We Cruised With and Without a Cruise Drink Package

Our two experiences couldn’t have been more different—and I think that’s why they’re useful as examples.

With a Package: Antarctica

Before our 17-night Sapphire Princess cruise to Antarctica, we agonized over whether to buy a package and which one to choose. At the time, our basic choices were no package, Plus or Premier.

I drink a lot of Diet Coke and often like a rum cocktail before bed. Bill isn’t a big drinker, but will have a glass of wine occasionally. If we could have selected different packages, that would have been best for us. But most cruise lines make everyone in the cabin get the same package.

We bit the bullet and chose Premier. On our sailing, it gave us unlimited alcoholic and nonalcoholic drinks, fast Internet on multiple devices each, and unlimited specialty dining. It also included all our crew gratuities, Room Service and OceanNow delivery, professional photos and other benefits.

So now that we had paid for it, we decided to fully use it! The crew referred to me as the “Two Diet Coke Girl” because I always asked them to bring me two cans at a time.

We enjoyed wine with dinner and had dinner in the Specialty Dining Restaurants most nights. Bill discovered he likes Bailey’s Pina Coladas which he had several times during the cruise.

The best part was that once we were onboard, we stopped thinking about it. We could order another drink, eat at Crown Grill again or use the Internet without mentally adding another charge to our trip.

Would I automatically buy Premier again? No. Depending on the destination and current package benefits, Plus may be plenty for us next time. The fact that we enjoyed the biggest package doesn’t mean we always need the biggest package.

Without a Package: Greece

For our 8-night Celebrity Infinity cruise through Greece, we deliberately tried the opposite approach. No drink package. No Internet package. We wanted to see whether we would enjoy the cruise just as much without paying upfront for extras we might not use enough to justify.

At our first meal shortly after boarding, the waiter asked if I wanted something to drink. Without thinking, I said, “Yes, bring me a can of Diet Coke.”

Then I remembered I didn’t have a package. Once the automatic gratuity was added, that can was going to cost me about $6. Oops!

I canceled the order, and after that I quickly trained myself to say no when someone asked if I wanted something to drink.

But here’s the important part: I didn’t spend the rest of the cruise depriving myself.

We bought 30 cans of Pepsi Max at a MiniMart for $30 USD and brought them onboard with us. We asked our cabin steward to empty the minibar in our refrigerator so we had room to chill my Pepsi Max—AND so there was no chance of accidentally getting charged for minibar items.

Bill drank water the entire cruise—and was perfectly happy doing it. That’s much closer to how he drinks at home anyway.

I still had a rum cocktail most evenings, but instead of buying a package, I went to the bar and simply bought the drink when I wanted it. We had zero wine with dinner, but that’s not part of our regular habit anyway.

We skipped the ship’s Internet package too. Instead, I used a $19 Airalo Europe eSIM on my phone for 15 days. I had internet when we were in port or close to land, but not when we were far out at sea. And somehow, I survived.

One confusing thing about cruise ship “Wi-Fi” packages: Wi-Fi and Internet access aren’t actually the same thing. Everyone could connect to the ship’s Wi-Fi for free to use the cruise line’s app, but that didn’t give us Internet access. For that, we would have needed to purchase Internet access or have it included in a package. Cruise lines often call that paid Internet access “Wi-Fi,” which makes it more confusing than it needs to be.

In the end, we spent way less without feeling like we sacrificed much at all.

Kari’s Travel Tip: Check your cruise line’s policy on bringing aboard non-alcoholic beverages. Some may not allow you to do it the way we did.

We tested the no-package approach during our 8-night Celebrity Infinity cruise through Greece and Turkey. If you’re considering that ship, my full Celebrity Infinity Review covers what we liked, what we didn’t and whether we’d book it again.

So What Did We Actually Spend?

The difference between our two cruises was pretty significant.

On our 17-day Antarctica cruise, the Princess Premier package cost us $3,060 for the two of us—or $180 per day. That included crew gratuities, unlimited drinks, unlimited specialty dining, Internet access on multiple devices and professional photography.

On our 8-night Greece cruise, we spent $557.44 onboard for the two of us with no package. Of that, $300.44 was crew gratuities and $257 was my rum cocktails. Add the $30 I spent on 30 cans of Pepsi Max before boarding and $19 for my Airalo eSIM, and our comparable total was $606.44—or about $76 per day for the two of us.

So, very roughly:

• Princess Premier: $180 per day for both of us
• Celebrity à la carte: $76 per day for both of us
• That’s a difference of about $104 per day—or $832 over our 8-night Greece cruise.

But it’s not an apples-to-apples comparison. On Princess, that extra money bought us specialty dining, Internet access, professional photos, wine with dinner, Bill’s drinks and the freedom to order whatever we wanted without thinking about the price. On Celebrity, we intentionally went without most of those things—and didn’t miss them.

That’s really the point of this entire post: don’t ask whether a cruise drink package is theoretically “worth” its advertised value. Ask whether the things you’re paying extra for are worth it to you.

Is a Cruise Drink Package Right for You?

This is where I think most cruise drink package calculations go wrong: they focus on how much you need to consume to break even, instead of how much you actually will drink.

A Package May Make Sense If…

• You and your cabin mate will naturally drink enough throughout the day to justify the cost
• It includes Internet access, dining, gratuities or other benefits you already planned to use
• You’ll spend a lot of time onboard
• You want more of your vacation expenses paid before you leave
• You like being able to order what you want, without thinking about the price every time

That last one is harder to put a dollar value on, but I wouldn’t dismiss it. I really did enjoy that feeling in Antarctica.

Going Without May Make More Sense If…

• One person will use the package much more than the other person
• You don’t normally drink much
• You’ll spend long days off ship, exploring the ports
• Your cruise line allows you to bring some of your own nonalcoholic beverages onboard
• You don’t need constant Internet access at sea
• You can use an eSIM or cellular service when you’re near land
• You’d rather pay only when you actually want something

Bill is probably the best example of that last point. On our Antarctica cruise, he drank wine and Bailey’s Piña Coladas because they were included in our package. In Greece, he happily drank water.

Neither was a hardship. One simply reflected his normal habits much more closely.

Before buying a Package, I’d estimate what both people in the cabin would realistically spend on drinks and any other benefits you care about, then compare that with the total package price.

Don’t give a package extra credit for things you wouldn’t have bought anyway.

If You Want a Package, Which One Should You Buy?

Once you decide that a package probably makes sense, don’t automatically jump to the most expensive option.

Look at what actually changes as you move from one level to the next.

• Does the higher package give you the number and type of drinks you genuinely care about? On our Celebrity cruise, the different levels covered different price ranges of drinks. If you really like premium wine or liquor, that makes sense to get the Premium package. If you’re happy with lower-tier shelf brands, why pay for more?
• Does it add Internet or additional devices you’ll actually use?
• Does it include specialty dining that you were already planning to book?
• Are crew gratuities or other expenses included?
• Which additional perks do you get that you would you actually pay for separately?

That’s how I’d approach our next cruise.

Premier worked very well for Antarctica, but depending on the destination, I’d probably choose Princess Plus next time. Fifteen drinks a day is more than enough Diet Coke and wine for me. If we’re cruising somewhere with regular cell coverage, I can use an Airalo eSIM on my phone to get the Internet and skip Internet coverage for my laptop.

The right package can change from one cruise to the next—even for the same people.