Mary229

13 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

I don’t even know what it looks like-have never had one!

 

 

Really.  They have been available for a long time.  Many afternoons you can even pick them up on the Lido.  

The calculation is easy.  1 point per day, 2 if in a suite and an extra day per $300 spent up to equal the number of days sailing. Which expenditures are included is the only confusing aspect. 

Where the money came from is not factored only how it is spent.
Pre and post cruise arrangements such as pre cruise flights and hotels are not included.  Most other arrangements are included and as usual Casino expenditures are officially off the table but sometimes sneak in.  As @Cruise Suzy indicated the maximum allowance is to double your days and no more. So for our 35 day cruise you can only earn an additional 35 days credit. 

I saw pieces from the line on the Noordam in October.  They are displayed in the general merchandise shop not a separate boutique.

Here are the details

connection and expires at the end of such Eligible Cruise. US$500 Air Credit Offer is based on Promo JX. Air Credit offer available on select flights booked through Holland America Line’s Flight Ease^® program. Air Credit offer is available only to 1st/2nd guests in a stateroom on select 2024 Europe sailings. Credits are awarded as US$250 per leg of flight, per person. Europe Air Credits are in USD. Limit: One (1) $500 air credit per guest for 1st/2nd guests and up to US$1,000 air credit per stateroom. For transatlantic sailings, guests residing in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, will receive only a US$250 (total) credit per person for their flight home given that such sailings depart from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Pricing and availability are subject to capacity. Air Credit offer is subject to change and availability at time of booking, for new bookings only, and neither transferable nor refundable. Prices may vary. Air Credit offers have limited space and may be modified or withdrawn. Departure dates may be substituted without prior notice. Other restrictions may apply. It is the responsibility of guests to ensure they have a full passport valid at least 6 months beyond the date on which travel is to commenc

It is $250 each way and will be applied at air booking 

😁.  Let me warn you of one thing. If his credit card is on to his account you may not be able to manage his accounts if you were to go to guest services without him depending on how much a stickler for rules the person behind the counter is.  

15 minutes ago, canadianbear said:

This us  both menus for tonight, one with club orange and one without (our friends have the one without) 

Thanks for sharing.   This trend might be a crowd pleaser.  I can’t wait to see what else they re-introduce 

6 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

We have found Princess also offers some unique 3-5 week itineraries that have caught our attention and $$$. But it's nice again to have two cruise lines to choose from with the longer itineraries and intriguing perks, especially since we're 4-star with HAL and just made Elite on PCL. 

This is true and they also have a well developed land and sea program.  For us, unfortunately, they continue to increase the size of their ships. 

55 minutes ago, S4POPO said:

I know that both brands are part of the same corporate holding company, but I wouldn't compare NCL and Oceania.  They are two distinct companies with different management teams and different philosophies.

I was exclusively Norwegian long before they bought Oceania.  My thought was I had started only going on longer more exotic voyages and smaller ships  and was hoping to transition in the same family of cruise lines.  Unfortunately it didn’t work out for us. 

14 minutes ago, Heartfelttraveler said:

If you have not considered Oceania since 2018, why are you even on this board five years later? 

This topic began on another forum and was moved to Oceania after a few days.  

11 hours ago, RD64 said:

But there will always be others who will take your place - and truly if there is an itinerary / price that you can’t pass up, will you truly not book on principle?

Principle is not the issue.  I am not going to recount the disturbing things that happened, unprovoked, on that cruise but I can assure you I will never go back.  If you were sitting in my living room I would tell you the whole sordid affair and you likely would cancel going forward. 

3 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

We have been notified of a very last minute port change for tomorrow. Apparently, the pier at Salerno has collapsed into the sea because of a storm. So, we will now go to Sorrento, a tender port.

Here's when it bites it to have a non-ship excursion - we have not been able to get a response from the tour company for our tour in Pompeii - ugh!

I am sorry you will be missing Pompeii.  Just to tempt you with a bit of home we just ate a chili cheese burger at Blue Sky in Amarillo.  There is nothing that good on the ship😅

2 minutes ago, OlsSalt said:

Rudi needs to pay a little more hands-on attention to the restaurants, that carry his name. 

Sadly many business people don’t have that ethic.   

6 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

Because in a short time the complaints will be a thing of the past and all those long term customer saying they will leave, really won't leave.  

I cruise multiple times a year and Oceania’s poor excuse for customer service has kept me off of their ships since 2018.  It was such a rude experience that I likely will never consider them again. My two sisters feel the same way.  One of those sisters owns a large agency and only recently started offering Oceania again but only when asked.  
 

 This is not bias, I really wanted to like Oceania as I was in my youth a big fan of Norwegian 

It is not that far away so probably wouldn’t hurt.  I always book refundable fares and can re-fare for any sale I see.  HAL is very adjustable 

8 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

Obviously if your experience was different it is perfectly valid to state that but the written policy of flight-ease is to do what I have said they will do.  I am the last person to defend HAL but in this case we have had experience with this and while it wasn't the most pleasant travel experience it would have been a lot worse had we not booked the air with them.  They actually went above and beyond the written policy in our case but the written policy is to get you on the ship at no additional cost to you if your flight to the cruise, booked with them, is delayed or cancelled. 

They went above and beyond for you, do not expect the, to always do that. 

13 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

I really wish people who didn't know what they were talking about wouldn't state opinion as fact.  I have actually had experience with the late arrival policy and it is exactly as they say.  They will book you on a flight to the first port where you are able to pick up the cruise and it will be done at no additional cost.  It is the great advantage to using Flight-Ease.  We have personally experienced this so it's not only as stated in their policy I have actually had to take advantage of it. 

 

They booked and flew our family members to San Juan when Delta cancelled their flights to FLL the morning of the cruise at the last minute.  NO charge for the change in flights and their policy is to pay for one hotel night in the city where they pick up the cruise which they did too.  They even bumped them up to first class... all free because the flight from Boston the FLL was cancelled and they missed the cruise departure. If we hadn't booked the air through flight-ease we'd have been out of luck or had to depend on travel insurance.  This was in the winter of 2023 so it is their current policy.

 

I still had a hard time accepting they had missed half of the cruise so after some intense negotiations HAL agreed to give them FCC in the full amount of the cruise and air because it was only a 7 day cruise and San Juan port was on the fourth day.  All in all using flight ease got them a free trip to PR and half a cruise which they would not have gotten otherwise. 

I have NOT had the same experience , been there.  

16 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

 

Late Arrival Protection

If you have booked your air travel through Holland America Line and experience delays on the day you are en route to your cruise due to an airline service disruption, such as a flight delay, cancellation, or re-route, that will cause you to miss your original port of embarkation, Holland America Line will work with the airline to find reasonable alternate flights to the next appropriate port at no additional air cost to the guest. Contact our support line at 1-800-628-4771 to request assistance.

Factors taken into account in determining the appropriateness of a port of call include, but are not limited to:

• where in the original itinerary the port is located
• airport / port infrastructure
• visas and other legal documentation that may be required
• application of the Passenger Services Act to the new itinerary
• comparability of cost, flight connections, and travel time required (any unused value on the original air ticket will be used to offset the cost of the new air ticket)

Note: If you purchase air transportation independently from Holland America Line, you will be responsible for any and all expenses incurred when joining the vessel in progress.

That does not turn a one hour flight to San Diego into a flight to Hawaii.  They will help you secure another similar flight at the best price available to them but not buy you a ticket.  Your airline will do a similar thing.

8 minutes ago, Real NHDOC said:

If the OP booked his flight through Flight-Ease HAL does take responsibility for making sure you don't miss the cruise or catches you up on the first port they can.  They know if there are passengers are on certain flights and the ship may even depart late from a port if a number of passengers would miss the ship and it won't impact the schedule too badly. It's the only way I would ever fly into a cruise on the day of departure, regardless of the schedules.  You just have no control over the airlines. 

 

I know we've got a cruise in January from Fort Lauderdale that they will book flights that are scheduled to land up to 1:00pm when the ship is scheduled to sail at 3:00.  So if the OP's flight is through Flight-Ease then he has little to worry about.  But, if not, then he's at the mercy of the airlines...

 

San Diego port is so close to the airport that if you had to take a cab you could be there in just a few minutes but still it's not the most relaxing way to start a leisure cruise.

You are reading way too much into the Flight Ease Protection program.  It is not a guarantee, it is not insurance, it does not pay late arrival costs, it merely assists you - if you can get in touch with them!  Here is the verbiage, when they say they will take care of any flight changes they mean they will book them NOT pay for them. 

In the event your flights are delayed or cancelled by the airline on the day you are en route to or from your cruise, our staff is ready to assist you, 24/7. We’ll even take care of any flight changes if needed to join the voyage at the next available port of call.

4 minutes ago, cbr663 said:

 

As HAL has jumped on the hanging theatrics and most of the hanged items are proteins, it immediately brings to my mind animal slaughter.  It isn't an appetizing thought when dining.

To give credit where credit is due😉, that concept was invented by a celebrity chef 

That would work.  The only thing I have done is pile up points to use for hotels and flights so even if it may be expensive the points take away the sting.  For domestic SWA flights and hotels 90 days is more than sufficient to still get a good price.  International flights may be a little trickier.  For my tastes I see no reason to worry about shore excursions in the Caribbean, they are a dime a dozen and readily available or can be duplicated  easily with a taxi ride. 

As to theatrics I have always noted a high level of pretentiousness and faux sophistication in all of the specialty dining venues. It has put me off of them for years , DH likes the beef so we go. If they would tone it down I might go more often .  

The K seems to have an ingrained restaurant issue.  I am sailing again in February , with great trepidation.  I will be sure to note my experiences on this board. 

I would complain bit more and get a refund. Thanks for the heads up though.  I have always steered away from that venue worried about issues.