These Cruise Lines Pay Commission on Your Clients’ Drinks

Have cruise clients that like to have a glass of wine with dinner or sip on a fruity cocktail by the pool? Historically, the money clients have paid on cruises to drink alcoholic beverages has been non-commissionable to travel advisors. That slowly started changing over the past 10 or so years as luxury cruise lines began to incorporate beverages into the total cruise prices, essentially paying advisors commissions on those drinks.

It’s a trend that’s catching on as some premium, mainstream and niche cruise lines begin to find ways to either wrap drinks into higher commissionable fares or pay straight-up commissions when advisors book their clients’ drink packages ahead of time.

Here are the cruise lines essentially paying travel advisors a commission on the money their clients are paying for alcoholic drinks on their cruise.

American Cruise Lines, Atlas Ocean Voyages, Crystal, Explora Journeys, Ponant, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Riverside Luxury Cruises (with all-inclusive fare), Silversea Cruises, Seabourn, Scenic, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises

Fares on these lines include all drinks.

AmaWaterways

Cruise fares include sparkling wine at breakfast; beer and wine at lunch and dinner; and a cocktail hour with complimentary wine, beer and spirits.

Avalon Waterways

Fares include sparkling wine with breakfast, wine and beer at lunch and dinner, and a Happy Hour with complimentary wine, beer and spirits.

Azamara

Azamara’s standard fares include select standard spirits, beers and wines.

Celebrity Cruises

Advisors who book their clients with the higher “all-included” fares essentially get paid a commission on the Classic Drink Package that comes with the fare. The same holds true when booking clients into The Retreat, regardless of what type of fare is booked; all The Retreat bookings come with a Premium Drink Package.

Celestyal Cruises

Celestyal offers an add-on “Celestyal Plus+” package that is commissionable and includes the premium “Sky High” drinks package, as well as €150 per person shore excursion credit, all port charges, gratuities, and Wi-Fi access. Advisors also get paid commission when purchasing only the “Sky High” drinks package on behalf of their clients.

Cunard

Advisors can make commission on the drinks of Grill Suites clients, as Grill Suites fares include a drinks package.

Emerald Cruises

Travel advisors receive a 10% commission on drink packages that they book on behalf of their clients for Emerald’s yacht (and river) cruises.

Holland America Line

Travel advisors receive a commission when booking their clients with the add-on “Have It All” cruise fare, which includes a Signature Beverage Package.

MSC Cruises

MSC pays 5% commission to travel advisors on all drink packages if booked by the travel advisor.

Norwegian Cruise Line

All Free at Sea fares include an unlimited open bar package, resulting in travel advisors essentially getting a commission on those packages. Free at Sea Plus fares (which have a higher level beverage package) are considered add-ons so are not commissionable.

Oceania Cruises

Travel advisors receive a commission when they book an O-Life all-inclusive package, which includes drinks among other benefits, for their clients.

Princess Cruises

Travel advisors get paid a standard commission on the total cost when getting their clients to upgrade to either Princess Plus (including a Plus Beverage package) or Princess Premier (including a Premier Beverage package).

Viking

Everything a travel advisor helps purchase on behalf of their client is commissionable, including the Silver Spirits Beverage Package.

Virgin Voyages

Travel advisors receive a 10% commission when adding their clients’ Bar Tabs (Virgin’s version of a drink package) to their booking.

Windstar Cruises

Travel advisors receive a commission specifically for the beverage package that’s included in its All-Inclusive Fare. (They also receive commission on the Wi-Fi piece of that fare, as well as the base fare itself, but not the gratuity inclusion.)