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Drink average price now $14?


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  • smokeybandit changed the title to Drink average price now $14?

It's kind of humerous that we have to convince ourselves of the value of the Drink Package (which we purchase when cruising) based on a average per drink cost.  We all go through the metrics of when we will drink, what pace we will consume, and come to the conclusion we will EASILY hit that 5 drink break even point.  Then support it with. "I    just want to relax and grab a drink when I     want" , "throw it out when I     want", "get another one when I     want", etc.  The irony of the matter is we all have to accept the absurdity of drinks being $14+ each, and then use it as an acceptable baseline to make us feel good about the purchase. lol   Not too far off from celebrating $4.00 gallon gas dropping to $3.79.....

Even though I    plan to continue to purchase the drink package when cruising, the $100 per day mark is not far off.  That carries some weight when you are looking at another $1,400 for the trip.

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22 minutes ago, ChessE4 said:

So I guess the value of Diamond and above drink vouchers is rising, too?

They will have to adjust the vouchers as well or it'll be a nightmare up to par with the coffee machine breaking down in the Diamond Lounge.  lol  I noticed the availability of wine at the voucher price was dwindling recently as well. Only two options available at times.  However if I asked the bartenders they could find some additional choices not on the menu.

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30 minutes ago, ChessE4 said:

So I guess the value of Diamond and above drink vouchers is rising, too?

I haven't tried that yet. My Diamond drinks so far have been the cheaper end liquor and mixer ones. Maybe I should go down and test it out..in the name of research.

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25 minutes ago, OCSC Mike said:

I would be shocked if they didn't. Can't imagine the 4-6 essentially "free" drink vouchers would turn into $1 drink vouchers.

there would be riots on the pool deck and the promenade 🤣 (and rightfully so, haha)

13 minutes ago, AshleyDillo said:

I haven't tried that yet. My Diamond drinks so far have been the cheaper end liquor and mixer ones. Maybe I should go down and test it out..in the name of research.

yes, please!! we need to know! for science! 😆

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4 hours ago, CharmMicah68 said:

It's kind of humerous that we have to convince ourselves of the value of the Drink Package (which we purchase when cruising) based on a average per drink cost.  We all go through the metrics of when we will drink, what pace we will consume, and come to the conclusion we will EASILY hit that 5 drink break even point.  Then support it with. "I    just want to relax and grab a drink when I     want" , "throw it out when I     want", "get another one when I     want", etc.  The irony of the matter is we all have to accept the absurdity of drinks being $14+ each, and then use it as an acceptable baseline to make us feel good about the purchase. lol   Not too far off from celebrating $4.00 gallon gas dropping to $3.79.....

Even though I    plan to continue to purchase the drink package when cruising, the $100 per day mark is not far off.  That carries some weight when you are looking at another $1,400 for the trip.

Depending on how much you drink $700 dollars per person (which includes gratuities and taxes) is still a great deal.  If you take out the taxes and gratuities I think the price is around $539 dollars per person.  And divide 539 by 7 nights that comes out to 77 dollars per day BEFORE taxes and gratuities are added in. Divide 77 by $14 dollars (per drink) and that comes out to around 5.5 drinks per day.  I don't know about you, I can only speak for myself and I can assure you I drink MORE than 5.5 drinks a day when on a cruise as does my husband 🤣.  

When I break down the price like that it becomes a no brainer for me to buy the DBP for both my husband and I.

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Sucks to get old but I have sadly come to the conclusion that, although I might have 5+ drinks a couple of days, I can’t do it every day anymore.  Thankfully after this next cruise, we’ll be Diamond.  I’m pretty comfortable with 4 comped drinks per day & paying OOP for the few extras.

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1 hour ago, Pooch said:

Sucks to get old but I have sadly come to the conclusion that, although I might have 5+ drinks a couple of days, I can’t do it every day anymore.  Thankfully after this next cruise, we’ll be Diamond.  I’m pretty comfortable with 4 comped drinks per day & paying OOP for the few extras.

Last time we tried to do the 5+ on day 1 ,  we missed our Chops dinner reservation -   pretty lame right?  

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22 hours ago, karl_nj said:

I guess they need to figure out how to make the drink package look worthwhile, since that has gone up too.

I'm not sure it changes just the "look" of DBP.  If drinks are $14, then break even point for DBP should be based on that.  If DBP doesn't also go up, it will both look better and be better.  It's a personal calculation, but if you don't get DBP (or have vouchers) and want a drink, it will cost $14 now.  That's the reality, not just the look.

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14 minutes ago, Xaa said:

I'm not sure it changes just the "look" of DBP.  If drinks are $14, then break even point for DBP should be based on that.  If DBP doesn't also go up, it will both look better and be better.  It's a personal calculation, but if you don't get DBP (or have vouchers) and want a drink, it will cost $14 now.  That's the reality, not just the look.

Yes, but not every drink costs $14, so one may calculate the "break even" based on a $14 drink, that might not be reality if someone is paying a la carte.  Have beer prices also gone up $1?  What is the price for a more "boring"/"off menu" drink, like a G&T now?  Has that also gone up?  If not, it makes the "math" even more murky.

 

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3 hours ago, Pooch said:

Sucks to get old but I have sadly come to the conclusion that, although I might have 5+ drinks a couple of days, I can’t do it every day anymore.  Thankfully after this next cruise, we’ll be Diamond.  I’m pretty comfortable with 4 comped drinks per day & paying OOP for the few extras.

If you Drink it all on the 1st day then you can take it easy rest of the week 🤣

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15 minutes ago, karl_nj said:

Yes, but not every drink costs $14, so one may calculate the "break even" based on a $14 drink, that might not be reality if someone is paying a la carte.  Have beer prices also gone up $1?  What is the price for a more "boring"/"off menu" drink, like a G&T now?  Has that also gone up?  If not, it makes the "math" even more murky.

 

I think for the people doing DBP calculations using more boring options, they would have to do the same thing now at $14 as they did at $13 and try to calculate in their coffees, beers, wine and so forth just using $14 where yesterday they used $13.

I just don't think it changes the look.  The individual calculations are really the same regardless.  Just using different numbers based on what drinks you expect to drink each day.

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20 hours ago, JasonOasis said:

Depending on how much you drink $700 dollars per person (which includes gratuities and taxes) is still a great deal.  If you take out the taxes and gratuities I think the price is around $539 dollars per person.  And divide 539 by 7 nights that comes out to 77 dollars per day BEFORE taxes and gratuities are added in. Divide 77 by $14 dollars (per drink) and that comes out to around 5.5 drinks per day.  I don't know about you, I can only speak for myself and I can assure you I drink MORE than 5.5 drinks a day when on a cruise as does my husband 🤣.  

When I break down the price like that it becomes a no brainer for me to buy the DBP for both my husband and I.

And I especially hate that last half drink. Always have to order at least another full one lol! Truthfully it sounds like a lot but it's really easy to go over 10 a day on a cruise. Especially if you also like specialty coffees, fresh juice etc. 

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1 hour ago, GatorCruiser said:

The only time I’m not drinking something while onboard is when I’m sleeping which is about 6 hours out of 24. So do the math 😜

I would suggest not getting routine bloodwork done shortly after a cruise as it might really mess up the data on your liver function.

 

Not that I ever had that happen to me.

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Likely an unpopular opinion, but I get the feeling the diamond and up drink vouchers are being subsidized by increasing drink and drink package prices, in part at least.

I've heard several times that xyz shouldn't be included for everyone because that would affect the price I pay for my cruise fare. The same would apply for these drink vouchers. It's a business decision and a nice perk, but it does come at a cost to everyone, including those receiving the drink vouchers.

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15 minutes ago, AspiringCruisePlanner said:

Likely an unpopular opinion, but I get the feeling the diamond and up drink vouchers are being subsidized by increasing drink and drink package prices, in part at least.

I don't think this is true. Diamond and up got unlimited drinks in the lounge pre-covid where they could easily go through 4-5+ drinks just then

 

I think the change is partly just cost of doing business in today's world and partly due to the significant increases in drink package pricing causing a drop in the sale of those packages.

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I    feel like.....this is a thread of people who ALL BUY the DBP, have thoroughly enjoyed the fruits of the DBP, perhaps even kindred spirits who have experienced the delightful impact of the DBP and are looking to others who affirm the same position.....we ain't cruisin' without the DBP.  Just pay it!

My point was to say.....you have to accept the absurdity of $14 a drink (just like at a local restaurant) as the baseline in your calculation, then throw out that metric so as not to buzz kill the daily fee of DBP.

Bottom line, it sounds like everyone in this thread would be pretty fun to hang out with on the next cruise.  Just sayin' 

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I get my money's worth out of the DBP. And then some. I drink a cup of coffee in the am, and another after lunch with an espresso shot generally. I get a bottle of water with every cocktail (and in between). And I generally drink cocktails.  A lot.

My wife does not get her moneys worth, but will drink soft drinks and such. I think it averages out.

The comparison of the '$14 on land cocktail' is not apples/apples to me because I have found the quality of the drink on board to vary wildly. Sometimes from drink to drink, bar to bar, tender to tender, even ship to ship. June/Independence this year was really good, August/Harmony was MUCH more hit or miss. 

That is not to say every $14 cocktail I have ever bought on land has been fantastic (of course not), but part of the DBP for me is getting the next one if the last one isn't good.

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One of the reasons why Royal only has 1 out of 3 cruises we have booked for 2023....after being pretty Loyal to Royal for the past decade or so....i cant justify the prices they have for their cruises PLUS the drink package.

 

Both other cruises we have booked are incredibly cheaper in large part to the drink packages.

Our MSC cruise..we only paid $11/day for the drink package...(it was a deal with the cruise line but still) and even if it wasn't a deal..the basic drink package is $39/day....basically what it was with Royal on my first cruise ever...

 

2023 prices are quite high with Royal for everything..add on 40% exchange rate for Canadians and its a deal breaker to pay almost $2000 Cad just for drinks on a week cruise with Royal.....

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On 10/18/2022 at 9:52 AM, monctonguy said:

One of the reasons why Royal only has 1 out of 3 cruises we have booked for 2023....after being pretty Loyal to Royal for the past decade or so....i cant justify the prices they have for their cruises PLUS the drink package.

 

Both other cruises we have booked are incredibly cheaper in large part to the drink packages.

Our MSC cruise..we only paid $11/day for the drink package...(it was a deal with the cruise line but still) and even if it wasn't a deal..the basic drink package is $39/day....basically what it was with Royal on my first cruise ever...

 

2023 prices are quite high with Royal for everything..add on 40% exchange rate for Canadians and its a deal breaker to pay almost $2000 Cad just for drinks on a week cruise with Royal.....

That $39 a day MSC drink package is misleading. You can have any beer you want as long as it's Heineken draft. That's it, one choice. It's well drinks only and then only the simple ones, rum and coke, vodka and water, etc., also drinks in the specialty restaurants are not included.  If you want anything close to Royals package it's $52 a day, and still doesn't include everything. And if you want a drink that's not included it's full price - not the difference in cost.

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On 10/9/2022 at 3:53 PM, AshleyDillo said:

I haven't tried that yet. My Diamond drinks so far have been the cheaper end liquor and mixer ones. Maybe I should go down and test it out..in the name of research.

So my husband orders Grey Goose with his vouchers and when those are gone, he switches to Tito’s. So order the more expensive stuff with your vouchers and pay for the cheaper. 

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1 hour ago, Jill said:

So my husband orders Grey Goose with his vouchers and when those are gone, he switches to Tito’s. So order the more expensive stuff with your vouchers and pay for the cheaper. 

It's an across the board increase, so the drink package and the vouchers will cover the new $14 price.

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On 10/20/2022 at 5:06 PM, nferr said:

That $39 a day MSC drink package is misleading. You can have any beer you want as long as it's Heineken draft. That's it, one choice. It's well drinks only and then only the simple ones, rum and coke, vodka and water, etc., also drinks in the specialty restaurants are not included.  If you want anything close to Royals package it's $52 a day, and still doesn't include everything. And if you want a drink that's not included it's full price - not the difference in cost.

well yes and no....with the deal I got..it was the drink plus package....so pretty much everything covered with a few exceptions...and for $11/day I will take a chance if I have to buy an extra drink or two during the cruise..

 

Still..not even close if you were to add the top drink package to my MSC cruise...Royal would still be more for  just the cruise.

 

OH..and i didn't mention it was in CAD...so like $7USD/day for the drink package...

So yes, it is MUCH cheaper over all.....

 

I can now move on to my incredible deals and savings I got with NCL as well.. 8 night cruise for $491 CAD plus taxes...drinks included again... and yes, I know they have different drink package levels..

 

Point is....Royals cruises and drinks are much higher than the industry norm...I would say the highest(within the main 4 or 5 cruise companies out of the US)...which is why they are losing 66% of my business next year....I cant afford to cruise with Royal that often any longer...its too bad...

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1 hour ago, monctonguy said:

Point is....Royals cruises and drinks are much higher than the industry norm...I would say the highest(within the main 4 or 5 cruise companies out of the US)...which is why they are losing 66% of my business next year....I cant afford to cruise with Royal that often any longer...its too bad...

The different cruise lines all have different offerings, markets, service levels and price points.    Even what we used to class as all the mainstream lines are starting to separate themselves out more.   You are right that on average Royal is priced above Carnival, MSC, Costa and often NCL.  You would find that HAL and Princess are very similar price points, Celebrity seems to still be finding its way and was moving to more included (thus higher price point) but now seem to be backing off that.    Then there is the luxury lines which can often be at a whole different price again.  

No one cruise line can be all things to all people which is why so many people are loyal to one line over another as the offerings, services and price works for them and as you note sometimes that loyalty will need to change.  which is a good excuse to try other lines from time to time.

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i also think that depending on your cruiseline "loyalty," age, and home state where live -- it can become more lucrative to cruise. we have found this to be the case with RCCL -- as diamond members, we get 4 free drinks a day. that's a huge boon, one we wouldn't if we went to another cruiseline, as we'd be starting anew (celebrity being the exception). we also get a discount on balcony cabins, which helps, because we love balconies + junior suites. there are other benefits too, but these are just a few at our current level that work for us. 

also being in a state that has cruise benefits (let's hear it, new jersey!! 😎) while it might work on other cruise lines, it adds to our existing perks. all of this help offset some of the costs. you can do an RCCL cruise for as cheap as your comfort level will allow. we prefer a balcony and up and know that would drive costs higher. but if we wanted to go for super cheap, we'd find a way to make it work with an ocean view or an interior.

it really just depends on your preference and planning 🚢

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