Courtesy: Sarah Gibson | News Source: cruisecritic.com

Celebrity Cruises has recently added a surcharge for passengers who select a "complimentary" beverage package as a promotional booking perk.

Celebrity Cruises' booking promotions let passengers choose from free extras that include things like onboard credit, prepaid gratuities and even the Classic Beverage Package. However, the beverage package as a perk is no longer entirely free. Effective October 10, 2019, all passengers who choose this perk will be charged $14 per person, per day.

"Since we began offering perks, we have not increased package pricing for our guests," a Celebrity Cruises spokesperson told Cruise Critic. "We've been absorbing the increased cost and utilization of beverage perks for some time, and are now updating the fare to reflect this."

The cost of purchasing a standalone beverage package has not changed; this $14 per person, per day, cost only applies to passengers who selected the beverage package as one of their free perks during a promotion.

Note that typically Celebrity's included-perks promotions are not available on the lowest available fares for any given cabin category. It's also not the only line to charge extra for free perks; Norwegian Cruise Line, for example, requires that passengers pay a 20-percent gratuity on the regular cost of a Premium Beverage Package when they choose a complimentary package as a booking perk.