RobTheGob

I guess it’s not surprising that there is inconsistencies… I realized that I had entered my info in SheerID before sending the email - that probably affected how well it worked for me. SheerID HAL

We actually joined and linked AARP after booking - so it was worthwhile taking the time to jump through the various hoops!

That is likely exactly what happened - thanks!

I was able to see my included perks after I posted - it does appear like I may have lost a $50 OBC after the AARP OBC perk was added! Having said that - I'm not 100% sure where the $50 OBC came from, it just showed up earlier this week, but has now disappeared...

I wasn’t sure how to get the AARP benefit added to our upcoming cruise in September (booked through a big box store TA), but I saw others mentioning sending an email to reservations_submit@hollandamerica.com. I sent an email late Thursday afternoon (Pacific time) and received a reply within 15 minutes stating that the OBC credit had been applied! Very fast & easy! I really liked how the Stockperks worked - also very easy. Mind you - in the past all I did was send and email and wait, so not exactly difficult.

We’ve often rented cars in Honlulu/Waikiki from the hotel car rental locations. The main issue (for me) is that they have very odd hours and often close early, so the return is done by a “drop box”. I’ve had no issues - but take MANY pictures of the car and drop off spot… Also - Waikiki is closer to the cruise pier than the airport, but still quite some distance. One thing to consider - the transit system on Oahu is VERY good. We’ve not done it, but we have friends that took the bus all the way to the North Shore and back (at that time - it was $2 per person each way!). We often walk off the ship, take the bus a fair distance and make our way back on foot (but we walk a lot). For our upcoming trip with an overnight stay, we might take the bus over to Kailua and back the first day and then take the bus to the Diamond Head area and walk back on the second day.

We’ve not actually requested the AARP OBC to be added for our recently booked cruise - but I’m hoping it can be at some point. The large AARP thread indicated that HAL can add it, even if the booking was done by a TA - but success was kind of hit & miss, depending on the HAL rep you talk to.

Yep - working now! I can't recall how long ago I noticed this issue - but it was months ago.

The public sections of the aft decks are one of my fav parts of these ships. We had a DD cabin on the Amsterdam (now sold) and loved that we could get all the way from deck 2 to the Seaview Pool without going to the main stairs/elevators (there are stairs towards the back of deck 3 that go up and past the MDR to deck 6). We recently booked a cabin in the same location on the Zaandam and I’m really looking forward to the experience…

Yes - we gave up looking for availability on the HAL website (because of the blank cabin selection page) and booked the cabin we wanted on the Zaaadam using the Kirkland, WA based online travel website. We had no issues seeing the available cabins on their site and the booking was confirmed in our HAL account… It’s odd that it’s been in this state so long - I was noticing this for a while before I came across this thread (I really wanted to find a cruise on either the Volendam or Zaandam, based on our experience in 2019 on the Amsterdam). Many people have said they’ve notified HAL of the issue.

My fav cabins are DD oceanview, towards the aft of deck 2. - Large window (I really want to see outside) - No people walking past the window like OV on deck 3 - Steps away from the aft balcony (with stairs up to the promenade) - Within a few steps of the cabin - I can see both sides of the ship AND aft - Easy access all the way to the Seaview pool without an elevator or main staircase!

We booked an oceanview cabin for our upcoming cruise - based on our trip on the Amsterdam (no longer part of HAL). The best outdoor public areas of any ship I've been on.

I noticed this issue while doing a test Zaandam booking last weekend. But I was able to select cabins and get to the “enter your credit card” stage when doing the same booking at the big discounter travel website (the one that’s famous for selling hot dogs cheap!). I assumed it was a problem with my particular itinerary until I saw this thread.

It appears in the pic that one of my fav areas on the Zaandam (I’ve only actually sailed on the Amsterdam) is to close to empty! The public areas at the aft of most decks is often completely vacant and it’s an amazing place to watch the world go by! I also love the public deck at the front of the ship, below the bridge. We’re looking into Zaandam (and maybe the Volendam) itineraries, to a large degree because of my memories of the ship layout…

Thanks. I have some video from a storm we passed through late at night from the deck under the bridge - it was amazing (but very wet). Pitch black and then intense lightening, followed by pitch black again! I found it was very rare to see people out there on the Amsterdam - but it was always the SAME people! Haha. But I suspect that more and more passengers find out about these areas and then they tell two people, who tell two people, etc... I think most people don't explore like I do and/or see a door and assume that entry to prohibited (even though it's not marked so).

Thanks. No - the areas I was mostly curious about was the aft area of deck 2 and the stairs between deck 3 and deck 6. If we cruise on the Zaandam or Volendam - I'll find out!

In late 2019 we did a 34 day cruise on the Amsterdam and I LOVED the outside public areas. Areas that MOST passengers didn't even realize existed! For example, you could exit at the aft of the deck 2 and take the stairs to deck 3. There was a door around the corner on deck 3 that took you into some stairs that went up to decks 4 & 5 (past the MDR) to deck 6. From there, you could go to the aft stairs again and go up to deck 7 & 8. It was a great way to quickly go from deck 2 to the Sea View Pool! On many decks, the loungers were barely used - it was like having out own multi-level aft balcony! You could also go to forward on deck 6 and exit the side doors to a public area under the bridge and go up the outside stairs to deck 8. Similarly, the bow was also usually fully open to passengers - accessible from an unmarked door on deck 3. The HAL deck plans never showed many of the these doors or stairs. Some deck plans from other sources occasionally showed some of the stairs, but not all of them. When the Amsterdam was sold - I realized two remaining ships had virtually the same deck plans (Zaandam & Volendam). But again - HAL doesn't show much information regarding these areas (I assume they'd like to be able to put a "Crew Only" sign without any notice, so avoid advertising the areas). We're considering booking on the Zaandam and these areas really stood out for me. Booking a DD oceanview a few doors from the aft exit on deck 2 worked well for us last time. On the two HAL cruises we did in 2022 (Konnigsdam & Nieuw Amsterdam) - I really missed having this kind of access. On those ships - similar doors were marked Crew Only. Has anyone been on the Zaandam (or Volendam) lately that can confirm if any or all of these areas are still accessible? I've done some CC and Google searches and most of the info is old...

We got our first AZ cruises (4 B2B) starting in Lisbon at the beginning of April. 32 days on the Onward, disembarking in Venice! We’re not looking forward to economy flights from western Canada…

From this link: "If I test positive for SARS-COV-2 right before my cruise, at the terminal, or on the cruise, what is your compensation policy and what associated costs are covered?" A 100% Future Cruise Credit will be provided for any guest who tests positive within two weeks of their sail date, as well as any members of their immediate traveling party who choose to cancel. If you test positive for COVID-19 during the cruise, you will be entitled to either a partial or full FCC for the amount paid, depending on the situation. Azamara will also cover the costs of COVID-19 related medical treatment onboard, any required land-based quarantine, and flight change fees to return home for you and your Traveling Party. Guests must comply with travel requirements, health and safety protocols in order to be eligible for this reassurance. We encourage guests purchase travel insurance for added peace of mind and reassurance, either through Azamara or other insurance provider of your choice.

We got our (discount) travel agent to call Azamara and they added the additional OBC to our existing bookings (all were before the final payment date). I'm pretty impressed that they stacked the Black Friday OBC, Double Category Upgrade and the Back-to-Back OBC perks! We're REALLY looking forward to the trip - I *wish* it was leaving next week!

We've normally cruised on the larger cruise lines - so we're not used to having any cancellation fees this far out (more than 120 days). But - as long as we were aware of the fees, it's OK. Just means we have to be a little more "sure" when booking!

I had been watching for a similar deal as they had at the end of September - and that came this morning. The prices also dropped - so in the end, it made a huge difference for us. We've booked four back-to-back cruises on the Onward! We'll see how we like it!

Thanks. We're continuing to watch the sales - but we're both intrigued by what we've read/watched about Azamara. We'll see what we do in the next few weeks!

The "September Flash Sale" was separate (and could be combined with) any other promotions - including the "Double Upgrade" sale (and B2B bonus).

We've recently been reading about Azamara cruises and are thinking about booking 2-4 B2B cruises for next spring... I came across a web page with details regarding the B2B bonus they offer - which is great! I also came across some details about a "European Discovery - September Flash Sale" - $500 OBC for each leg! It was combinable with the current "Double Upgrade" AND the B2B bonus... Unfortunately - the sale was only on for the last 10 days of September and we hadn't even heard of Azamara until close to a week after the sale ended! When I did some more searching it seemed like these sales come up from time to time. Azamara appears to have a minimum $75 per booking cancellation fee (even WAY out) - something we're not used to from the other cruiselines. It appears like many cabins are available for the itineraries we are looking at - so we might wait a little before we commit. I'm curious if anybody here has an idea of how often these sales come up? Or was this "once in a blue moon" and we missed it? Thanks!