Drink packages increase for 2019/2020 sailings

[Chanda]

When did the drink packages go up in price? 

For the deluxe package: Onboard pricing is currently  $63.00 - $89.00/per day for 2019-2020 sailings.

Refreshment package: Onboard pricing is currently $29.00 - $38.00/per day for 2019-2020 sailings.

Classic soda package: Onboard pricing is currently $12.99 - $15.00/per day for 2019-2020 sailings.

https://www.royalcaribbean.com/booked/beverage-packages

[YOLO]

This varies from cruise to cruise.  For my booked cruises:

Anthem on 191021 the DBP is $51 pppd.    (Refresh $26 and Soda $8.99)

Harmony on 201101 the DBP is $65 pppd.  (Refresh $28 and Soda $8.99)

[mattymay]

Deluxe Beverage Package is no longer worth it. I've tried but I simply cannot get through $90 worth of alcohol a day for 7 days straight anymore!

[monctonguy]

Its over $100 in CAD.....in some cases close to double the cost of the cruise...insane....but Royal will continue to raise prices on everything they can to max profits....I just cant wait till they reach the break point and have to start cutting pricing to keep and attract customers....its going to happen.....just a matter of time...they are going to price themselves out of the middle class.......

[Matt]

5 hours ago, Chanda said:

When did the drink packages go up in price? 

Announced late last year: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/10/15/royal-caribbean-posts-2019-drink-package-pricing

[JLMoran]

55 minutes ago, Matt said:

Announced late last year: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/10/15/royal-caribbean-posts-2019-drink-package-pricing

That doesn't explain the price spike a number of us have seen for our upcoming late 2019 or 2020 sailings. I'm really hoping these current calculated on-board prices of ~$81/night are just a glitch and not anything permanent going forward.

Curious to know, do you have any similar articles about package price increases before that one from last year? Might give an idea of how often they've bumped the on-board price in the past and whether this might be a real, permanent bump.

[marti314]

1 hour ago, Matt said:

Announced late last year: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/10/15/royal-caribbean-posts-2019-drink-package-pricing

This new pricing is in addition to what they posted last year, this time upwards of 30% increase in some cases.  With gratuity 83.00 a day for a Jan 2020 sailing.  

But Wait, if they make each drink 19.95 its only 4 drinks to break even!  The Math always works! 

[Chanda]

1 hour ago, Matt said:

Announced late last year: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/2018/10/15/royal-caribbean-posts-2019-drink-package-pricing

Announced late last year: DBP $63-$79, now $63-$89. Refresh prior $29, now $29-$38. Soda prior $12.99, now $12.99-$15. 

How often do prices increase? Does it increase every year? Twice a year? 

I just saw the key program on my cruise planner for Harmony of the Seas April 2020. It's 50.53CAD, for a family of 4, probably not worth it either just like the new prices for the drink packages. 

[Susie]

 Really simple solution. Don't buy anything extra except you think it worth it. 

[Matt]

2 hours ago, marti314 said:

With gratuity 83.00 a day for a Jan 2020 sailing.  

That's in Australia Dollars, not US.

My Brilliance Jan 2020 sailing shows UDP for $65 per person

[marti314]

Unfortunately this is USD.  69 + 12.42 grat = 81.42 per day USD.  If the onboard was really 69 + 20% this puts the On board price at 83.00 + 18% = 98.00 per day.

I feel like that 50 ish dollars per day price (now that it requires you the other person in your cabin to purchase) was that breaking point.  Women typically can not or do not drink as much as men so this just becomes almost impossible to justify.

[marti314]

I am beginning to wonder if we are being TRICKED into thinking that pre-cruise purchases are always cheaper.  Boarding day on Liberty last week had this.  Obviously the math comes out to be 49.50 a day per person and it never ever went below 52 a day on the cruise planner throughout all the sales.  Yes they did remove this offer after day 1

[VinceC]

I just got off the Allure and I think the Boarding day prices were lower than everything that I have seen in the Cruise Planner.   Can this really be possible?  are we getting shammed into pre-purchasing or is this just a rare occurrence?

[WAAAYTOOO]

This is the second such posting I have read today.  Maybe things are changing !!

[DublinFC]

This is something to keep an eye on.  has anyone who was recently on a cruise noticed the drink cards being sold?  I am wondering if holding out for them on a 7 day sailing would be worth it? 

 

[Yo2slick]

1 hour ago, marti314 said:

I am beginning to wonder if we are being TRICKED into thinking that pre-cruise purchases are always cheaper.  Boarding day on Liberty last week had this.  Obviously the math comes out to be 49.50 a day per person and it never ever went below 52 a day on the cruise planner throughout all the sales.  Yes they did remove this offer after day 1

Our Liberty sailing has been on sale for 46 per day for end of August.  How weird.

[marti314]

1 hour ago, Yo2slick said:

Our Liberty sailing has been on sale for 46 per day for end of August.  How weird.

I think thats expected since I am guessing that sailing was rather inexpensive meaning they are trying to get any revenue they can.

[cobra614]

I booked our first cruise ever for this past July last December,  watched the cruise planner almost every day and bought the key for $19.99 and the deluxe beverage package for $49 plus gratuities on Symphony.  I just booked a May 2020 cruise today on harmony today (thanks Stehpanie from MEI) and the key is $37.99 and the deluxe beverage package is $65 before gratuities.  No way I'll pay those prices, so I will be stalking the cruise planner for sure.

[OrlandoC]

I think most of the prices being shown are near full price. Royal just came off that week long planner sale at the start of August so not many people are getting the low rates right now. For example my October Mariner 4 night went up from $49 during the sale to $65 now. They didn't jack up the regular price this week. It is just not being discounted. 

If your sailing is still far out keep looking for the price to drop again. It likely will. 

[VinceC]

4 hours ago, marti314 said:

I am beginning to wonder if we are being TRICKED into thinking that pre-cruise purchases are always cheaper.  Boarding day on Liberty last week had this.  Obviously the math comes out to be 49.50 a day per person and it never ever went below 52 a day on the cruise planner throughout all the sales.  Yes they did remove this offer after day 1

I just came off the Allure and this was the Boarding Day deal, $490 for 1st and 1/2 off 2nd ($245) totaling $735 for 2 persons.

$367.50/person and $52.50/day/person.  Are we getting ripped off?

[lkg276]

They seem to be recouping the $18.00 mistake by raising the upcoming cruises. Just a thought......

[OrlandoC]

26 minutes ago, VinceC said:

I just came off the Allure and this was the Boarding Day deal, $490 for 1st and 1/2 off 2nd ($245) totaling $735 for 2 persons.

$367.50/person and $52.50/day/person.  Are we getting ripped off?

That seems like a fair deal to me. The Liberty has the $12 drinks vs the $13 on the Allure so the packages are comparable in price. Its around the amount you can get from the Cruise Planner if you watch for the biggest price drops.

Reading between the lines, I think these Day 1 BOGO deals are a result of poor sales after they raised the on-board prices at the start of 2019. All the sales people they have wandering around the port and ships trying to sell packages were probably getting laughed out of the room when they said it was $70-$90+ per person per day. There was probably a huge drop in those purchases so instead of admitting defeat and lowering the package to 2018 levels they now have "One Day ONLY!" sales on board comparable to the Cruise Planner sales.

 

[cobra614]

31 minutes ago, VinceC said:

I just came off the Allure and this was the Boarding Day deal, $490 for 1st and 1/2 off 2nd ($245) totaling $735 for 2 persons.

$367.50/person and $52.50/day/person.  Are we getting ripped off?

If this is before gratuities  than I paid less at $49.00 A day per person on my July Symphony cruise.

[CoupleOfCruisers]

6 hours ago, marti314 said:

Unfortunately this is USD.  69 + 12.42 grat = 81.42 per day USD.  If the onboard was really 69 + 20% this puts the On board price at 83.00 + 18% = 98.00 per day.

I feel like that 50 ish dollars per day price (now that it requires you the other person in your cabin to purchase) was that breaking point.  Women typically can not or do not drink as much as men so this just becomes almost impossible to justify.

I’m a little confused are gratuities included in posted price of $69? If not do you pay when buy the package or per drink once on ship? 

[WAAAYTOOO]

The price that is posted on the website is the “base” price for the UDP. On top of that you must prepay the 18% gratuity.  Once you pay the full price (base + gratuity) you are fully paid. If you purchase drinks one at a time (no package) you will pay the cost of the drink + 18% gratuity.

[Andrew3232]

6 hours ago, CoupleOfCruisers said:

I’m a little confused are gratuities included in posted price of $69? If not do you pay when buy the package or per drink once on ship? 

$69 plus 18% gratuities = $81.42 per day per person.

[marti314]

13 hours ago, CoupleOfCruisers said:

I’m a little confused are gratuities included in posted price of $69? If not do you pay when buy the package or per drink once on ship? 

Think of mandatory gratuities as just part of the price of the package.  Since you can not opt out of them even if service doesnt warrant it you always just need to look at the price you see + 18% on top of that.  

[CruiseGus]

Have to keep an eye on these new out of the ordinary boarding day sales.  It is like the 10 drink card, which have never been something you can count on.  I have in fact seen a few 10 drink card sales, but only on a low percentage of cruises, maybe 20%.   I do not ever remember a drink package "sale" with any type of discount on any  previous sailing.

 

 

 

[mattymay]

It's the one thing about the US that is kinda annoying... + Gratuity + Tax.... just advertise the final price already! Arghhh!!

 

[Orange Crush]

I feel like Royal's doing too much nickel and diming for the base fares they're charging.  

I'm looking at options for an Alaska trip next year and I'm seeing quite a few sailings where Celebrity, which is allegedly the "premium brand" is pretty close to a comparable Royal itinerary's base price but includes perks like a drink package and better OBC.  Royal's may be a couple hundred dollars cheaper here and there, but after all the packages, Celeb's often less expensive overall.

[Ogalthorpe Haywood]

On 8/14/2019 at 7:30 PM, mattymay said:

It's the one thing about the US that is kinda annoying... + Gratuity + Tax.... just advertise the final price already! Arghhh!!

 

I agree, when gratuity is mandatory and not left to anyone’s judgement it should just be added up front. 

[puertorican]

Well for my November Cruise, I paid $48 day +tip, just for me, because my wife did not drink alcohol, so I bought for her the Refreshment Pkg for $20 day + tip.  That was $396.48 for my Deluxe pkg and $165.20 for my wife's, IMHO, it was very similar cost to my last year cruise drink packages.

[FManke]

On 8/14/2019 at 6:30 PM, mattymay said:

It's the one thing about the US that is kinda annoying... + Gratuity + Tax.... just advertise the final price already! Arghhh!!

 

Obviously it's just marketing, but I agree. We only care about the final cost.

$9.99 vs $10.00 Really? 

[Cat mom]

I’m wondering if they have managed to out price themselves.  The pre cruise drink packages have gotten so expensive people are passing, Choosing to limit their drinking, bring their own wine and soda on board and have cocktails in ports.  This all add up to low sales for Royal forcing them to run deals on board (the drink card Seems to be making a comeback)  in order to reach their sales qoutas. Perhaps in the summer and holidays during high volume cruise season the high price packages will sells but my guess they will figure this out and we will start seeing better “ sales” on cruise planner.

[FManke]

5 minutes ago, Cat mom said:

I’m wondering if they have managed to out price themselves.  The pre cruise drink packages have gotten so expensive people are passing, Choosing to limit their drinking, bring their own wine and soda on board and have cocktails in ports.  This all add up to low sales for Royal forcing them to run deals on board (the drink card Seems to be making a comeback)  in order to reach their sales qoutas. Perhaps in the summer and holidays during high volume cruise season the high price packages will sells but my guess they will figure this out and we will start seeing better “ sales” on cruise planner.

I don't think they have out priced themselves, it's just the way marketing goes. You have a fixed price and then run periodic "sales." The price onboard is just to lure those who decide at the last minute to purchase a drink plan. An impulse buy. The drink cards are a way to catch those last people who say a couple days in, "shoot. We should have purchased a drink plan."  A lot of people wait until the cards go on sale. They are a pretty good deal. Also, I don't know many people who pay full price for a drink plan these days, unless your on a holiday cruise maybe. 

[VinceC]

What is the Maximum Discount that anyone has seen in the Cruise Planner for the Deluxe Beverage Package?

[Jolly Ogre]

On 9/1/2019 at 9:44 AM, FManke said:

Obviously it's just marketing, but I agree. We only care about the final cost.

$9.99 vs $10.00 Really? 

If it was only that much a difference, then yes who cares but it is more like $392 vs $463 + $232. 

[FManke]

Just now, Jolly Ogre said:

If it was only that much a difference, then yes who cares but it is more like $392 vs $463 + $232. 

I was talking about the price+ tax + gratuity vs just a flat cost. 

[Jolly Ogre]

1 hour ago, FManke said:

I was talking about the price+ tax + gratuity vs just a flat cost. 

So am I.

Do the math.

For a 7 day cruise, it's $392 for me. Then $463 with the gratuity and tax and then the refreshment package for my wife that they make me pay for even though she will not use it. 

[marti314]

18 hours ago, Jolly Ogre said:

So am I.

Do the math.

For a 7 day cruise, it's $392 for me. Then $463 with the gratuity and tax and then the refreshment package for my wife that they make me pay for even though she will not use it. 

They make a pregnant woman get the REFRESHMENT package when you request not to buy 2 Deluxe.....

Lets think about that:

Sugary Soda Drinks filled with Caffeine - Perfect for Pregnant Women

Caffeine filled espresso drinks: Perfect

Sugary Mocktails - Lets get that baby dancin

Fresh Squeezed OJ: Better drink 8 a day to make up for the 22.00 a day

Bottled Water: Fine if you force yourself to justify bottled water over the perfectly fine filtered water available everywhere.