RCL Wine and Liquor Policies and Prices (Merged)

[happy cruzer]

hi, Can anyone tell me what the wine prices are like? Is there a special rate for mutiple bottles like the soda card? Is there a corkage fee if you bring a few bottles on board? On other lines sometimes the value pricing seems a good deal but covers only ordinary wines (average is OK by me).

Any details on what other wine nuts do at dinner to avoid $38+ bottles of wine is appreciated. Thanks.

[sas80]

hi, Can anyone tell me what the wine prices are like?

Got to the Royal Caribbean home page. Under Before You Board -> gifts and gear -> gifts and gear aboard

scroll down the page and click on "wine cellar" for a listing of what they offer on board and prices on board.

Is there a special rate for mutiple bottles like the soda card?

yes. I want to say 5 bottles off a selected list for $125 BUT it could be 4 bottles for $125 and I think they offer 3 bottle packages too.

 

Is there a corkage fee if you bring a few bottles on board? On other lines sometimes the value pricing seems a good deal but covers only ordinary wines (average is OK by me).

You cannot bring a wine or chamapge onboard that they offer on their list (again, check this out at the gifts and gear section of their web page) You may bring wine and champagne onboard that is not offered by RCCL and there is a $15 corkage fee per bottle. I also think you are limited to 2 bottles per person.

Be sure to call RCCL to clarify all of this.

Any details on what other wine nuts do at dinner to avoid $38+ bottles of wine is appreciated. Thanks.

 

Happy Sailing!!!

[Schplinky]

This information is from a cruise we took last April so the prices will be somewhat different but hopefully, it will give you a point of reference. I typed it out for our Freedom Meet & Mingle so it was no problem to re-paste here.

 

 

Gold Selection:

Korbel Brut Sparkling - California

Stone Cellars Chardonnay, Beringer - California

Lindemans bin 77, Semillon-Chardonney - Australia

Danzante Pinot Grigio - Italy

Caliterra Sauvignon Blance - Chile

Woodbridge White Zinfandel (Mondavi) - California

Georges duBouef Beaujolais Villages - France

Stone Cellars (Beringer) Cabernet Sauvignon - California

Woodbridge Twin Oaks - Cabernet Sauvignon - California

Vina Tarapaca Merlot - Chile

Footprint Shiraz - Australia

 

Prices:

 

5 bottles - Value $165; Price - $113

7 bottles - Value $231; Price - $158

10 bottles - Value $330; Price - $226

12 bottles - Value $396; Price - $273

 

 

Platinum Selection:

Korbel Brut Sparkling - California

Argyle Brut Sparkling - Oregon

Stone Cellars Chardonnay, Beringer - California

Badger Mountain Organic Chardonnay - Washington State

Lindemans bin 77, Semillon-Chardonnay - Australia

Chateau St. Michelle Johannesburg Riesling - Washington State (really)

Danzante Pinot Grigio - Italy

Caliterra Sauvignon Blanc - Chile

Woodbridge White Zinfandel (Mondavi) - California

Beringer White Zinfandel - California

Georges duBouef Beaujolais Villages - France

Stone Cellars (Beringer) Cabernet Sauvignon - California

Woodbridge Twin Oaks - Cabernet Sauvignon - California

Robert Mondavi Private Selection Merlot - California

Vina Tarapaca Merlot - Chile

Faustino VII Rioja - Spain

Footprint Shiraz - Australia

Red Zinfandel - Cline - California

 

Prices:

 

5 bottles - Value $185; Price - $125

7 bottles - Value $259; Price - $173

10 bottles - Value $370; Price - $250

12 bottles - Value $444; Price - $299

 

Diamond Selection:

Korbel Brut Sparkling - California

Argyle Brut Sparkling - Oregon

Stone Cellars Chardonnay, Beringer - California

Meridian Vineyards Chardonnay - California

Badger Mountain Organic Chardonnay - Washington State

Lindemans bin 77, Semillon-Chardonnay - Australia

Chateau St. Michelle Johannesburg Riesling - Washington State (really)

Danzante Pinot Grigio - Italy

Caliterra Sauvignon Blanc - Chile

Woodbridge White Zinfandel (Mondavi) - California

Beringer White Zinfandel - California

Georges duBouef Beaujolais Villages - France

Stone Cellars (Beringer) Cabernet Sauvignon - California

Woodbridge Twin Oaks - Cabernet Sauvignon - California

Arboleda Carmenere - Chile

Robert Mondavi Private Selection Merlot - California

Vina Tarapaca Merlot - Chile

Beringer's Founder's Estate Pinot Noir - California

Faustino VII Rioja - Spain

Footprint Shiraz - Australia

Rosemount Shiraz - Australia

Red Zinfandel - Cline - California

 

Prices:

 

5 bottles - Value $190; Price - $137

7 bottles - Value $266; Price - $189

10 bottles - Value $380; Price - $274

12 bottles - Value $456; Price - $329

 

 

You have to pay the 15% gratuity on top of the price of any package, as with all drinks. Selections are available in the Main dining room, specialty restaurants and Windjammer. Selections are subject to availability and the line reserves the right to substitute a similar wine for one on the list if it becomes unavailable. Package is valid only on the voyage purchased and you may take home any unconsumed bottles.

[dottedline]

Can you pay a corkage fee to have a bottle opened in your room?

[caviargal]

hi, Can anyone tell me what the wine prices are like? Is there a special rate for mutiple bottles like the soda card? Is there a corkage fee if you bring a few bottles on board? On other lines sometimes the value pricing seems a good deal but covers only ordinary wines (average is OK by me).

Any details on what other wine nuts do at dinner to avoid $38+ bottles of wine is appreciated. Thanks.

 

 

I am a wine lover and drink good wines.

 

RCI wine packages are very low end with sub par wines.

 

Now I hear they do not allow bottles with a corkage fee.

 

I have always brought my own wine and am happy to pay the fees.

 

I am sorry to say this is another reason RCI is not on my list of favorite cruise lines. I hate paying too much for good wines and even more hate drinking cheap wines.

[Schplinky]

You wouldn't need to pay a corkage fee in your own room.

[froggie Q]

We brought several bottles of our local champagne on board. We drank all but one in our suite. The one we took to Portofino's for our anniversary dinner cost us a $10 corkage fee. No one questioned it.

[dottedline]

We brought several bottles of our local champagne on board. We drank all but one in our suite. The one we took to Portofino's for our anniversary dinner cost us a $10 corkage fee. No one questioned it.

Did you check it or was it brought on in your carryon? ( I'm going on my first ocean cruise in October and I know nothing! :D ) I do plan on spending some time on my balcony sipping a light libation, though. I noticed from the above list that my favorite wine in not served on RCCL, so I'm hoping to be able to bring it.

[froggie Q]

We checked it. I read on CC that was the best way to do it.

[Schplinky]

Did you check it or was it brought on in your carryon? ( I'm going on my first ocean cruise in October and I know nothing! :D ) I do plan on spending some time on my balcony sipping a light libation, though. I noticed from the above list that my favorite wine in not served on RCCL, so I'm hoping to be able to bring it.

 

The wines I listed are only those included in the package. There were dozens of more bottles available. also, someone mentioned looking on the web-site but those wines are bon voyage gifts and only represent a small fraction of what's available onboard.

[SherriZ366]

If you put wine list in the search engine on the RCCL site, a domestic and a foreign wine list will come up. Fairly accurate but it did not have a fabulous Banfi Barbera that we had in Portofinos and then ordered in the dining room.

 

I agree with the OP that the packages do not have enough variety. We find the RCCL list limited and the packages even more so. Keep posting about whether we can bring wines not on the list. We don't mind paying the corkage fee as it still works out better than the RCCL price.

[happy cruzer]

Hi, again. I am finding this info very valuable. I don't sail until Nov. on Voyager. How do we keep sharing current experiences? Should we stay focused on wine policies/prices? On RCL wine policies/prices? I am not sure how to keep a thread alive with current info located centrally i.e. not buried in many different threads. Ideas?

 

Also a question regarding the wine card - when can you buy it? Can you buy a 5 bottle and then a few days later buy another 5 bottle card?

 

Also when I do the math, you save money on some bottles on the list and lose money vs the per bottle price on others. So I think if you do a card be sure to select the ones you save on and then just do per bottle pricing for the others.

 

Happy Cruzer

[SherriZ366]

They have stations all over to buy the package the first day. I remember one outside the Windjammer and probably one outside the dining room and possibly in the Royal Promenade. I think you could also buy it from your waiter.

 

We'll just keep posting new exciting info about RCCL wine and keep the thread alive.

[DannyMac]

My wife and I always take our own wine. Most of the wines offered on cruise ships can be purchased at a retail outlet for $6.00-$10.00 per bottle. The markup on the ships wine is 3-4 times, we refuse to pay $30.00-$40.00 for low end wine. We will gladly pay the corkage fee on the bottles of wine we bring to dinner.

 

Go to Walmart and buy a small suitcase, bubble wrap the bottles, cut some cardboard strips to put between the bottles. Put a luggage tag on it and check it in with the rest of your luggage or buy a wine trolley, pack it up and send it through. Don't forget to bring along a cork screw.

 

We cruised the Rhapsody this past March, we brought our own wine during the cruise and were charged a corkage fee on the first night only. We cruised the Grand last Dec. brought our own wine and were charged a corkage fee every night. Go figure!!!

[Schplinky]

We're going on Freedom in September. We'l check for you to see if you can purchase wine packages later int he week. I suspect you can. Cruise lines are in bsiness ot make money and frankly, they make more on you if you choose two five bottle packages than if you just bit the bullet and bought a ten bottle package to open.

[dougp26364]

I ended up paying $45 for a bottle of Erath Pinot Noir that would normally only cost $9.50 on land. It's the last time I'll purchase a bottle of wine from RCI. Either I'll bring my own or do without. They are WAY to expensive for what you get.

[Schplinky]

I do agree that the mark-up on RCL is higher than in most land-based restaurants.

[caviargal]

I do agree that the mark-up on RCL is higher than in most land-based restaurants.

 

And that is the real issue.

 

Cruise lines used to offer fair pricing on their wines so we benefitted a bit by drinking their wines. Not any longer.

 

We brought three bottles of a favorite Chateauneuf onboard Serenade late 2004. I paid $36 in the store and we happily paid the $15 corkage. RCI had the same wine on their list for $89 bottle, plus the 15% service charge of course. Sorry, but I will not be ripped off for wine.

 

Celebrity, HAL, and almost all lines allow your own wine with a fee. I prefer to drink the wine of my own choosing and have no issue paying for a corkage fee. This new policy is very annoying.

[Schplinky]

When did this new policy start? I've read lots of recent trip reports where people report paying a $12 corage fee and having their own wine opened.

[FlorenceItaly]

And that is the real issue.

 

Cruise lines used to offer fair pricing on their wines so we benefitted a bit by drinking their wines. Not any longer.

 

We brought three bottles of a favorite Chateauneuf onboard Serenade late 2004. I paid $36 in the store and we happily paid the $15 corkage. RCI had the same wine on their list for $89 bottle, plus the 15% service charge of course. Sorry, but I will not be ripped off for wine.

 

Celebrity, HAL, and almost all lines allow your own wine with a fee. I prefer to drink the wine of my own choosing and have no issue paying for a corkage fee. This new policy is very annoying.

 

This is my issue too. I am willing to pay a mark-up but not 3- 4 times the price. That is what I found on my favorite bottle of wine(it's low end Beringer).

 

Marie

[drk]

DW and I and real bad...we bring our own wine...we open a bottle in our cabin and have a pre-dinner glass...return to our cabin right before dinner and refill our glasses and take them in to dinner...just the right amount for us and no corkage.

 

If the cruise lines charged a reasonable amount for decent wine we would play but since they get greedy they make no money on us.

[happy cruzer]

Hi, again. Now that I know I'm not alone with the wine pricing/policy issue. And I agree the real issue is that the pricing/policy is very unfair. Is there anything else on the ship that is marked up an average of 4 times (sometimes 5 or 6 times) the price you pay at home?? Not the mixed drinks, not excursions, not photo processing, not t-shirts, not anything I can think off. That is why we all are bothered. So here's the info we need from people about a cruise to help us decide if we want to go and how we want to handle our wine.

 

Name of Ship and Date Sailed

Did you bring wine on board? In checked or carry on baggage?

Was there a corkage fee? Did it include the tip?

Was there a wine package offered? Quality of wines and pricing? When and where was it available for purchase and use.

Was there a wine you really enjoyed on the ship? Was there a wine/food pairing you really enjoyed?

General Comments.

 

We will greatly appreciate any and all info!

Happy Cruzer

[Schplinky]

We find that spa services are more than they are in other types of resorts. I've been to some nice spas in Vegas (Bellagio, Mandalay Bay) but the ones on the ships are definitely more and not as posh.

[Merion_Mom]

Hi, again. Now that I know I'm not alone with the wine pricing/policy issue. And I agree the real issue is that the pricing/policy is very unfair. Is there anything else on the ship that is marked up an average of 4 times (sometimes 5 or 6 times) the price you pay at home?? Not the mixed drinks, not excursions, not photo processing, not t-shirts, not anything I can think off. That is why we all are bothered.

I, too, believe that the winelist is overpriced, but I DO want to correct this hyperbole.

 

The markup of 4 or 5 times is NOT vs restaurant prices at home. That's a markup on the STORE price of buying a bottle of wine. Most restaurants have a 2x or a 3x markup. RC's markup is just higher than that, but NOT 4x what you would pay in a restaurant on land.

[Schplinky]

I think that another thing worth noting is that the markup is higher on cheaper wines. If you bought a Veuve Cliquot or something like that, you would not be paying 3 or 4 times retail. It's the cheapest wines they seem to mark up most, I think because they need to make a certain profit per bottle for their business model, and this is most glaring on cheaper wine.