Royal Caribbean Drink Packages: How Much They Cost and What’s Included

Royal Caribbean drink package prices (2026)

Package	Price per person, per day	What you get
Deluxe Beverage Package	$63–$120, plus 18% gratuity	Cocktails, beer, wine by the glass and spirits up to $14 a drink, plus everything in the Refreshment Package
Royal Refreshment Package	$29–$42, plus 18% gratuity	Mocktails, premium coffee and tea, fresh juices, bottled still and sparkling water, fountain soda
Classic Soda Package	$10–$18, plus 18% gratuity	Unlimited fountain soda and Coca-Cola Freestyle, with a souvenir cup
Water Package	$39 for 12 bottles or $69 for 24	Bottled water delivered to your stateroom
Café Select Coffee Card	$31, one time	15 specialty coffees

The gratuity is not optional and it is added at checkout, so an $85 package really costs $100.30 a day. On a 7-night cruise, that is about $700 per person for Deluxe. Keep that full number in mind when you decide.

What the Deluxe Beverage Package includes

The Deluxe package covers almost any drink on the menu up to $14: cocktails, beer, wine by the glass, spirits, and frozen drinks. It also includes everything in the Refreshment Package, so premium coffee, fresh juice, mocktails, fountain soda and bottled water are all covered. It works at every bar, lounge, restaurant and pool deck on the ship, and at Perfect Day at CocoCay and Labadee.

If you order something over $14, you pay the difference plus gratuity on that difference. You can get one drink at a time, and the package is for you only. Bartenders will not pour a second drink for a friend on your card.

A few things are not included: bottles of wine (you get a discount instead), minibar items in your room, souvenir glasses, and room service. One change to know about: since March 15, 2026, the Coca-Cola Freestyle souvenir cup is no longer part of the Deluxe or Refreshment packages. If you want the cup, it is $4.99. The Classic Soda Package still includes it.

The rule that catches people off guard

If one adult in a stateroom buys the Deluxe Beverage Package, Royal Caribbean requires every guest of legal drinking age in that stateroom to buy it too. That is the rule that surprises couples where one person drinks and the other does not. Royal Caribbean will sometimes make an exception for a non-drinker, for example for medical reasons or pregnancy, but it has to be arranged before you sail, not at the bar. When we book Royal Caribbean for our clients, we handle that request as part of the booking.

Is the Deluxe package worth it? Do the math

Here is what drinks cost on board if you pay as you go, before the 18% gratuity:

• Beer: $7.50 to $8.25
• Cocktails: $10 to $14
• Wine by the glass: mostly $10 to $12, with some pours up to $24
• Soda: $3.50
• Bottled water: $3.50
• Specialty coffee: $3.50 to $7
• Fresh juice or smoothie: about $8

Take a typical $85 Deluxe price. With gratuity that is $100 a day. At roughly $12 to $14 a cocktail with tip, you need about six or seven alcoholic drinks a day to break even. If you also drink a latte in the morning, a couple of bottled waters by the pool and a soda at dinner, the bar drops to about five.

The package is usually worth it if:

• Your cruise has several sea days. That is when people drink the most.
• You like cocktails and frozen drinks more than beer. Cocktails hit the $14 cap; a beer is barely half of it.
• You want to stop thinking about the bill. Some people pay for the package just so they never look at a receipt.

Skip it if:

• You are in port most days. A drink or two at dinner does not get you close to the break-even.
• You mostly drink beer. Six beers a day is a lot of beer, and you would still lose money.
• You are sailing with kids and will be at the pool and the kids' club, not the bar.

Is the Refreshment Package worth it?

At around $35 a day with gratuity, the Refreshment Package pays for itself at about five to six specialty drinks a day: a couple of lattes, a mocktail or two by the pool, a few bottled waters. It makes sense for non-drinkers on ships with lots of sea days, and for anyone who lives on premium coffee. If your habit is tap water, iced tea and the free breakfast coffee, none of which cost anything on board, save the money.

For soda drinkers, the Classic Soda Package at $10 to $18 a day is easy math: three fountain sodas a day and you are ahead.

How to pay less for a drink package

• Buy before you sail. Prices in the Cruise Planner move around, and the onboard price is usually the highest you will see. You can buy up to 72 hours before departure.
• Watch for a sale and rebook. If you already bought and the price drops, cancel the first purchase in the Cruise Planner and buy again at the lower price. Black Friday and holiday sales are the ones to watch.
• Count your sea days. Two sea days on a 7-night cruise is a very different calculation from four.
• Undecided? You can still buy on board. Royal Caribbean will sell the package on the ship as long as there are at least four days left in the cruise, but you pay for every remaining day, not just the ones you want.
• Add the 18% before you compare. The number you see is not the number you pay.

Quick answers

Can two people share one Deluxe package?

No. One drink per person at a time, and the package is tied to your SeaPass card. Sharing can get the package cancelled without a refund.

Does the package work at Perfect Day at CocoCay?

Yes. Deluxe and Refreshment packages both work at CocoCay and at Labadee, including the beach bars.

Can kids get a drink package?

Yes. Guests under the drinking age can buy the Royal Refreshment Package or the Classic Soda Package. Only adults can buy Deluxe.

Do I tip on top of the 18%?

You do not have to. The 18% covers the bar staff. Plenty of guests still hand a few dollars to a bartender who takes care of them all week.

Can I cancel a package I bought before the cruise?

Yes, in the Cruise Planner, up to the pre-cruise cutoff. That is what makes the "buy now, rebook if it drops" trick work.

Booking a Royal Caribbean cruise?

We book Royal Caribbean every week from our office in Fairlawn, Ohio, and we have since long before drink packages existed. We will price the package against your actual itinerary, sort out the cabin rule if only one of you drinks, and watch the Cruise Planner for sales so you do not have to. Call us at (330) 867-4770 or tell us about your trip and we will take it from there.