Who is HAL's new breed of customers?

HAL is trying to lure a new breed of customers to What ?? Rock Walls, Wave Pools, 8 different restaurants, 12 different bars, a Broadway Show, 6 different music venues, a 10 story water slide, a putting green, all of which are NOT available on HAL and their quest for new cruisers. If eliminating music venues, libraries, games, entertainment and thinking BB King, Billboard, Lincoln Center, Planet Earth Video's and a deathly slow and overpriced WIFI is going to do it, help me understand ?? What is the profile of this new breed that HAL is gunning for ??????

I am getting the impression (from your several threads like this one) that you are not accepting any new ideas, or change from HAL. Perhaps another cruise line might suit you better?

Personally I don't care who they're going for. As long as they offer what I want in a cruise, I'm in.

i am getting the impression (from your several threads like this one) that you are not accepting any new ideas, or change from hal. perhaps another cruise line might suit you better?

bingo!!!

My husband and I are in our early 40s and took our first HAL cruise last year. We thoroughly enjoyed the more traditional experience than we were used to on NCL and were disappointed to see that HAL seems to be going the way of the other mass market lines, eliminating wraparound promenade decks, etc. We're willing to pay a premium for more traditional HAL experience, but if they continue on their current path, there's better value for money out there, and that's who we'll be sailing with.

My husband and I are very young 60 somethings. We took a HAL cruise 12 years ago and said NEVER AGAIN! We felt like we were in an "adult home". We are not looking for anything extreme, but welcome the changes to a younger geared cruise. We are booked on the K 6/25, and hope we like it. Coming into the 21st Century is never a bad thing.

HAL actually offers better values than most other cruises. HAL is only expensive if one wants a balcony on their smaller ships.

igraf

... We're willing to pay a premium for more traditional HAL experience, but if they continue on their current path, there's better value for money out there, and that's who we'll be sailing with.

HAL actually offers better values than most other cruises. HAL is only expensive if one wants a balcony on their smaller ships

igraf

We sail on smaller ships in Northern Europe, so there are much cheaper options out there for us than HAL.

Personally I don't care who they're going for. As long as they offer what I want in a cruise, I'm in.

Where's the like button?

The new breed of passengers seem to have a lot of dietary restrictions, requiring a very detailed level of individual attention by staff at all levels of food preparation and delivery.

I suspect that HAL's new breed of customers are not those who are not 'loyal' to any cruise line.

The travel vendor is only as good as the last trip. Zero emotional tie to any cruise line.

I suspect that they are people like us who see differences, but not significant differences, between the several cruise lines. Hence we shop for itinerary, on board choices, and price.

We do not really care if we are on HAL, Celebrity, or Princess, or other cruise lines for that matter. The differences are insignificant to us, the service is similar. We pay far more attention to the ship than we do to the cruise line. The only time we consider cruise line (very seldom) is when we are considering frequent cruiser benefits. In this instance HAL is at the bottom of the list, RCI will be at the top of the list, based upon our preferences and our typical cabin selection.

If one finds they really like smaller ships for value pricing - under 1500 passengers- , then the cruise line very much matters. Holland America is the only mainline cruise line that still offers so many smaller cruise ship choices. Which are quickly leaving service which will leave huge travel budget gap for those of us who prefer them. Fred Olson still offers small, older ships but they have a different product overall.

I am getting the impression (from your several threads like this one) that you are not accepting any new ideas, or change from HAL. Perhaps another cruise line might suit you better?

That may well go for me, as well. However, we are not the only two to express dissatisfaction with these so-called improvements, and time will tell if HAL itself is going to be satisfied with them. In the meantime, those of you who are satisfied have no dog in the race and should not complain if we choose to let HAL know, repeatedly, that they may lose our business. If you don't like our complaints, skip over them.

these threads make me laugh - people like what they like and don't like what they don't and that can the same thing to two different people. I do not want a floating city that takes 1/2 to walk from one end to the other - I am 60 I am not old - but I don't want a loud 20/30 something 'partying' ship. Mock me for that if you like -- I hope HAL doesn't get forced into following the crowd -- some of us don't like the crowd we like the cruise.

these threads make me laugh - people like what they like and don't like what they don't and that can the same thing to two different people. I do not want a floating city that takes 1/2 to walk from one end to the other - I am 60 I am not old - but I don't want a loud 20/30 something 'partying' ship. Mock me for that if you like -- I hope HAL doesn't get forced into following the crowd -- some of us don't like the crowd we like the cruise.

As long as HAL continues to appeal to "older passengers" they will never run out of new recruits. Once they start appealing to another demographic, they will lose their quiet charms for the "older" passenger niche. Every year there are newly emerging "older passengers". Imagine that. Stay strong and go long, HAL.

My husband and I are in our early 40s and took our first HAL cruise last year. We thoroughly enjoyed the more traditional experience than we were used to on NCL and were disappointed to see that HAL seems to be going the way of the other mass market lines, eliminating wraparound promenade decks, etc. We're willing to pay a premium for more traditional HAL experience, but if they continue on their current path, there's better value for money out there, and that's who we'll be sailing with.

Breed? New Breed? Do you mean demographic? Or Herd? Cattle?

As long as HAL continues to appeal to "older passengers" they will never run out of new recruits. Once they start appealing to another demographic, they will lose their quiet charms for the "older" passenger niche. Every year there are newly emerging "older passengers". Imagine that. Stay strong and go long, HAL.

That would be me. I finally decided that I'd better get this cruise thing going while I'm still physically able to do so. I booked my first ever cruise several weeks ago after discussing it with several cruise-veteran friends -- they ALL said Holland America would fit my personality best for a "first cruise" experience: smaller ships, great food, good itineraries, no pressure to "party hearty." For an introvert like me who NEEDS quiet time by myself, it sounds like heaven. So Alaska, here I come (September 11, 2017 - Amsterdam - 14-days).

I've also booked a second adventure for next year on Oceania (October 8, 2018, "Pacific Treasures" - San Francisco --> Miami via Panama Canal with a stop in Havana, 18 days on the Regatta) based on my friends' recommendations. And I'll likely throw in another HAL cruise somewhere in between (I'd love to do something around my birthday in July 2018).

Since I've never been on a cruise before, I have no prior experience to compare "old" vs "new." It's all "new" to me. Those of you with decades of cruise experience I'm sure have seen major changes in ships, itineraries, activities, etc. Maybe you like some of the changes but not others. It's all very subjective, I suppose.

Bottom line for me: I do not want to be stuck on a floating city that's too big for me to navigate comfortably. If I want a water park, I can drive a few miles up I-5 to a very nice one in Blaine. I don't need nightclubs, and if I want to see a Broadway show, I go to NYC or wait for it to come to the west coast. I want cruising to be something very different from my normal day-to-day "on land" experience. Maybe I'm setting myself up for disappointment, but what I envision is great food, great service, a chance to see a part of the world I haven't yet seen, and a relaxed comfortable atmosphere where I can choose to partake in a variety of social activities of varying levels of "excitement" -- or not.

We'll see in September if this is something I want to continue to do. I was lucky enough to retire early -- spent the first 10 yrs of retirement in school earning that ever-elusive set of music degrees (I spent 32 yrs in IT), and the next 5 yrs dealing with some gnarly health issues. Now it's time to start tackling that bucket list.

I don't think I'm alone -- there are a lot of us out there ...

HAL is only expensive if one wants a balcony on their smaller ships.

Spot on. We originally booked an inside on MS Amsterdam because the fare was so high for a balcony. About $1,000pp more. Then when they switched the ship to being the much larger Oosterdam a balcony came down to only $500pp more so we switched.

Our first HAL cruise was 15 years ago for 25th anniversary and we were 46 and we never thought the demographics were too old. We hugely enjoyed the experience. Ended up on RCCL several times purely for itinerary. Since it is convenient for us to cruise out of Seattle we decided to cruise for our 40th and HAL was an immediate favorite. Hoping for a similar experience to last time and what changes there have been (like Pinnacle Grill) seem good. Of course last time Veendam was much smaller (like Amsterdam) than Oosterdam but even so Oosterdam is the same size as our favorite RCCL Radiance Class ships - which are now at the small end for RCCL.

We get the impression that some people feel that there are only two types of cruise ships. Smaller, more intimate vessels and huge behemoths complete with amusement parks and 4000/5000 customers.

There are numerous vessels in between that, for us, are a great option. They provide the benefits of a more modern and up to date environment and more choices when it comes to dining, entertainment, etc. We don't need a rock climbing wall, we don't need a water slide. We do however want a ship with more modern, lighter decor, smoother traffic flow/placement of elevators, and considerably more choice when it comes to dining, dining hours,entertainment, and lounge areas. For us it does not have to be either or. This is where HAL often gets struck off our short list when deciding on a specific cruise.

As long as HAL continues to appeal to "older passengers" they will never run out of new recruits. Once they start appealing to another demographic, they will lose their quiet charms for the "older" passenger niche. Every year there are newly emerging "older passengers". Imagine that. Stay strong and go long, HAL.

absolutely

As long as HAL continues to appeal to "older passengers" they will never run out of new recruits. Once they start appealing to another demographic, they will lose their quiet charms for the "older" passenger niche. Every year there are newly emerging "older passengers". Imagine that. Stay strong and go long, HAL.

Exactly! What I don't understand is why HAL needs to attract a new demographic. They were not sailing with a lot of empty cabins.

We get the impression that some people feel that there are only two types of cruise ships. Smaller, more intimate vessels and huge behemoths complete with amusement parks and 4000/5000 customers.

 

There are numerous vessels in between that, for us, are a great option. They provide the benefits of a more modern and up to date environment and more choices when it comes to dining, entertainment, etc. We don't need a rock climbing wall, we don't need a water slide. We do however want a ship with more modern, lighter decor, smoother traffic flow/placement of elevators, and considerably more choice when it comes to dining, dining hours,entertainment, and lounge areas. For us it does not have to be either or. This is where HAL often gets struck off our short list when deciding on a specific cruise.

so what is in the middle? how many passengers

As long as HAL continues to appeal to "older passengers" they will never run out of new recruits. Once they start appealing to another demographic, they will lose their quiet charms for the "older" passenger niche. Every year there are newly emerging "older passengers". Imagine that. Stay strong and go long, HAL.

"older passenger" is a relative term, to me. Does one immediately want to do ballroom dancing, bridge, classical strings, etc., when one becomes the magical "older passenger" ?? I would think that the "older passenger" wants what they grew up with. I haven't known any people who played bridge since my mother's friends, and they are all either deceased or in their late 80s. The "older" passenger didn't grow up with Sinatra, Dean Martin, Woody Herman, big bands - they grew up with The Beatles, Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Carole King, Joanie Mitchell, Emmylou Harris, BB King, The Four Tops, The Supremes (even some of the younger "older" folks did The Sex Pistols, Elvis Costello, the Ramones) ... The "older" passenger may have gone to bars on Trivia Night in college and that brings back some fun memories.

What I am trying to say that it sounds like HAL is trying to update some things to the new class of "older" passengers. In some years, they will change again to make things interesting for the next set of "older" passengers - electronic gaming consoles at every table, MMORPG theaters, cosplay night, etc., And those of us that are the current "new" "older" passengers will bitch and whine about it...

The new breed of passengers seem to have a lot of dietary restrictions, requiring a very detailed level of individual attention by staff at all levels of food preparation and delivery.

Where on earth is this idea of yours coming from ?

"older passenger" is a relative term, to me. Does one immediately want to do ballroom dancing, bridge, classical strings, etc., when one becomes the magical "older passenger" ?? I would think that the "older passenger" wants what they grew up with. I haven't known any people who played bridge since my mother's friends, and they are all either deceased or in their late 80s. The "older" passenger didn't grow up with Sinatra, Dean Martin, Woody Herman, big bands - they grew up with The Beatles, Rolling Stones, David Bowie, Carole King, Joanie Mitchell, Emmylou Harris, BB King, The Four Tops, The Supremes (even some of the younger "older" folks did The Sex Pistols, Elvis Costello, the Ramones) ... The "older" passenger may have gone to bars on Trivia Night in college and that brings back some fun memories.

What I am trying to say that it sounds like HAL is trying to update some things to the new class of "older" passengers. In some years, they will change again to make things interesting for the next set of "older" passengers - electronic gaming consoles at every table, MMORPG theaters, cosplay night, etc., And those of us that are the current "new" "older" passengers will bitch and whine about it...

HAL is obviously responding to changing tastes among the new "older passengers". But getting out of the niche for "older passengers" and hitting their nostalgia sweet spots would be a mistake for a lot of us. Sinatra folks made the transition to at least one or two generations younger with no problem. Disco and ABBA was cool too.

It is the threat of dropping down 3 or 4 generations that would be disconcerting. 24/7 Pat Boone would drive me away too. But some of the recent shows indicate the young performers love them, far more than the passengers. What was that awful hipster music school "Romeo and Julliette" thing all about we just saw on the NA? It even promised to have familiar songs, but nothing was remotely recognizable.