What’s a cruise without a lazy day at the lido deck pool, soaking up the sun and sipping on a refreshing cocktail? Whether it’s a Rum Runner, a cold can of Bud, or a refreshing bottle of San Pellegrino, unless you’re on a luxury line where drinks are included in your cruise fare, a beverage package can be your best friend while onboard.
In this Ultimate Guide to Royal Caribbean’s Beverage Packages, I’ll break down the different packages that are offered, including a big change they just made to their Refreshment Package. I’ll also tackle the questions often debated in online forums: Is it worth it? Which one should I get? Can I share my drinks? How many alcoholic beverages do I need to drink daily to get my money’s worth? I’m here to break this down and share a hot take I haven’t seen discussed anywhere else.
Royal Caribbean Adds Non-Alcoholic Beverages to Refreshment Package
First, let’s talk about Royal Caribbean’s big change. They announced today that non-alcoholic spirits, wines, and beers are now included in the Refreshment Package! (Keep in mind, you still need to be 21+ to get these.) This is huge. Royal has always priced non-alcoholic (NA) beers cheaper than regular beers, so I never understood why the Deluxe Package was the only one to include them.
MSC is the only other major cruise line offering this perk in its Alcohol-Free Package, which includes non-alcholic signature cocktails and beers, so it seems Royal is following their lead. Carnival, on the other hand, counts NA beers toward the 15-drink daily limit for alcoholic drinks. Huge props to Royal Caribbean for this!
Royal Caribbean Beverage Packages
Royal Caribbean offers plenty of beverage package options. Deciding which one is best for you can be tough, especially for first-time cruisers. If you ask this question in a Facebook group, you’ll get a million conflicting answers that might stress you out even more.
Here are the different beverage packages and how much they might cost for a current sailing I have booked. Screenshots show the current sale price, but you can also see the “full retail price” if it’s not on sale.
Important note: pricing varies by sailing. I have another cruise booked on a smaller ship where the full price is $105. Keep that in mind. You can always check current pricing for any cruise via the app by following these helpful tips.
How to Use the Royal Caribbean App for Pre-Planning Expenses
Royal Caribbean Deluxe Beverage Package
The Deluxe Package includes liquor, beer, wine, cocktails, mocktails, frozen drinks, specialty coffees (excludes standalone Starbucks locations but includes Starbucks drinks served at Café Latte-tudes and Café Promenade), soda (comes with a Coca-Cola Freestyle cup for self-service), smoothies, bottled water, sparkling water, and more. I grabbed this one on sale for $65.99, a fantastic price since Royal doesn’t limit your drinks—it’s truly unlimited (unless you do something reckless, in which case they can revoke your privileges without a refund).
What’s Included in Royal Caribbean’s Deluxe Beverage Package:
- Vodka: Absolut, Belvedere, Grey Goose, Stoli, Tito’s Handmade Vodka
- Rum: Bacardi, Bacardi 8, Captain Morgan Rum, Malibu Miami Club
- Gin: Aviation, Beefeater, Bombay Sapphire, New Amsterdam, The Botanist
- Tequila/Mezcal: 1800 Avion Silver, Camarena Gold, Patron Silver, Del Maquey Vida Blanco Mezcal
- Scotch: Chivas Regal 12 Year Old, Dewars 12 Year, Glenfiddich, Johnnie Walker Black, The Glenlivet
- Whiskey, Bourbon/Rye: Buffalo Trace, Canadian Club, Jack Daniels, Jameson, Makers Mark, Whistle Pig Rye
- Cognac: Hennessy VS, Remy Martin VSOP
- Spiked Seltzers: Truly, White Claw, Twisted Tea
- Beers: Domestic, imported and craft beer brands
- Wine and Sparkling Wine by the Glass: Iconic varietals from California to New Zealand
- Non-Alcohlic Beverages: Can and fountain soda, fresh and bottled juices, smoothies and protein shakes, specialty coffee and teas, bottled and sparkling water, CocoLove coconut water, Red Bull, Powerade, Coca-Cola Freestyle Machine Refills, Johnny Rockets Shakes, mocktails (including non-alcoholic spirits, non-alcoholic beers, non-alcoholic wines and more
- Coca-Cola souvenier cup
This isn’t a complete list of included alcohol, as some ships may offer additional brands depending on availability. The list reflects what’s regularly served.
Deluxe Beverage Package Highlights:
- Unlimited drinks at all bars and restaurants onboard and at our private destinations, including Perfect Day at CocoCay
- Unlimited beverages from Coca-Cola® Freestyle machines with your choice of one Coca-Cola souvenir cup from any bar onboard
- Plus 40% off bottles of wine under $100 and 20% off bottles over $100
- Bar staff gratuities already included in package cost
Discounts apply to tasting events too—for example, I once did a Macallan tasting at an additional charge and got a discount for having the Deluxe Beverage Package.
Important Beverage Package Details:
- All guests of legal drinking age in the same stateroom and under the same stateroom booking number are required to purchase the same alcoholic beverage package. Packages cannot be shared and are non-transferable.
- All Beverage Packages exclude any drinks served at licensed Starbucks® stores. Specialty coffees are covered at other coffee cafes onboard.
- The Deluxe Beverage Package includes any single beverage item with a value of up to $14 during your sailing. For super premium single beverages above $14, guests will be charged the difference in price.
- Package does not include room service, mini bar items, and souvenir glassware, or select specialty beers as listed on bar menus.
- Your Coca-Cola souvenir cup cannot be used for refills on future sailings. One cup per package; a lost cup can be replaced for $4.95.
- Prices shown reflect all savings and discounts.
- Please drink responsibly.
A key point to remember: drink responsibly. Getting in trouble could lead to serious consequences, including Federal offenses.
Royal Caribbean Non-Alcoholic Beverage Packages
Now let’s take a look at the different beverages packages that don’t include alcohol, and there are quite a bit, including ones for popular brands of bottled water!
Royal Caribbean Refreshment Beverage Package
This includes everything in the Deluxe Package, minus alcohol. A great deal for non-drinkers or those who “only have one with dinner.” The normal price for this sailing is $40, currently on sale for $27.99 (plus 18% gratuity). It includes everything from the Deluxe Package except alcohol, but now also NA beers, NA spirits, and NA wines!
What’s included in Royal Caribbean’s Refreshment Beverage Package:
- Coca-Cola Freestyle Machine beverages including sodas, sugar free sodas, Minute Maid lemonades, Powerade, vitaminwater, iced tea, fruit punch and more
- Can and fountain soda
- Bottled still water, sparkling water, and CocoLove coconut water
- Fresh-squeezed juices
- Smoothies and protein shakes
- Specialty coffees and teas
- Johnny Rockets Shakes and Desserted Soda Floats
- NEW! -> Non-alcoholic spirits, wines and beers (only available to guests of legal drinking age)
- Frozen drinks (Non-alcoholic pina colada, etc.)
- Coca-Cola souvenir cup
Important Beverage Package Information:
- All Beverage Packages exclude any drinks served at licensed Starbucks® stores. Specialty coffees are covered at other coffee cafes onboard.
- Your Coca-Cola souvenir cup cannot be used for unlimited refills on future sailings. One cup per package; a lost cup can be replaced for $4.95.
- Package does not include beverages from room service or from the minibar in your stateroom.
- Packages cannot be shared and are non-transferable.
- Availability of non-alcoholic spirits, wines and beers may vary by ship or sailing.
Royal Caribbean Classic Soda Package
The Classic Soda Package is just that – soda. No bottled water, no specialty coffee, no mocktails—just soda. You get a Freestyle cup for the machines and can also get soda (typically cans) from bars, though stock may be limited. Soda is available in dining venues too. Normal price is $16, currently $10.99 per person per day for my sailing.
Royal Caribbean Evian and San Pellegrino Water Package
With this package, you can choose to have 12 or 24 bottles of Evian water, or 8 or 12 bottles of San Pellegrino Sparking Water delivered to your room. This can be ordered ahead of time or during the cruise from any bar. The normal price for 12 bottles of Evian is $45; 24 bottles is $62.99. Wow! To see pricing, from the Royal Caribbean website or app, go to “reserve,” select 12 or 24 bottles, and note the 18% gratuity added at checkout.
Royal Caribbean Specialty Coffee Card
The coffee card includes 15 specialty coffees and never expires, so you can use it on future cruises. Ideal for coffee drinkers who don’t consume alcohol or soda. It’s not valid at standalone Starbucks locations but works where “Starbucks is proudly served,” like Café Promenade and Café Latte-tudes. Normal price is $35; my sale price is $27.99.
What’s included with Royal Caribbean’s Specialty Coffee Card:
- One punch on your card lets you choose one of the following: single espresso, tall espresso-based beverages hot & cold, tall chai latte, tall hot specialty tea, tall hot chocolate
- Two punches on your card lets you choose one of the following: double espresso, grande/venti espresso-based beverages hot & cold, grande/venti chai latte, grande/venti hot specialty tea, grande/venti hot chocolate, Frappuccino
Important Specialty Coffee Card Information:
- The Specialty Coffee Card does not include any drinks served at licensed Starbucks® cafes. However, it does include “We Proudly Serve” Starbucks brand coffee brewed at Café Promenade locations.
- The Specialty Coffee Card can be picked up at Café Promenade or Café Latitudes (and Pearl Café on Icon of the Seas).
- The Specialty Coffee Card can be used on future sailings if punches aren’t depleted.
- There is no minimum purchase or maximum limit when using the Specialty Coffee Card.
Royal Caribbean Cooler Bag Beverage Options
If you skip the Deluxe Package but want a few drinks (e.g., for the beach at CocoCay), you can order cooler bags with drinks under the “gifts” section. Options are limited, but you get a souvenir Royal Caribbean cooler bag.
Are Royal Caribbean Beverage Packages Worth It?
That covers the package breakdown. Now, let’s address the big question to help you decide if the price is right. I mentioned earlier that people often ask:
Is it worth it? In short, yes, a beverage package is worth it for the average cruiser. For those with Diamond status or above, or casino players at Prime or higher, maybe not. But for anyone below Diamond or not gambling enough to reach Prime, a beverage package—whether soda, Refreshment, or even a coffee card—is 100% worth it. (See my Ultimate Guide to Royal Caribbean’s Club Royale article for more on casino tiers.)
The Ultimate Guide to Royal Caribbean’s Casino Royale Program
I often hear, “You need to drink 8 alcoholic beverages a day to make the Deluxe Package worth it.” Here’s my hot take: Yes, you’d need about 8 drinks to break even (depending on whether you’re drinking beer or liquor) if you consume nothing else all day. But if you’re also drinking bottled water, soda, specialty coffee, etc., the number of alcoholic drinks needed drops.
Let’s break down pricing using the normal Deluxe Package price of $110 per person per day (plus 18% gratuity on the total). The average cocktail costs $14 (beer is cheaper) + 18% gratuity per drink, so about $16.50 per cocktail. This means the “break-even” point is around 7 cocktails.
The Refreshment Package is $40 per day (plus 18% gratuity). That’s a $70 difference, equivalent to about 5 cocktails (more if you’re drinking beer or the drink of the day). So, at the normal price (which you should never pay, as packages are usually on sale pre-cruise), you’d need to average 5 drinks a day over your cruise to justify upgrading to the Deluxe Package. You could have 10 drinks one day and none the next and still come out ahead, assuming you’re also getting coffee, soda, bottled water, etc.
No one talks about this price difference, and I don’t understand why. It’s not called the “Alcohol Package”—it’s the “Deluxe Beverage Package.” Consider all the drinks you’ll consume to determine if it’s worth it.
If I didn’t drink alcohol, I’d still get the Refreshment Package. I love coffee, rarely drink soda, but the Freestyle machines offer options like vitamin water. I always bring bottled water back to my room.
Beverage packages save money and provide peace of mind. I’ve seen people at the bar without a package mentally tallying their spending. I’ve spoken to someone who racked up a Crown and Coke bill double the cost of the Deluxe Package (not even counting his girlfriend’s drinks). Get a package and cruise worry-free.
Sharing – I highlighted this earlier; it’s a hot topic online, so I’ll address it. Don’t do it. It’s foolish. It’s amusing for people like me to see others get caught, but they’ll cancel your package without a refund and charge you for each drink individually on top of the package cost. I saw a bartender catch someone, grab the phone, and call guest services. I laughed. This is considered stealing. If you disagree, check Royal’s policy to see who’s right. That’s all I’ll say.
I’ll end this with some helpful tips:
- If you drink alcohol and buy the Deluxe Package, everyone 21+ in your cabin must also get it (to prevent sharing—see above). If you’re cruising with someone 21+ who doesn’t drink, call Royal to book over the phone and request an exception. The other person will need to purchase the Refreshment Package.
- Each guest 21+ may bring one 750ml bottle of wine or champagne (no boxed wine or other alcohol). It must be in your carry-on bag.
- You can bring non-alcoholic beverages as carry-on items on embarkation day (up to 12 packs of 17 oz. cans, bottles, or cartons per stateroom). Milk and distilled water for infant, medical, or dietary use are also permitted.
- Tip your bartenders and wait staff.