Royal Caribbean continued selling unlimited drink packages for Royal Beach Club despite a island-wide alcohol ban during Nassau elections. Passengers discovered the ban only after tendering to shore, while Carnival proactively announced the restriction to their guests at 8am. Royal Caribbean has faced criticism for the lack of communication about the government-imposed ban.
⚠️ Unconfirmed — from passenger reports, verify before acting
Photo: Royal Caribbean International
What Happened
Royal Caribbean kept selling its Deluxe Beverage Package for Royal Beach Club visits despite knowing Nassau had imposed an island-wide alcohol ban for election day. Guests who'd already purchased the package — which typically runs $56 to $120 per person per day when bought pre-cruise — only learned about the prohibition after tendering ashore. Meanwhile, Carnival gave their passengers a heads-up at 8am that morning, showing it's entirely possible to communicate last-minute restrictions when you actually try.
Photo: Royal Caribbean International
What This Actually Means For Your Wallet
Let's talk real numbers. If you're sailing to Nassau and bought the Deluxe Beverage Package at the typical pre-cruise rate of around $80 per day, you're out that money for the day you're at Royal Beach Club. That's $160 for a couple. Add the mandatory 18% gratuity Royal charges on beverage packages, and you're looking at $188.80 gone for a day you legally can't drink alcohol.
Here's the problem: Royal Caribbean's standard Deluxe Beverage Package explicitly states it does NOT work at Royal Beach Club Paradise Island under normal circumstances — it only functions at Perfect Day at CocoCay and Labadee. The Beach Club operates on a separate payment system. So if you bought the package thinking it covered your beach day, you were already wrong. But if Royal sold you a separate beach club experience that included drinks, and then those drinks weren't available? That's a different story, and you've got a legitimate claim for a refund.
Royal Caribbean's typical contract of carriage generally includes language about government-imposed restrictions being outside their control. They'll cite "force majeure" clauses that cover things like port closures, local laws, and regulatory compliance. The problem here isn't that the ban happened — elections are scheduled, predictable events — it's that Royal kept taking money for a product they knew couldn't be delivered as advertised. That shifts this from "unforeseeable event" to "communication failure," and possibly into "you sold me something you couldn't provide" territory.
Travel insurance won't help you here. Standard trip-cancellation policies cover named perils: illness, injury, death, jury duty, home damage, job loss. "The port had an alcohol ban I wasn't told about" doesn't make the list. Cancel-For-Any-Reason (CFAR) coverage only applies if you cancel the entire trip at least 48 hours before departure, and even then you're only getting back 50-75% of prepaid, non-refundable costs. This is a service-delivery issue, not an insurable event. Your recourse is directly with Royal Caribbean.
What you should do today: Log into your Royal Caribbean account, pull up your beverage package purchase receipt, and submit a refund request through their customer service portal. Be specific: "I purchased the Deluxe Beverage Package for [amount] on [date]. On [election day date], alcohol service was prohibited by Bahamian law at Royal Beach Club. I was not notified before tendering ashore. I'm requesting a pro-rated refund of one day's package cost plus the 18% gratuity charged." Screenshot everything. If they deny it, escalate on social media — public complaints about being charged for unavailable services tend to get resolved faster than private ones.
The real financial insult here is that Royal Caribbean's beverage packages are non-refundable once the cruise starts. You can't just cancel it when you realize it's worthless for a port day. You're locked in. That's why the pre-boarding communication matters so much — once you're onboard, your money's gone whether you can use the product or not.
Photo: Royal Caribbean International
The Bigger Picture
This isn't a complicated government surprise — elections have scheduled dates. Carnival managed to tell their guests about the ban at 8am, proving the information was available and shareable. Royal Caribbean chose not to communicate, and kept selling packages anyway. That's a decision, not an oversight. It fits a pattern we've seen with Royal Beach Club specifically: the rollout has been plagued with capacity issues, unclear pricing, and guests showing up to find amenities unavailable or different than advertised. When a cruise line prioritizes sales over service transparency, you end up paying for things you can't actually use.
What To Watch Next
- Refund processing timelines — if Royal issues pro-rated refunds for affected passengers, how long it takes and whether they require individual requests or automatically credit accounts
- Royal Beach Club beverage package clarity — whether Royal updates their Cruise Planner language to explicitly address how drink packages do or don't work at Nassau, especially during Bahamian restriction periods
- Upcoming Bahamian election schedules — Nassau holds elections every five years; the alcohol ban is standard procedure, so this will happen again
📊 Have a cruise booked that might be affected by news like this? CruiseMutiny can run a full all-in cost breakdown for your specific sailing — and flag any disruptions tied to your dates or ship.
Last updated: April 30, 2026. This is a developing story — check back for updates.