Royal Caribbean's drink packages offer unlimited beverages during a cruise, but the question is how much can you practically consume every day.
The premise of a drink package is pay a flat fee to enjoy as many cocktails, beers, glasses of wine, coffees, and bottles of water as you like during your cruise. Drink packages have become incredibly popular with cruisers, and the average price has steadily gone up over the years.
Read more: Everything you need to know about a Royal Caribbean drink package
One user on the Royal Caribbean subreddit was curious how much others were truly drinking every day to make that cost worthwhile.
"Those who get the drink package, how many alcoholic drinks do y'all end up consuming per day and do you drink every day?" the thread asked.
Over 200 responses followed, with cruisers sharing their experiences with Royal Caribbean's drink packages.
Drink counts
The responses to the Reddit thread ran the gamut of possible responses, with some people claiming to have consumed easily over 100 drinks over the course of one sailing.
cat_mom_dot_com answered with her count depending on how into drinking their day was, "20 to 30 on the hardcore days. 5 to 10 on the lowkey days."
Warm-Refridgerator242 explained being on vacation is a different approach than being at home, "I would say I end up having between 10 and 15 drinks a day and I don't typically drink besides on cruises. It can sound like a lot but when you wake up around 8 am and you're up until night you'll end up having a good amount of drinks!"
They added that the appeal of the drink package is the convenience of not worrying about a bar bill later, "I definitely recommend it overall, it's nice being able to get a drink and not worry about if you like it or not because you can always order another. Plus the convenience factor of not having to sign every receipt is nice."
Many of the answers came in between 10-20 drinks per day, with many people saying not every drink contained alcohol. The Deluxe Beverage Package and the Royal Refreshment Package both include bottled water, premium coffee & teas, juices, sodas and other soft drinks.
DoctorHathaway explained how the drink package works beyond alcohol, "I do about 12 alcoholic drinks a day. I also drink about 2 specialty coffees, a bunch of fountain drinks (mostly flavored seltzers), and I usually grab about 4-6 bottles of water from the bar."
If the drink counts sound high, many were quick to point out that the potency of Royal Caribbean's drinks did not seem very high. Many people said the bartenders measure the amount of liquor dispensed and that resulted in drinks not being as potent as you might expect.
"It’s worth it for the convenience"
The overwhelming consensus among those that responded in the thread was no matter how much they consumed per day, the drink package value was worthwhile.
When you buy a drink package, the cost includes the drinks and gratuity, along with the ability to sample drinks. There's no penalty for not finishing drinks.
Ginsengii shared that while they did not drink a lot, the freedom it provided was worth the cost, "I don’t think my husband and I will “get our money’s worth” in terms of literal cost per drink, but to me, it’s worth it for the convenience. "
"I’m someone who would hem and haw over spending the extra money on a second drink at dinner or skip out on the mimosa at breakfast if I had to make the decision to pay for it in the moment. By buying the package, I am able to fully relax and not worry about costs because everything is prepaid."
"It might not make total sense, but it works for me."
Practical-Money-7982 talked about how having a drink package changes how they cruise, "For me the package is always worth it no matter how much I drink."
"I have more fun when I'm drinking as I have trouble loosening up. If I don't buy the package I will not drink at all because I'll have to justify $15/drink which I will not be able to."
The break even point
While there were some flaunting daily drink counts, many were also looking at how much they had to drink to make the drink package cost worthwhile.
Justifying the drink package price was about determining how much they had to drink each day to end up spending the same amount if they paid for drinks on their own. Royal Caribbean drink prices are about $7.99 for a beer, $10-$14 per cocktail, and $3.50 for a soda.
Royal Caribbean uses dynamic pricing for its drink packages, so the price varies from sailing to sailing. And there are pre-cruise discounts if you buy before the cruise begins.
Read more: How much is a Royal Caribbean drink package?
OhWhatsHisName calculated it was very easy to get your drink package value back without going too heavy into alcoholic drinks, "I can get fancy coffees in the morning, milkshakes and other fruity drinks throughout the day, bottled waters for excursions, etc. so factor those in, then to break even for the alcoholic drinks that's not even 5 a day, so that's 2 alcoholic drinks at lunch, 3 at dinner, which is very easily hit."
Jane_Marie_CA also found 3-10 cocktails a day combined with juices, soda, iced lattes, and smoothies made the package a good buy, "my break even point is somewhere between 4-5 cocktails a day when I factor my non booze consumption."
Some felt it wasn't worth it
While most of the people in the thread celebrated the virtues of a drink package, others lamented the purchase and couldn't justify it.
Gat0rJesus felt having the drink package made them drink more than they would otherwise, "We got it and had to drink far more than normal to make it worth it."
MaroonCanuck added, "The sheer caloric intake of some of these posts 15-20 drinks a day. Oh my heart hurts."
For a few people, the up front cost made them think twice, "Average 8-10. It was fun. Prob won't do it again, though. Will just pay out of pocket or bring some on board," BrushYourFeet said.
