joost Posted November 19, 2017 Report Share Posted November 19, 2017 when browsing drink packages for my upcomming cruise i noticed a new option, atleast i havent seen if for my alure cruise last year. the cafe select coffee card. any 15 secialty espresso based coffees, and 50% off individually prucahaes coffees, seems like a good deal for people just taking the refresh package for the coffee, i attached the page from the website dont mind the euro, its around 30 dollars atm i think Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toodle68 Posted November 20, 2017 Report Share Posted November 20, 2017 I brought it for my upcoming cruise. Works out to be $2 a coffee which is not bad. And unlike the other packages, you can share it with others in your party. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyC Posted November 20, 2017 Report Share Posted November 20, 2017 I've read different reports on the use of this card on different ships. Some people have reported that it's one punch per drink, and others have reported it's one punch per shot. So if you get two shots of espresso in your drink, then they take two punches. Others have also reported that it's only for one size coffee, and if you want a bigger size they take two punches. Didn't stop me from buying one for my cruise on Serenade next October though. LOL I'll report back in 10 months how it went. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobroo Posted November 20, 2017 Report Share Posted November 20, 2017 Caution: Different ships have different rules. Meaning: we all are led to believe that one coffee drink = 1 punch. On some ships if you order a large/venti drink your card will get punched twice. RCL will give a song and dance that those larger drinks are 2 shots of expresso and therefore your card gets punched twice. Doing some quick math, you'll find by ordering the larger size drinks and being double punched' this is no bargain compared to the posted prices. Buyer beware Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goofyfanatic Posted December 8, 2017 Report Share Posted December 8, 2017 On Anthem this was AWFUL!!! They never told us it went by shots of espresso, no where in any of the items they gave us. Needless to say we went to Guest Services and had it refunded. The crew member at guest services where not surprised we wanted a refund. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KathyC Posted December 12, 2017 Report Share Posted December 12, 2017 We bought it for a 12 night cruise next year, at least with one punch per card it will keep those caffeine levels down, and will last us for almost each day of the cruise. I think we can handle one small coffee at a time, we don't need large ones. We're not doing drink packages since it's so many nights, so this will definitely help keep us in budget. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayza Posted December 13, 2017 Report Share Posted December 13, 2017 Just been on Radiance and had this same experience. On the first day I was offered the middle size cup and 1 hole was punched. The coffee was terribly weak and was horrible. It didn't dawn on me until the next day a different barrista gave me the small cup and obviously the strength was better. When I asked for a larger cup the next day the barrista automatically went to 2 holes as he made it with 2 shots of espresso. I paid $A46 for the card and the small coffees were $US3 ($A4.05). The medium cups were $US4 ($A5.40). If you stick with the small cups and 1 shot you save about $A14 over the 15 coffees. If you want a larger coffee with 2 shots of coffee, it is actually cheaper to pay as you go than purchasing the coffee card. To complicate matters on 1 occasion I bought an iced chocolate and an iced latte; both a lot larger than a medium coffee ; and was charged 1 punch/hole for each. Still don't understand how the 50% off applies. If it is supposed to be for additional coffees once you have used the 15 then you need to keep the used card to show at the cafe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose City Cruiser Posted December 14, 2017 Report Share Posted December 14, 2017 I used my Starbucks gift cards that I received as gifts while on the Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. JennyB and ellcee 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellcee Posted December 14, 2017 Report Share Posted December 14, 2017 9 hours ago, jurrjurr said: I used my Starbucks gift cards that I received as gifts while on the Allure of the Seas and Oasis of the Seas. I had no idea that was possible. Awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted December 14, 2017 Report Share Posted December 14, 2017 3 minutes ago, ellcee said: I had no idea that was possible. Awesome. You can use Starbucks card and earn points, but you cannot redeem points for free stuff. ellcee 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toodle68 Posted December 14, 2017 Report Share Posted December 14, 2017 When we were on Liberty, they said we could not use our starbucks account to purchase anything. It had to be via the sea pass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted December 14, 2017 Report Share Posted December 14, 2017 2 hours ago, toodle68 said: When we were on Liberty, they said we could not use our starbucks account to purchase anything. It had to be via the sea pass. That's because there is no Starbucks kiosk on Liberty. Starbucks kiosks are only on Oasis class ships. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest toodle68 Posted December 15, 2017 Report Share Posted December 15, 2017 16 hours ago, Matt said: That's because there is no Starbucks kiosk on Liberty. Starbucks kiosks are only on Oasis class ships. I never said anything about there being a starbucks on Liberty.. but I wanted to used my starbucks account.. :) LOL ok, so I got confused somewhere.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arora Posted December 27, 2017 Report Share Posted December 27, 2017 Even a Canadian Starbucks card? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suzanne Posted January 30, 2018 Report Share Posted January 30, 2018 On 11/19/2017 at 8:33 PM, toodle68 said: I brought it for my upcoming cruise. Works out to be $2 a coffee which is not bad. And unlike the other packages, you can share it with others in your party. This has my name all over it! Previous cruises I also bought the drink pkg but ended up drinking more coffee than soda. The Hubs isn't a big coffee drinker but I'm originally from Louisiana. I grew up with coffee in my baby bottles! WAAAYTOOO 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kim&N8 Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 @arora This might be to old but I have used my US starbucks cards in Canada, so I would think that there is a good chance a Canadian one will work on the US ships with the Starbucks kiosks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keeves Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 Last week on the Mariner (Miami-Bahamas), my wife was NOT able to use her U.S. Starbucks card. The onboard purchase had to go on the SeaPass. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 1 hour ago, Keeves said: Last week on the Mariner (Miami-Bahamas), my wife was NOT able to use her U.S. Starbucks card. The onboard purchase had to go on the SeaPass. That is likely due to the fact the Starbucks on Mariner is not a standalone store. On ships like Harmony and other Oasis class it is, and therefore the Starbucks card can be used, and drinks are not covered by the drink package. To the original question though, I'm not sure if a Canadian Starbucks card would work at the standalone Starbucks location. It would be the same as going to any Starbucks in the US and trying to pay in Canadian dollars. But @jurrjurr had a post that said it was possible. Not sure if that was with a CDN or US gift card? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keeves Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 35 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: That is likely due to the fact the Starbucks on Mariner is not a standalone store. On ships like Harmony and other Oasis class it is, and therefore the Starbucks card can be used, and drinks are not covered by the drink package. Starbucks on Mariner is not covered by any of the drink packages, and that's exactly why I had thought that it was standalone and that the Starbucks card would work.It is clear to me that I don't understand what "standalone" means in this context. (Presuming that Starbucks is not standalone,) I am rather surprised that the bean counters were able to find a way to make all-you-can-drink liquor profitable, but they can't find a way to make all-you-can-drink Starbucks profitable. (Personally, I don't really care. I have no need for high-end coffee at all, and even my wife is happy with one or two per day. It's just that there are so many Starbucks addicts out there, I'm surprised that it's not included in any of the packages.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 56 minutes ago, Keeves said: Starbucks on Mariner is not covered by any of the drink packages, and that's exactly why I had thought that it was standalone and that the Starbucks card would work.It is clear to me that I don't understand what "standalone" means in this context. Hmm...I'm at a lost too then in that case. My two experiences with Starbucks on RC is either on Oasis class where you can use a Starbucks card and it is not covered by the drink package. Those Starbucks locations are "on their own" and not part of Cafe Promenade or whatever. The other is the Starbucks on Anthem where the Starbucks is located within a shop in the promenade and doesn't carry the name "Starbucks" but serves Starbucks coffees and drinks. There you use your Seapass card and you can use the drink packages there. Maybe @Matt has more insight? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose City Cruiser Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 1 hour ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: To the original question though, I'm not sure if a Canadian Starbucks card would work at the standalone Starbucks location. It would be the same as going to any Starbucks in the US and trying to pay in Canadian dollars. But @jurrjurr had a post that said it was possible. Not sure if that was with a CDN or US gift card? We used our CDN gift card balance on the Starbucks app on Allure & Oasis. The Starbucks on the ship will not honour free drink redemption/promos. If you missed out on certain promos (birthday drink) or lost stars while on a sailing, just send a quick e-mail to Starbucks CS. Lovetocruise2002 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovetocruise2002 Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 Just now, jurrjurr said: We used our CDN gift card balance on the Starbucks app on Allure & Oasis. The Starbucks on the ship will not honour free drink redemption/promos. If you missed out on certain promos (birthday drink) or lost stars while on a sailing, just send a quick e-mail to Starbucks CS. Did they convert your CDN balance to a US currency first? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 59 minutes ago, Keeves said: Starbucks on Mariner is not covered by any of the drink packages, and that's exactly why I had thought that it was standalone and that the Starbucks card would work.It is clear to me that I don't understand what "standalone" means in this context. (Presuming that Starbucks is not standalone,) I am rather surprised that the bean counters were able to find a way to make all-you-can-drink liquor profitable, but they can't find a way to make all-you-can-drink Starbucks profitable. (Personally, I don't really care. I have no need for high-end coffee at all, and even my wife is happy with one or two per day. It's just that there are so many Starbucks addicts out there, I'm surprised that it's not included in any of the packages.) That's a good point. They ran a trial on an OA ship once making Starbucks (standalone) covered by the drink package but nothing ever came of it. With the drink package going up over 8% recently you would think they could include the standalone Starbucks. They are probably afraid of crazy long lines every morning creating a bad experience. 2 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: Hmm...I'm at a lost too then in that case. My two experiences with Starbucks on RC is either on Oasis class where you can use a Starbucks card and it is not covered by the drink package. Those Starbucks locations are "on their own" and not part of Cafe Promenade or whatever. The other is the Starbucks on Anthem where the Starbucks is located within a shop in the promenade and doesn't carry the name "Starbucks" but serves Starbucks coffees and drinks. There you use your Seapass card and you can use the drink packages there. Maybe @Matt has more insight? The new Mariner Starbucks appears to be standalone-like but differs in operation compared to the Starbucks on OA class. Who knew? Another inconsistency with it's implementation. A new classification of Starbucks. "Standalone-Light"? "Pseudo-Standalone"? "Quasi-Standalone"? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose City Cruiser Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 8 minutes ago, Lovetocruise2002 said: Did they convert your CDN balance to a US currency first? Yes. Lovetocruise2002 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keeves Posted July 13, 2018 Report Share Posted July 13, 2018 1 hour ago, twangster said: They are probably afraid of crazy long lines every morning creating a bad experience. Like at every other Starbucks I've seen! Thanks for your comments, everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolores Posted July 25, 2018 Report Share Posted July 25, 2018 First, thank you to those who have provided information above. I will be sailing on Freedom Of The Seas in Nov. I am a Starbucks junkie, and know there is a Starbucks on board. So here is my question: - Does the Cafe Select Coffee Card include purchasing coffee at Starbucks? If you read the tiny print (i.e., Additional Terms and Conditions apply), it says the card cannot be used at Starbucks. - If the card can't be used at Starbucks, how great are the other coffee options on board? Where would one get a cappuccino or cafe latte on the ship, if not at Starbucks? - Has anyone else experience baristas punching two holes in the card for a double-espresso-short drink on Freedom Of The Seas? The card simply says "espresso-based drink"; if baristas are punching the card 2 & 3 times for one drink, then that is clearly false advertisement. All of the comments above are making me seriously re-think getting the coffee card ... but would be very interested in hearing your answers to my questions. Thanks!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twangster Posted July 25, 2018 Report Share Posted July 25, 2018 1 hour ago, Dolores said: I will be sailing on Freedom Of The Seas in Nov. I am a Starbucks junkie, and know there is a Starbucks on board. There is no Starbucks venue on Freedom. Café Promenade serves 'illy' branded coffee or at least did in November 2017. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Posted July 25, 2018 Report Share Posted July 25, 2018 1 hour ago, Dolores said: Does the Cafe Select Coffee Card include purchasing coffee at Starbucks? If you read the tiny print (i.e., Additional Terms and Conditions apply), it says the card cannot be used at Starbucks. It can be used at any Royal Caribbean operated coffee location, such as Cafe Promenade or at a specialty restaurant. You mentioned you are going on Freedom, so it covers pretty much any specialty coffee (latte, macchiato, et al) on Freedom. If you happened to be on an Oasis Class ship, which has a Starbucks kiosk, the card would not work there but would work at Cafe Promenade and other locations. 1 hour ago, Dolores said: Has anyone else experience baristas punching two holes in the card for a double-espresso-short drink on Freedom Of The Seas? The card simply says "espresso-based drink"; if baristas are punching the card 2 & 3 times for one drink, then that is clearly false advertisement. From what I can tell, this policy seems to vary from ship to ship. I've seen it done both ways (one punch per drink, one punch per espresso shot). Keep in mind these cards could be bought onboard, so if it's a concern for you, wait to buy onboard and then see what the ship policy is. Little risk involved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JLMoran Posted July 26, 2018 Report Share Posted July 26, 2018 On 7/25/2018 at 4:55 PM, twangster said: Café Promenade serves 'illy' branded coffee or at least did in November 2017. Still did when I was on Freedom in March/April of this year. I had a grande cappuccino every morning after breakfast and sometimes in the afternoon, and found it to be better than what Starbucks usually serves; not as bitter as the SBUX espresso. I can't comment on the number of punches for the grande, although I confirmed when I bought the first one that it's 2 shots of espresso for that size, as I had the deluxe package and my coffees were covered under that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goldie 2001 Posted February 27, 2019 Report Share Posted February 27, 2019 Other than starbucks...how many different places on oasis class have specialty coffee? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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