Sneaking Drinks

[su_A_ve]

It's been discussed many times on different threads, specially many that bring their own wine.

They ask room service for wine glasses and even a corkscrew, while getting the all hands on deck platter. Then prior to going to the MDR, fill the glass and take it with you. Those many who mentioned have done it, said they were never questioned about it at all, nor charged any fees. This works if you only drink one glass with dinner (last cruise I was going to do it, and forgot my couple of bottles I planned on bring in

However, if you do bring your own bottle of wine, opened or not, you would be charged the corkage fee.

My .02..

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

I have never taken my own wine to the dining rooms, but if I get Clueless and Stupid as my wait staff again I plan to start.

I wanted to order and pay. But that was beyond their skill sets LOL

Maybe that is the real reason DCL lets you bring booze on? They don't have to have servers who can take orders and deliver drinks?

 

[sweelu]

i brought my CR and the room statesman brought me ice daily. also filled my big cup with CR and added some coke at the pool area. when i ran out at the pool i purchased my drinks from DCL! between the afternoon and bedtime, i actually bought more from DCL and didnt finish my bottle!

 

[wifey1220]

We bought a case of beer from dcl on our first cruise. And we carried that around with us everywhere we had bottles under the stroller. We bought from dcl so I assume it was ok. But I don't know how they could tell it was dcl an not from home.

 

[jenifred]

Until reading this thread, I had no idea you could not drink your BOY___ outside of the stateroom. oops. So we also have carried around our alcohol in public areas, both in mugs or in the bottle. We even forgot a bottle opener one trip and bought one from one of the shops. ($15 for a bottle opener??? - it's now on the pack list) But DH immediately used it to open the beer in his hand. So no, from our experience, not a rule that is regularly enforced.

 

[Figment_Fan]

See, jenifred has found part of the answer: they make up the money on the bottle opener.

Anyway, I have brought my own alcohol on board and drank it in public areas. I also generally have a good sized bar tab as I can't make the fun drinks, or drinks of the day on my own, and the cost is (individually) minimal even though they add up. Plus, once on deck, I don't want to have to keep walking back to my room to make another drink. And, my preferred drink is a vodka martini - not so hard to make.

Then there are also the tastings. Yes, I like those very much. Hmmm, maybe time to check into a 12 step program. . . . after a few more cruises.

I have also had to dump left over alcohol before disembarking. So, I'm sure Disney may lose some, but having very happy customoers coming back over and over I'm sure has more advantages.

 

[over50visits]

Boy, it seems we are in a minority! We respect all of DCLs policies (as far as we know), and our guidance certainly isn't whether it is enforced!

I'm hoping I'm wrong, and we just hear mostly from the exception, not the norm.

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

It's amazing what you find with a simple Google search, taken directly from the Disney Cruise website:

Preparing For Your Cruise

Question: May Guests bring alcohol onboard?

Answer: While adult Guests ages 21 and older may bring alcohol onboard, the following guidelines apply:

Outside alcohol cannot be consumed in any lounge or public area
Coolers filled with personal items (e.g. soda, alcohol, chips, candy, etc.) may not be brought on board.

Please note: Disney Cruise Line reserves the right to remove fragile items (including beverages) from checked luggage. In such cases, items will be stored and returned at the end of the voyage. Beverage containers are considered fragile and have previously caused damage in checked luggage. All fragile items must be transported inside carry-on luggage. At Palo and Remy, a $20 corkage fee will be charged for outside wine and champagne. Beverages must be packed in your carry-on bag—which must not exceed 22 inches wide, 14 inches high and 9 inches deep in dimension.

As to this question:

When I read about people 'following the rules to the letter' I wonder how many of them routinely drive 5 or 10 miles over the speed limit becuase "cops usually won't stop you unless you exceed by 10+ mph"?

I'll be the first to admit, I have a lead foot, however, I don't go on a Police Community Board and advertise it. I try to keep my indiscretions to myself....to avoid being under a microscope when in public.

 

[PrincessShmoo]

Boy, it seems we are in a minority! We respect all of DCLs policies (as far as we know), and our guidance certainly isn't whether it is enforced!

I'm hoping I'm wrong, and we just hear mostly from the exception, not the norm.

Unfortunately, the majority of the enforcement has to do with personal responsibility. And it seems that isn't the "norm" anymore.

 

[Tonka's Skipper]

Unfortunately, the majority of the enforcement has to do with personal responsibility. And it seems that isn't the "norm" anymore.

As usual Shmoo........your right on the mark!

If dcl decides *enough is enough* and pulls this perk away....you can bet which posters will be the ones wining about it, those that ignored the rules the most!

Whether you get caught is not the point.........where the CM's want to help their tips and don't say anything is not the point!................

A wise person once said, the measure of a persons*character* is not what you do when someone is watching, its what you do when no one is watching.

IMHO!

AKK

 

[PrincessShmoo]

As usual Shmoo........your right on the mark!

If dcl decides *enough is enough* and pulls this perk away....you can bet which posters will be the ones wining about it, those that ignored the rules the most!

IMHO!

AKK

 

[k3chantal]

we were on the magic in February and we thought we were not allowed to drink around the boat. We even had beers in a bucket covered up with a towel in the bar until a CM told us we were allowed to drink anywhere including bars. We never bought beer on the boat the whole time. We drank our own beer and alcohol at all the bars, everywhere!! So yes drink anywhere you want!!

And watch Disney's policies change.........

 

[k3chantal]

It's been discussed many times on different threads, specially many that bring their own wine.

They ask room service for wine glasses and even a corkscrew, while getting the all hands on deck platter. Then prior to going to the MDR, fill the glass and take it with you. Those many who mentioned have done it, said they were never questioned about it at all, nor charged any fees. This works if you only drink one glass with dinner (last cruise I was going to do it, and forgot my couple of bottles I planned on bring in

However, if you do bring your own bottle of wine, opened or not, you would be charged the corkage fee.

My .02..

The corkage fee is really reasonable. Any bottle of wine I would bother to bring would be more if I bought it on the ship (if they had it) so I will happily pay the fee. In addition, this formality helps with the whole 'dinner out' feel of the MDR.

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

we were on the magic in February and we thought we were not allowed to drink around the boat. We even had beers in a bucket covered up with a towel in the bar until a CM told us we were allowed to drink anywhere including bars. We never bought beer on the boat the whole time. We drank our own beer and alcohol at all the bars, everywhere!! So yes drink anywhere you want!!

I don't know....I think I call BS on this one, unless you brought a label you knew DCL carried. I don't believe all those CMs "everywhere" turned a blind eye. I could see, maybe one, wink and nod, but not "anywhere, including bars". I think this is very poor advise.

 

[jetskigrl]

My interpretation of this is the similar to the food policy for the parks. On the website it clearly states no outside food or beverages. In reality, they have no problem allowing snacks, water, etc to be brought into the parks. What they don't want is people bringing in a full cooler of sandwich items, laying it out on a table and assembling their lunch (that is why you can bring in a whole sandwich, but not the individual fixings). They ask that if you want to do that, please use the picnic area.

The same goes for the alcohol policy on DCL. They are fine with you bringing on your own alcohol as long as you drink it in your room or one at time while out on deck. What they don't want is people bringing full coolers of bottles up on deck and handing them out around the pool, etc. It was stated before that they had problems with coolers in the rooms leaking and making a mess of the carpets, etc. But I can also see where they wouldn't want coolers of bottled beer or wine around the pool either.

But because they can't be that specific on the website, they include the wording as they have. Mainly because if you don't have something in writing people will take it to the extreme (give them an inch and they will take a mile) and then they will have to ban bringing on your own alcohol completely.

They aren't going to stop and check each cup to see if there is alcohol in it, but if you show up at the pool with enough alcohol for 10 people for the day, they might ask you to return it to your room (and can state the policy as the reason why).

 

[GoofyTwinDad]

As usual Shmoo........your right on the mark!

If dcl decides *enough is enough* and pulls this perk away....you can bet which posters will be the ones wining about it, those that ignored the rules the most!

Where you get caught is not the point.........where the CM's want to help their tips and don't say anything is not the point!................

A wise person once said, the measure of a persons*character* is not what you do when someone is watching, its what you do when no one is watching.

IMHO!

AKK

They tried pulling this perk recently and there was such an uproar DCL reinstated the policy within a few days.

 

[Scrappy_Tink]

My interpretation of this is the similar to the food policy for the parks. On the website it clearly states no outside food or beverages. In reality, they have no problem allowing snacks, water, etc to be brought into the parks. What they don't want is people bringing in a full cooler of sandwich items, laying it out on a table and assembling their lunch (that is why you can bring in a whole sandwich, but not the individual fixings). They ask that if you want to do that, please use the picnic area.

The same goes for the alcohol policy on DCL. They are fine with you bringing on your own alcohol as long as you drink it in your room or one at time while out on deck. What they don't want is people bringing full coolers of bottles up on deck and handing them out around the pool, etc. It was stated before that they had problems with coolers in the rooms leaking and making a mess of the carpets, etc. But I can also see where they wouldn't want coolers of bottled beer or wine around the pool either.

But because they can't be that specific on the website, they include the wording as they have. Mainly because if you don't have something in writing people will take it to the extreme (give them an inch and they will take a mile) and then they will have to ban bringing on your own alcohol completely.

They aren't going to stop and check each cup to see if there is alcohol in it, but if you show up at the pool with enough alcohol for 10 people for the day, they might ask you to return it to your room (and can state the policy as the reason why).

Thanks! I learned something today! I honestly didn't know that there was a "no outside food" rule at the parks....I guess from mostly sticking to these boards, and threads about what type snacks to bring for your families, etc. I've never once read it was against the rules!! Alcohol, OTOH has always been a bone of contention though, even a whisper of "sneaking" alcohol into the MK will bring a thread to a screeching halt.

 

[Aggiefan92]

On this note, what time do liquor stores open and what are some ones close to the port so we can purchase wine and liquor before our 11am PAT?

 

[sue8528]

I think it is funny on this board how some equate lack of "respecting a policy" to a morale failing. I do try to follow rules, especially when my actions may infringe on others. But I don't believe it reflects on my character when I bring my own bottle of water or can of pop into a movie theatre where they would charge $5 or more for a beverage. If challenged I would calmly throw it away, my risk. But if I was going to make a value judgement it would lean toward the price of concessions being obscene.

 

[over50visits]

My interpretation of this is the similar to the food policy for the parks. On the website it clearly states no outside food or beverages.

Ummm....on the website it clearly states:

"Guests are allowed to bring food items—such as snacks or foods that do not require heating—into Disney theme parks."

I disagree with your reasoning, even if you were right about the parks food policy.

I believe it is a poor choice to excuse not following their policy with "they don't really mean it" and/or "I can get away with it." Also a poor example for the younger generation that watches us and learns from us.

I accept that some (and from this thread, perhaps many) do subscribe to that attitude, though, and such is life. We don't, and we have a wonderful time on the cruises.