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Norwegian’s Unlimited Starbucks package was introduced in mid-2022 and was specially made for coffee lovers. You’ll find a full breakdown of the details below, but we also created this handy chart to quickly help you see the difference between the packages.
NCL Premium Beverage Package / Unlimited Open Bar
Before diving in, assess your drinking habits and preferences to ensure it aligns with your cruise expectations. These are often pre-ordered and delivered to staterooms, ensuring that cruisers have bottled water throughout their voyage. Upon purchasing a beverage package, you’re typically given a special card or your cruise card is marked in a particular way. I'm a global nomad at heart, and the dedicated editor behind CruiseGear. I want to share everything I've learned and hope to make your next cruise vacation as enjoyable as possible. Also, you need to take into consideration if you have a port-intensive cruise.
Why Opt for a Beverage Package?
On Norwegian, the drink packages carry a hefty 20% gratuity charge in addition to the base price. So for a $109 a day drink package, you’ll actually pay $130.80 per person. Norwegian’s Unlimited Open Bar Package includes a variety of spirits and cocktails, wines by the glass, and bottled or draft beer up to $15. It also includes fountain soda, juice, and non-alcoholic beer.
How Many Drinks Can I Buy at One Time?
With Norwegian Cruise Line's long-running "Free At Sea" deal, you can "save up to $1,400 on all the spirits and cocktails, wines, draft beer, juice and soda." You don't want to invest in a drink package if you aren't going to break even and get your money's worth. Note that you'll have to pay an extra 20% gratuity when you purchase your package. The Unlimited Soda Package costs $9.95 per person, per day, regardless of age, while the Unlimited Starbucks Package can be purchased for $12.95 per person, per day. The discount for bottles of wine, wine and spirit experiences, tastings, flights, and Connoisseur Collection beverages increases to 40% with the Premium Plus Beverage Package.
You can also buy a drink package on board the ship, but this option will usually only be available for the first couple of days of the cruise. But I find they still have a great selection of wines and cocktails around $9-$12. And if you are a beer drinker, this cost goes down even more. If you’ve opted for the Free at Sea perk on your Pride of America cruise, this is the drink package you’ll receive. You’ll definitely want to check out Norwegian’s beverage package options before you go.
First, you must understand what drinks are included with Norwegian Cruise Line's base fare
It’s important to keep in mind that the “free” perk includes alcoholic drinks up to $15 each, and soda. However, it doesn’t include specialty coffee or water bottles. Canned and bottled drinks, food and Starbucks merchandise are not included. To purchase the package, guests must be at least 18 years old. If one person purchases the package, all qualifying guests under the same method of payment for the cruise must also purchase it.
How Much Does The Drink Package Cost with the Free At Sea Promotion
Note that packages are only available for cruises that are three days or longer. Pride of America Hawaii cruises have their own special drink package (detailed below), and some packages aren’t available on that ship. Wine and beer lovers might remember Corks & Caps—for just $65 per day, you could enjoy unlimited draft and bottled beer, wine-by-the-glass, and fountain sodas.
For any drinks over $15, guests will be charged the difference. So why wouldn’t someone choose the Unlimited Open Bar as a promotion? Because while the package is “free” with the promotion, you still pay the 20% gratuity on the VALUE of the drink package. This means that the package still costs each passenger $21.80 per day. So if you only like an occasional beer or a glass of wine with dinner, then you’ll not even get value for the $21.80 gratuities per day that you will be required to pay.
NCL's Free at Sea promotion: What to know before you book - The Points Guy
NCL's Free at Sea promotion: What to know before you book.
Posted: Tue, 12 Sep 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]
There’s not a much worse way to end a cruise than to get the final bill and go into shock for what you’ve spent on drinks. Compared to the other Free at Sea perks, we believe opting for the drink package is the best value regardless of how much you drink. This drink package includes everything within the Premium beverage package, along with other top-shelf spirit brands.
As a suggestion, bring along a 3 or 4 bottles of wine and pay a corkage fee of $15 each. Unfortunately, there isn’t a separate coffee package that you can buy on a Norwegian Cruise. If you do want to have specialty coffee included, consider the Premium Plus package, which includes premium liqueurs and wine, unlimited soda, and Lavazza coffee.
Indulge in a pastry or snack alongside your favorite brew for the ultimate morning pick-me-up. Guests with the Starbucks package are entitled to just one beverage per person, per transaction. Of course the big question is whether or not the NCL drink package is worth it. The answer to that depends a lot on your personal habits when you’re on vacation.
As for taxes on your drinks, you won't need to pay anything extra when you're sailing in international waters. When you choose the Unlimited Open Bar Package as a Free at Sea perk, you’ll only be paying the gratuity (about $22 per day). Drinking just one soda with lunch, an afternoon cocktail by the pool, and a glass of wine with dinner, you’ve had your money’s worth for the day. Unlike some cruise lines, Norwegian doesn’t currently have a limit on how many drinks you can have per day with any of their packages. They do have a limit of two drinks per person per order, which is helpful to know when there’s a long line at the pool bar.
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