Live4cruises

This is not my experience, and I would be unhappy to see that be the case now. That policy would make no sense at all.

Travel is wonderful! I just call the regular 800# - they are (mostly) always available and have always been good to me. @SusieKIslandGirl, only one of us is eligible for military/educator, but I don't doubt that's the case. I would though expect the credit to be available for both reservation confirmation numbers on a B2B @Ellesor826.

"new bookings only" is not something I've encountered, and I HOPE it's not a new thing. Call the 800# (probably not today), and choose the option for repricing, hoping that person is more knowledgeable. Please post back and let us know. Also, if you're recently back from a cruise, you may receive a "Welcome Home" email, with a promotional OBC for booking again. I have been able to apply that as well. Click the link so you can read the particulars and get the promotion code, which has been helpful when I've called, but again usually requires a pricing specialist. I don't know if the Welcome Homes are ongoing, or just an attempt to kick some life into bookings. Also, I don't know if Mariner level has anything to do with it or not. We are 4*. Good luck!!

Yes indeed! We have Shareholder and Military without a problem. Do you have the online form for military? It’s a quick and easy process that apparently goes through a vetting process that takes a day or two.

Ditto to @highscar The ukulele lessons are cumulative, so if you want to participate it's important to attend the first one. I learned that the hard way. 😢 I guess now that I've learned my lesson, I'll just have to do that wonderful cruise again!

Thank you for the information - exactly what I needed. I did hope NOT to start a popcorn thread. I wasn't going for cute, merely efficient.

I've been thinking of taking $2 bills to use as small tips aboard, merely because half as many are required as a stack of $1's. Has anyone else done that? They're so unusual, I don't want people to think they're being duped. Thanks!

To answer the OP's initial question -- I use the all-purpose number 877 932-4259‬. I made one attempt at having a PCC, and it was a total failure. My experience with the all-purpose number is generally quite good. I call with questions, to do bookings, and anything else you'd use a PCC for. Rarely, when I make the mistake of calling at a known busy time, I get the "try again later" message, but that is rare. I hope this is helpful.

We recently (within a week) verified my husband’s service, and the benefit was applied to a booking more than 7 days old. That’s just silly!

Thanks, both of you. I hope I was just having a bad day, and I can get back to the friendly voices I'm used to.

Hello, After my unsatisfactory phone experience with HAL yesterday and today, I am wondering if they have chosen to outsource/offshore this service. My hold time both days was greater than 40 minutes, and the agents seem to have no knowledge of their products. Yesterday (Sunday), I put the wait time down to a busy weekend, but today - even early in the morning when I gave up - was similarly slow. One of my questions was about disembarkation time. My confirmation itinerary shows arrival at 1:00 a.m. in Whittier. I suggested that surely this was an arrival time and not actual disembarkation, but she assured me that she asked her local supervisor and that was indeed what the itinerary showed. I pushed back (politely, I promise!) again, and was told that I would need to contact Guest Services directly. The local supervisor and a secondary contact were both red flags for me. I also inquired about what facilities were available on a long bus ride, particularly rest room facilities. As she read my list of questions back to me, she asked if I wanted to know what facilities the bus had for resting. I clarified that I meant toilets. If HAL has outsourced their phone services, it does not make me at all happy. For whatever that's worth!

@VMax1700, On our January Koningsdam trip, receipts were always presented. The only reason seemed to be for added tips. After my initial surprise, I decided I was OK with it, since I could reward a favorite bartender, and I seemed to get faster attention since I became known to include an extra dollar or two. 😀

@mikebsxmHow do you find the email for the Ship Coordinator? Thank you - this sounds like a great plan!

Hi Jacqui, I have officially lost it! Our June 2024 cruise is on the Nieuw Statendam not the Nieuw Amsterdam. Sorry for the trouble . . .

If you call the 800 number, they can give you exact dimensions. Of course if helps if you’ve studied deck plans and have it narrowed down to 2 or 3 cabins. @five.I believe there’s a live chat function so you can type to a person.

We've been back a week from our 17-Day Circle Hawaii cruise on Koningsdam. We are experienced cruisers; quiet with lower requirements for entertainment. We go to be AWAY, be taken care of politely, and to have no responsibilities. We tend to roll with the punches and expect and accept minor imperfections. HAL's customer-facing staff in our experience is consistently wonderful. We ate one lunch in MDR. Not at all a good experience, so won't do that again. We did two Pinnacle dinners and one lunch, all good; skipped Tamarind this time because we couldn't make a schedule work. Dinners and most breakfast were at Club Orange, which has become a "must have" when we select a ship. Oh! Spicy food - in general the food is not spicy, but as someone else commented, the Lido curries pack a punch. We think the Lido variety and quality is good. We never went hungry! "Someone" - I think it was on a panel of Cruise Director and food and beverage managers - said that they have supply chain issues with staffing. That there are people who have completed their training, but are caught up in Visa issues, primarily in the US. Accurate or not, it is plausible. We have also cruised Celebrity several times, and one recent family cruise on Royal Caribbean. HAL has become our preferred line. Maybe we're boring?? It's consistent, familiar, suits our style (if we have a style), and we have status - although "status" on HAL is not as meaningful as on others.

Hi Jacqui, Late last year, we upended our cruising plans for 2023. We just returned from Circle Hawaii, loving every minute of all those sea days! We have cancelled April 9 2023 Panama Canal on Nieuw Amsterdam. We are looking (far) ahead to June 15, 2024 25-Day British Isles, Iceland, Greenland Passage. Thanks!

We have hard side bags, although not the really high end kind. Our AirTag does in one of the inside zipper pockets, and that works well. Hoping we don't have to find out just HOW well!

I called a couple of weeks ago, and the rep told me it had to be an observed home test, and specifically mentioned the on-line ones. Maybe I’ll call again tomorrow (maybe twice) and see if I can get further clarification. I don’t mind doing the test, but I like getting it out of the way before we leave home - typically 3 days before our cruise! Oh well.

Please remember that a self-administered test in this case means an on-line observed test.

@kazu, thanks so much for taking us along! I was on K’Dam last March, with CO, to which we are now addicted. Many expensive addictions on cruises! @sailingdutchy, really? Is the passenger load on the January 14 cruise really that light? I see that several categories are sold out. I am hoping you are correct. I can’t believe we’re almost there! Wishing all safe, healthy, and happy 2023!

@ger_77, YEA on the earring. The sweet relief of finding a lost item is a world unto itself. I know, I’ve lost and found an emerald and a diamond. Unbelievable. Changed jewelers too!

@aliaschief, if by the remotest chance Benjamin is your CD, you will be fortunate! Please give him greetings from Robin & Nick (this will get you a blank stare); it might jog his memory if you tell him that Nick was the guy with the pony tail who sketched all the portraits. Unlikely, but it would be a fun coincidence!

We drive Felix our Forester. I name most of our cars, some names have been better than others. My best name was of the great white Mercedes sedan DH had for a while. MobyNick. @aliaschief, I can’t recall if you’ve ever done a Scenic cruise before. If not, you will love it! We’ve done two, and both were exceptional. Strength for everyone working to recover from hurricane destruction. My best ~~

@kplady, wishing you an unbelievably happy retirement! Sweet freedom and not dealing with an alarm clock every day are precious things. @Cruzin Terri, so glad things are aligning so your richly-deserved trip can happen. Have a wonderful relaxing time. @dfish, nice upsell for you to make your cruise just a little sweeter! @rafinmd, please include me with the 10/8 Nieuw Statendam group. I don’t want to miss the boat! 😀😉 Best to everyone