Alcohol Included?

Top Cruise Lines Begin to Offer All-Inclusive Packages

Are you a cruise fanatic who is already planning and looking forward to your sailing adventure? If you are a cruise lover, you know that cruising offers a unique, affordable, and fun way to see the world. Not only do you get the chance to sail off to exotic ports of call, a cruise offers an inclusive package of accommodations, meals, and entertainment—but what about the drinks?

Whether you are new to cruising or are a seasoned pro, you will quickly find that a cruise offers vacationers a wide variety of options including different price points, many destinations to choose from, and easy and stress-free vacation planning. You can further de-stress your vacation by inquiring about cruise insurance information with TravelGuard.com to ensure your cruise is free from unforeseen circumstances that can put a damper on your vacation. The savvy cruiser knows that unexpected things do happen and finding out about cruise insurance information is just plain smart.

Cruise lovers also know that although all of the delicious food you can eat is included, that glass of wine with diner will cost you. As much as these wonderful cruise packages do include, they do not include alcohol. It is kind of ironic that the ship’s cruise cost does not typically include “boat drinks,” don’t you agree? But it is customary across the board for alcoholic drinks to be an additional cost to cruisers…until now.

Cruise Lines Offer Inclusive Beverage Packages for Guests

Recently major cruise lines have announced that they are introducing new all you can drink plans that offer guests the opportunity to purchase alcohol at a discount. According to ABCNews.com, cruise lines are moving in the all inclusive direction when it comes to alcoholic beverages on board. There are different plans available for those wishing to partake in the consumption of a few adult beverages during their vacation at sea. Some cruise lines offer passengers “beverage packages,” the newest trend in all inclusive programs, where guests can purchase a cruise that includes the cost of alcohol beverages or pay an extra amount per day for all inclusive beverage consumption.

These new beverage packages are currently being tested on major cruise lines to see how passengers respond to the new programs. Each cruise line if offering a variation of a program that offers a different set of rules and prices.

SunSentinel.com reports that Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruise have three different beverage plans they have been testing on select ships. In addition, Carnival has launched "My Awesome Bar Program," that gives passengers the option to enjoy beer, wine, cocktails and sodas while cruising for the cost of $42.95 per day per person, with a 15% gratuity added.

How the New Inclusive Beverage Programs Work

There are a few conditions though. For example, Carnival’s inclusive alcohol program only applies to wine by the glass, beer, and cocktails that are priced $10 or less. If you would like to purchase wine or champagne by the bottle, or glasses of wine, beer or cocktails priced over $10, you can do so at a 25% discount.

In addition, it is required that all passengers 21 years old and over that are staying in the same cabin purchase the beverage package. This requirement has been put into place to ensure that cruisers are not sharing a drink package, but could present an issue if your travel mates do not drink, because they are still required to purchase the plan.

No matter what package you choose for your next vacation at sea, cruising offers a wonderful and affordable opportunity to see the world and experience many countries during a single vacation excursion that simply cannot be matched.