Are All Inclusive Cruises The way Forward
Its only been 6 days since Royal Caribbean started their ‘All Inclusive ‘ campaign for 2015 and goodness me what a week its been, the phonelines have been hot with customers eager to put down their money to secure the All Inclusive drinks package for themselves and their children.
This comes as no surprise since Celebrity announced there Go 1,2,3 Campaign at the beginning of June again offering their Classic Drinks Package for Free , a stampede of happy cruisers desperate to book immediately followed.
Looking back though many cruiselines have been offering an All Inclusive package for a while now, Thomson cruises, Azamara and your luxury brands of Regent, Silversea to name a few have all been including drinks, gratuities and some even shore excursions once on board but is there a catch.
I think when looking at any All Inclusive options its very important to look at the whole picture. When looking at prices originally before you book they may be over your budget but think about what you would actually spend once on board. For example Royal Caribbean’s latest campaign includes the Select Drinks Package, Beer and Wine by the glass together with Non Alcoholic Cocktails and soda. This would normally cost you $40 per person per day which is around £25 per person per day. for a 14 night duration this would set you back £700 a couple , Gratuities which they are also offering Free would set you back £200 a couple. Wouldnt it be nice to go on board knowing that you didn’t have to worry about what you order from the bar and who to tip as that had already been taken care of, so spending money would be alot less. I am sure you get the picture. Its worth weighing it all up especially to if you have children as their drinks are included also .
What I don’t think is great value for money though is Norwegian Cruise lines latest campaign to follow her competitors by offering an All Inclusive package of a mere $899 on top of your cruise price based on a 7 night sailing. This basically means that for £75 a day your cruise will include all drinks, speciality dining restaurants ,bingo sessions, bottled water, photos and Internet time. Norwegian insist the package is worth $1200 per person for a 7 night sailing. Really???. I think the catch for this alternative is that you would be paying for things you may not necessarily take advantage of eg bingo and 20 photos.!! I guess if you are happy to drink and eat as much as you can possibly manage for a whole seven says and have photos taken to prove it (free of course) then maybe its for you. This is of course a trial and will be interested to see if its extended after the 29th August. I would be interested to hear your thoughts.
Is All Inclusive for you? I think we can safely say that for the most of us campaigns that offer All Inclusive offers every now and again are a great way to entice customers to part with their money as long as it was occasionally, All Inclusive cruises on a full time basis may just change the dynamics of a cruise in a way many customers wouldn’t want them to be changed.
What do you think, I look forward to your feedback.
Holly xx
10 Comments on “Are All Inclusive Cruises The way Forward”
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I would like to see cruise companies do away with the set gratuities and include it in the price. That way, everyone pays and you do not get the opt outs.You know where you stand and can pay actual gratuities for good service. They could still pay staff based on the number of passengers they are responsible for so that they are not exposed to paying fixed salaries if the ship is not full.
As a non-drinker, I am not in favour of all inclusive as I feel I am paying for those who drink a lot. I do make use of the soda/soft drink packages when I feel the deal it right.
I don’t drink alcohol and my husband only has an occasional glass of wine with dinner. Eating in specialty restaurants we can avoid and as for photos they are so overpriced I prefer to take my own. A basic drinks package would be all I would buy so, No! to an all inclusive cruise. It is just added to the price and a big boost for the cruise line in profits.
Does the royal Caribbean drinks package includes whiskey and gin n tonic? What about alcoholic cocktails? If it doesn’t can you pay the difference to upgrade? Would like to know ASAP cos looking to book in next couple of weeks.
HI Tina, The All Inclusive drinks package with Royal Caribbean includes wine and beer by the glass and non alcoholic cocktails. You can upgrade once onboard which approx will be $16 per person per night. I hope this helps. let me know if you need any prices. Kind Regards Holly
I think an All Inclusive package is a good idea Once one has booked their cruise I then shudder to think I’ve still got the gratuities and drinks on top of the initial cost
I think all inclusive on cruise ships is a No-No these are not free you are paying through the noise for it I booked a cruise for next year with no freebies ? .Later the cruise was advertised with so called freebies the difference in price was £401.00 each there is no way will we spend £802 on drinks and extras I want to spend my money how I want I will only book with cruise
Companies that don’t offer it please please let’s get back to how cruising used to be
When I am budgeting for a cruise, I price in everything that we want
ie. Drinks, gratuities, speciality restaurants if required, which is then my all inclusive price, not the one that some cruise lines are trying to impose.
Therefore I am against all inclusive deals as we will be paying for some items we do not want.
My wife and I are tea-drinking tee-totallers so all cruises are already essentially “all-inclusive” for us. Would we not find ourselves subsidising the drinking habits of others?
Good day! Do you use Twitter? I’d like to follow you if
that would be okay. I’m undoubtedly enjoying your blog
and look forward to new posts.
@Holly_Cruises, Thankyou