Is Food Included on Cordelia Cruise? Dining Guide
On Cordelia Cruise, buffet meals at Starlight and Food Court are included; Chopstix, the grill and all drinks cost extra. Full food, dining and price guide.
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On Cordelia Cruises your buffet meals are free. Almost everything else at the table isn't. Your fare covers unlimited food at the two main restaurants, but the specialty restaurants and every drink, even bottled water beyond what's left in your cabin, are charged on top.
This is a research-based guide built from Cordelia's official pages and verified traveller reports, last checked in July 2026. We haven't sailed the ship ourselves, so where a figure isn't published we say so instead of guessing. Photos on this page are illustrative stock images of cruise and Indian dining, not photographs taken on board Cordelia. Prices and policies change, so confirm on the official site before you book.
Is food included on Cordelia Cruise?
Yes, all your main meals are included. Buffet breakfast, lunch, high tea, dinner and a late-night snack are served at the Starlight and Food Court restaurants at no extra cost, on every fare. What you pay extra for is the two specialty restaurants and all beverages, alcoholic or not.
| Included in your fare | Costs extra |
|---|---|
| Buffet breakfast, lunch, high tea & dinner | Chopstix (Pan-Asian specialty restaurant) |
| Midnight snacks / late-night sandwiches | International Grill specialty dining |
| Veg, Jain, non-veg and baby food at the buffet | All alcoholic drinks and packages |
| The cabin's complimentary water (ticket-dependent) | Soft drinks, juices, tea/coffee bought at bars |
What food is included in your fare?
The standard all-inclusive plan lists five servings a day: breakfast, lunch, high tea, dinner and a midnight snack. All of it is buffet-style, split across the two included venues.
- Starlight is the main buffet restaurant, with a dedicated vegetarian and Jain section.
- Food Court is the second buffet space, serving the same all-inclusive meals.
- Spreads rotate through Indian and continental dishes; breakfast leans to juices, cut fruit, cereals, bakes and hot Indian and continental staples.
Everything cooked on board is halal, and no beef or pork is served anywhere on the ship. That is worth knowing before you sail.
There is no per-person cap and no meal card to swipe. You can eat at both venues on the same day, go back for seconds, and the late-night snack is there for anyone still up after the evening shows. Exact serving times aren't published in advance because they shift with the sailing and the shore-excursion timings, so check the daily programme once you're on board rather than planning your day around a blog's timetable.
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Which restaurants cost extra?
Two specialty restaurants sit outside the buffet and carry an extra charge: Chopstix, a Pan-Asian room running Thai, Chinese, Korean and Japanese dishes, and the International Grill. You order these as paid add-ons, not as part of your meal plan.
Cordelia doesn't publish a fixed per-head cover charge for either, and it can vary by sailing, so treat any figure you see on a blog with caution. Confirm the current price at guest services once you're onboard, or with your travel agent before you book.
Neither is something you need. The buffet already covers Indian and continental food, so a specialty dinner is a night out, not a rescue from bad food. If you want one, book it early in the sailing: the rooms are small compared to the buffet halls, and on a full ship the good slots go first.
Are drinks included on Cordelia Cruise?
No. Drinks are the one thing almost everyone underestimates. Both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages are paid. The only free water is the bottle or two left in your cabin, and even that depends on your ticket type.
If you want alcohol, Cordelia sells full-day drink packages you buy before the cruise (they aren't sold onboard). As of July 2026 these are reported to start around US$56 to US$80 per person per day depending on how many nights you sail, with a service tax and GST added on top, and they're sold only to guests over 21. A premium tier adds roughly US$30 a day and a luxury tier about US$55. Check the official alcohol-package terms for the current rates before you commit.
Prefer to pay as you go? Travellers report individual drinks landing at roughly ₹350–500 for a beer, ₹600–900 for a cocktail and ₹500–800 for a glass of wine. These are indicative only, so confirm onboard.
What people wrongly assume is free
- Bottled water at the bars and pool, once your cabin bottles are gone.
- Tea and coffee bought at a bar or cafe, as opposed to what's on the buffet counter.
- Soft drinks and packaged juices, which are billed like any other beverage.
- Room service outside included hours, where a charge can apply depending on your ticket.
Veg, Jain, kids and dietary options
This is where Cordelia does well for Indian families. The Starlight restaurant keeps a separate vegetarian and Jain section, and the buffet also covers non-veg and baby food, with special requests possible if you ask ahead.
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- Vegetarian & Jain get a dedicated section, not an afterthought.
- Baby food is available at the main restaurant.
- No beef or pork anywhere, and all food is halal.
If your requirement is strict, whether that's Jain, a severe allergy, or a medical diet, tell your travel agent at booking and remind the restaurant manager on day one. A buffet line is shared service by design, so a kitchen that knows in advance can plate something separately, while a request made at the counter mid-dinner may not land.
Is the Cordelia drinks package worth it?
For most people, no. Do the maths first. A day package works out to roughly ₹4,700 or more once you add service tax and GST. Two cocktails a day à la carte is closer to ₹1,500. The package only pays for itself if you're genuinely drinking five or six times a day.
| How you drink | Rough cost per day | Better option |
|---|---|---|
| Nothing alcoholic | ₹0 | Skip the package entirely |
| 1–2 drinks a day | ~₹700 to ₹1,800 | Pay per drink |
| 3–4 drinks a day | ~₹2,000 to ₹3,600 | Still cheaper per drink |
| 5+ drinks a day | ~₹4,000 and up | The package starts to make sense |
Figures are worked out from the indicative per-drink prices above, so treat them as a planning guide rather than a quote.
My take: casual drinkers should skip the package and pay per drink. It's cheaper and you're not locked in. The package makes sense only for heavy drinkers or a celebration where you'll be at the bar all day. And there's a catch nobody mentions: because you have to buy it offline in advance, you can't wait until you're onboard to decide. If you're unsure, don't pre-buy. You can always order drinks individually.
How to keep your onboard bill down
- Drink at the buffet, where tea, coffee and water come with the meal you've already paid for.
- Decide on the drinks package before you book, not after, since it can't be bought on board.
- Treat a specialty dinner as one planned night out, not a nightly habit.
- Check your folio at guest services mid-sailing so the final bill holds no surprises.
Planning the wider budget too? Our guide to what a Cordelia cruise actually costs in 2026 breaks down cabin fares, routes and the hidden charges that catch first-timers, and the Mumbai to Lakshadweep sailing if that's your route.
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