There is something about having a cocktail on your Royal Caribbean cruise vacation that just puts you into that perfect "now I am on vacation" mood.  Maybe it is the little umbrella or perhaps it is the combination of juice and liquor, but it is hard to go wrong with these delicious mixed drinks.

Over the last few cruises, we have engaged in some serious "research" by sampling a number of mixed drinks and frozen beverages on Royal Caribbean ships and came up with our list of ther drinks worth trying on your next cruise.

Sweet & Spice Margarita and the Sabor Grand Margarita from Sabor

The New Southern from American Icon Grill

Pineapple Special from Freedom of the Seas main pool area

Anything in the color changing mugs!

Labadoozie from Labadee

Mojito from Boleros

Pina Colada from Boleros

Wildberry Lava Flow from pool bar

Coco Loco from CocoCay

How much are these Royal Caribbean drinks?

If just looking at all these drinks makes you want to get onboard and book a cruise, you may also want to know how much these drinks are selling for.

Most of the drinks will cost about $12, not including any souvenir mugs and before gratuity. 

If your drink is the drink of the day, Royal Caribbean will knock 25% off the cost.

Many guests opt for an unlimited alcohol package so they can enjoy plenty of these drinks for a fixed cost.

What is your favorite Royal Caribbean drink? Tell us (and share a photo of it) in the comments below!

When you sail on your next Royal Caribbean ship, there is a good chance you will find Coca-Cola's amazing self-serve beverage dispensers known as the Coca-Cola Freestyle machine.

The Freestyle machine offers guests 100+ flavors of various Coca-Cola products that you can mix together to create the perfect drink for you.  Royal Caribbean is the only cruise line to offer Freestyle machines.

In order to use the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines, guests must purchase an all-inclusive beverage package or the Royal refreshment package and use their complimentary Coca-Cola souvenir cup. The Coca-Cola souvenir cup has a special chip in it which activates the machine.

The following Royal Caribbean ships have Coca-Cola Freestyle Machines

• Adventure of the Seas 
• Allure of the Seas 
• Anthem of the Seas 
• Enchantment of the Seas 
• Explorer of the Seas 
• Freedom of the Seas 
• Grandeur of the Seas 
• Harmony of the Seas 
• Independence of the Seas 
• Jewel of the Seas 
• Mariner of the Seas 
• Navigator of the Seas 
• Oasis of the Seas 
• Odyssey of the Seas
• Quantum of the Seas 
• Ovation of the Seas 
• Rhapsody of the Seas 
• Symphony of the Seas 
• Wonder of the Seas

It seems that Freestyle machines are only available in the United States, Canada and limited availability in the UK and Europe and Royal Caribbean has added the machines to ships based mostly in the United States.

Using the Freestyle machines is pretty simple too, you pick a base flavor (like Coke or Fanta) and you can customize the drink with fruit flavors (Orange Coke or Orange Fanta, Lime Fanta, etc).  You can also stop a drink mid-pour by just releasing the dispense button and select another drink to mix two together. So if you want to mix Orange Fanta with Mello Yello Grape you can!

Some of the base flavors available to choose from are Coke, Diet Coke, Coke Zero, Caffeine-Free Diet Coke, Sprite, Sprite Zero, Fanta, Fanta Zero, Minute Maid Lemonade, Minute Maid Light, Dasani, Dasani Sensations, Powerade, Powerade Zero, Hi-C, Barq's, Diet Barq's and Seagram's Lemon Lime Seltzer. and more.

The special souvenir Coca-Cola cups that Royal Caribbean sells also has a time restriction, which prevents guests from getting refills until 10-15 minutes have passed since their last pour.  This time restriction is to prevent abuse of the Freestyle machine privileges.

Use of the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines is available with a few unlimited drink packages:

• Royal Refreshment package
  • $8.00 per day, per guest
• Royal Replenish package
  • $22.42 per person, per day (includes service charge)
• All of the Royal Caribbean unlimited alcohol packages
  • Unlimited alcohol packages begin at $42 per person, per day

Have you tried the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines on your Royal Caribbean cruise? Thinking about using them on your next cruise? Tell us about it in the comments!

Enjoying a refreshing drink on your Royal Caribbean cruise is something many folks look forward to, but just because you are not on a cruise right now does not mean you cannot enjoy the same drinks at home!

Blog reader Paul Westbrook sent us recipes for the drink of the day for each day of his Freedom of the Seas cruise.

Each day of a cruise, Royal Caribbean selects one tasty cocktail to be the drink of the day, where the price of the drink is reduced a bit and featured all over the ship.

So get those blenders ready and enjoy these great drinks!

Tropical Sunset

Ingredients

• .75 oz Smirnoff vodka
• .75 oz peach scnapps
• .75 oz Chambord black raspberry liqueur
• 1.5 oz cranberry juice
• 1.5 oz pineapple juice

Instructions

Shake and mix well.

Blue Caribbean

Ingredients

• 1.25 oz Bacardi superior rum
• .75 oz blue curacao
• 3 oz pineapple juice

Instructions

Served on the rocks with a splash of sprite

Paradise Punch

Ingredients

• .75 oz Bacardi rum
• .75 oz cocounut rum
• .5 oz peach snapps
• 1.5 oz pineapple and cranberry juices

Instructions

Shake and serve on the rocks.

Strawberry Hill Mojito

Ingredients

• 1.5 oz Bacardi superior rum
• 1 oz mojito mix
• 1 oz Island Oasis Strawberry

Instructions

Top with soda water

Tropical Lemondae

Ingredients

• 1.25 oz Smirnoff vodka
• .75 oz blue curacao

Instructions

Serve on the rocks

Mayan Mango Margarita

Ingredients

• 1.25 oz Jose Cuervo gold tequila
• 1.5 oz Island Oasis mango
• .75 oz triple sec
• Sweet & Sour mix

Instructions

Shake tequila and mago juice together and then add triple sec and sweet & sour mix.

Caribbean Tea

Ingredients

• .5 oz Smirnoff vodka
• .5 oz Bacardi superior rum
• .5 oz gin
• .5 oz sweet blue curacao
• 2 oz sweet & sour mix

Instructions

Top with Sprite and serve on the rocks.

It wont be long before you start seeing souvenir Coca-Cola cups on your Royal Caribbean cruise and it seems like they are everywhere!  The cup comes in bright colors in a stylized design that is the perfect way to get refills of your favorite soda anytime you want. Here are six things that you will want to know if you are thinking about buying one.

You can purchase it from many places onboard the ship

If you want to get the souvenir cup, you can purchase the non-alcoholic drink package that is right for you.  Especially on embarkation day, you will find stations around the ship offering to sell you the package and the fun cup!

Simply pick between the Royal Refreshment Package and the Royal Replenish Package and you will get a complimentary Coca-Cola souvenir cup with each package purchased.

Often you will find the packages for sale outside the Windjammer and on the Royal Promenade.

The cups work with the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines

Of course you can have bartenders fill the cup up and there are automated machines near the pool, but the best way to use your Coca-Cola souvenir cup is with the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines!

Located on select ships in Royal Caribbean's fleet, you can use these amazing machines exclusively with the souvenir cups and choose from over 100 flavor combinations!

In order to use the Coca-Cola Freestyle machines guests must purchase an all-inclusive beverage package or the Royal refreshment package and use their complimentary Coca-Cola souvenir cup. The Coca-Cola souvenir cup has a special chip in it which activates the machine.

You can only refill the cup once every 15 minutes

As mentioned earlier, the Coca-Cola souvenir cup has a special chip that prevents people without the cup from using the self-service refill stations.  

The machines do "lock down" your cup for about 15 minutes after you refill your cup to ensure the cup isn't shared with people that do not have the drink package.

You get a free cup with any unlimited alcohol package purchase

Of course you can get the souvenir Coca-Cola cups with the non-alcoholic packages, but if you prefer to go with the unlimited alcohol packages, you get the souvenir Coca-Cola cup too!

Each of the unlimited alcohol packges (select, premium, ultimate) come with a complimentary souvenir cup that you can use to get unlimited soft drinks during your cruise when you're looking to get something with a little less punch.

The cup is accepted almost everywhere

The souvenir cup can be refilled nearly everywhere onboard the ship. Bars, self-service stations, restaurants and lounges will all gladly refill the cups for you.

However, the souvenir Coca-Cola cups do not work with room service or the drinks in your mini-fridge.  Keep that in mind before you order something that will cost you extra!

You can pre-purchase the mug online before your cruise

You don't have to wait to get on your cruise in order to purchase your souvenir Coca-Cola cup.  In fact, you can pre-purchase online at royalcaribbean.com and have your cup waiting for you.

After you purchase the package online, the souvenir cup should be waiting for you inside your stateroom once you get in there.  That way, there's no waiting in line for you and you can start taking advantage of the benefit immediately!

Have you bought the Coca-Cola souvenir cups before?  Do you think they are worth it?  And will you buy one on your next Royal Caribbean cruise? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Royal Caribbean bartender Shekhar Grover was awarded best cruise line bartender by Diageo Reserve World Class Final event in Miami.  Shekhar impressed with his "incredible showmanship, inventive cocktail-making and unrivalled flair".

Shekhar, 27, competed against 5,500 bartenders from other cruise lines  He and fellow competitors were tested on different aspects of their craft, creativity and bartending knowledge.

The winning drink for Shekhar was the 'French Royale' featuring CÎROC Vodka.

Shekhar will now advance to the Diageo Reserve World Class Bartender of the Year Global Final taking place July 28th in London, where he will compete against 50 of the world's best bartenders to be named bartender of the year.

Shekhar works on Oasis of the Seas and was quite happy to win the award, "I'm thrilled to win the WORLD CLASS Global Travel Final and I'm very excited to be going forward to represent cruise-line bartenders at one of the industry's most prestigious and respected mixology competitions. I've been inspired and challenged by many talented bartenders over the last few weeks and I'm really looking forward to using the skills and knowledge that I've developed through the program to wow the judges."

Recipe for Shekhar's signature serve: the 'French Royale'  

Ingredients  

• CÎROC Vodka
• Sauternes Dessert Wine
• Fresh Grapes
• Fresh Lime Juice
• Crème De Cassis

Recipe: 

1. Muddle fresh grapes in a Shaker Glass, add fresh lime juice and sugar syrup
2. Then add CÎROC Vodka and dessert wine. Add a splash of Crème de Cassis and cubed ice. Shake all the ingredients well and double strain in a chilled martini glass

Glassware: Martini glass

Garnish: Cassis infused skinned black grape (soak overnight)

As part of the 2013 Bacardi Cruise Competition, Royal Caribbean won first prize for the best martini cocktail.  The winning drink, called the Med-Mary, was crafted by bartender Enrico Basile.

Royal Caribbean will be including the winning drink as part of their fleet-wide menu.  The drink was created by Basile aboard Navigator of the Seas.

Want to make it at home?  Here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS

• Salt and pepper rim crust 3 cherry tomatoes
• 2 drops balsamic vinegar 2 basil leaves
• 1/2 oz BACARDI® Superior Rum 5 ml simple syrup
• Top up MARTINI® Prosecco Sparkling Wine

PREPARATION

1. Mix the salt with a hint of pepper and make the crust on the rim of the Martini glass or a flute Champagne glass
2. Muddle the 3 cherry tomatoes in a Boston mixing glass
3. Add the drops of balsamic vinegar, the leaves of basil, the BACARDI® Superior Rum and the simple syrup
4. Shake well and double strain in the glass
5. Top up with MARTINI® Prosecco Sparkling Wine

More than likely if you've been on a Royal Caribbean cruise to the Caribbean you have run across an alcoholic drink that is famous among Royal Caribbean fans called the Labadoozie. Labadoozie's have reached cult-like status for being a large, fruity alcohol drink that is just perfect to have while on a beach. 

So what is a labadoozie?  Basically, it's a frozen drink that mixes a lot of citrus juice, such as orange and pineapple, with a lot of rum.  Ice plus juice plus rum equals the perfect cold drink for a beach day at Labadee, Royal Caribbean's private island.  Not only is the drink tasty, it's also large.  Royal Caribbean staff will walk around Labadee for most of the day selling this iconic drink in plastic souvenir sports bottles.  

By the middle of the afternoon, you will see tons of labadoozie cups everywhere with many passengers opting to indulge with this drink for a way to forget their problems at home.  It's one of those drinks that seems to satisfy all kinds of drinkers.

While the labadooze is famous for its generous serving of rum, you can order the drinks virgin (with no alcohol) so that younger people in your party can have them or if someone just would prefer not to have any booze.

Because Labadoozies are so well known across the fleet and because of their popularity, the good news is you can usually order a labadoozie on your cruise ship even if you aren't in labadee.  It wont be in the sports drink cup, but it can hit the spot for the days at sea you wish you were still at Labadee for.

Labadoozie recipe

The two most common questions about labadoozies are what's in it and how do I make it at home?  Fret no more, we have answers to both.

• 1/2 oz Orange Juice Concentrate
• 1/2 oz Pineapple Juice Concentrate
• 1/2 oz Papaya Juice Concentrate
• 1/2 oz Coconut Cream
• 3/4 oz Dark Rum
• 3/4 oz Coconut Rum
• 1/4 oz Grenadine
• Crushed ice
  (Makes one cocktail)

Royal Caribbean has rolled out Coca-Cola's Freestyle machines to some of its cruise ships and already its passengers are loving it.  

Royal Caribbean directory of fleet beverage operations, Bob Midytette, says the new soda machines are more popular than they envisioned, "We ran out of product on the first voyage. It was more popular than even what we thought it would be."

The Freestyle Machines offer passengers 125 flavors of Coke using medical micro-dosing technology and flavor cartridges.  The machines are currently available on Majesty of the Seas, Freedom of the Seas and Explorer of the Seas and will continue to roll out to more ships at the rate of about one or two a month.

"It is in my mind the next evolution of non-alcoholic beverage service, a leap forward to what you could offer through the traditional system," Midyette says.

Currently the machines cost $6.50 per day for adults and $4.50 for kids for the soda package that includes access to the Freestyle machines.  Passengers receive a special cup with a RFID chip that gives access to the machine.

Royal Caribbean has announced that it will add Coca-Cola's Freestyle Machines aboard its ships.  These self-serve beverage dispensers will offer passengers 125 flavors of various Coke products in one machine.

The machines were customized for Royal Caribbean to allow for health code modifications in a marine environment as well as the addition of RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) for use with the Royal Caribbean soda packages.

The new Freestyle Machines were installed aboard Majesty of the Seas in June and several other ships (all based in the United States) will receive their machines later this year.  Following that, the machines will be rolled out well into 2013 aboard other ships.

Royal Caribbean Director of Fleet Beverage Operations, Bob Midyette, described the new machine, "It was beyond sexy, it was über cool. Using medical micro dosing technology, flavor cartridges just slightly larger than those of the standard ink jet printer opened a world of flavors never available before (Orange Coke, anyone? or Peach Fanta Zero?). It was like going from an IBM series 700 mainframe to an iPhone 4, skipping everything in-between."

The agreement between Royal Caribbean and Coke is part of a multi-year effort by Royal Caribbean to bring some of Coke's newest advancements to Royal Caribbean's ships and therefore, Royal Caribbean will become the first cruise line to deploy the Freestyle machines.