islandwoman

So it's "To Insure Proper Service"? Something that isn't accomplished when the cruise line charges your account and then distributes the "gratuities" among the crew as they see fit.

Why do you tip an extra dollar when you get a drink (for a total of 24.67% on a $15 drink, if my math is correct)? Do you think that 18% is insufficient for adequate service?

And the price of a drink package also includes gratuities?

If you're paying for each drink, is the tip added on top of the price?

I don't think that it is expected to tip extra, since the gratuities added to our bills are supposed to be sufficient. But if a crew gives me more service than expected, then I will give him/her more gratuity than expected, in the form of some cash at the end of the voyage.

I am about to spend, what for me is, a massive amount of money on a cruise with Holland America. I would have liked to have booked Azamara instead, but I'm tired of their incompetence. Are you listening Azamara - I doubt that I'm the only customer jumping ship.

Oh, so that's the "little person"! So I click on it and get a sign-in option. Now I have a circle with the first letter of my first name. When I click on that, I get a drop-down menu "Hi Judith" (not clickable), "Upcoming Cruises" and "sign out". So I do have a little person, after all. But still no "My Profile" or "Club Programs" links. The "Upcoming Cruises" just takes me to "You have no upcoming cruises" (Correct!), "Request Support", "Bookings FAQ" and "Sign Out". That's all.

My account has no "little person', neither does it have a "My Profile" link, or a "Club Programs" link.

Is it time to fill out another "Future Bookings & Loyalty Support Form" ? After four months, Azamara still doesn't have my loyalty level, points, or past cruises in my online account. I have already filled out the form five times. Since then, two months have passed during which I have taken two more Azamara cruises. The most recent time I heard from Azamara, I was told that the website would be fixed by the end of June. 🤣 Is it time to fill out another Loyalty Support Form, or would I just be wasting my time and causing myself unnecessary aggravation?

Can I use points earned on my Holland America credit card to pay for shore excursions booked online before sailing? If yes, how?

I have a few questions about HAL's MDR dining options: Early dining or "As you wish"? I heard that Early Dining can be anywhere from 5:15 to 5:45 PM. Is that right? Most nights we would be happy with Early Dining, so long as it isn't at 5:15. But we're considering requesting "As You Wish" for flexibility. We like to eat around 6 or 7 PM, depending upon when the ship sails from a port of call. How long are the waits to be seated around those times with As You Wish? Is it easy to get a table for two with Early Dining? with As You Wish? Is there a dedicated dining area for suite passengers?

Is the Neptune Lounge open for all meals? Do you need a fixed dining time or a reservation to eat there? (This will only be my second HAL cruise, my first on Zaandam and my first in a Neptune Suite).

DH and I will be in a Neptune Suite on the Zaandam. We booked a September 2024 cruise in March 2023 and have been waitlisted for early seating. So much for Suite preference 🙄 We are also considering switching to Anytime (Is that the right name?) Dining for convenience. Most of our port calls depart by 5 PM, but several are later. Although I enjoy having the same waitstaff and table-mates every night, I would not like to have to rush back to the ship to get ready for early dining. Is early seating at 5:30 PM? What time is late seating?

How many days does it take for HAL laundry to be returned - without the extra day for air-dry?

Is there open seating?

Where can I find clothing that can stand up to a ship's laundry without shrinking, fading, or being damaged? I have always used the passengers' laundromat for much of my clothing. But I have an upcoming cruise on Holland America where there is no passenger laundromat. Where/what can I buy for the cruise that will not be damaged in the ship's laundry? It's a 51 day cruise, so packing enough to last without laundering is not an option. I prefer to wear knits and I realize that they are even more difficult to launder without damage. At home I wash them in cold water and hang to dry.

So how do you handle your laundry? Or do you pack enough clothing for the entire cruise?

Afraid not. Shore Ex went immediately to get us all of the excursion tickets for that cruise. I got the impression that it was a mistake that they had not been delivered at the beginning. Another IT glitch?

Glad to hear it. On the other hand, on our recent Quest Athens to Istanbul, we did not receive our excursion tickets until we went to ShoreEx to request them. Passenger Services had told us that the tickets would be sent to our cabin the night before each excursion.

In other words, single-use plastic bottles are banned?

No, we arranged our own flights, transfers and hotel.

We missed an excursion that we wanted to go on, but did not receive a refund of OBC that we were owed in time to pay for it onboard. Yes, we might have paid with credit card and then hoped that Azamara would apply the OBC to that payment when/if it finally came through. But by that time, I had lost trust in promises by Azamara.

Because we'd already made our final, non-refundable payment before Azamara started this "upgrade".

Wonderful! Except for the ongoing aggravations related to Azamara's IT system that I've mentioned in previous posts.

Don't forget to also update your status with the Loyalty/Future-cruises rep onboard. We failed to do that on the first of our B2B and as a result, didn't receive an invitation to the Loyalty party.