What it means
A cruise drink package is an optional flat-rate beverage plan you buy in addition to your cruise fare. For a single per-person daily price (typically $50–$110), you get unlimited drinks up to a certain limit, drawn from a defined menu (which beverages count varies by package and line).
On most mainstream lines, packages come in tiers — usually a base soda/non-alcoholic package, a beer-and-wine package, and a top-tier “premium” or “deluxe” package that includes cocktails and top-shelf liquor up to a certain price point per drink.
What’s typically included (and what isn’t)
Almost always included on a premium package: - Cocktails up to a price cap (usually $13–$15 per drink, recently raised on some lines) - Beer (domestic and most imports) - Wine by the glass (within the price cap) - Specialty coffee - Bottled water - Soda and juice
Usually NOT included even on the premium package: - Bottle service (you can buy by the glass, but not full bottles of wine) - Top-shelf spirits above the price cap - Drinks at private destinations (some lines exclude their private island) - Premium champagne and fine wine - Drinks consumed at the casino (line-dependent) - Mini-bar items in your cabin
Daily drink limits
This is the rule that catches first-timers off guard: drink packages have a daily cap on the number of alcoholic drinks, usually 15 per person per day. After 15, you pay à la carte. (You’re not going to drink 15 drinks in a day on a vacation if you want to enjoy the second half of the trip, but knowing the limit exists matters.)
Additionally, packages must be purchased for every adult in the cabin. You can’t have one drinking spouse and one non-drinking spouse — both must buy a package or neither can.
Current pricing by line (2026, premium tier)
| Line | Daily price per person | Notable inclusions/exclusions |
|---|---|---|
| Royal Caribbean (Deluxe Beverage) | $44–$121 | Drinks up to $14; includes specialty coffee, bottled water |
| Carnival (CHEERS!) | $82–$88 | 15-drink daily limit; drinks up to $20 (highest cap in the industry) |
| Norwegian (Open Bar / Premium Plus) | $109–$138 | $15 cap on Open Bar (no cap on Premium Plus); water/coffee |
| Celebrity (Premium) | $82–$115 | Drinks up to $17; specialty coffee, bottled water |
| Princess (Plus Beverage Package) | $65–$70 | 15-drink limit, drinks up to $15 |
| MSC (Premium Extra) | $85 | 15-drink limit, drinks up to $16 |
Onboard prices are usually 10–20% higher than pre-cruise pricing; you’ll save by buying before sailing.
The breakeven math
Whether a drink package pays for itself depends on three things: how many drinks you’d actually order, what those drinks cost individually, and whether you’d order specialty coffee and bottled water without the package.
The fast math:
| Daily package cost | Drinks needed to break even (at $12 avg cocktail) |
|---|---|
| $50 | 4–5 drinks/day |
| $70 | 6 drinks/day |
| $89 | 7–8 drinks/day |
| $109 | 9–10 drinks/day |
A “drink” in this calculation includes the 18–20% automatic gratuity that’s added to every individual drink purchase — so a $12 cocktail actually costs $14.40. The breakeven counts are slightly lower than they look at first glance.
If you’re a beer-only drinker ($8–$10 per beer), breakeven is significantly higher — typically 9–12 beers per day to justify a premium package. Most beer drinkers should skip the premium package and either buy à la carte or get the beer-and-wine tier.
If you’re traveling with someone who doesn’t drink at all, the package is rarely worth it because you both have to buy it.
If you’re going for the bottled water and specialty coffee more than for the alcohol, the math gets surprisingly close to working even on light-drinking days, because those items alone add $15–$25 per day at full price.