islandwoman

I booked a cruise with an Early Booking Have it All package that includes crew gratuities, wi-fi, and beverage package. But as I'm looking for another cruise, (not early booking though), it looks like the Have It All packages offered don't include crew gratuities. Is that correct? The crew gratuities are what make the Have It All a good value for me.

We leave on August 26 for our annual three weeks at Buddy Dive in Bonaire. We only do shore diving. Several years ago we spent a week on Curacao shore diving, but were not thrilled with it. The only reason we'd consider cruise ship excursions is logistics.

We're 77 and 78. We are both PADI Advanced Open Water and Enriched Air Certified and have over 200 dives logged. But sometimes the cruise lines only care about age. I know that some of them ban older divers, but I don't know whether HAL is one. We are considering a HAL cruise to Bonaire, Curacao, Aruba, and Grand Turk. Although we would prefer local dive operators to the ship's excursions, sometimes that is logistically not possible.

Does Holland America have an upper age limit for its certified SCUBA diving excursions?

I hope that someone who has redeemed points will post the details of their experience.

Fivelinks, I don't understand what you said here because I found this on Barclay's website at the "Terms & Conditions" for "Holland America Line Rewards Visa Card": "Statement credit redemption value toward Holland America Line purchases will vary based on the amount of the Holland America Line purchase. The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date will be assigned to the appropriate rule as described below: Holland America Line purchases within the last 180 days: $50 to $499.99 will have a redemption value of 1% $500 to $1,499.99 will have a redemption value of 1.25% $1,500 to $2,000.99 will have a redemption value of 1.50% $2,001 to $4,000.99 will have a redemption value of 2.00% $4,001 and up will have a redemption value of 2.50%" (underlining is mine) Now I'm even more confused because I don't know what Barclays means by "The sum of eligible transactions made on the same date".

OK. Since this thread is for newbies, what is a CO?

Can you tell us how long it had been since you'd used that card when Barclays cancelled it? I'd rather only use my Holland America card for double points on HAL purchases, but those might be few and far between. So I'd like to know how often I need to "waste" my purchases by using my HAL card for single points when I might have used a double or multi-point card instead.

We contacted our TA and asked him to include it in our new cruise booking. We haven't heard anything from HAL about it. Should we see it in our online account?

Thank you for the warning. I will be sure to use my Holland America card now and then to prevent it from being closed for non-usage. I lost a card from a different bank a few years ago for the same reason.

Do you have a different card that you could try? I used my Citi AAdvantage card without a problem.

Are you a multi-star Mariner? Do some Mariner levels receive early boarding?

I hear you. I have a similar experience. I worked hard to make Elite status on another cruise line. Shortly thereafter they sold off their small ships that I liked so much and started adding bigger and bigger ones to their fleet. Now I don't sail that line any more. I'm looking for a new favorite line, but I'm getting too old to make top tier on other loyalty programs.

This from Chase Sapphire Preferred Guide to Benefits: "Travel Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance The Cardholder and Immediate Family Members are covered when the Cardholder’s name is embossed on an eligible Card issued in the United States, and the Cardholder charges all or a portion of a Trip to his or her Credit Card Account and/or Rewards programs associated with the Account." https://www.chasebenefits.com/sapphirereserve2

DH and I each just bought 5 AARP HAL gift cards at aarp.org. The purchases went through without any problems. The restriction is 5 per person per month. Is that per calendar month or per 30 days?

I found this on both the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Chase Sapphire Reserve websites: "If your trip is cancelled or cut short by sickness, severe weather or other covered situations, you can be reimbursed up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip for your pre-paid, non-refundable travel expenses, including passenger fares, tours and hotels." So I would think that if your cruise trip is going to cost more than $10,000 per person, there would be no reason not to use gift cards to pay for the over $10,000 cost. Does anyone have other information or conclusions? I can't find anything about whether the entire trip has to be paid with the Chase card in order for the insurance to apply, have you?

How about for women? In my experience, women tend to dress up more than men - except me! I'd rather eat room service or in the buffet than have to buy and pack "dressy" clothing. Still, I'd hate to miss an especially good MDR meal.

How many Barclay's Holland America visa points must I redeem to receive the 2.50% redemption value? I see that Barclays says "Holland America Line Purchases within the last 180 days: ...$4001 and up", but how many points is that? Does this mean that I can get a 2.50% redemption value for any number of points, if I make a $4100 HAL purchase, or do I have to redeem points worth $4100? And how many would that be? 200,00? 400,000? something else?

I have a recently acquired Barclay's HAL visa that now has 15,000 + points on it. I have an expensive HAL cruise upcoming in November 2024. What is the best way to redeem these points? Or would it be better to use the card to pay for the cruise or part of the cruise?

And to understand the abbreviations.

What special laundry services do you request, if not "air dry"? I have had several pairs of pants faded and snagged in another line's ship's laundry. After that, I used the onboard passenger laundromat. But HAL no longer has those 😟 Going on a 51 day HAL cruise, if that happened, what would I wear?

Just like traveling by air, we always keep our meds in our carry-on, in case our checked baggage goes astray. As for the "original containers", there are two considerations: First, if you get stuck onboard or in a foreign country and run out of your meds (remember COVID?), you will want the original containers or a copy of the labels, or a copy of the prescription so that you can get more. Second, if you are embarking or disembarking in a foreign country, you might need proof of what these meds are and that they are legally yours and not something that might be prohibited in those countries. In some countries, customs will go through your stuff looking for illegal drugs.

Those of us who have problems packing formal wear into our airline checked bags appreciate not having to dress up. For those of you who prefer that you and your fellow passengers dress more formerly, there are other cruise lines, such as Cunard where you might be happier.

How do most people dress on these nights? Are they still called "formal" nights?

Is Holland America's "Flight Ease" the same as Princess' EZ Air? In any case, I have a question about Flight Ease: Can I book two one-way flights instead of a round trip? The reason I want to do that is because I need to fly from Florida to San Diego and back for a 51 day cruise. The airlines will release their return flights 51 days after they release the outbound flight. I'd like to be able to see the outbound flight options as soon as they become available instead of waiting nearly two months to book a round-trip, when some of the best outbound options might have disappeared.