Northwestladybug

Sigh. We came so close! But 38 minutes before departure we were turned away. 🥲. Here’s the whole sordid tale (from a post I wrote elsewhere): HAL’s stand-by program gives two options at two days before departure, if no rooms are available for stand-by: 1.) you can opt out and get your money back OR 2.) you can stay on the program all the way to 90 minutes before boarding, in hopes of a last-minute availability. We chose the second option in hopes of a last-minute cancellation. We are packed and ready to drive to the port in the morning… but our booking just completely disappeared from the website AND from the app! I have emails to prove our standby booking, full payment, and decision to continue on the stand-by list… but WHAT GIVES?? Can anyone provide any answers? We still plan to head to the port in the morning. 🤞🤞🤞 ADDENDUM: Well, we did get on a boat today, but it was the ferry, taking us back home. There were SO MANY twists and turns to this (mis)adventure — some being due to the nature of standby, but I have to say, most due to HAL’s very poor handling of the program. As I mentioned above, we opted for option 2 at the two-day mark, obligating us to be available to board, all the way up to 90 minutes before departure, and obligating HAL to keep our reservation active for the same period of time so that, should there be a no-show, a missed flight, an illness or injury, or any other possibility of a ticket holder not being able to board, we would be right there at the port to board in their place. At 7 PM on the night before departure, our booking suddenly disappeared. It was just GONE — from the website and from the app. Huh? HAL’s end of the bargain was that they would leave our active booking open. I tried to call CS, but all offices were closed. This morning at 6 AM, when CA opened again, I called and asked was going on. I was told, “Yes, we cancelled it. I can’t tell you why, but call back in an hour.” I was told that going to the port was probably a waste of time. We had upheld our end of the bargain and HAL had totally reneged on theirs! I called back at 7 AM. This time I was told that our booking was active and, in fact, we had a “STATEROOM GUARANTEE.” I asked the agent to send me an email with proof — which he did. We hopped in the car and arrived at Pier 91 terminal at 10 AM. From 10 until 2:22 PM we sat at a table where “special case” passengers were sent. I felt confident that we’d be boarding at that point. There were two very helpful HAL employees involved for these four hours. Kenneth was the go-between from the ship to check-in, and Cindy was on charge of “inventory (room) control.” He looked at my “room guarantee” and said I shouldn’t have received it — that I was on standby… but that he would do his best. Now we were back to standby status. There were two other couples with us, one in the same standby situation as us, one travel agent and her husband awaiting a room (they paid vastly reduced prices to await other boarding first — much like a pilot flying as a passenger), and another couple whose stateroom had been downgraded. They were angry and made a big fuss. After it was over they got this cruise AND TWO MORE CRUISES compted at 100! Talk about “squeaky wheel”! Both of these couples were allowed to board — and there were quite a few times in those four hours when we were sure we would be too. But ultimately, at 2:22, just 38 minutes before departure, Kenneth said “sorry guys…” We thanked him for his hard work and patience and left the terminal. The other couple, from Texas, decided to rent a car and see the Pacific Northwest. We got in an Uber, headed to the ferry terminal and took the only boat ride we’d be on today back home. I am emotionally and physically exhausted, thirsty, hungry, and very tired. (We were never offered food or water as we waited those four hours.) Will we try Holland America’s standby program again? I don’t know; ask me again tomorrow. Certainly not until they iron out some of the significant issues and not until they communicate better with their customers. I know that, once you get on a ship, Holland America’s service is the best around. But their service before boarding is really sub-standard!

Sigh. (Yet still hopeful!) Got this email this evening at 6:30 PM two days before sailing: "Standby List Update EURODAM 13JUL24 D447 Regrettably, our Standby List for your requested Alaska cruise is fully booked, however if you would like to stay on stand-by status and potentially clear as late as the day of sailing we can leave your booking active, or if you prefer, we can cancel your booking today and refund you in full. Please reply to this email with your preference; if you would like to remain on stand-by, please advise the latest time you would need to clear, and the best way to reach you if last minute space comes available." Replied: "We would like to remain on stand-by. We will be at Pier 91 in Seattle on Saturday morning, ready to board. Our contact information is: XXXXXXXXX"

Will do. It is 2:10 PM two days before departure and I have heard nothing from HAL. I just called the CS number and the agent said to "just wait for the email." And so, I wait. We are fully packed and ready to go, but trying not to get too excited (which is part of the fun, right?!). This is not for the faint at heart!

It's 9 AM on Thursday, two days before departure. So far, no word from HAL -- but we are packed and ready to GO!

My husband and I are on standby for the Eurodam sailing from Seattle (7-day Alaska) on 7/13. We live within an hour of the port, so if given a choice to "hang on till the last minute," we will do that! Before I fell in love with cruising (on an Alaskan cruise with my daughter on the Konigsdam in late May), my husband and I booked a week in Banff for the same week as the cruise. So if we don't get on the cruise, we'll wave farewell to the ship, take our bags back to the car, and will continue northward! (And if we do get on, my first order of business will be to cancel Banff hotels within the 24-hour mark and before we lose cell service!) 🫰we get on the cruise... but either adventure works! I will try to come back and report on what happened.