don731

We didn’t see huge changes on Oceania pre and post virus. We spent over two weeks each time on the Riviera (February 2020, and August 2022), and perhaps some of the meal portions were smaller, but service levels with many of our favorite crew members was still outstanding, as were the specialty restaurants. Prices for each cruise were comparable. We did notice fewer daily discounts onboard such as happy hour, spa specials, etc. Tour prices were a bit higher, and quality lower (seemed to be exactly the same as tours from value priced ships in port with us). Since there were four of us, we found better value in privately arranged tours. HAL has far superior onboard tech and satellite internet. We are hoping that the issue with my wife’s account (and many others on this cruise, as described to us by guest services), where it’s been disconnected from Have It All, will be corrected soon.

Good to know. Didn’t see that documented anywhere. Our point is that we are finding execution to be inconsistent. We have been on Oceania both immediately pre and post covid, and while changes were made, execution was flawless. Same with Seabourn. Due to unique circumstances, we didn’t book this cruise through our regular TA. They indicate that they are finding Celebrity to offer a better product at a similar price point.

Nope, just poor execution of the brand. We have gotten bedtime chocolates one night out of four, as another example. Inconsistencies are consistent so far. We can see either Darden or Harvard doing a business case study of HAL if the brand fails in the next couple of years. Trading high value loyal customers for bottom feeders who won’t be back never works out. It doesn’t matter what your price point is….Walmart and Nordstrom both consistently execute their business model with great success. Set the expectations for your brand, and deliver them without fail at every touch point. We’ve been to guest services more times in three days than total on our last dozen cruises. Without a Disney style Immediate Business Recovery policy, it’s a setup for the front line workers who are dancing as fast as then can, and don’t have the tools to solve issues.

Sigh. Four days into this cruise, and the ship is completely out of Canadian rye whisky (and there are lots of Canadians onboard). Plus my wife’s account has at least temporarily disconnected from the Have It All package. Guest services sez not to worry, as the charges mount up. 😆😆😆

We had a better strategy tonight. Had a 7:45 res, but stood in line for a pager around 6:30, were seated by 6:45. Same deal though, pagers and a clipboard.

Currently on NS for 13 remaining days (back to back). For our second week, we made fine dining and excursion reservations. All of our reservations appeared as expected in the Navigator app. Today, all reservations for next week disappeared! Guest services says they will magically reappear in FLL next Saturday. I don’t really believe them. When the dining reservations desk is open again, we will check with them. Of course these were reservations made with the Have It All package. Does anyone have any insight as to if this is normal? Thanks in advance.

Overall the Navigator app is great! Nothing in the wallet after our return to FLL. I did take screenshots of the Have It All restaurant bookings. Rudi’s was outstanding, food and service. We’re back there tomorrow night. We’re usually favorite guests of our servers….try to be low maintenance. Our MDR REZ tonight is at 7:45….so we plan to get a pager around 6pm, and hope for the best. We are checking with our TA to see if we could pay for CO next week, just to dine in their grill, and avoid this hassle. In a VB, so don’t care about moving to a better cabin.

Forgot to add, all of our restaurant and excursion bookings for next week have disappeared from Navigator. 😬

Currently on NS for the next 13 days, having left Port Everglades yesterday. The ship is comfortable and well appointed, but the changes in HAL from our last voyage about 12 years ago are very evident. Our first question is: Could we have booked dinner in the MDR before the cruise? It didn’t come up when we booked the other restaurants. We were under the impression that the MDR was always first come, first serves. Dinner last night was a total cluster, with dozens of people waiting around 6:30pm, and the restaurant manager resorting to an old fashioned clipboard to keep track of his pagers. We were quoted a minimum 45 minute wait, so we ditched out to Rudi’s which was empty, and walked in to a wonderful dinner. Other guests reported that the upper level was not open. We eventually found the x88 note in Navigator to book the MDR. Of course, for our first week onboard, there are no times available in the six o’clock hour. Do savvy HAL guests immediately book the MDR upon boarding? Or are high level elites permitted to book before the cruise? Today’s excursion to the beach at Half Moon was also disappointing. We booked a clamshell, but when we arrived, we found no control at all on who was using them. We did eventually find one, but thought that those who paid to reserve one would get first pick. Tendering took an hour from being in line on the ship to disembarking at the Cay. We’ve noticed used glasses, cups, and dishes left on tables in the bars and eating areas for half an hour or more. We suppose the ship is understaffed. We are hopeful that the guest experience will stabilize in the next few days. We had outstanding cruises on Masdam and Zanndam some years ago.

Decided against it. Will scout out the CO dining room, so maybe next time.

We depart on Nieuw Statendam this coming Saturday for 14 days. Currently in a VB cabin. Our traveling friends just had to cancel due to a last minute health issue. We are wondering if it’s possible to upgrade to CO this late in the game? We like the idea of the separate grill type restaurant for.dinner. Would the price be $15 pp/pd? Thanks!