I saved money by buying the coffee package. I liked the drink selections, but the coffee was mediocre
In:There's free coffee on Royal Caribbean ships, but I tried out the Cafe Select coffee card to see if it would be a good value.
As a caffeine addict, I’ve often found myself disappointed by the coffee offerings throughout the fleet. I’ll admit it—my standards are high. I grew up in Indonesia, on the island Java is named after.
I also worked as a barista for two years, learning how to make popular drinks day after day. I've grown used to fresh beans, ground daily and roasted to perfection.
The included coffee that costs nothing extra isn't terrible, but it's not great either.
I’ve learned that good coffee doesn’t taste bitter or burned; it has enough depth that you can start identifying fruity, flowery, or even chocolate undertones.
When I started cruising, I quickly realized that I wouldn’t be finding excellent coffee onboard—especially not for free.
The complimentary brewed pots churn out bitter, burned hot drinks, either regular or decaf.
Cruisers have multiple options for finding coffee onboard
Cruisers looking for a tastier solution to their caffeine fix have two extra-cost options. (Spoiler alert: both of them are Starbucks).
The first option is to purchase directly from the Starbucks booth on many Royal Caribbean ships.
The following ships have Starbucks kiosks onboard:
- Oasis of the Seas
- Allure of the Seas
- Harmony of the Seas
- Symphony of the Seas
- Wonder of the Seas
- Utopia of the Seas
- Icon of the Seas
- Mariner of the Seas
- Navigator of the Seas
- Odyssey of the Seas
- Star of the Seas
The second option cruisers have is buying specialty coffee at the bars and cafes onboard, such as Cafe Promenade or Park Cafe.
The specialty coffee served in Royal Caribbean’s cafes is actually identical to Starbucks. They source the same beans, feature the same syrups, and sell almost all of the same coffees, including matcha, chai lattes, and fruit refreshers.
Additionally, these cafes can spike coffee drinks with a shot of alcohol upon request.
Royal Caribbean has several different iterations of cafes across the fleet, such as Cafe Promenade, Cafe Latte-tudes, Cafe @ Two70, Park Cafe, Vitality Cafe, and Rye & Bean.
Many complimentary venues have coffee pots and tea stations in the corner, including the AquaDome Market, the Windjammer, and the Solarium Bistro.
You can also receive complimentary coffee in the Main Dining Room, specialty restaurants, and through room service.
Buying a coffee card package saved me money
If you’re like me and know that you’ll have at least two coffee drinks in a day, you can invest in the coffee card.
It's a sort of drink package offering for those that just want espresso drinks.
The card, often called the "coffee package," is a $31 punch card that can be purchased before the cruise online, or on day one at any onboard cafe. Gratuities are automatically added to the card, so the total cost was $36.58.
It features fifteen total punches to be used over the course of the sailing. However, the card is shareable, and multiple orders can be redeemed at a time. If you don’t use all of your punches on the cruise, no worries! It is transferrable to any other Royal Caribbean ship and sailing.
Before my cruise, I tried to research how many punches were charged for each drink, but the information online was conflicting.
When I arrived onboard, I received my physical card, and the limits were listed on the back.
Tall (small) coffees, single espresso shots, and chai lattes are all one card punch. Any large coffees or drinks with two espresso shots are two card punches each.
The coffee card is only redeemable at Royal Caribbean cafes, for specialty coffee drinks. It cannot be used at actual Starbucks locations, on or offboard.
I used the coffee card on my recent Freedom of the Seas cruise
Over the length of my cruise, I ordered iced caramel lattes, chai lattes, cappuccinos with vanilla, iced mochas, and mocha and caramel frappuccinos.
I thought the quantity of drinks on the card was perfect. For a 7-day cruise, I allowed myself two drinks a day—one in the morning, and one after my afternoon nap.
Avid coffee drinkers like myself will enjoy the 15 punches, as well as the convenience of ordering.
I could go to any complimentary cafe to order my drinks. On Freedom of the Seas, this ended up mostly being the Cafe Promenade and the large bar in the center of the Windjammer.
My drinks were always made quickly and accurately, and having them tick off a punch card was faster than swiping a SeaPass every time.
I loved being able to treat myself. Going to a cafe to order coffee is an enjoyable, special experience of its own, and buying the coffee card brought that experience to a cruise ship.
At any time of day, I could walk over to a cafe, place my order, spell out my name for the cup, and wait for them to call my drink.
It felt just like a cafe back home, with the added novelty of being on a cruise ship.
I also liked knowing that I could bring the card along on any future cruises. There was no pressure to over-caffeinate myself by finishing all the drinks in a single sailing.
If I’d been cruising for only 3 or 4 nights, for example, I could have still bought the coffee card and felt it a good investment.
While the coffee tasted average, I was impressed by the supplies onboard
The coffee was of an average quality, like most Starbucks drinks.
It had the over-roasted, burnt flavor typical of Starbucks drinks. When masked with a sweet syrup, it was drinkable.
However, it was definitely better than the complimentary Lavazza coffee Royal Caribbean serves.
I still felt like I was treating myself, instead of forcing down the gross complimentary coffee to get my fix.
The Royal Caribbean cafes also had an impressive selection of non-dairy milk available: almond, soy, and oat milk. I was surprised at the options available because getting non-dairy milk in the Windjammer is usually a long process that ends in finding the last dregs of almond milk at a drink station.
The cafe also never seemed to run out of any milk or syrup—impressive for a water-bound vessel!
When I worked at a cafe, we struggled to get a reliable, consistent supply of syrups, milk, and three different roasts of beans, so I admired Royal Caribbean’s reserve.
