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Felt cheated but maybe an opportunity for others


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We just got back from our Adventure of the Seas cruise and overall had a great time.  We didn't buy the drink package because it was a 6 day cruise with 3 port stops so we didn't think it would balance out for us.  Although we did come in slightly under the money probably going forward we'll buy it in the future.  We missed ordering drinks that we would not normally have, which is a plus for us when we've had the package.

I did buy the soda package for my wife as she has to have here soda fix every day.  One thing I noticed there were a lot of soda glasses from previous cruises brought on board.  They were pretty easy to spot as the new glass is completely different.  It looked to me like the old glass worked in the freestyle machine.  I can't be sure however.  I do know when the wife used the new cup it indicated a date that the refills were good for, which was a few days past the end of the cruise.  I thought all of the old cups also were RFI'd so they would not work past your cruise.  Anyway throwing this out for general discussion.  Being the rule follower that I am I would think if people can use the old cup to not buy the package RCL will eventually just raise the price and change the rules like they have done with the drink package.  Of course maybe everyone was just getting water in the old cups.  Interested in your thoughts.

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I'm sure it wasn't a case of people bringing on a used cup. Once used a cup normally has a 14 day life span before the system expires the code for the chip.

I'm sure what is going on right now with the news cups and inventory of old cups are still working their way out.

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Expanding thoughts... If you look at the blog post about the new cups you can see the display still having sealed old cups.

https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2019/04/15/spotted-new-coca-cola-souvenir-cup-featuring-lid-and-handle

57430334_1830013430433255_64116189285601

Off chance I could be mistaken that the sealed ones are the new design. However the lids look like the previous version.

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Perhaps it was just an oversight but we did not have any soda cups in our room when we boarded Freedom on Sunday.  We both have the DBP.  We never use the cups anyway so I didn’t even miss them until today when I saw someone with one and thought to myself  “HEY !  Where’s my cup - the one that I will never ever use ? “

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I'm not sure how the start date is triggered on a Royal ship, but I know at one theme park that has the Freestyle machines when you purchase the unlimited refills cup it starts your 24 hours the first time you put the cup up to the dispenser.  You see this expiration time pop up on the Freestyle machine letting you know how much time you have left to use the cup.  If Royal is similarly programmed then perhaps the 14 day window starts at the first use.  So if someone never activated their cup at a machine on a prior cruise and brought it on a later cruise they would be able to start using it.  Again, I don't know if Royal activates the cups by the box for each cruise or lets the Freestyle machine do it.  I'm not a fan of having to carry and use the same cup for a week long cruise, but I like the wide variety of options and flavors in the machines.  

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That sounds like stealing to me...if they didn't pay for the soda package and they are using cup from previous cruise, then that's stealing.

We don't drink a lot to make the drink package worth it (well maybe for DH, but we both have to buy it and I drink at most 2 drinks...could do 3 on the odd day)....but did they offer any drink cards on the 6 night Adventure cruise?  We saw that on Symphony where it came out on day 4 and was a great option.

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1 hour ago, WannaCruise said:

That sounds like stealing to me...if they didn't pay for the soda package and they are using cup from previous cruise, then that's stealing.

It certainly is. Just because you can do it does not mean you should. Moreover, if you were to ask RC if this is allowed, of course the answer would be no.

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We dont drink a lot of soda, neither does our kids. Me and the wife got the Deluxe package that also comes with the Freestyle cups that we will get very little use out of. Would you guys look down on me if I were to get my rare fountain drink and share a few sips with my kids here and there? Again, they don't drink much soda at all and I would feel it would be a complete waste to separately pay for a soda for them that won't even get finished. Not trying to steal, just trying to be reasonable.

 

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19 hours ago, CGTLH said:

I'm sure it wasn't a case of people bringing on a used cup. Once used a cup normally has a 14 day life span before the system expires the code for the chip.

I'm sure what is going on right now with the news cups and inventory of old cups are still working their way out.

This is my thought. If OP saw "several" people using the old ones, that means there were inevitably many, many more using the old ones that they didn't happen to see. So it means either lots of people took old cups on board just hoping they would work, or the ship was running through two different stockpiles of different looking cups. To me, it seems obvious it would be the latter.

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Just now, nanowerx said:

We dont drink a lot of soda, neither does our kids. Me and the wife got the Deluxe package that also comes with the Freestyle cups that we will get very little use out of. Would you guys look down on me if I were to get my rare fountain drink and share a few sips with my kids here and there? Again, they don't drink much soda at all and I would feel it would be a complete waste to separately pay for a soda for them that won't even get finished. Not trying to steal, just trying to be reasonable.

 

My kids fall into the same scenario you do, and I just buy them a soda individually. It's cheaper than a drink package and half the time they don't charge me for it (probably since I'm ordering it when I have a drink package and the bartender can't be bothered to swipe the included drink and re-swipe for the paid soda).

Is it fine to give them literally one or two sips of yours? Of course. But I think when it reaches a point where they are quenching their thirst or enjoying most of a drink with your drink package benefits then there's cause for concern.  

Of course, all of this is just my opinion and neither I nor anyone here, are the arbitor of drink package enforcement.

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Thanks for the response, this will probably be the route I take, just let them have a sip or two every now and then (no chugging or continuous drinking). My 10 year old did mention that she wanted to get a Shirley Temple from the Bionic Bar, so I will definitely pay for her to get one or two of those.

I do have odd children, 99% of the time they would rather drink water, juice or a ginger ale over soda any day of the week! Not that I am complaining ?

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To me if you paid for an expensive drink package and you don't drink the soda then there is nothing wrong with letting the kids use it from time to time. Now if you are getting soda, dumping it in a yeti, then sending your kid to fill it up for themselves, then yeah, that's not really the most ethical thing to do. I wouldn't worry about it. Let the kids have some soda.

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