Scott Wooten Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 I have the ultimate drink package reserved for Harmony April 10-17 for $59.00/day. Any chance that price might go down and if so when do you predict it to drop? I've sailed before with a $39.99/day price but wasn't expecting that cheap of a price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAYNO Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 Only my experience... I have waited in the past for drink prices to go down. I have discovered, every time, the prices either: a) Stay the same b) Go up in price I hope I am wrong and you get a bargain. I just checked. I cruise on Odyssey, 4-days from now. The best "discounted" price they offered me is now $69. Guess I'll just have to spend more time in the casino, and drink for free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wilson Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 The days of $39 DX packages are gone, long gone. Purchase at the price you are comfortable with and if it goes down you can cancel for a refund and repurchase at the lower price. No they will not just refund the difference. Marc and dr martini 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Templecruiser Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 There are fluke prices sometimes out there, but it will not be fleet wide. You just have to keep looking and hopefully you find what’s suits you. We got our Deluxe beverage on Wonder of the seas in December for $44, but was a fluke imho. It’s now $70. But by being on this forum, someone mentioned the price, I found it and bought as soon as I could. So just keep checking, another may pop up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisK2793 Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 1 hour ago, Scott Wooten said: I have the ultimate drink package reserved for Harmony April 10-17 for $59.00/day. Any chance that price might go down and if so when do you predict it to drop? I've sailed before with a $39.99/day price but wasn't expecting that cheap of a price. BC —-> Before Covid, you could usually find the DBP for $42 to $49/day ……… Since Covid, it’s very very rare to get it below $61/day ….. anytime you see a price lower than $61/day, you better jump at it fast before it’s gone. SpicyCherry, WAAAYTOOO and cruisellama 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Writergina Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 Agreed, that's a pretty low price by today's standards. We got our DBP for Oasis April 17-24 way back in June of 2021 for about the same price as yours, and figured that was as good as it was going to get. Sure enough, I've been checking very regularly since then and haven't seen it get anywhere under 60 for our sailing, even during the Black Friday sale. (We did get a good $19 per day price on the Ultimate Refreshment package for our kids during Black Friday, though, and $50 per person on the waterpark admission.) I suppose there could be some sort of miraculous flash sale (or another $18 mistake?) but I think with less than 60 days to go it's unlikely. Fortunately I know both the husband and I can get our money's worth for that price! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jticarruthers Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 Prices last year when they restarted were reasonable, sky high now and i havent seen a decent deal in a while. Guess we know how the "record onboard spend" comes about PPPJJ-GCVAB, EmptyNestTravels, RWDW1204 and 1 other 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill S Posted February 22, 2022 Report Share Posted February 22, 2022 We booked our DBP about 2 weeks ago, for a cruise that starts this Sunday. Early last week, it dropped from $58 to $54, so we cancelled and rebooked it. PPPJJ-GCVAB 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cbty2050 Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 We had the DBP on an upcoming Harmony cruise at $45/. Royal canceled our cruise for non payment. We have the email w/ payment and zero balance. They claim it is was an error on their end from a price adjustment. Once they canceled the cruise they also canceled our DBP and excursions. Once we got the cruise reinstated, they couldn't honor the original purchase price of the DBP. Been all over them, we got a minimal on board credit for out troubles. Wilson and LCinPDX 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 10 hours ago, Cbty2050 said: We had the DBP on an upcoming Harmony cruise at $45/. Royal canceled our cruise for non payment. We have the email w/ payment and zero balance. They claim it is was an error on their end from a price adjustment. Once they canceled the cruise they also canceled our DBP and excursions. Once we got the cruise reinstated, they couldn't honor the original purchase price of the DBP. Been all over them, we got a minimal on board credit for out troubles. At this point I have to believe that Royal truly canNOT reinstate Cruise Planner purchases once they're cancelled (either intentionally or unintentionally). There are just too many stories of people who have lost their CP purchases for one reason or another and never once have I heard of Royal reinstating their purchases. KenCP 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gatorskin76 Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 16 hours ago, Wilson said: The days of $39 DX packages are gone, long gone. Purchase at the price you are comfortable with and if it goes down you can cancel for a refund and repurchase at the lower price. No they will not just refund the difference. Time will tell with pricing, but as you mentioned there is no real danger in booking since you can reprice. Royal is stating that cruisers are spending more on their cruises than they did pre-Covid...will that continue indefinitely? Again, time will tell, but I suspect you have the pent up demand Disney mentality of let's make this a trip of a lifetime going on. It will be interesting to see how the economics work moving forward, particularly with the potential that people have less discretionary funds in the future (rising prices) and all those FCC's being used up. At some point they are going to have to increase their population of cruisers. Maybe that happens organically with people becoming more comfortable with cruising, but again time will tell. I suspect pricing will have to "normalize" somewhat unless they increase their customer base. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LovetoCruise87 Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 Right now the package price for our Harmony cruise in September is $69.99 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cbty2050 Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 31 minutes ago, WAAAYTOOO said: At this point I have to believe that Royal truly canNOT reinstate Cruise Planner purchases once they're cancelled (either intentionally or unintentionally). There are just too many stories of people who have lost their CP purchases for one reason or another and never once have I heard of Royal reinstating their purchases. They can't, once we got to a person that could explain everything to us it made a little more sense. Unfortunately it happened, it was just the way the 1st 2 people handled it at Royal that made the whole thing miserable. We ended up with a $50 onboard credit and 2 bottles of wine. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Psycho and Barb Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 The key is to...Check your Cruise Planner...Check your Cruise Planner...Check your Cruise Planner. We don't understand why or how, but every once in a while we find a cheaper price. No sales or buy one and get 50% off...It just appears...Maybe its a glitch but we check our Cruise Planners a few times every week. By continually checking our planner, we learn what our base price is for that cruise. If we see it cheaper we cancel and rebuy it. WAAAYTOOO and Kirsten 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dimension Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 You can do like I am doing and only purchase the package when it is around the $60 mark. If it is not around that range I am now going to just buy the Refreshment package which can be easily found around the $23 range. WAAAYTOOO, ptod and PPPJJ-GCVAB 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KenCP Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 12 hours ago, Cbty2050 said: We had the DBP on an upcoming Harmony cruise at $45/. Royal canceled our cruise for non payment. We have the email w/ payment and zero balance. They claim it is was an error on their end from a price adjustment. Once they canceled the cruise they also canceled our DBP and excursions. Once we got the cruise reinstated, they couldn't honor the original purchase price of the DBP. Been all over them, we got a minimal on board credit for out troubles. Same thing happened to me when they moved our cruise from Allure to Wonder they refunded our package and would not honour the pricing. Drink package is 28$ more per day and that adds up on a 14 day cruise. Your lucky you got some onboard credit for the trouble. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr martini Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 the dbx is discussed a lot around here and it's all over the place - we almost need a few different categories now for it when comparing because a lot of numbers get thrown out there but to look at it apples to apples there are different versions the short 3/4 cruises (esp out of miami) have higher cost per day (upper $60's per person per day) because cococay is almost always included, drink package works there and it's easier to drink more for a short period of time for a fun weekend dbx on a 7 night cruise out of the a FL port with three days at sea and a stop at one of the RCL private islands (esp on a newer ship) will be as much as $20 more pp/pd than the lowest pp/pd you see discussed for, say, a 9 night out of san juan with 6 different port stops and no RCL islands so less chances to use it. lastly, the dbx bundled with wifi (not always listed online for sale) or one of the cruise planner sales 'buy one get one half off for your stateroom partner' are what I have found to be the best deal on the past several cruises we've taken. all things being equal, like everything else the dbx is obviously getting more expensive. what really chaps me is that they still upcharge for more and more premium cocktails and drinks all the time (used to be a couple on the menu, now it's almost half the menu some places) on top of the dbx number. with drinks, dining and other activities Royal keeps finding ways to squeeze more juice out of us and it clearly keeps working for them. RWDW1204 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KenCP Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 40 minutes ago, dr martini said: what really chaps me is that they still upcharge for more and more premium cocktails and drinks all the time (used to be a couple on the menu, now it's almost half the menu some places) on top of the dbx number. with drinks, dining and other activities Royal keeps finding ways to squeeze more juice out of us and it clearly keeps working for them. @dr martini As long as people are buying it they are going to try and keep doing it until Royal reaches a threshold the same as we have a limit to what we ware willing to spend. I think people right now are just so happy to be able to cruise again they are paying what ever to have a great time. Royal kind of knows this and are trying to see how far they can push it. dr martini, PPPJJ-GCVAB and RWDW1204 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 20 hours ago, ChrisK2793 said: BC —-> Before Covid, you could usually find the DBP for $42 to $49/day That's exactly the range I used for targeting my drink package pricing, too. The sweet (most frequent) spot was right around $45, IIRC. Sigh... I never got to use my $18 drink packages. Kirsten and ChrisK2793 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rackham Posted February 23, 2022 Report Share Posted February 23, 2022 From the perspective of someone who’s pre-Gold (since new cruisers was brought up), and who has a variety of itineraries booked, the Deluxe pricing I’ve seen (typically $60.99 to $69.99) isn’t worth it to me. And I would love to see Royal’s numbers on the amount of drinks the average purchaser consumes using the package. First couple of days, maybe the math would be in my favor. Later on though, after shore excursions and general drink fatigue, I couldn’t see myself clearing what the package costs. Instead, at least for a 9-night this summer, I’ve booked the Chef’s Table, Sushi and Sake, and Taste of Royal (with the intention of getting the wine pairing included in this calculation) for about $458 less than the cheapest Deluxe pricing I’ve seen. To spend the same amount as I would have on the Deluxe, I’d need to drink 30 cocktails over the entire voyage, or just over 3 per day, in addition to the exclusive dining experiences booked! I can’t see drinking that much due to personal preferences, length of time in port, and being able to bring 2 bottles of wine aboard. Yes, I did remember the mandatory 18% gratuity and I'm aware that the Deluxe is good for more than mixed drinks (ran the numbers on a variety of scenarios too). Speaking of shore excursions, the pricing on CocoCay is CocoCayzy. But I’m sure people are paying it if RCL is charging it. KristiZ and PPPJJ-GCVAB 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YNOT Posted February 26, 2022 Report Share Posted February 26, 2022 Drink packages before the shutdown were generally around $45-50 a day plus the 18% grats. Went to Aruba with RCL Sept 2021 and the DBP was $58+grats Heading out on the Wonder next weekend and the DBP is sitting at $70 or $82.60 with grats per day. This will be the first cruise we have ever taken with RCL where we pass on the DBP, getting out of control with the costs. Here is our issue. My wife and I would both have to get the package (everyone in same cabin) so that cost is actually doubled to $165.20 per day, or $1,150 for the cruise. My wife doesn't really drink during the day but I have no problem easily saving money getting the DBP, even at that price for a single drinker. What we are going to do this time is take advantage of the free drinks available to us and then just pay as we go. Got my wife the Soda package ($8 per day) so she is set during the day. As Diamond Members RCL loads four free drink vouchers a day on each of our cards for use anywhere. As Prime members in the casino all of our drinks are free but only at the Casino Royale bar. As much of our time is spent in the casino most nights, that will take care of many of our drinks. That leaves me paying as I go any other bar after the 4 vouchers are gone. Will be tracking our progress thru the app, I know we ill not get anywhere near $1,150 bar tab for this cruise. Happy Cruising Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
putinbay Posted February 26, 2022 Report Share Posted February 26, 2022 48 minutes ago, YNOT said: Drink packages before the shutdown were generally around $45-50 a day plus the 18% grats. Went to Aruba with RCL Sept 2021 and the DBP was $58+grats Heading out on the Wonder next weekend and the DBP is sitting at $70 or $82.60 with grats per day. This will be the first cruise we have ever taken with RCL where we pass on the DBP, getting out of control with the costs. We're on the Wonder, too, soon (March 11th, 2022). I agree, the DBP is really expensive! $578.20 for the week! Yikes! Traveling with my wife and 2 boys (11 & 13). Since RCL won't allow 4 people per room right now (which I really don't understand), I was forced to buy to 2 rooms, which means I will not be forced to buy 2 drink packages (since she's on the other room's reservation). That saves me nearly $600, but this savings went entirely to the other room I was forced to get. The Dining Packages are completely sold out. I'm a bit bummed about this. Was hoping to buy the 3 night package. We'll probably end up going to maybe one or two specialty dining venues. Looking forward to the cruise! Excited to be on a brand new ship! It'll only be the second cruise for the Wonder. Wonder if they'll have all the kinks worked out! We'll see! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc Posted February 27, 2022 Report Share Posted February 27, 2022 The price of specialty dining gets to me, too, but that's really just supply and demand. Clearly, enough people are paying those prices to appease our cruise masters. Still, now that we choose to sail in suites, I'm perfectly content with Coastal Kitchen's first night's filet mignon instead of Chops Grille's for $55. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wip3out Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 Do the bartenders tell you if your drink is above the price included on the DBP at the time of ordering? Or is it a case of they don’t and you find out whenever you check your onboard spending? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 6 minutes ago, Wip3out said: Do the bartenders tell you if your drink is above the price included on the DBP at the time of ordering? Or is it a case of they don’t and you find out whenever you check your onboard spending? Sometimes they warn you. I know at Bamboo Room I was warned recently that the drink I ordered went over. I think they're worried about getting chewed out by the passenger. WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spang1974 Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 In the U.K. and Ireland, RCI has been running a promotion for certain 2022 sailings, £40/$53.69 pppd on the deluxe drinks package as an add-on to the cruise fare. It is due to end today I think? I had already paid £49.75/$66.71 pppd on Black Friday so cancelled the cruise planner purchases. A huge savings on a 12 night cruise:) KristiZ and WAAAYTOOO 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nola504 Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 Will be on Freedom and drink package says up to $12.00 per day. Will I be charged the difference per drink over? (i.e., $1.00 extra for a $13.00 drink) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AshleyDillo Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 2 hours ago, nola504 said: Will be on Freedom and drink package says up to $12.00 per day. Will I be charged the difference per drink over? (i.e., $1.00 extra for a $13.00 drink) No, this is just outdated Terms & Conditions. The ships have all moved to $13 a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nola504 Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 1 hour ago, AshleyDillo said: No, this is just outdated Terms & Conditions. The ships have all moved to $13 a day. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wip3out Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 So I was just browsing the royal app and when I take a look at the drinks menu it seems prices have gone up on a lot of spirits. Some are not $11 dollars on their own. Let’s say I want a Jameson and ginger ale. Will they charge for a dash of ginger ale or will they add on 3.50 bringing the total above $13 dollars every time??? Jameson is 9.99 + 3.50 for the ginger ale. A gin and tonic would be 15.50 depending on the brand of spirit! kinda makes the drinks package less value with prices gone up on most spirits compared to pre Covid cruise prices. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpeedNoodles Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 6 minutes ago, Wip3out said: So I was just browsing the royal app and when I take a look at the drinks menu it seems prices have gone up on a lot of spirits. Some are not $11 dollars on their own. Let’s say I want a Jameson and ginger ale. Will they charge for a dash of ginger ale or will they add on 3.50 bringing the total above $13 dollars every time??? Jameson is 9.99 + 3.50 for the ginger ale. A gin and tonic would be 15.50 depending on the brand of spirit! kinda makes the drinks package less value with prices gone up on most spirits compared to pre Covid cruise prices. No, they don't do that. The chances of you ordering something that isn't covered is minimal. I've never paid an extra cent for any drink that Mr. SpeedNoodles or I have ever ordered, and he orders top shelf liquor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wip3out Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 5 hours ago, Spang1974 said: In the U.K. and Ireland, RCI has been running a promotion for certain 2022 sailings, £40/$53.69 pppd on the deluxe drinks package as an add-on to the cruise fare. It is due to end today I think? I had already paid £49.75/$66.71 pppd on Black Friday so cancelled the cruise planner purchases. A huge savings on a 12 night cruise:) This deal didn’t come up for me when I booked last week? Where does it show up for you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wip3out Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 5 minutes ago, SpeedNoodles said: No, they don't do that. The chances of you ordering something that isn't covered is minimal. I've never paid an extra cent for any drink that Mr. SpeedNoodles or I have ever ordered, and he orders top shelf liquor. Yeah I remember last time they never once charged more than the 13 which was good. It’s just now that I notice the prices I a dollar more expensive on this sailing (symphony in July) so it got me wondering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GatorCruiser Posted February 28, 2022 Report Share Posted February 28, 2022 Sailed In December on odyssey and had drink package. All I order is top shelf liquors. Never paid extra. Sailing on symphony in 3 weeks and got the drink package. I’ll see what happens them though I don’t expect it to be any different Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spang1974 Posted March 1, 2022 Report Share Posted March 1, 2022 19 hours ago, Wip3out said: This deal didn’t come up for me when I booked last week? Where does it show up for you? I was only for certain sailings, and has ended. It was on the website, and they posted a message when you booked if your sailing was eligible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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