Elite Happy Hour

[gold1953]

34 minutes ago, dazey said:

We always got the price that included WIFI, drink package and gratuities.  Also would upgrade to premium.  It was fun to never think about what we had to pay when ordering special coffees, multi drinks during the day.  Then we became Elite and gave  the "no drink package" a try since we could drink from 5-7 PM most every day and also get something at the casino when playing.  It was a game to see how much we could save and we were  amazed not by what we saved(saved a lot) so much but how easy it was to get along without the drink package.  We do buy a bottle of wine or two with a 20% discount and maybe a specialty coffee every so often but the cost was so much less then purchasing a drink package.  

 

We drink less but do not limit what we drink enough to spoil the vacation. I do believe we drank more just to make sure we got what we paid for(probably not true even if we drank a lot).

 

I do think Celebrity really made a mistake not including gratuities in their all inclusive because sometimes that makes the decision easier when looking at costs for some people.

We also get along quite well with no beverage package . As for the grats I can do math quickly and know my total price. 

[bikerunner]

The pricing really depends, on many/all of my cruises with Celebrity my TA has been able to give me an all included rate that was most of the time better than what Celebrity was charging for room only or barely higher.  I have not tried booking any Celebrity cruises lately since they took out the grats part as I already had booked to the end of 2025 with River Cruises and switch to Small Ships and different land based trips.  

[the penguins]

3 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

We on the Equinox next November, 12 nights, $1666 CAD for 2 with taxes and port fees for a V2 balcony,

To get the drink package wifi and tips it was $4200 for 2 , which we didn’t think that it was worth it 

 

the saving is good but not as good as your figures imply unless of course you really don't pay the auto grats.

[the penguins]

1 hour ago, dazey said:

We always got the price that included WIFI, drink package and gratuities.  Also would upgrade to premium.  It was fun to never think about what we had to pay when ordering special coffees, multi drinks during the day.  Then we became Elite and gave  the "no drink package" a try since we could drink from 5-7 PM most every day and also get something at the casino when playing.  It was a game to see how much we could save and we were  amazed not by what we saved(saved a lot) so much but how easy it was to get along without the drink package.  We do buy a bottle of wine or two with a 20% discount and maybe a specialty coffee every so often but the cost was so much less then purchasing a drink package.  

 

We drink less but do not limit what we drink enough to spoil the vacation. I do believe we drank more just to make sure we got what we paid for(probably not true even if we drank a lot).

 

I do think Celebrity really made a mistake not including gratuities in their all inclusive because sometimes that makes the decision easier when looking at costs for some people.

your free drinks start much earlier. The Elite breakfast includes: Bloody Mary's, Mimosas and "champagne", plus speciality coffees and smoothies 

[doghog]

55 minutes ago, the penguins said:

your free drinks start much earlier. The Elite breakfast includes: Bloody Mary's, Mimosas and "champagne", plus speciality coffees and smoothies 

...and Bellini's. 

[kruzgal]

Can you get 20% off a bottle of wine every night at dinner with Elite or is it just a one use voucher per person? On the fact sheet it just says 20% off any bottle of wine. 

[Oxo]

1 hour ago, kruzgal said:

Can you get 20% off a bottle of wine every night at dinner with Elite or is it just a one use voucher per person? On the fact sheet it just says 20% off any bottle of wine. 

It should be more like 50% since they totally overcharge for their wine.

[Ex-Airbalancer]

3 hours ago, the penguins said:

the saving is good but not as good as your figures imply unless of course you really don't pay the auto grats.

Alway pay auto service charge , I think it great to do the gats this instead envelope at the end of the cruise 
The gats will be cover by OBC , but the cost of gats is $575CAD , $2142 CAD for 2 , so $2000 savings , that is a lot of drinks , I wouldn’t pay more than $50 for WIFI 😁

[jayoldschool]

2 hours ago, Oxo said:

It should be more like 50% since they totally overcharge for their wine.

 

When you look at current per glass wine prices, the bottle-20% Elite is a great deal. Not as good as walking with a big pour from Elite HH to the dining room, though 😉

[tserface]

I've come to the conclusion that they don't allow Elite Happy Hour to be used in the dining room because then people would get drinks and wine with dinner and they'd be serving a lot more.  It's probably not coincidence that they do the happy hour between 5p-7p.  It would be more convenient if it started earlier because a lot of people are at dinner, or getting ready for dinner, at those times. But...

[cruisin from florida]

We've been starting to eat our big meal at lunch. Including specialty dining, which is a much better value at lunch. HH 5-7 will reinforce that. 

[the penguins]

10 hours ago, Ex-Airbalancer said:

Alway pay auto service charge , I think it great to do the gats this instead envelope at the end of the cruise 
The gats will be cover by OBC , but the cost of gats is $575CAD , $2142 CAD for 2 , so $2000 savings , that is a lot of drinks , I wouldn’t pay more than $50 for WIFI 😁

With our free Elite minutes even $50 for WiFi is unnecessary and as we don't drink alcohol a drinks package is a total no. 

Depending on the amount of OBC we either use it for the auto grats or prepay but never remove them.

[dazey]

kruzgal asked if one can get 20% off bottle of wine more than once.  I honestly do not know - I assumed it did as I never noticed not getting the 20% off our two bottles of wine we purchased last cruise.  Sailing in May and will check.  I would call but not sure I would get a correct answer.  Maybe someone here can tell us.

[If only]

51 minutes ago, dazey said:

kruzgal asked if one can get 20% off bottle of wine more than once.  I honestly do not know - I assumed it did as I never noticed not getting the 20% off our two bottles of wine we purchased last cruise.  Sailing in May and will check.  I would call but not sure I would get a correct answer.  Maybe someone here can tell us.

It’s on any bottle of wine, not just once.

[LIMPIT]

I will shortly qualify for Elite, however my partner is quite a few points behind me due to myself accumulating extra power up points during and after covid, would my travelling cabin partner whom would be accompanying me in H/H also have access to the complimentary drinks ?

[DaKahuna]

32 minutes ago, LIMPIT said:

I will shortly qualify for Elite, however my partner is quite a few points behind me due to myself accumulating extra power up points during and after covid, would my travelling cabin partner whom would be accompanying me in H/H also have access to the complimentary drinks ?

 

 No, your partner would not be eligible for the free drinks.  The status is put on your card and your partner's card would not show Elite.  However, it is not unheard of for other things to happen. 

 

[hrhdhd]

38 minutes ago, LIMPIT said:

I will shortly qualify for Elite, however my partner is quite a few points behind me due to myself accumulating extra power up points during and after covid, would my travelling cabin partner whom would be accompanying me in H/H also have access to the complimentary drinks ?

If your partner has the same address, you can bump him or her to your level but not your points as long as you share an address.

 

"If your account is linked to another member’s account through a spousal or partner relationship, both members will have access to the points and tier associated with the member with more Club Points."

[Ex-Airbalancer]

1 hour ago, LIMPIT said:

I will shortly qualify for Elite, however my partner is quite a few points behind me due to myself accumulating extra power up points during and after covid, would my travelling cabin partner whom would be accompanying me in H/H also have access to the complimentary drinks ?

You didn’t add your partner’s numbers when you did the power up activity 😱

better hide this thread from them 🤣

[gold1953]

12 hours ago, LIMPIT said:

I will shortly qualify for Elite, however my partner is quite a few points behind me due to myself accumulating extra power up points during and after covid, would my travelling cabin partner whom would be accompanying me in H/H also have access to the complimentary drinks ?

Is you partner at the same address? If so they will share your status. I did not add my husband to power up  and he is also elite plus with me. They bumped his points as well

[dazey]

I wanted to mention that when one purchases a bottle of wine you can have it corked and they will store it for enjoyment the next night if you did not finish the bottle. Taking advantage of the 20% discount on bottles when "elite" is a good perk and another way of saving beverage costs.  

[39august]

The discount is somewhat offset by  the added gratuity of 20%. 

[dazey]

I agree with 39august about the 20% discount and 20% gratuity but if we get 5 glasses from a bottle on a fairly priced wine then I like to think I got a "deal".  

[Arizona Wildcat]

On 2/27/2024 at 4:44 PM, tserface said:

I've come to the conclusion that they don't allow Elite Happy Hour to be used in the dining room because then people would get drinks and wine with dinner and they'd be serving a lot more.  It's probably not coincidence that they do the happy hour between 5p-7p.  It would be more convenient if it started earlier because a lot of people are at dinner, or getting ready for dinner, at those times. But...

You certainly can walk into the dining room with a glass of happy hour wine 

[tserface]

1 minute ago, Arizona Wildcat said:

You certainly can walk into the dining room with a glass of happy hour wine 

Of course. We do that very thing. It's more trouble than ordering at the table and a lot easier for the dining room staff since they don't have Elites and up order wine from the table.  Fortunately, they don't stop us at the door and say we can't bring it in.

 

[gold1953]

2 hours ago, tserface said:

Of course. We do that very thing. It's more trouble than ordering at the table and a lot easier for the dining room staff since they don't have Elites and up order wine from the table.  Fortunately, they don't stop us at the door and say we can't bring it in.

 

for Blu they snatch it and return it in one of their wine glasses so the table looks good