Planning a voyage with Celebrity Cruises involves budgeting not just for your stateroom and shore excursions, but also for onboard beverages. Individual drink prices typically range from $9 to $18 for cocktails, with an automatic 20% gratuity added to all bar tabs, while comprehensive beverage packages start around $89 to $107 per person, per day, before any applicable promotional discounts.
Navigating the financial landscape of a modern cruise vacation requires a clear understanding of how onboard expenses accumulate. When you step onto a Celebrity Cruises vessel, your base fare covers your accommodations, main dining room meals, casual buffet access, and basic non-alcoholic drinks like tap water, regular coffee, tea, and basic juices. However, specialty coffees, bottled water, sodas, and alcoholic beverages fall outside this baseline. To help passengers manage these costs effectively, Celebrity Cruises operates an a la carte pricing structure alongside a tiered system of all-inclusive beverage packages. Evaluating these options carefully ensures that your onboard spending matches your actual consumption patterns, preventing unexpected surprises at the end of your cruise.
Individual A La Carte Alcohol Pricing on Celebrity Ships
For travelers who prefer an occasional drink rather than a continuous flow of beverages, understanding a la carte pricing is essential. Purchasing drinks individually allows you to pay exclusively for what you consume, but it requires careful arithmetic to determine whether individual purchases or an all-inclusive package represents the better financial choice.
Standard Beer and Cider Costs
Beer enthusiasts will find a broad selection of domestic, imported, and craft brews available across the fleet's various lounges, pool bars, and specialty restaurants. Standard domestic bottles and mass-market imports typically range from $7.50 to $8.50. Craft beers, specialized imports, and larger format options or ciders generally cost between $9.00 and $11.00 per serving. These prices reflect standard resort-style pricing found across major cruise lines.
Wine by the Glass and Bottle Pricing
Celebrity Cruises is renowned for its extensive wine programs, curated by professional sommeliers. Glasses of house wine generally start around $9.00 to $12.00, while mid-tier varietals, premium pours, and specialty labels commonly range from $14.00 to $22.00 per glass. If you prefer to purchase wine by the bottle, selections begin around $35.00 for basic house options, with exceptional vintages, reserve bottles, and high-end champagne reaching several hundred dollars. Passengers are also permitted to bring up to two bottles of wine per stateroom aboard on embarkation day, though a $25 corkage fee applies if those bottles are consumed in public dining venues.
Cocktails, Spirits, and Specialty Drinks
Mixed drinks, martinis, and signature cocktails form a major part of the onboard beverage experience, particularly in venues like the Martini Bar or Sunset Bar. Standard well drinks and basic mixed cocktails average $10.00 to $12.00. Premium cocktails crafted with top-shelf spirits, fresh ingredients, and specialty syrups—such as those featured on specialized menus—typically range from $14.00 to $18.00. Shots and straight pours of premium spirits follow a similar pricing tier, scaled according to the age and reputation of the liquor brand.
Celebrity Cruises Beverage Packages Breakdown
To alleviate the stress of tracking individual drink tabs, Celebrity Cruises offers structured beverage packages. These packages bundle various levels of drinks for a flat daily rate, providing predictability for your vacation budget.
| Package Name | Included Items & Tiers | Typical Daily Cost (Approximate) | Best Suited For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Beverage Package | Beers, spirits, cocktails, and wines by the glass up to $10.00 value; sodas, juices, and bottled water. | $89.00 - $99.00 per person/day | Casual drinkers who enjoy standard cocktails, domestic beers, and house wines. |
| Premium Beverage Package | All items up to $15.00 value; premium coffees, Red Bull, premium bottled waters, and a broader wine/spirit selection. | $107.00 - $119.00 per person/day | Enthusiasts of craft cocktails, premium spirits, specialty coffees, and higher-end wines. |
| Non-Alcoholic Package | Premium coffees, teas, specialty waters, sodas, and juices. Does not include alcohol. | $30.00 - $35.00 per person/day | Teetotalers, passengers avoiding alcohol, and those who consume multiple specialty coffees daily. |
The Classic Beverage Package Explained
The Classic Beverage Package covers all beers, spirits, cocktails, and wines by the glass priced up to $10.00. If you order a beverage that exceeds this $10.00 threshold, you are not disqualified from using the package; instead, you simply pay the price difference plus the applicable gratuity. This package also includes sodas, fresh and bottled juices, bottled water, and specialty coffees, making it a comprehensive choice for moderate drinkers.
The Premium Beverage Package Explained
The Premium Beverage Package elevates the experience by covering all beverages priced up to $15.00. This increase opens up access to high-end craft cocktails, top-shelf liquor brands, and a significantly broader selection of wines by the glass. Furthermore, the Premium package includes specialty canned and bottled beverages like energy drinks, premium waters such as Perrier and San Pellegrino, and specialized organic teas. For travelers who prefer top-tier ingredients and branded labels, this tier eliminates the need to pay out-of-pocket price differences.
Important Rules and Restrictions Governing Packages
When purchasing or utilizing a beverage package on Celebrity Cruises, several strict operational rules apply across the fleet:
- Stateroom Policy: If one adult in a stateroom purchases a beverage package, all other adults sharing that stateroom must also purchase the same package. This rule prevents sharing beverages between guests. Exceptions are made for medical reasons or guests who abstain entirely, though requests must be cleared through guest relations.
- Gratuity Addition: A mandatory 20% service charge is automatically added to the daily package price at the time of purchase.
- Daily Limits: While packages are technically all-inclusive, management maintains a fair-use policy regarding excessive consumption for safety and operational reasons.
- Exclusions: Room service orders, mini-bar items located within your stateroom, and souvenir glassware are typically excluded from standard packages, though policies can vary by promotional booking type.
Understanding the "Always Included" Fare Structure
Celebrity Cruises frequently markets its vacations under an "Always Included" pricing model, which fundamentally changes how travelers approach onboard alcohol costs.
What "Always Included" Covers
When you book an eligible fare under the "Always Included" structure, your package automatically bundles Classic Drinks, basic Wi-Fi, and prepaid gratuities into your base cruise fare. This means that standard beers, wines, and cocktails up to the Classic tier are already paid for before you even step foot on the ship.
Upgrading to the Premium Experience
If you have booked an "Always Included" fare and prefer the expanded options of the Premium Beverage Package, you do not need to pay for a brand-new package from scratch. Instead, Celebrity Cruises allows you to pay a modest daily upgrade fee (typically the price difference between the two packages plus the standard service charge) to bridge the gap. This upgrade flexibility makes it easier to tailor your cruise experience without forfeiting the baseline value already included in your ticket.
Tips for Minimizing Onboard Alcohol Expenses
Even with all-inclusive options available, smart planning can help you optimize your spending and avoid unnecessary charges during your voyage.
Pre-Cruise Purchasing Discounts
Celebrity Cruises frequently runs digital sales and promotional discounts on beverage packages through their online cruise planner prior to embarkation. Purchasing your package online before your cruise almost always yields a lower daily rate compared to waiting until you board the ship on day one. Keep an eye on your online account dashboard for Black Friday sales, holiday promotions, and targeted cruise-planning discounts.
Bringing Allowed Beverages Onboard
As noted previously, Celebrity Cruises permits each stateroom to bring up to two 750ml bottles of wine or champagne onboard on embarkation day in carry-on luggage. Additionally, guests are allowed to bring a reasonable amount of non-alcoholic beverages—such as sodas or packaged water—in their carry-on bags. Utilizing this allowance for your cabin consumption can significantly reduce your incidental bar tabs throughout the week.
Evaluating Break-Even Points
To determine if a package is financially sound for your lifestyle, calculate your expected daily consumption. If the Classic package costs roughly $95 per day (including gratuity), and standard cocktails average $11 plus a 20% tip (equating to roughly $13.20 per drink), you would need to consume approximately seven or eight drinks per day to break even. If your routine involves two glasses of wine at dinner, a cocktail by the pool, and a beer at sail-away, buying drinks a la carte or taking advantage of promotional fares often proves more economical than paying for a full package.
Frequently Asked Questions About Celebrity Cruises Alcohol Prices
Can I bring my own hard liquor or beer onboard?
No. Celebrity Cruises strictly prohibits bringing hard liquor, beer, or canned beverages onboard in checked or carry-on luggage. Any confiscated alcohol will be held by security and returned to you on the final morning of the cruise. Only wine and champagne within the specified two-bottle limit per stateroom are permitted.
Are drink packages refundable if I change my mind?
Beverage packages purchased pre-cruise can generally be canceled and fully refunded up to a specific window (usually 48 to 72 hours) prior to the sail date through the online cruise planner. Once onboard, packages are non-refundable and cannot be prorated or canceled mid-cruise.
Are drinks included at Celebrity’s private destinations or islands?
If your itinerary includes a visit to a private destination managed by Celebrity or its parent company (such as Perfect Day at CocoCay on select shared itineraries), your onboard beverage package typically extends ashore to participating venues on that island, subject to specific island bar policies. Always verify current island inclusions prior to going ashore.
What happens if I order a drink that costs more than my package limit?
You will not be denied the drink. Instead, the computer system will automatically charge your onboard account for the price difference between the drink's actual cost and your package limit, plus the standard 20% gratuity on that difference.
Is tipping required for every drink if I have a package?
No. The mandatory 20% gratuity is paid upfront when you purchase your beverage package or when it is bundled into your fare. You do not need to add cash tips for individual drink orders unless you choose to reward exceptional or personalized service from a favorite bartender.
Conclusion and Next Actions
Managing your alcohol budget on a Celebrity Cruise comes down to aligning your personal consumption habits with the right pricing model. Review your booking confirmation to check whether your fare already includes the Classic Beverage Package, and calculate your typical daily drink intake before opting for expensive upgrades. To secure the best possible rates, browse your online cruise planner well in advance of your sail date to take advantage of pre-embarkation promotional discounts on beverage packages and specialty upgrades.
