Experimental Drink Package Calculator

[Grenadyr]

I made a spreadsheet to calculate my break even point for getting the Deluxe Beverage Package on an upcoming cruise.  It turned out to be pretty useful and I thought others might find it interesting.  So...  I made a site on Wix to host an online version of the calculator for anyone that might be interested.

DrinkCalc

DrinkCalc V.2  (Now prettier and hopefully easier to use.)

I'm open to feedback to improve it as needed.  Keep in mind the options for style are limited but I can tweak the math as much as I want.

Edited June 3, 2019 by Grenadyr
Added V.2 link

[HeWhoWaits]

The ability to select number of nights and number of port days isn't functional. Otherwise, looks great.

[Matt]

Neat idea!

[JLMoran]

This looks really good! Two minor comments:

1. I know you said you're limited in how much control you have over layout, but is it possible to have the calculator panel just be entirely on the main page, instead of being embedded inside a scrolling pane? While it works fine on a desktop computer and a tablet, the current setup makes using the page very hard on a  smartphone -- I wasn't able to scroll the inner pane half the time, and tapping on a control lower down in the pane like "Bottled Water" or "Percent of time on ship in port days" would cause the panel to jump back to the top
2. I think saying that 50% of a port day is spent on the ship is a little high, although I realize it's pretty variable depending on the hours the ship is in port, how popular the port is, etc.
   • Defaulting to 33% might be a better / more conservative estimate, since a lot of the time people will leave the ship right after breakfast and not be back until shortly before dinner
   • I do realize that if you stay up late enough, you really can spend about 50% of your day on board, but I would argue you're not drinking over that 50% the same amount you would be if you were on board for the "50%" between breakfast and dinner, just because you're likely to be tired out, more inclined to want water for a while, etc.

Really appreciate this! It helps figure out the "magic number" for when to buy a package or not!

[Fuzzywuzzy]

When I booked my cruise they said there would be no math.

[Momof4crazytocruise]

Thanks for this. While I knew deep down I would find no challenge getting my money's worth - now it seems justifiable   Also, I drink too much evidently.

[Grenadyr]

7 hours ago, JLMoran said:

This looks really good! Two minor comments:

1. I know you said you're limited in how much control you have over layout, but is it possible to have the calculator panel just be entirely on the main page, instead of being embedded inside a scrolling pane? While it works fine on a desktop computer and a tablet, the current setup makes using the page very hard on a  smartphone -- I wasn't able to scroll the inner pane half the time, and tapping on a control lower down in the pane like "Bottled Water" or "Percent of time on ship in port days" would cause the panel to jump back to the top
2. I think saying that 50% of a port day is spent on the ship is a little high, although I realize it's pretty variable depending on the hours the ship is in port, how popular the port is, etc.
   • Defaulting to 33% might be a better / more conservative estimate, since a lot of the time people will leave the ship right after breakfast and not be back until shortly before dinner
   • I do realize that if you stay up late enough, you really can spend about 50% of your day on board, but I would argue you're not drinking over that 50% the same amount you would be if you were on board for the "50%" between breakfast and dinner, just because you're likely to be tired out, more inclined to want water for a while, etc.

Really appreciate this! It helps figure out the "magic number" for when to buy a package or not!

The first one I can't do much about due the limitations in the service I'm using.  I'll need to find a more flexible standalone website builder that I can work with.  Maybe changing the input fields to the same style as the cruise length and port stays will make it easier to scroll.  I noticed that scrolling on my phone would routinely screw up the values I entered on the drink sliders.

The second one is done.  I changed the default to 33 and allowed selection of any whole number value between 0 and 100.

[Grenadyr]

5 hours ago, Momof4crazytocruise said:

Thanks for this. While I knew deep down I would find no challenge getting my money's worth - now it seems justifiable   Also, I drink too much evidently.

I know how you feel.  I'm not sure if I should be relieved or concerned that I should definitely get my monies worth buying the drink package.

[Cruzinfun]

Thank you, this is really helpful and very simple!   

[janesta]

Thanks - this is really nice.  One suggestion would be to tell you which package would be your best bet based on selections.  For me, the DBP is a no-brainer

[Grenadyr]

On 6/2/2019 at 7:33 AM, Cruzinfun said:

Thank you, this is really helpful and very simple!   

Glad it was helpful. 

On 6/2/2019 at 10:21 AM, janesta said:

Thanks - this is really nice.  One suggestion would be to tell you which package would be your best bet based on selections.  For me, the DBP is a no-brainer

DBP was a pretty easy choice for me as well.  I may break even but its more about not seeing dollar signs every time I get a drink, and being able to relax instead.

I thought about the the drink package selection and feel it strays too far away from "pure" math and would involve logic and decision making work.  I'm just a geek / mechanic not a real programmer so its probably beyond my ability to do in a useful fashion.  I have made a different version of the calculator via a different service that may be more streamlined, but have yet to deploy it.

[Grenadyr]

Alright, Drinkcalc V.2 is ready for testing.  The underlying math is identical but the interface is better due to it being through a different service.

DrinkCalc V.2

Edited June 3, 2019 by Grenadyr
spelling

[Matt]

Great work @Grenadyr !

[JLMoran]

Thanks for the update, @Grenadyr! This is much better on mobile than the prior version, and I definitely prefer the use of the +/- buttons vs. adjusting a slider.

Now if Royal would just get the Deluxe package on my sailing down / close to $46 / night...

[WannaCruise]

Very cool!  Thanks for sharing.

[tdcackler]

Great app! 

[monctonguy]

That's pretty good...I need to look more into those fresh squeezed OJ, premium coffees and milkshakes...I have been missing out!!!!

 

But for me..I know its worth it...its usually paid for the whole cruise on the first day...(on my 4 day cruises)..may take till end of day 2 to break even on my upcoming 7 day cruise.....

[darketower]

This is great - we are coming up on our 4th cruise and this is the first time we've decided to get the drink package.  I always do some rough calculating to try to justify or not justify buying the drink package but this far superior to what i typically do. Thanks for sharing - it certainly make me feel better knowing that I made the right choice on the upcoming cruise.

[Jill]

That’s pretty cool and drink package definitely a deal for me and I was conservative! 

It didn’t have champagne (we have a mimosa every morning) so I just added an extra wine. 

I’m assuming fruity, frozen drinks on the pool deck count as cocktails? 

[AshleyDillo]

18 minutes ago, Jill said:

I’m assuming fruity, frozen drinks on the pool deck count as cocktails? 

Yes they do!

[JLMoran]

1 hour ago, Jill said:

It didn’t have champagne (we have a mimosa every morning) so I just added an extra wine.

Mimosa is probably counted / charged as just a regular mixed drink rather than wine, since the glass isn't filled with the bubbly. Either way...

[sk8erguy1978]

1 hour ago, Jill said:

we have a mimosa every morning

I need to achieve your level.

[Jill]

On 9/13/2019 at 3:31 PM, sk8erguy1978 said:

I need to achieve your level.

We started that 2 cruises ago.  

[JLMoran]

@Grenadyr, just had a thought about this calculator as I was using once again -- Is there a way to modify the program so that items like the Fresh-squeezed OJ (only available at breakfast) and specialty coffees (can argue most often bought in the morning, at least for the first one) are not "depreciated" in the spend-per-port-day calculation?

I'm just thinking that if someone expects to have a fresh OJ with breakfast every day, that would likely happen on port days as well as sea days. Likewise, if someone says they're only have one coffee a day then it's likely with or right after breakfast, and would be as likely to be bought on a port day as a sea day. Maybe the second coffee and higher still gets "depreciated" for port days, though. Same goes for bottled water -- people with the drink packages tend to always grab a bottle or two as they leave the ship to go into port, so they can stay hydrated through the day without having to buy any on land (if it's even available).

I don't know how much flexibility the calcapp site allows for things like that, but thought I'd mention it as it's always good to try and get as close to a real estimate as possible. It'd be especially useful for folks with the Refreshment package, since counting those drinks at full price on the port days helps better track how good the current price is vs. expected consumption.

[Grenadyr]

On 9/18/2019 at 6:25 PM, JLMoran said:

@Grenadyr, just had a thought about this calculator as I was using once again -- Is there a way to modify the program so that items like the Fresh-squeezed OJ (only available at breakfast) and specialty coffees (can argue most often bought in the morning, at least for the first one) are not "depreciated" in the spend-per-port-day calculation?

I'm just thinking that if someone expects to have a fresh OJ with breakfast every day, that would likely happen on port days as well as sea days. Likewise, if someone says they're only have one coffee a day then it's likely with or right after breakfast, and would be as likely to be bought on a port day as a sea day. Maybe the second coffee and higher still gets "depreciated" for port days, though. Same goes for bottled water -- people with the drink packages tend to always grab a bottle or two as they leave the ship to go into port, so they can stay hydrated through the day without having to buy any on land (if it's even available).

I don't know how much flexibility the calcapp site allows for things like that, but thought I'd mention it as it's always good to try and get as close to a real estimate as possible. It'd be especially useful for folks with the Refreshment package, since counting those drinks at full price on the port days helps better track how good the current price is vs. expected consumption.

@JLMoran , Good thought.  I'll have to think about that. Ultimately it would be easier if it was a selectable option but I'm at the limit for usable fields with the level of calcapp I subscribe to.  I might be able to rig something in the background calculations.  As it stands it would probably be a blanket removal of the depreciation for coffee, juice, and water.  That would be easily done without needing another field.

[Stan G]

Wow, great tool. I anecdotally thought that when you added in the non-alcoholic drinks one would normally have throughout the day, it wouldn't take very many cocktails to hit the break even point. For us that number looks to be about 3. Great to see that assumption validated to some degree. Thank you!

[VinceC]

On ‎5‎/‎28‎/‎2019 at 8:32 PM, Grenadyr said:

I made a spreadsheet to calculate my break even point for getting the Deluxe Beverage Package on an upcoming cruise.  It turned out to be pretty useful and I thought others might find it interesting.  So...  I made a site on Wix to host an online version of the calculator for anyone that might be interested.

DrinkCalc

DrinkCalc V.2  (Now prettier and hopefully easier to use.)

I'm open to feedback to improve it as needed.  Keep in mind the options for style are limited but I can tweak the math as much as I want.

Do you have this app created in any sort of spreadsheet format or something you can share that can be downloaded an used offline?

[CruisingCrewser]

@Grenadyr thanks for creating this calculator. My wife and I are about to book our first ever cruise. We have spoke with friends and co-workers that cruise and have cruised. Most say do not purchase the plan while some say it is worth it for the convenience alone. 

Is there a possibility to add spirits to your beverage selection area. If i use cocktail as a choice it skews the overall cost higher.  I assume the cost you use have the gratuity included?

Thanks again,

Steve

[VinceC]

3 hours ago, CruisingCrewser said:

@Grenadyr thanks for creating this calculator. My wife and I are about to book our first ever cruise. We have spoke with friends and co-workers that cruise and have cruised. Most say do not purchase the plan while some say it is worth it for the convenience alone. 

Is there a possibility to add spirits to your beverage selection area. If i use cocktail as a choice it skews the overall cost higher.  I assume the cost you use have the gratuity included?

Thanks again,

Steve

The Drink Calc does not factor in gratuities.   The drinks/cocktails/spirits onboard range from $11 to $13, while beer is about $7 to $8.   The drink calc is used to compare your drink cost vs the drink package price before gratuities since you would have to pay gratuities either way.

5 drinks a day/person usually pays for the package.  Plus you get bottled water,  fresh squeezed juice, soda, Specialty coffees, and I am sure I am missing other items.

[JLMoran]

2 hours ago, CruisingCrewser said:

Is there a possibility to add spirits to your beverage selection area. If i use cocktail as a choice it skews the overall cost higher.

There is effectively no difference in price between getting a glass of bourbon neat or on the rocks, or getting a top-shelf margarita. Both will be charged the same amount, $12 ($13 on Q and O class).

The only time you'll see a price difference is if you're someone who enjoys super-premium whiskeys / bourbons / scotches; in that case, the bartender will give you a heads-up before pouring because that will cost more (sometimes by a very sizable amount).

[Shaky]

Hello Grenadyr

How up to date is your price list? and is it from every vessel?, (I am going on a transatlantic cruise in October on board Independence of the seas), and does it include service charge?

Will there be a discounted price offer, closer to the date, do you think?

Thank you in advance.

 

[MikeSD]

Darn, wish I had seen this before. I ended up making my own spreadsheet, so here's a few suggestions.

Since the Deluxe Drink Package may require you to buy multiple, you might add another row or 2 to include multiple adults in same cabin. My wife's drinking habits differ from mine such as I drink more premium coffee and she drinks more wine, so the extra columns allows me to see our realistic consumption. The second suggestion is to add the Gratuity amount. Maybe a field one can enter. I know the current is 18%, but that may change over time.

[BTE]

On 6/3/2019 at 5:01 PM, Grenadyr said:

Alright, Drinkcalc V.2 is ready for testing.  The underlying math is identical but the interface is better due to it being through a different service.

DrinkCalc V.2

Awesome  Thanks!

[vmof]

This is a great tool.  Thank you for making this

[Grenadyr]

Since I'm cruising again after too long of a break I've decided I need to update and repost DrinkCalc, now at V.3.  

The math is the same but the interface and prices have been updated.

I was looking back at the comments and I'm thinking about integrating a selectable feature to not depreciate coffee and juice on port days for more accurate calculations.  I've also added two "misc" fields at the bottom for less common drink options.  The drink prices are also adjustable, but the new prices will reset to default whenever the page is reloaded due to lack of any persistent database function.

Both the calculator host and website host are also now free which means it won't be subject to price increases which is what killed the last version.

Enjoy, and please feel free to suggest improvements or let me know if you find any bugs.

Quick Edit:  The calculator now shows your average daily drink cost both with and without discounting coffee and juice on port days.  Admittedly it made more of a difference than I expected.  Cheers!

Edited November 11, 2024 by Grenadyr
Added update to original message.