Key Aspects:
- Carnival’s new Zero-Proof drink package cannot be substituted for the full CHEERS! option in the same stateroom.
- The same restriction does not apply to the line’s non-alcoholic drink packages, which can be purchased individually.
- Carnival Cruise Line still provides a range of free drink options or guests can bring their own favorite sodas onboard.
With the announcement of Carnival Cruise Line’s new CHEERS! Zero-Proof drink package, guests have eagerly hoped for a policy change they’ve requested for years.
Standard policy with Carnival’s all-inclusive CHEERS! alcoholic beverage package has been that if one guest in a stateroom purchases the deal, then all guests over the age of 21 in the same stateroom must also purchase the full CHEERS! package.
No exceptions have been made for drink preferences or even for medical exemptions for guests who cannot drink alcohol.
The logic has been that too many guests abused the CHEERS! package by sharing. Even having other guests purchase the Bottomless Bubbles soda package wouldn’t make up for that potential cost.
CHEERS! currently starts at $69.95 per person, per day, while Bottomless Bubbles starts at just $9.50 per person, per day – a $60.45 daily difference.
With the introduction of the mid-range Zero-Proof package at $29.99 per person per day, that gap is narrower and guests hoped it might be possible to split who in the stateroom buys which package.
“Carnival shouldn’t make everyone in the room 21 and older get the CHEERS! package. Not everyone drinks alcohol,” one guest noted recently. “The other party [could] get the Zero-Proof if they don’t drink alcohol.”
Carnival Cruise Line’s brand ambassador, John Heald, has clarified that this will not be the case.
“I absolutely understand your point but we’re not going to change,” he responded. “We used to try to do this in years past it was abused beyond measure. It’s the only way we can control it.”
Many guests don’t realize that it isn’t just the 15 alcoholic drinks that are part of the CHEERS! package, but also sodas, mocktails, energy drinks, specialty coffees, and bottled water.
The non-alcoholic drinks are not tabulated and so could be shared and shared and shared amongst a whole family or group of friends if the program was not more strictly controlled.
Heald has also shared a more detailed FAQ about the new package, including the restriction about the full CHEERS! package.
“The rule where if one person purchases the full Cheers program everyone in the cabin aged 21 and over must purchase it too has not changed and still applies,” he said.
The good news, however, is that the reverse does not apply. Guests can purchase whichever non-alcoholic packages they wish, or none at all, even if other guests in the same stateroom do buy a package.
“Not everyone though has to buy the CHEERS! Zero-Proof option,” he confirmed.
Saving Money on Drinks
While the CHEERS! Zero-Proof package does give Carnival guests more options for onboard refreshment, it isn’t strictly necessary to buy any drink package at all.
Read Also: Should You Get a Cruise Line Drinks Package?
Sodas, water, coffee, and all alcoholic drinks are always available for individual prices. Such a-la-carte pricing can be better for guests who might only sample a drink or two each day and won’t make the most of the bigger packages.
For soda drinkers, it is necessary to drink at least 3-4 sodas every single day of a cruise to break even on the package pricing. If that isn’t how much soda one normally drinks, even that smaller package isn’t a deal.
Instead, guests can bring aboard a 12-pack of cans of their favorite soda at embarkation or at any port of call. This is also a great option for guests who might prefer Pepsi products (that’s me!) now that Carnival has switched to Coca-Cola products.
Of course, lemonade, iced tea, and filtered water are always available for free from drink stations at the Lido Marketplace. Additional juices – apple, orange, and (my favorite) orange-passionfruit-guava – are also available for free during breakfast hours, as is milk and coffee.
Fresh-squeezed juices or fruit juices, including pineapple, tomato, and grapefruit, are not free, a charge that Carnival implemented in April 2025.
Nevertheless, there are plenty of options to stay hydrated during a Carnival cruise, no matter what one’s budget might be or how much a guest is willing to spend.
One more favorite free drink? Don’t forget the hot cocoa from the Lido Marketplace – the perfect evening beverage while watching the waves go by!
