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Gratuities are also included with the Cheers drink package because you'll be paying an 18% service charge on top of the package price. If you're ordering drinks while within U.S. waters at a port or before embarking from your home port, you will still be charged tax. For example, if you order a $10 drink and the local tax is 10%, you'll be charged $1 for tax but not for the drink itself. Since 2019, Currently, Carnival's "all-you-can-drink-alcohol" package is available fleetwide - including on ships operating in Australia New Zealand. Package gives you the run of beverages from the ship’s bars for up to $20 per glass. If you order a drink that’s more than $20, the fine print says that you receive a 25% discount off the menu price.
Carnival Cheers Program FAQs
Program onboard, there is no additional discount. Use Carnival's average drink prices listed above to calculate your expected cost of drinks each day and see if it would come out to more than the price of the package. You have to purchase the package for the duration of the cruise. If you wait until you're on board to buy the package, you must purchase it on the first day of your sailing. You cannot try out the package for a single day or start it midway through the cruise — unless you're sailing from New York or Texas, where drink packages get activated at 6 a.m.
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But having paid a certain amount to have all my drinks included on Carnival Conquest, I felt obligated to get the most from my purchase. And that’s the wrong way to think about having a drink package. Drink packages are arguably one of the most popular and important add-ons in cruising, including onboard Carnival cruises. The Carnival cruise drink package that's the most iconic in particular is the Cheers! Even if you're a caffeine fiend who drinks coffee and soda all day, it's hard to recoup the costs of the Carnival Cheers package on nonalcoholic beverages alone.
Is Carnival's CHEERS! Package Worth It? FAQ's Answered Plus A 'Secret' Drink Package Revealed
This article is integrated with Carnival drink packages and the Carnival drink prices (by the glass and liquor by the bottle). Beverage package is essentially a way of creating an (almost) all-inclusive beverage experience on a Carnival cruise ship. The package includes alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks below certain price points and includes the standard drinks available to all guests. As of this article’s publication date, the CHEERS! Package aboard Carnival costs $59.95 per person, per day — if bought ahead of time. If you wait to purchase the beverage package until you board the ship, the price rises to $64.95 per day.
Allows passengers to instead pay a flat daily fee per person to enjoy all the drinks they would like. They pay the same amount each day whether they have two beers or if they have ten cocktails. It makes it much easier to budget for the cruise and enjoy yourself without worrying about how much you’ve spent. And if you drink a lot, it can save you considerable money. The drink package also includes a 25% discount on any spirit or wine by the glass over the $20 limit, bottles of wine and Champagne, and beverage seminars and classes. First, let's clarify which beverages are already included in your standard Carnival cruise fare.
Is the CHEERS! Beverage Package a deal
For the exact numbers - follow the above "Bon Voyage" link. Randy Young is the founder and editor-in-chief at Cruise Spotlight. He has been in marketing for 19 years and has been cruising for just as long. Over the years, he's worked with products like TVs, copiers, light bulbs, and EV chargers, but cruising has always been his passion. There's nothing Randy likes more than the first couple of hours on a ship, exploring every nook and cranny and seeing how it's different from everything else out there.
The drinks
You can also bring up to a 12-pack of nonalcoholic beverages in 12-ounce cans or cartons. Acceptable beverages include soda, sparkling water, energy drinks, juice and milk. There's another way to think about the value of the Cheers package. Some people are looking for the unquantifiable peace of mind that comes with not worrying about drink costs adding up at every turn. If that's you, creating a more all-inclusive experience on board might justify the cost of the package, even if you don't break even with drink prices.
Carnival's Cheers! Beverage Program Price
Carnival Cruise answers controversial beverage package question - TheStreet
Carnival Cruise answers controversial beverage package question.
Posted: Thu, 09 Nov 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]
If you're under 21 or don't drink alcohol, you might want to consider the Bottomless Bubbles package for soft drinks. Carnival's all-inclusive soda program covers all soft drinks and juices and costs $6.95 per day for children and $9.50 per day for adults (plus the 18% service charge). It doesn't include other nonalcoholic beverages, such as bottled water and specialty coffee; drinks ordered through room service and the minibar also are not included. For my three-day cruise to the Bahamas, the total price to purchase Carnival’s Cheers!
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One other thing to factor is the convenience of having a set price. Some people may not come out ahead with the package based on how much they drink, but like not having to worry about what the bill will be at the end of the cruise. Drink packages allow you to better plan your costs and budget given that the cost is the same each day. It also lets you try new drinks without worrying about wasting money if you don’t like it.
In fact, stopping passengers from sharing of the package is likely why Carnival requires all guests in a stateroom to purchase the package if one person does so. If you are sailing from Galveston or New York, you might have heard there are strange laws affecting alcohol sold on cruise ships. Due to state laws, Carnival can’t activate the CHEERS! There is also a 25% discount off the menu price for wine and champagne by the bottle and drinks over $20 per serving. The easiest and cheapest way to purchase the package is to book it online through the Carnival Funshops after you’ve booked your cruise.
For some reason, the fact I’d paid for this package made it seem, well, fun. Note that if one adult in a cabin purchases the Cheers beverage program, all adults 21 years of age or older staying in that same cabin must also purchase it. Package even if you are in port or don’t feel like drinking one day. Carnival communicated the price to passengers via email, noting that it will come into effect starting on Monday, Oct. 9 for short sailings departing on or after Dec. 1, 2023. In late-June 2017, Carnival changed considerably their Bon Voyage alcohol prices (bottled liquor sold in ship's Fun Shops) - and not for the better. Some items went up 25%, most were "merely" 10% "adjusted".
When the ships Legend and Sunshine returned from Europe, their Cheers price was like on all "Cheers ships". The total cost is completely out of my price range. Even on a shorter cruise, I don't ever 'break even' on what I paid because I'm not a huge alcohol drinker, and I can only drink so many coffee drinks, juice, and bottled water. I'd rather use that money to book an excursion, or shop in a cool port to help their economies. If you are really enjoying your vacation and time with friends, you might want to buy everyone a round. In that case, the 1st drink will apply to your drink package, but the rest of your drinks will go on your onboard account.
