Despite the high daily price of Carnival's drink package, guests are limited to 15 drinks per day — and that doesn't appear to be changing anytime soon.
A recent rumor caught the attention of the cruise line's Brand Ambassador, who was quick to put the baseless speculation to rest.
"I won't share the posts but it seems today that I am getting multiple posts from people quoting a certain Facebook page with many VIPS that we have as of December 1st increased the number of alcoholic drinks guests can purchase in a [24-hour] period from 15- 24," shared John Heald on Facebook.
"This is not true. Please ignore what is being stated there and treat it as total Bollo...........treat it as nonsense. I don’t think I need to explain the obvious reasons why we would not do this."
Could cruisers handle higher daily drink limits?
As it stands, the cruise line has no intention of changing the limit — he simply asked out of sheer curiosity. The drink limit is in place to prioritize guest and crew safety.
However, in his post, Heald asked whether cruisers can safely handle 15 drinks in 24 hours, or if the limit represents the higher end of most guests’ daily intake.
"Drinking responsibly involves more than 'not drinking a lot'. On a sea day, if you space out your drinks between breakfast drink and late show drink, yes it's totally possible to drink your 15 drinks. If you go on an [8-hour] excursion and make it a point of honour to drink your 15 "allowed drinks that you paid for goddammit" between 5pm and bar closure, yeah you're looking for trouble," wrote Jean-François Côté.
Read more: Is the drink package worth it on Carnival?
Shryl Lyn added, "Many drinks do seem to be watered down even when I've had a double.....will be told that's not possible, but many agree they seem to be very weak we'll say. Thus, while on vacay, if I started at say 10am....it would be very easy to down 15 by dinner, 2 or 3 an hr while having fun, watching comedy, trivia, poolside etc......very easy, if your tolerance is high lol."
"Most I have is 3 a day, tops. I'm sure there are people who can hold their liquor better than me and can do 15 but trust me, they usually irritate the people around them after they've tried," Annie Williams countered.
Sue Heiskell shared similar sentiments, saying, "I don’t purchase the drink package because I don’t drink enough to justify paying for it. I don’t want to spend my trip drunk, I want to remember it."
It's important to note that the CHEERS! limit only applies to alcoholic beverages. Non-alcoholic drinks, including soda, energy drinks, and bottled water, are unlimited.
Cruise lines under fire for unlimited drink packages
As of December 2025, the CHEERS! Drink Package costs $83.94 per person, per day, when purchased in advance through Carnival's Cruise Manager. Those who wait until they are on the ship will pay nearly $90 — or $89.94.
Comparatively, other cruise lines, including Royal Caribbean and Celebrity, offer unlimited drink packages at a lower pre-cruise price.
However, recent headlines have highlighted the risks of overconsumption at sea.
Read more: Royal Caribbean cruise passenger detained, died in custody after being served 33 drinks
In December 2024, Michael Virgil, 35, was detained after going on a violent rampage aboard Navigator of the Seas.
Between 10:30 a.m. and roughly one hour after sail away, Virgil had 33 drinks, according to court documents obtained and reviewed by TMZ.
As such, his family is suing Royal Caribbean, claiming that his wrongful death was caused by excessive alcohol consumption, with the ship's crew members failing to properly monitor his safety.
Virgil's family isn't the first to blame Royal Caribbean for incidents related to overconsumption on their ships, either. In October 2024, a cruise ship passenger went overboard during Allure of the Seas' Taylor Swift cruise. However, authorities later confirmed that she did not accidentally fall overboard; she had jumped from the ship.
The family of Dulcie White, 66, filed a lawsuit in Miami-Dade County alleging that crew members overserved her, providing her with seven drinks in just over six hours.
"Because of that [drink package, my mom] did overdo it, trying to maybe get her money's worth," her daughter told CBS News.
Elizabeth Wright
Elizabeth graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with her M.A. in Journalism in May 2023. Having sailed on over 30 cruises across different lines, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, MSC, Margaritaville at Sea, and Princess, she loves sharing her insight and expertise on all things cruising!
In addition to writing for Cruise.Blog, Elizabeth has bylines in Business Insider, Royal Caribbean Blog, and Cruiseshipfood.com.
