stratixman

Have an Alaska Cruisetour booked for June. The package is referenced as a Seattle -Seattle cruise , although the the ship actually departs Vancouver and Holland includes bust transfer from Settle to Vancouver the day of departure. I can't find any info as to the following: 1) what time(s) the bus leaves and 2) where in Seattle  the bus picks up the passengers. Any info would be appreciated. 

Have an Alaska Cruisetour booked for June. The package is referenced as a Seattle -Seattle cruise , although the the ship actually departs Vancouver and Holland includes bust transfer from Settle to Vancouver the day of departure. I can't find any info as to the following: 1) what time(s) the bus leaves and 2) where in Seattle  the bus picks up the passengers. Any info would be appreciated. 

36 minutes ago, Happy_Traveler_2008 said:

Under my reservation, I bought OBC through Purchase Gifts & Indulgences.

Thanks, appreciate your assistance. Navigating the HAL website to find what one is looking for presents several challenges - and finding where to spend extra money seems to be one of them for me. LOL. Just bought a bunch of OBC and shall have wait to see if the $100 credit shows up on my Amex account. Thanks again.

Been thinking about this Amex offer. Where exactly on the HAL website does one go to buy OBC? Been looking but can't any link to purchasing OBC.

It seems that all too often that customers who are dissatisfied find ways to make their anger known, whereas those who are happy are not so prone to give credit. So I just want to acknowledge HAL customer service for their help in addressing two matters of concern to me for our upcoming cruise next week. I have had two occasions to contact them regarding our cruise package inclusions. We booked our cruise through a major online agency and were to be provided with two major perks (worth several hundreds of dollars) for our cruise. Unfortunately this unnamed agency's booking confirmation and invoicing paperwork is most decidedly deficient in acknowledging or documenting any specifics of those anticipated perks. I have had previous experience after boarding where perks for our cruise mysteriously were missing from the cruise line account statement. Best I thought given prior major issue (another cruise line but same agency) was to get ahead of a possible problem. My experience in contacting HAL was exemplary in both instances. I utilized their online chat capability and it was great. I experienced no serious waiting time and the agents who assisted me were very efficient. They were able to quickly check our reservation and account to confirm that everything was in proper order. So... if you have a concern or question I highly recommend use of their Chat facility on their web page. Worked great for me. 

The OP's complaint doesn't have a lot of merit. She  presumed that her cabin upgrade would be to a higher category.  If that were the case then a Club Orange upgrade might be worth the $350.00 for 7 days. Anyway that was her mistake as the terms of the deal are spelled out. After reading numerous reviews of the Club Orange we conclude that we are better served to spend $350.00 on something else of real value. The only things we see in the Club Orange perks of tangible value are the free glass of sparkly (one time) and an upgrade to a Club Orange bag. Wow. Some expensive sparkly; and the bag nuste  Gucci. Priority treatment for getting on and off, or getting in lines for booking excursions and tendering hardly are worth $25 pp/day. And yes we know Club Orange has it's special dining venue; but based on what we've read it replicates the menu choices from the main dining room, just in a smaller venue. Not worth the price. So.... absent a true, significant tangible benefit, like in the form of a cabin category upgrade, the cost for Club Orange status doesn't impress us. 

I thought the signature drink package covered drinks up to $11. 

1 minute ago, ski ww said:

I wouldn't cruise on one of those if it was free.  Think of what it will be like when they dock in some small Caribbean island ports & you dock next to it.. 

Or even worse need to tender in, which has a high probability in many ports of call due to the size of the ship. Yuck!!!!!!

Wow. The ships keep getting bigger and bigger. Dream Cruises has announced a new ship that will carry more passengers (10.000) than a lot of small towns' entire populations. Who's up for this? Just imagine how long the buffet queue is going to be. 

https://cruisefever.net/cruise-line-building-a-nearly-10000-passenger-cruise-ship-with-a-theme-park/

Wow. I didn't know inflation for booze was so big. Makes one think seriously about becoming a tea totaler. Since we most commonly sail in inside cabins we have never found an appeal to buying bottles to consume in the cabin. At the new prices quoted I would say beverage packages are going to be looking more appealing in the future. 

Ok. Vacation value.

Living in the frigid north lands we look to get to someplace warm, real warm in the winter; the farther south the better. Plus we love the ocean and like access to fresh seafood. So, southern Florida and the Caribbean tend to float to the top of our destination choice in January and February. Will it be a resort, an Airbnb, VRBO, or cruise? Pretty simple; a cruise! There is no way we can stay in Florida over a similar length stay for the cost of a decent cruise when all costs are properly assessed. So, we would say cruising for us represents the best value proposition for a warm weather vacation. We sail mainly Celebrity and HAL and have never had a bad cruise. Our next cruise is three weeks on the Kdam at the end of this month; cost with taxes and with signature beverage package for each of us,  gratuities not included, is $275 per night for both of us - food, drinks, entertainment and lots of island stops and beach time.  Plus we got a sizeable OBC from the travel agent. A no brainer. 

The most convenient location to stay pre-cruise is probably along the 17th Street causeway, also referred to as Harbordale. Only a few minutes from the airport and to Port Everglades. Many Hotels in this area, but they are pricey during high season. Lots of restaurants, and services, and shopping as well.  Be aware that a number of hotels reference cruise port location in their names but in fact are located much further away from the port than their names might suggest. Make sure to check hotel map locations before booking so you don't get a surprise. 

52 minutes ago, pirate_dad said:

Rotterdam Drip

Absolutely. Rotterdam Drip is excellent.

Bah Humbug!

18 hours ago, Sominex said:

We will be on the Nieuw Amsterdam this coming Sept.  Does anyone recommend requesting an egg crate topper on their beds?

Thanks,

Som

Hmmm... the thought of having to save up a bunch of egg crates and dragging them along for my cruise doesn't thrill me.... especially with the baggage charges all the airlines have now. How many egg crates would it take to cover a queen size bed? 

On Kdam the best coffee is served at the Dutch Cafe, although it is extra charge. I have never found HAL regular coffee to be vile. Nothing HAL serves could ever be as bad the stuff my church brews up Sunday for after the service. LOL.

Curious. If you don't get a room assignment until you show up at the pier how will they check your luggage outside the terminal? I don't recall porters having any info that isn't printed on your check-in documents.  Good luck and have a great cruise. 

Wondering if any others are experiencing problems with the HAL website? For past days I have been able to login successfully but not able to access any of My Account info, i.e. Details, Booking or Mariner Status.  Errors are displayed as follows for each:

    Details - "You must answer different questions and your answers cannot be the same across questions"

    Bookings - "Your request was not processed. Please try again later."

    Mariner Status - "There was a system error. Please try again later. For your Mariner Status and Cruise History info, please call the Mariner Society at 1‐800‐547‐9139 (outside of the U.S. call 206‐281‐3535 ext. 8353)"

The website knows my booking number and presents no problems accessing Manage My Booking  (where I can spend more money). Figures. Anyway, frustrating not to be able to confirm online details of my booking and to check Mariner status info.

We agree with the OP. We have sailed the Kdam twice and thoroughly enjoyed both cruises. There are no perfect ships/experiences when it comes to mainstream cruising; only better or worse. Having sailed Celebrity, RCL, and HAL many times over the past 20 years I have concluded that one can find pluses  and negatives about any ship in particular with each line. It is somewhat stupefying to read reviews of the same ship on the same sailing dates can  vary from exuberantly positive to scathingly negative. Oh, well each toeir own. Kdam definitely belongs in the better category. We think that with the exception of smaller inside cabin sizes the Kdam can compete with pretty much the newer Celebrity S class ships in service, dining, and entertainment. Quality of dining is very comparable and service levels are both excellent.  We think the Kdam has a better entertainment line up with the music walk (B.B. KIngs, Lincoln Center, Rolling Stone Rock and Roll, and the Piano guys (they aren't dueling but perform together).  Holland has eschewed most house  dancer and singer based stage productions in favor more contracted entertainers and some in house productions (including collaboration with BBC) utilizing their unique World Stage with its wrap around screen. We don't miss the dancer/singer productions. Two considerations in HAL's favor over Celebrity is that Celebrity has significantly raised prices in the past few years and has much more limited  warm weather itineraries (i.e. Caribbean). A Kdam cruise with more interesting itinerary than a comparable length Celebrity is less expensive and probably has a much more interesting schedule of stops. Dang, I just talked myself into booking us another trip on the Kdam.  

Does anyone know if Holland (or other lines) run Black Friday deals? Looking for a winter get away and wondering if waiting till end of November might bring a few good deals.

Bring a nanny.

The article linked below popped up on one of my news feeds today. Found it quite interesting. Methinks the individual involved was way out of line. Thoughts?

https://www.elliott.org/cruises/missing-luggage-cruise-without-own-clothes/

Comparisons between the lines can be useful; but only to a certain point and probably only if one is properly comparing the physically comparable ships for their differences in prices and cruise amenities. We have extensively sailed on Celebrity, covering every class ship in their fleet going back to their original Constellation class (e.g. Century), M Class (e.g. Millenium) and S class (e.g. Solstice), more frequently on the S class.  Most recently we have sailed on the new Konigsdam (Pinnacle Class) and the recently refurbed Westerdam (Signature class).  Here are some thoughts based on our experiences.

To begin, Celebrity’s newish  (they are 10 years old now) S class ships most closely compare to HAL’s Pinnacle class (only 3 years old). Celebrity S class ships are larger than HAL Pinnacle class ships physically (tonnage) and in passenger capacity. Celebrity’s older M class (approaching 20 years old) compares closest to HAL’s Signature Class ( 10years+ old) or older Vista class ships (also nearing  20 years); although again Celebrity ships are still larger both physically and in capacity. Holland’s fleet is quite a bit larger than Celebrity’s which allows them to offer a much wider choice of itineraries and schedules. We sail primarily the Caribbean and have found that in recent years Celebrity itineraries have become a bit stale and that they have significantly raised their prices. HAL pricing still represents good value and they offer many more options for extended cruising, i.e.  longer than 10 or 11 day, which we prefer.

In comparing Celebrity to HAL we give the Pinnacle class ships advantage for varied entertainment offerings; e.g. World Stage, Lincoln Center, Rolling Stone and B.B. Kings. The BBC film with live music accompaniment in the main showroom on the HAL Pinnacle ships is unique. The circular 280 degree wrap around World Stage on HAL is unique and allows things to be done that a normal stage doesn’t accommodate. But HALS’s Pinnacle class ship showroms seat far less than any Celebrity showroom and sometimes it can be a challenge to get a seat unless one arrives pretty early.  Celebrity seems to offer more themed shows using on board dancers than HAL. My wife misses the shows on Celebrity, I don’t. HAL Pinnacle class ships have free movies under the stars (retractable roof) if you like that. Celebrity S class ships have an extra charge Taste of Film outdoors; not really directly comparable to HAL’s on deck movies. If you are into onboard shopping (get your gold chain and rope by the foot LOL) then go Celebrity; much better shopping options.  HAL wins for their cruise line sponsored off boat experience Half Moon Cay. Celebrity doesn’t have a private island.

Dining is very subjective. So, take this for what it’s worth. We have always found the dining on both Celebrity and HAL to be excellent, or a t least live up to our expectations based on what we paid for the cruises. We think Celebrity S class Ocean View buffet layout which uses distinct serving islands vs the more traditional linear food line layout of HAL ships Lido is superior.  We also think the buffet selections on Celebrity are more extensive than on HAL; otherwise both comparable in quality.  Casual free and extra cost reserved dining on each line is similar; although we would take the Tuscan Grill on Celebrity over HAL’s Canaletto any day. Tamarind on HAL is exceptional for the price; we thought it was the best extra charge restaurant they offer. Poolside food options on HAL Pinnacle class include the excellent New York Deli and Pizza; nothing quite like it on Celebrity. Dive-In (hamburgers and hot dogs) on Hal compares to Mast Grill on Celebrity but we liked Dive-In better. Celebrity has Café al Bacio coffee bars; HAL Pinnacle shops have both Explorers Café and Grand Dutch Café. Café al Bacio is better than Explorers for diversity of bites and has much better service. Explorers on HAL seems to be regularly understaffed. Throw the Grand Dutch Café with their free Dutch themed food items (not just bites) into the equation and then HAL looks to be equal or slightly better. Our last year’s cruise on Konigsdam they had a Mexican Taco buffet/food bar poolside for lunch; nothing like that on Celebrity.

Bar Crawl? Celebrity in our opinion wins this easily just on the basis of their well-known ice-topped Martini bars which remain quite lively and vibrant well into the late night; nothing like on HAL.  Celebrity S class ships have World Class Bar which is themed on the concept of mixology; nothing similar on HAL. In general, disregarding dink packages, drink prices seem cheaper than on Celebrity.

Depending on specific HAL ship there may be smoking allowed in the casino, Celebrity has eliminated interior smoking fleetwide several years ago. Winner, Celebrity.

All in all at the right price and depending on the itinerary and sailing length we would have no issues travelling on either line. We like them both. Right now we are searching for an extended length cruise this winter but I think my own observations have me convinced to concentrate searching for a Holland cruise.

I'm not sure if this is relevant, I think so but...)

https://media.hollandamerica.com/pdf/FNF-current.pdf

It is a listing of Holland America Friends and Family cruise rates for cruises coming up through early 2020. Apparently Friends and Family rates only on selected cruises, not all.

Holland Friends and Family.pdf

I suspect that this charge is going to be a bit unpopular. Why? Because it comes across as nickel and  dime-ing. This comes on top of what we have already noticed as reduced main course portion sizes on our last Holland cruises. Plus, why is the main dining room singled out? Anyone who has ever eaten in the buffet will readily admit to seeing large, if not enormous, quantities of food going to waste up there. To be clear, I am 100% in favor of reducing food waste - it bothers me and my wife to see gluttons ordering up food and then leaving large amounts uneaten. I just think adding extra charges is not going to work out well in the court of cruisers' opinion.