mike

I agree with saving it or another cruise. However...! I believe you said you owed your wife 2 cruises in another post, so I'd say go with whatever demands she makes :P . Kidding aside that's almost enough for another cruise, so I would save it for later depending on how much vacation time you have and how you acrue it.

If the executives are not on social media, one option is the company's face on social media like facebook and twitter. Many companies have changed their mind on policy when large masses of people voice concerns or discontent on these sites. It's really quite amazing,and in ways alarming, the power social media sites can bring to bear. I can almost guarantee when they see a mass influx of complaints SOMEONE is gonna walk up to the CEO and say "uhh, sir, we have a problem."

Well I do hope they change course, I'd hate to see anyone lose the Royal fever over this. I suspect if anger over this was that high on one ship that they will see substantially reduced drink profits and change course pretty abruptly. I also suspect with reduced drink consumption will come frustration from bartenders that should also help change the course. In short I believe now is the time to voice concern to Royal directly as well as document what is being seen and heard onboard. In doing this I do believe there will be a DD style reverse of course so long as pressure is applied(constructively).

Do you think the vacant bar was a result of a la carte pricing or just a coincidence? Also did you hear much talk about the ship about this?

I dunno, I'd call 12 too high when compared to land based bars you pay about 7 around here for your average mixed drink. At the old price it was just slightly above what you'd pay any day, now its about 75-80% higher? I still maintain that vacation inflation has its limits.

One other thing comes to mind. I hear when you pay early via cruise planner that they charge in your country of residences currency, they charge in U.S. dollars onboard. If you live somewhere else other than America it could benefit you to do it before or not depending on if your currency is stronger or not.

It's kinda like how companies give the noobies awesome deals, and then after you're outta contract they give you bleh offers if any at all. Someday perhaps more places will realize that treating you nice isn't just for the initial relationship. Perhaps one way Royal can rectify this is to offer increasing perks or credit the more stock you own. Own 1000 stock? Here's 400 OBC etc.

Ok, that totally changes it for me then. I really wish the single prices hadn't hiked but they have. At $14 per after gratuity , 2 drinks brings it close enough to be worth getting vs just the royal replenish . As long as the package doesn't hike too they might just well be worth it.

Here's a supplemental question that could change the value, at least for me. Is the $12 average for mixed drinks before or after auto gratuity? For those who already get the royal replenish, the difference between it and the ultimate package is $36. Depending on the answer, 4 drinks a day or less is at least more feasible. Edit: wow that math lol. So yeah at new single prices 3 drinks a day isn't as bad as I thought, 4 at the old prices.

Matt, did you end up doing the package on the group cruise? Also can you chime in on the new pricing for alcoholic drinks?

did they add that in the last few years? If it was on there in 2009 i think I'll have to go weep for all those missed late night snacks I could have had :( .

This has got me wondering if the late night buffets on select nights are mainly on the ships pre-voyager class and thus with no overnight cafe open to get your nom on. Thoughts?

I suspect goods will be kept on hand for special requests even with DD setups. While we don't know yet to what extent that will be, I'll be pretty shocked if they don't keep a decent stock for said special requests.

I recall a late night poolside buffet one night on Enchantment on an old itenerary, though i can't remember if it was a sea day or the night we left Cozumel.

You pretty much summed up what I was thinking as well. For those who go with the drink package BECAUSE of the higher single price, again the servers didn't like the packages supposedly. If that is the true motivation behind the hike it would seem like a lose/lose for them and by proxy the cruiser.

By no compensation do you mean no refund (i.e. they just canceled and kept your money) or they did refund but didn't offer OBC or some form of compensation for the trouble?

It looks to me like you might both call Royal and also speak to a travel agent about this. Royal might know something, but I hear their agents dont always know 100% of the info. Perhaps a local TA could provide further insight. I looked up the event in question though and to me it sounds pretty pervasive for the whole week indeed, leaving me in doubt if they would just have a venue for short times or if the whole cruise compass is good as gone to their 'extravaganza'.

I see this as a bad idea in so many ways. Casual drinkers such as myself will just save the money and drink back on shore. Furthermore, I can forsee this adding to what seems to be a concern of a culture of irresponsibility in drinking. What do they really think is going to happen when people feel they HAVE to buy a package and then HAVE to 'get their moneys worth'? Sure there are many who won't go overboard(pun not intended)... but as with any statistic the more of anything you have the higher the amount of subsets you're going to have. Say 100 get the package and 10 get obnoxiously drunk, magnify that to 500 and that's likely to be 50 etc etc. This may be a doom and gloom assumption but I think it is a reasonable assumption to make. Dealing with potentially more drunks onboard? Blech. Regardless, I cannot see myself justified paying for the full package and I WILL NOT pay 40% more for a mixed drink that I can already get for a bit less on land. Even vacation inflation acceptance has it's limits.

I suggest a nose clip (like the kind for swimming). You may look silly, but it will save your sinuses from the fury that is the force of that flowriding water :) .

On our first cruise, with the old style envelopes at the end of trip, I did feel a bit pressured to leave more. However, with automatic tipping and not seeing any hint of it after prepayment before the cruise began I no longer felt pressured (well ok still on alcohol, bit that's a different matter). I like being able to prepay and forget. For that matter I wouldn't mind if they just rolled it into the cost and not have to see it at all. I doubt that will happen here in the States however since people used to tipping might then feel obligated to tip not knowing it was already included in fare. Overseas i'm a bit surprised it isn't already rolled in.

I would like to not worry about price as well, but since I would have to get the highest tier to ensure getting all of whats in the replenish package I would have to drink ALOT I'm afraid. I can see myself drinking 3ish mixed drinks a day leaving up to a 14/day gap. I suppose if I didn't eat so much in the Windjammer the first half of the day I might actually have room for more drinks haha.

Here's an idea for Royal, b2b discount or incentives on top of the base offer. I don't know if b2b'ers tend to taper off on how much they spend closer to the end of the whole cruise if at all. Depending on that it may or may not be in their business interest to offer something like that. Still, I think that would be a great way to offer something unique (I assume) within the industry.

Our experience at Chops on Navigator was good. The price was more than I would pay on land, but then the ambiance was on par with a higher end steak house in our metro area. The filet mignon was pretty tasty and our waiter was very attentive. That steak in the Windjammer at lunch WAS pretty tender though... so I suppose that shows how easy to please with food I am haha.

I believe the Grande is one of the 4 included dining choices.

I couldn't agree more, although in fairness I also tend to stay with one company when I have a good experience, pricing, etc.