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Hello,

We are taking a cruise next November.  I am a planner so I like to research and find out all tips and tricks early LOL!

Regarding the drink packages, currently they are offered at 20% off.  Does the discount get bigger?  If so, would it probably get bigger closer to my date of sail?  Is the price that is listed is it that amount plus tax and 18% gratuity?  

We are taking a 7 day cruise, do we pay for 6 days as you will be leaving the ship on the last day in the morning?

 

Thank you in advance!!

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1) You pay for all 7 days if you buy it on the cruise planner, there is no way to opt out of that.  Keep in mind your first day (embarkation day) is part of the 7.  While you do not get 7 full 24 hour periods its pretty close if you board early.

2) You will often see 30% off of the packages throughout the year.  20% is the normal cruise planner price which is discounted off the ship price.  With your cruise being so far away I would wait a few weeks to see what RCCL does this black friday for beverage package deals.  If you see better than 20% grab it and you can always cancel / rebuy if the discount becomes greater than what you have.

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Discounts can get better but the changes are sporadic. As @marti314 mentioned Black Friday will probably see the steepest discounts. I'm taking HOS end of this year and the best discount I've seen so far for the Deluxe is buy 1 get 2nd 50% off (aka 25% off). The price has held for the past 30-45 days ($56). The thing to keep in mind is the discount % is based on the onboard price which in not listed. For my trip I've figured it is around 74.75 (not including gratuity)

The price listed in the planner is person per day and does NOT include the 18% gratuity. Once you add the package to your shopping cart you can see the gratuity amount. Keep in mind once you purchase the package you will be charged immediately. To take advantage of cheaper discounts once you've purchased, you will need to cancel your existing package purchase and then purchase the new discount package. (maybe one day RC will make this easier, but I think they like to float the money to get interest and claim revenue)

Also, be aware that RC does offer some drinks that exceed the Drink Package price limits. For example, see the 2019 drink prices for some of the wines that go over the $13 cap. No worries, in these cases you will just get charged the overage amount (drink + gratuity) to your Sea Pass account.

Here are some helpful links:

Drink Package Calculator:  https://connect.calcapp.net/?app=9tts3#/

2019 Drink Prices: https://www.royalcaribbeanblog.com/boards/index.php?/topic/11704-drink-menu-2019/

 

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48 minutes ago, Newbie Cruiser said:

We are taking a 7 day cruise, do we pay for 6 days as you will be leaving the ship on the last day in the morning?

If you are on a week long cruise, it is actually a 7 night cruise which means you'll be on board for 8 different days.  Six full days and two partial days which can come fairly close to a full day if you board early enough.  You'll have 7 dinners, 7 breakfasts, and 7 lunches unless you board late in the afternoon, but then you're missing part of the vacation you paid for!  The drink package works the same way, 7 daily charges.  Same thing with gratuities, 7 daily charges.

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I watch it pretty religiously and see really no correlation to "percent off" and what the price actually is. I think it honestly follows an algorithm based on sales. So you just have to keep watching it. However, I haven't looked on a Black Friday day, but hearing the feed back on this blog - I definitely will this time around. The best price I have seen it in 6 months was $46. It was when it was a '30%' off "sale". However other times it was listed as 30% off - the price was higher, $49, and $52 that I saw. And the $46 price was only there for a few hours. So I can't make any rhyme or reason of it. 

Don't be fooled by the 'buy one, get one' either - the price that is listed is what you will pay for both packages. It says 'discount reflected in price'. Then add 18% gratuity on top of that.

For your 2nd question - you buy it based on the number of nights. It's good for the moment you walk on board to the moment you walk off (but not many bars will be open debarkation morning - but I have gotten a fresh juice at breakfast on debarkation day, and a spiked coffee from the coffee bar). 

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40 minutes ago, Momof4crazytocruise said:

I watch it pretty religiously and see really no correlation to "percent off" and what the price actually is. 

100% this.  Never look at the percentage off on the drink package, or anything else, as it's pretty meaningless. Look at the bottom line price.  Personally, because I'm just that much nerd, I keep track of prices (my  memory sucks).  So if I know I'm going to want to buy something, and for some reason I'm simply not ready to, I write down what the price is (again, not the discount percentage, the actual price) so that  I know when it goes down. I check prices often (seriously, more often than is likely healthy), but have managed to catch really good prices on drink packages, dining packages, internet/Key and excursions (prices that lasted for anywhere from 8 hours to a week and never came down that low again). I keep checking even after purchase because I will cancel and rebook if the price goes down. Many of these great deals didn't occur during advertised Cruise Planner sales.

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Ignore the % off/BOGO type sales on things like drink packages, just look at the bottom line price.  There is no rhyme/reason it seems to how they advertise some of these things.  If you're happy with the price, book it.  You can always cancel and re-book if the price drops up until 3 days prior to sailing.  Note that when you do this, OBC used is refunded immediately but money to your CC can take a few days.

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  • 2 weeks later...
12 hours ago, Afc said:

Does royal Caribbean offer any  kind of discounted drink packages on day of boarding? 

This year they have been offering the BOGO50 on day one only.  

All prices in the cruise planner are relative to the onboard rate.  BOGO50 in the cruise planner before sailing is calculated using the onboard price not the previous sale price someone saw the week before.  This confuses a lot of people because they want it to be BOGO50 from the last sale price they saw.  What confuses people about cruise planner pricing is that you don't know what the onboard price is until you get onboard and by that time the cruise planner is closed.  

While they have been offering BOGO50 on board this year that could disappear at any time.  Don't count on that being available for your cruise on boarding day.  

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6 minutes ago, YOLO said:

What's this?  Is there a significant Diamond Plus DBP discount?  I'll be D+ in two cruises, so I am trying to learn all this stuff.

30% off the onboard price.  It's usually still cheaper to go through the Cruise Planner.  You can't use the D+ discount until you are onboard the ship.

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Anything under $50 is a good price for the unlimited drink package.  The lowest I have ever paid was $44.  My upcoming February cruise it has been hovering between $51 and $55.  I am expecting on Black Friday or Cyber Monday for it to drop to $46-$48, which is when I plan on buying it.  Fingers crossed.   

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Do the drink package prices also depend on the itinerary? For example, drink packages are more expensive on itineraries that stop at CocoCay or Labadee (since you can use the drink package at those stops)?

The price for my upcoming Oasis August 2020 cruise (with a stop in CocoCay) has not budged from $65 pp.pd. Hopefully Black Friday brings some good sales!

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4 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

Do the drink package prices also depend on the itinerary? For example, drink packages are more expensive on itineraries that stop at CocoCay or Labadee (since you can use the drink package at those stops)?

The price for my upcoming Oasis August 2020 cruise (with a stop in CocoCay) has not budged from $65 pp.pd. Hopefully Black Friday brings some good sales!

They seem to be pricier (IMO) on the shorter cruises.  I haven't noticed a difference when the private islands are on the itinerary.  

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4 minutes ago, RockerDom31 said:

Do the drink package prices also depend on the itinerary? For example, drink packages are more expensive on itineraries that stop at CocoCay or Labadee (since you can use the drink package at those stops)?

The price for my upcoming Oasis August 2020 cruise (with a stop in CocoCay) has not budged from $65 pp.pd. Hopefully Black Friday brings some good sales!

Thats a good point, I'm also wondering though it the ship plays a part in what the price is.  It seems like after reading a few threads on here about the drink packages that the Oasis class seems to be more expensive, in the $65 range, where other ships are less.  My trip on Anthem includes CocoCay and I've seen the drink package as low as $51, but hovering typically around $55

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10 hours ago, Geoff P said:

Thats a good point, I'm also wondering though it the ship plays a part in what the price is.  It seems like after reading a few threads on here about the drink packages that the Oasis class seems to be more expensive, in the $65 range, where other ships are less.  My trip on Anthem includes CocoCay and I've seen the drink package as low as $51, but hovering typically around $55

I'm going on HOTS (Oasis class) in Dec and the Deluxe price was at $56 for along time and with ~35 days from sail date it increased to $60. My advise is to book the Drink packages as soon as you can and then adjust until you get what you want or cancel all together. The only risk is that RC does take payment immediately so you might have quite a bit of cash tied up until you make your final decision. 

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