opa&oma

5 hours ago, GulfShoresCruiser said:

 

888.628.8107

 

Do not tell anyone.  Also, have booking#, deck plan and credit card at your fingertips when you call and don't waste time chit chatting with them...put on big boy pants and make decision quick....the rest of us are waiting on hold........you have been forewarned!

 

Again, keep this number secret.  LOL. 

I won't tell a soul!

2 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

That is the standard response when you call and ask - same as posted on the website.

 

One time I called the upsell desk and offered them $500 for an upsell I really wanted.  No dice they said.  Two days later I received the standard upsell offer email and it was for $300, so obviously I took it.  I was fighting policy I guess.

 

Didn't know there was an upsell desk!  Can you post the number?

13 hours ago, hvbaskey said:

 

OK - after further digging, this is what I have discovered thus far with a “very light sample size” of ~ 15 Aft-facing cabins.

 

AS (Vista Suites) on Decks 4 and 7, have the bed by the balcony.
VS (Aft-Verandas) on Deck 5, 6, and 8, have the bed by the bathroom.

Again, these results were from a “light sample size”, so if anyone has a different result (eg., a VS category with the bed by the balcony or a Vista Suite (AS Category) with the bed by the bathroom, please post-it and we can scrap this “assumption”  😉

I believe bed placement does depend on if the cabin is a Vista or Veranda.

hvbaskey, have you seen Celebrity's "Cabin information compilation" thread?  I've always wished HAL had one too.  Can your information be made into a similar permanent thread? Thank you for your time and effort!

18 minutes ago, hvbaskey said:

I’m not sure if this will mean anything (so take with a pinch of salt); but the review post for #6216 which is in the same location as 8192 (centre-left), but 2 decks below, has the bed near the bathroom.  

I'm wondering if the bed configuration alternates, ie every other cabin.

hvbaskey, thank you for starting this helpful thread. We will be in VS 8192 in May.  Can anyone tell me if the bed will be nearest the veranda or the bathroom?

May I suggest you jump over to another HAL ship that will be touring Europe?  Just because the Volendam is not going doesn't mean the other cruises are cancelled.

As far as we are concerned there is no downside to booking through Flight Ease.  

10 hours ago, taxmantoo said:

Least favourite : The hiring of Orlando Ashford

Favourite : The firing of Orlando Ashford

 

Everything that happened in between those two events would require too many pages of this thread to comment on.  Let's just say the man was responsible for most of the negative comments that will be talked about in this thread. 😉

I couldn't disagree more.  He was responsible for many of the good things. 

2 hours ago, Red Haired Lady said:

This is the link to HalFacts for Pinnacle Class ships.  Find your cabin number and you should find pictures.  Since these 3 ships are sister ships, the same cabin number on a sister ship should be the same. (Should)

 

https://halfacts.com/pinnacle-class/

Thank you for the link!  I never knew of it's existence.  Very helpful!

2 hours ago, opa&oma said:

Could someone please tell me if the bed placements in the Aft verandas (VB, on the stern) are nearest the bathroom or the balcony?

Oops!  I forgot to say on the Nieuw Statendam .

Could someone please tell me if the bed placements in the Aft verandas (VB, on the stern) are nearest the bathroom or the balcony?

4 hours ago, Mandalay1903 said:

I've been having lots of problems logging in to Flight Ease, too. For 100% of the time the past three weeks, and for about 95% of the time the past six months, every time I try to access Flight Ease through my HAL account I get this error message:

 

 

This is not because of a flight change. This is happening two cruises--one where I already have flights booked through Flight Ease, and another where I'm trying to book flights.  This happens whether I log in using hollandamerica.com or the link shown in posting #3 above (thank you @VMax1700).  This happens before and after clearing cookies, and on four different browser types (Firefox, Edge, Chrome, Safari) and four different computer (including my iPhone).

 

I feel like I'm locked out of my Flight Ease account.  I tried calling HAL and spoke with someone in their PCC department, but they said they don't have an IT department and weren't sure where to turn for help.

 

Any good suggestions?

 

Thanks

Been having the same problem for weeks.  Makes me lose confidence in Flight Ease and sure doesn't live up to the "Ease" in it's name.

3 hours ago, CruiseRQA said:

As the OP of this thread, first let me thank everyone for (mostly) thoughtful responses and advice.    Our preference for HAL in the past was based on the cruise experience - hot appetizers while enjoying a dance trio before dinner in the Ocean Bar, a stroll around the promenade deck, lounging on the promenade deck during the day being served lemonade.   Gracious service in the MDR along with great food - wonderful cold fruit soups, Dover Sole, great bread sticks.   A good show in the theatre after dinner.

 

We changed to Celebrity for our last pre-COVID cruise because of our perceived cheapening of the traditional HAL experience.    The tone of the responses is that the current HAL experience remains "not as it once was".    That seems fine with some and no so fine with others.  I guess I remain in the latter camp.

 

I will continue to check in with this board every now and then to see what the vibe is with HAL's customers.    Thanks again.  

 

 

The point I would like to make is that we have been sailing Celebrity for 20 years and it is also not what it once was.  Is any line?

2 hours ago, nocl said:

Compared to even the other cruise lines it was very Lawrence Welkish, (song dance numbers were slower, less energetic) this was back about 8-10 years ago when we tried HAL a couple of times, but then decided they were not for us at that time.

 

Tried HAL  again in 2017 taking a cruise from Sydney to Honolulu.  Liked the changes and have cruise HAL several times since then.

 

For most things like dining and service HAL is competitive to the mainstream lines, While there ships are larger than they used to be but still smaller on average then the other mainstream lines, their price point is competitive to the other mainstream lines.  The creation of the music walk concept with venues such as Lincoln Center is a positive in our opinion.  Even with the changes with production shows where they have gotten rid of the rather weak, even by cruise ship standards production shows, some of the new ones such as the dance and lighting shows (similar to some of the dance company shows that one sees on shows like America's got talent are entertaining.

 

So to each their own long term HAL cruisers might not like the change but to others they are attractive.  That is why there are several different lines, if one no longer meets your needs try others.

Completely agree about the improvement in music, it's a big reason we enjoy HAL.. We love the Blues and Rock and Lincoln Center music available every night.  Celebrity doesn't have anything similar.  We were on Celebrity last month and the MDR meals were disappointing, compared to the past.

24 minutes ago, SumoCitrus said:

HAL explored nickel and diming their guests pre-COVID. Remember those second serving upcharges in the MDR that were tried? I fear the allure of charging for everything will be too strong now that their finances have been wrecked by the pandemic. You're seeing occupancy rates in the 40-50% range which is not sustainable. In addition, the price of fuel oil is near record highs and there is tons of uncertainty around COVID still. Too many people (and countries/ports) freaking out about seasonal spikes and variants. 

 

I think the cruise industry is doomed unfortunately. Before they shut things down and run the ships aground in India, they will attempt to stop the hemorrhaging at your expense. That means less for more, even if it's not glaringly obvious at first.

No, Chicken Little, the sky is not falling.  LOL

No, Chicken Little, the sky is not falling.  LOL

4 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

 

Sorry your experience on Equinox was so different from what we enjoyed on the Millennium in August. We were spoiled for choice in the MDR. It was so good that even though we had it in mind to dine at Tuscan Grille (their Italian/steakhouse) one night, we just never felt the need.

Just as everyone says, dining experiences are very subjective. Not only on ships but land as well.

8 hours ago, terrydtx said:

This is disappointing indeed, and just  more examples of the nickel and diming HAL has become known for. Our Oosterdam cruise next year is our last HAL cruise, we are moving on exclusively to Celebrity and Oceania. We booked the Oosterdam for the itinerary and to use a FCC for a cruise we canceled earlier this year. I am beginning to regret our decision and wish we had demanded a cash refund for the canceled cruise. 

Don't set your expectations for Celebrity too high.  We were just on a 12 night Celebrity Equinox and the food was very disappointing.  The food was our only complaint and we don't cruise for the food, but still, it was a disappointment, definitely not what we've experienced in the past, and we think it's here to stay.

We just got off a 12 night Celebrity cruise and after years with them for comparison, the food was extremely disappointing. It's the exact same menu they've had for 15 years , except for some of the better offerings being replaced with something cheaper.  So, we too are now looking for another line.

On 10/31/2021 at 10:49 AM, drenk1976 said:

So we’re 6 cruises in to our experience and we’d avoided HAL in the past. 

 

We don’t enjoy pomp and circumstance particularly and there are elements of “traditional” cruising we don’t like. We certainly don’t want to share a table at dinner and we’re not particularly bothered about “Broadway style” entertainment. 

 

Food is an important part of our cruise. 

 

We love Celebrity but are currently on a Princess cruise and are underwealmed. We don’t like the “brown and gold” decor or the feeling of everything being just as at has been for years with no real feeling of progress or improvement. Cunard would, for example be our last choice. 

 

We are a UK couple, 40s with no kids.  I’m not particularly bothered by the age of other cruisers as long as this doesn’t mean the line are catering purely for traditionalists. 

 

We don’t need water slides or go karts for a great holiday but we do enjoy an “interesting” itinerary (I.e more looking around a city than a Cozumel type place). 

 

I had always had the perception that HAL wouldn’t suit us but I’ve looked at the Nieuw Statendam (apologies for spelling) on a Norway cruise in Aug 2023 and find myself quite excited by it. We also love music by the way, but again more in terms of something new and exciting/interesting rather than a pianist knocking out Beatles and Elton John tracks all night. 

 

I don’t mean to offend anyone who likes the above things-there’s nothing wrong with that but it’s not to our taste!

 

I’d love to hear from HAL regulars as to whether they think we’d enjoy the ship!

HAL gets our vote if for nothing more than the Music Walk.  The Blues Club is just great live music.

The Classical is music we don't ever get to hear live.  Celebrity's music is just meh.

We were just on a 12 day Celebrity cruise and as we are Elite Plus, have been on many.  The food in both the MDR and buffet was extremely disappointing, some downright bad.  We also are HAL 3 star Mariners and have always thought their food was just as good as Celebrity's.  So, if both lines are now so disappointing, I guess we all had better adjust our expectations. 

2 hours ago, dkjretired said:

Refusal to vaccinate is not a recognized disability but some people have underlying diseases that may cause them not to vaccinate that definitely are recognized disability. My next door neighbor has a form of MS that his doctors recommend no vaccination.

The hard fact for your neighbor is there can't be a cruise at this time.

Can anyone explain to me why they never (seems like) change their menus ?

2 hours ago, Loracpin2 said:

Truce!!

I just need to get back on a cruise ship. January 2022 can't get here soon enough for 12 nighter on the Equinox. But biggest will be next July celebrating our 55th Anniversary with our entire Family!!! 

 I feel the same!  I am ready to go anywhere, any ship, anytime!  We'll be on the Equinox, 12 nights, September 26.   Counting the days. If you're not already planning it, I highly recommend doing the renewal of vows ceremony with the Captain. They make it very, very special.