I always get the drinks package on Cunard, even if I don’t maximise the use of it financially. I like knowing that everything’s taken care of bill wise, and I can just kick back and relax. It does encourage a bit of excess drinking, but once you get started on those amazing cocktails in the Commodore club, it’s really hard to stop lol
Hi Christopher, we completely agree, having the package pre-paid gets rid of the end of cruise bill anxiety, and it does let you go wild in the Commodore Club 😂 One of things we do love most about the packags though is that we will try new cocktails or drinks we wouldn't do if we were "risking" our own money, when it's on the package, if you don't like it, it hasn't cost you anything and you can just get something else. Have a lovely day, and Happy New Year. Linzi & Mark
I often find that I need to REALLY misbehave to get value for money on a drinks package. On Queen Elizabeth a few weeks ago, I didn't take the package and was glad of that, but I did hate getting stung with all of the service charges - argh!
Package suits us. Saved about 30% on 14 nights last time. Problem was lack of wine choice at dinner. We want decent Bordeaux Reds and Burgundy Whites at dinner. Next time we'll take package but have 7 bottles at about $75 split over 2 nights each plus all the cheap glasses. With the discounts we'll still be saving. Wine collections don't have any wines we would buy. 7 or 8 drinks each per day and we're saving.
We love a package David and (P&O excluded) they've pretty much always worked out for us too. Interesting that the wines haven't been decent on the packages. We were just talking about them about ten minutes ago. We will stick to the package on our next cruise (Apex in Nov). Have a lovely evening. Linzi and Mark
@@SuiteNaturedI don't mean the wines on the package don't taste nice. They are the sort of wines we buy in 5 litre boxes here in France and pour a few glasses at lunchtime every day. But for decent cuts of meat at dinner the wines by the glass don't have much structure to them. Fine if you're not fussy like us!
We are going to Singapore from Sydney on the QE2 in February 25. My wife and I enjoy wine with our evening meal, however Julie does not drink very much alcohol and I would average about two or three beers a day. I don’t think the drinks package makes sense for us. Also we see people drinking alcohol on a drinks package to “ get their money’s worth,” which doesn’t interest us.
The longer the cruise, the harder it is to get good value out of a lot of drinks packages, although quite a few cruise lines do reduce the price for longer itineraries too. If it is just a drink package (like on Cunard), if you are not having four or five drinks, plus speciality coffees and juices each day it is very hard to make them work.
Wow, those are some numbers! On our just completed Viking cruise the drinks package was $30 per person/night, but with Viking they include wine and beer with meals so it's arguably less of an additional value - all it took was 2 glasses of Champagne each and we'd our money back for the day 🙂
Viking have some great pricing for their package, and as you said, you don't have to have much at all for it to make financial sense to take it. We will definately be taking in when you voyage with Viking. Have a lovely evening, Linzi & Mark
@@petejames1326 there’s no way to remove it Pete. If you have bought the package it is included but any other drink is +15% automatically. You can of course leave more tip if you wanted 😂 It’s becoming pretty common place on cruise lines now and both Royal Caribbean and Celebrity do this also (but at 20%)
@@SuiteNaturedthat 15% is probably what is known as VAT - value added tax. That's to help pay for all the health issues caused by alcohol consumption.
Thanks for the info - we're having our grand retirement Cruise on Q Victoria next July & we're considering the drinks package. I worked out we'd probably spend over $9000AUD over the 22 days, & the drinks package works out at about $4,450AUD - so you've convinced me to get it!!!! Thanks for wonderful info, love your movies!!!!
The peace of mind is the only reason i would get any drink package, because i don't really drink that much but if i wanted to I know I wouldn't be charged extra.
My usual practice is to have 2 or 3 cocktails before dinner, a bottle of wine spread over two or sometimes 3 nights at dinner, and maybe a couple of g&ts later, with the occasional teetotal night for the good of my health. Then at the end of the cruise I always find myself wondering how on earth I managed to spend a thousand US dollars on drink in a fortnight without getting drunk (well maybe slightly...). Therefore I'm wondering whether a drinks package would be a good idea (especially as I'm going on a 21 night trip this year), but I can never get my head around the figures. Incidentally, when I went on QM2 last year I was disappointed that the warm canapes were no longer served in the Commodore Club, and that the ritual of making you sign the chit for every drink had stopped. I find the latter a useful reminder of what I'm spending, even if I ignore it!
For the 21 night cruise, the price per day comes down for the drinks package too, so that could make it even more attractive. We've not done a cruise quite that long yet, but we have done two 17 nighters, and had drinks packages on both, and it worked out much better for us. It looks like the warm canapes on QM2 are now just down in the Chart room, as that was the same on our cruise too.
Great video. Thanks for the info. Me and my mom go away in November on the Queen Mary 2. Will definitely be ordering the drinks package. Can you help with some of my queries though. Do you have to book to go into any of the bars on board? Many thanks x
Hi Kate. Thank you ❤️ No you don't need to book go into any bar but The Golden Line gers really busy about ten mins before lunch (12) each day with people going for the fish and chips or pies. Other than that you shouldn't have any issues. Linzi and Mark
Ahh thanks so much for your response 👍🏻😊 that’s good to hear. I was getting a little confused on the Cunard portal as it was saying ‘please book in advance’ perhaps that’s for the wine academy. And I take it all drinks on the package are unlimited? Sorry for the daft questions 🙈🤣 Thanks again!! 🧡x
I will not be getting a drink package for a planned transatlantic sailing and I was wondering if I would miss it. I'm thinking I'll be fine now that I have seen your video. Thanks
On the last MSC cruise we had the drinks package, at the end of the day I think we broke even on cost, as the service was so slow you could not benifit for another drink
It is so disappointing when the service is like that John and you have a package, we had a similar experience on Enchanted Princess in 2022, just too busy, and everyone had the drinks packages, so the queues were so long, you got a drink and took it with you to the back of the queue to get your next one 🤣 Genuinely we did see some people do this! Hopefully the rest of your cruise was great? Have a lovely day, Linzi & Mark
We just did 30 days on Cunard with no drinks package. We spent probably less than $20 a day on drinks of any kind. We don’t drink much though. We did get pretty hacked off with the endless 15% charges I have to say.
Many thanks. I have not yet cruised, and I think the reason is my confusion over drinks packages. Basically, I guess I like simple things, e.g. no cocktails or hard spirits, I prefer dry white wines, e.g. Pinot Grigio. if I had a few glasses of this wine every day, with a few regulars coffee Lattes in the morning, would I be right to think that I should take the drinks package. And, would it be similar on other cruise lines. Many thanks to anyone who can help me. xx
Hi Alexander, firstly, don't let the drinks packages put you off cruising, we didn't get a drinks package on our first three cruises. There is not a definitive, simple answer to your question as it really does depend on the cruise line you are going on. With you preferring a few glasses of wine a day, and some coffees, then, most likely most packages wouldn't represent the best value, although they do give peace of mind that you are not getting a big drinks bill at the end of the cruise, and instead can get on with enjoying it. However some cruise line drinks packages, such as Ambassador & Princess, are actually quite reasonable, and you would probably be better off getting one of those, as you don't need to have many drinks at all to make them beneficial, cost wise. Others like P&O may not offer as good a value for you personally. So sorry we don't think we have been much use there at all. Linzi & Mark
Never get a drinks package, for us it just doesn’t stack up financially as I rarely drink alcohol. The Wine Collections can work out cost effectively if you like wine with your meals, even if it is just one person drinking, on cruises over 7 nights.
Drinks packages don't make sense on Cunard unless both people in the cabin are biggish drinkers. For us, where one of us is teetotal, the Cunard requirement that both passengers get the drinks package makes it a non-starter.
we do wish they would allow passengers in the same cabin to take different packages. We hear this so many times how one of the cabin don't drink alcoholic beverages for various reasons, and it makes it unviable for the other. Why not let one take the drinks package and the other the non-alcoholic version.
I'v just booked my first transatlantic crossing on QM2 for november 2024, and I 'm not sure if I'll get the drinks package. I'm not much of a drinker but I do love a cocktail. So I may splurge for it.
Ask yourself how many cocktails you may want per day. This may be influenced by how you may be spending your time on the ship. Unless you can average more than 5 cocktails/glasses of wine per day, drink package may not be worth it. Also keep in mind that unless you travel solo, your cabin mate must have a drink package too, so that's also something to consider.
Completely agree with the comment below/above from Jan, if you don't drink that much, just use pay as you go, if you can do around four of the $13.50 cocktails a day, plus a coffee/speciality tea, and a fresh squeezed juice, then the package works out cheaper as you have to remember to add on the 15% gratuity cost on each drink if it is Pay as you Go. So one $13.50 drink actually costs $15.53, the coffees, at $4.50 (with gratuities) are $5.18 and the $5 freshly squeezed juice works out at $5.75. So just those six things would come to $73.05. So it doesn't take much to break even, but you have to do that each day. Hope this and the video helped. Linzi & Mark
@@janpiskacek5117 I will be traveling solo, I don't care much about wine with meals. I do enjoy a cocktail but 3 or 4 a day seems enough.. I would enjoy the alcohol-free fruit cocktails and maybe specialty coffee. Thanks, you give me lots to think about.
There is one additional detail worth noting, and that's the timing of the charges. We'll be cruising later this summer, and I've already prepaid the drinks package. This was done for a variety of reasons--including that we got a discount price on the package because of some quirks in the pricing and timing. However, there's another reason why this will work out for us--and that's what the cruise lines call a "fresh wallet." Unlike some travelers (no judgment), our finances are a bit modest. By prepaying the drinks package, we could space out paying for the cruise, and add-ons (like WiFi and drinks package), and have a zero balance on all that prior to sailing. So when we end our cruise, we won't be worried about charges of hundreds of dollars or more. Will the package be an overall value for us? Probably not in that we'll never drink enough to cover the cost we paid, but knowing that we can enjoy ourselves and have that second glass of wine at dinner, for example, without worrying about costs will ensure a worry-free vacation.
That is one of the biggest reasons we love a drinks package, we bring this up on quite a few videos (P&O Drinks Package and others) as not having to worry about a big bill at the end is a MASSIVE attraction to us too. Nobody wants to go on holiday and be worried every time you get a drink or book an excursion. Ultimately, more often than not (P&O aside) we nearly always take a drinks package, and budgeting and not worrying is the main reason, even if it doesn't quite break even although we often surpass it by quite a way🤣 Looking at our next three cruises we have drinks packages on all of them, okay, technically not Virgin, but we do have a $1100 bar tab for four nights, so we should be go. ;)
Hi!!! Just saw your wonderful video!!! Thanks!! Can i , please , ask we are not drinkers...maybe 1 cocktail a night. We like wine...if we get the wine package can we drink a glass in the bars? Even in the pool bar? THANKS A MILLION!!!
Thank you so much Frank, we are so happy you enjoy them, and GREAT, question. We weren't sure ont his ourselves so reached out to find out. If yon take one of the wine collection packages, as opposed to the beer, wine and cocktail package, then apparently, yes you can have a bottle from the collection anywhere (at any bar at least) and if you don't finish it (just a glass each) then they will seal it, take it away, and bring it back for you to finish later elsewhere. Hope this helps Have a lovely day, Linzi and Mark
American marketing again. Cruise lines would probably sell a lot more alcoholic drinks and beverages if they simply charged a similar price to what people would expect to pay in say a decent hotel or bar in the the country of origin for the majority of passengers that cruise with them . I do not purchase drinks packages because my Wife does not drink alcohol and neither of us drink sugar added or sweetened soft drinks and such packages that include these products cannot be obtained for one member of a party .(Apparently, in some cases medical exemptions apply? )The duty that Cruise companies have to pay on alcohol whilst their vessels are in certain waters is also likely to be less than when we on land , so some of that saving should be passed on too. We have recently taken a few cruises with P & O and although they are part of the American Carnival family and still market drinks packages, we find that the cost of buying drink and beverages on a Pay As You Go basis seems far more reasonable. Of course P & O do not provide the overall type of experience that some people are seeking, but they do not charge "Mandatory Gratuities" either and I am warming to this type of business model.
That's an interesting take Robert (and sorry for the late reply), the gratuaties model that P&O take is pretty unique to them, although there are a couple of smaller cruise lines that do similar. The drinks packages, forcing everyone in the cabin to have the same package has always been a bugbear of ours too. Whilst we both drink similar, we know plenty of couples that don't and it has never seemed right to force both to take the packages if you are not going to use them. Drinks package prices have gone up considerably in recent years on a lot of cruise lines, Royal in particular, although Carnival groups have too. What we have seen though is an increase in "offers" where these packages are included in the fare, or reduced down massively on sales or Black Friday type offers. Of course this doesn't help if you didn't get an offer and sail in between sale deals.
Could you do the math again for what you actually ordered at drinks package price? So we can compare apples to apples so to speak. The $980 allotment wouldn’t cover the $13.50 plus items so $980 plus ? My assumption is you ordered what you wanted which is how I would approach my drinks either way. Also what do you think for a keto couple that doesn’t drink sugary cocktails ie bourbon & soda and brut champagne or Prosecco espresso no milk. Would you bother with drinks package?
Happy to 😀 We had $780 worth of drinks, coffees and juices that cost us $13.50 or less. The rest were over that value and we would have, with the drinks package got them 20% cheaper. So if we had bought everything that we did on the drinks package compared to pay as you go, it would have worked out about at $980 for the package plus an addition $203 for the things above the package so pay as you go would have worked out cheaper. However if we’d have had the package we wouldn’t have had the other drinks we suspect. When we do have packages we very rarely spend beyond the limit unless as some cruise lines do, you can just pay the difference. Just getting a 20% discount feels like a bit of a rip off when you’ve already paid for the package. For yourself, unless you drink a lot of bourbon and soda or coffee you’d probably struggle to make the package stack up. A bourbon and soda onboard (depending on the bourbon) was usually around $8 and the coffee around $4.50. Prosecco around $11 Hope this helps. Linzi and Mark
@@petejames1326 Hi Pete. If you only had three or four beers you wouldn’t get anywhere near the value / cost of $70 upwards a day. You probably be around $40 a day worse off. So unless you had 9 speciality coffees or juices it would be really bad value for money.
Great Question Bill, we didn't notice any that offered JW King George included, not only on Cunard, but other cruise lines. We did see it on Celebrity and you could pay the difference above the drinks package for it, but we never tried it and can't recall the price, sorry.
Mmm decision off in feb 2024 7 nights on QE, still have not made our minds up. We are not big drinker, s/drink & coffee mainly. Only drink beer etc on a Friday or Saturday night. With AUD so poor against the USD, 70UD becomes 110AUD * 2 * 7 that’s a min of $1540. I would not drink that much beers & coffee etc in 4 mths.
Drinks packages are always so subjective as to whether they are good value for money, or whether it is just nice to not having to worry about a big bill at the end of a cruise. However, based on what you have said, if you don't drink much, the soft drinks and coffees are very reasonably priced, you would have to drink a LOT of them to come close to breaking even, especially with the poor exchange rate (we feel your pain in the UK on that too). You will be better off, financially, not taking it. Have a lovely day, Linzi & Mark
Similar thoughts for us. We are QE in December and trying to do the sums & make a call. the AUD is so bad rn against USD, which does make it a well thought out decision. I contemplated the $30USD package to get the non-alcoholics & coffees etc, but based on what we're seeing here, it would only be 3 or 4 spirits in a day to swoosh past the $70USD mark. Which, like some others have said, could be easily done if you treat every day as a friday or saturday LOL
@@simonb9466 if you treat every night as a weekend you will absolutely get good value on the drinks package Simon 😂 Seriously though as you've said if you have three or four cocktails a day plus a coffee and a fresh juice you will probably get really good value plus pre-budgeted too so not having to think a out what you are spending onboard as much. Linzi and Mark
We’ve decided to stick to 1 or 2 drinks at dinner & in the evening and just have the soft drinks package. Any alcohol well buy when we go ashore. Well also bring a bottle of wine each to the boat to keep in our fridge in our room. $1000 for drinks for a week??? Nah.
Bringing your own wine onboard is absolutely a great idea. And you are right, at 1 or 2 drinks at dinner and in the evening, and with the soft drinks package for the day time, then you will be far better off paying as you go on Cunard.
Did you find on the port days you had less? This is our dilemma, we’re on our very first cruise to the eastern Mediterranean and Adriatic next Sept for two weeks and can’t decide if the drinks package is for us. It feels like a lot of money especially when there’s days you might be off the ship all day? We do like a drink but equally don’t want to be thinking every time we have one ooooh how much is this costing?! I like beer, red wine and cocktails, hubby also likes beer, white wine and G&T and the odd cocktail. You mentioned a bottle of wine when not on the package, could you not have had it by the glass when on the package? I’m no clearer having watched this. And I know it has to be a personal choice….
Some drinks packages we have had are a lot easier to say buy or don't buy but this one really.wolld depend on the type of drinks you like. If you do cocktails (as you said) you'll probably make it work even on port days, if you just drink beer for instance it would be harder. On the wine side there is a load of options for by the glass on the package. We knew we were going to have more than one glass each in the evening we bought the bottle so it worked out cheaper to get the bottle for us than 4 glasses but if we would have had the package we would have had it by the glass instead. The general maths is if you have four cocktails or the more expensive wine (but on the package) plus on a speciality coffee and a juice you'll be better off. If you have less then you might not. Linzi and Mark
Some drinks packages work out much better than others depending on the cruise line for us too Mike. Cunards seems to work out decent value for us, especially on slightly longer cruises, whereas P&O (same parent company) works out massively cheaper for us to go Pay As You Go. It's also that peace of mind knowing no big bill at the end too, and Cunards is close enough to break even (or just slightly better off for us) that we take it.
Great all-inclusive, such as on Seabourn, is an amazing experience, and it is so hard to compare a more main stream line like Cunard, and the experience you get on there, even in Queens Grill to those ultra luxury all-inclusive experiences.
When we reviewed our drink expenses after a 26 night sailing, the total for 26 nights was $734 for the two of us. [including sodas, beer, wine by the bottle & corkage for wine we brought to Britannia]. It looks like the package would not be a good deal for us.
we think it is very safe to say that pay as you go in that instance worked much better for you, you would have spent a fortune more on the drinks package on a 26 night cruise. We've discussed this ourselves before, and we really do think that the drinks package price should be reduced massively on longer cruises, as you simply cannot keep up the level you would need to for it to make financial sense for that long.
@@oberstleutnant787 Not very helpful to this discussion, is it, to proclaim you don't drink, when the object is to consider whether or not one should plump for a package or not? I do require a few late night whiskies on a cruise, myself, for medicinal purposes, and of course a few cocktails at the dinner hour before going in to dine. A couple of glasses of champagne at lunchtime on a sea day or before getting off at a port is a must. If you go on long organised tours I wouldn't think a drinks package worthwhile. But otherwise a great way of avoiding the 15% outrage with each imbibement.
If its reasonable close we always go for the package - it just gives us the freedom to try other drinks as opposed to when we pay as we go we play it safe.
We still prefer a drinks package where possible, and Princess and Celebrities seem to really stack up well, and we will take the package again when we go on Queen Anne next year.
We did Queen Mary in January and the drinks package was included with our Princes Grill. BUT at the end of the cruise we had to the 15 percent for every drink we ordered. It added up! We are doing a Panama Canal cruise in January and the drinks package $2,000 for the two of us as it is not included this time. We just can't do it!
Hi Jayne, oh no, that's not good if you still get the 15 percent on top of the "inclusive" drinks package as a perk of the grill suites. We've not come across another cruise line that gives you that sort of perk but then charges the gratuties on top. When you buy the package the 15% is included, and it was on Celebrity, Princess, Royal, Virgin (Bar Tab) and even P&O's. In the suites, for instance Yacht Club on MSC, the package was included, but you were not charged anything extra beyond the cruise fare paid in advance.
I went on a P&O cruise in April, 7 days, didn't buy a drinks package and didn't spend a lot, I am not a big drinker, pay as you go is fine for someone who moderately drinks with dinner etc.
That would be perfect if they could offer that Lizzie. The hard line of everyone has to have the same packages does seem wrong. It would be easy to tell if someone was abusing it, and there could be dozens of reasons why both can't have the same package.
Hi Carolle, there are complimentary teas and coffees (non-speciality) in the Buffet and Main Dining Room as well as non-sparkling water. Linzi and Mark
Excellent analysis. I think it just shows that it’s a very individual thing. We were on Queen Victoria for 7 days, bought a 6 bottle wine package (captain’s collection) and everything else pay as you go. We had whatever we wanted and didn’t hold back and our bill came in at $890 including the wine package, so $90 less than the drinks package would have cost.
You are absolutely right Andy, drinks packages can be fantastic value or a complete waste of money, dependent on the individuals booking them. For us, generally, we would still rather have the drinks package (as we did on our most recent Celebrity Apex cruise), as even if it worked out just a little bit more, we'd rather have the peace of mind that knowing we had pre-paid it, but if it was going to work out hundreds of £/$ more then absolutely not.
You both make me laugh..and am I so glad I'm a teetotaller..I've been on cruises that cost the same amount as your drink packages..but loved my cruises on the Queens..keep enjoying your cruises..
Thinking of booking Queen Mary 2 for April 2025. If you buy the drinks package do you still have to pay the hotel and service gratuity at $14.50 pdpp or is that also dropped??
Hi Richard, the gratuities for the drinks are included in the package, otherwise they charge a further 20% onboard, on top of the list prices. For the wider hotel/service/ship gratuity, no they are separate and still have to be paid, regardless of the drinks package. Hope this helps, Linzi & Mark
