraveler said:

 

Agreed, aside from a couple anecdotal reports of seeing the refreshment package on a Black Friday sale for $18 or $19, I really highly doubt anyone is gonna see a price that low. $23.99 seems to be the current "low" price, and right now it kind of sounds like even that doesn't happen anymore.
 

From what people have been posting for the last 2 weeks, $27-$32 sounds like the new "normal" range. 

It's a shame that they have to play games like that but they all do it. NCL has their 2nd person free. Of course the base fare for an inside cabin is about $1400 to $1600 for the first pax.

 

Most people who post here often know the deal but for some unsuspecting people who just po onto the cruise lines pages they could feel like look at the deal, let's jump on it.

 

Just advertise the real fare and call it a day.