oaktreerb

It was for Sel de Mer with a 50% discount. Is the gratuity charged on the total or discounted meal? It was two years ago in port in San Francisco on the K. I believed the HAL rep’s explanation at the time.

Who receives the gratuity? Is there always an 18% gratuity charged for specialty dining?

What is HAL charging passengers for the dinner?

On a previous cruise to SF after eating in the Pinnacle and my trying to figure out the extra charge, HAL Guest Relations explained the add on charge as a San Francisco tax.

This won’t help anyone. If all Suite passengers and 4 and 5 star passengers plus those who have paid for Club Orange can use the priority line, the priority line will be busier than the non-priority line!

I think it includes the San Francisco restaurant tax that the ship has to charge when it is in port in San Francisco. If the ship is out to sea it would probably be $55. Too bad they decided to introduce the “pop up” in San Francisco where we have to pay San Francisco taxes.

I lost my hat getting off a tender in Alaska. I didn’t know I lost it until I got to my stateroom. I went to guest services the next day and they had it. I think the crew grabbed it and turned it in. Cheap hat but a one of a kind item. A small computer tablet should have been forwarded to Guest Services by the stateroom attendant with the stateroom # attached. Too bad you didn’t know it was missing until you disembarked. Chargerback sounds like a scam. There are plenty of companies with a BBB A+ rating that operate like scams. I dealt with one recently. Sorry that happened to you.

Both breakfast and dinner hours are same as MDR. A few passengers will be at the door every morning waiting for the doors open.

That’s why I request the update of the confirmation from my PCC every time I expect a change (like adding shareholder credit). I know what I am expecting to receive in OBC before I board the ship, and I have it in writing.

Choose a cruise line that goes to Glacier Bay. Sitka is the most beautiful of the major ports. Cruising out of Vancouver is very scenic. Holland America and Princess will have the best docking locations of the major cruise lines. If your cruise has a service call at Tracy Arm sign up to take the small ship excursion into Tracy Arm. Your Holland or Princess ship may include College Fjord if you do a one way to Whittier.

North out of Vancouver, South out of Whittier. Like a 14 day cruise on two different cruise lines. You could, for instance, take Princess North from Vancouver to Whittier and jump on NCL going South from Whittier to Vancouver. It would add variety to the cruise experience so that you don’t have to do the same cruise line North and South to do a round trip Vancouver.

interesting……it will be awhile before we will see the port schedule for 2025. If two ships were in Whittier on the same day you could possibly sail north on one cruiseline and south on another.

Have you gone online to check out the Juneau Visitor’s Bureau? What cruise line are you sailing? Do you have a TA? Your TA may be able to arrange group tours for a large group.

HAL does have a kids program, and the Junior Ranger program for Glacier Bay. There are quite a few multigenerational families on HAL ships in Alaska. I still think Princess would be a better fit for OP.

Princess would be a good choice. HAL and Princess have the best docking locations in town. NCL time in port is more limited due to need to bus to town center (like in Ketchikan and Juneau). Most ships go to Juneau, Ketchikan, and Skagway or Sitka. If you go to Sitka there is an excursion like a Sea Otter and Wildlife Quest. Also Fortress of the Bears and a Raptor Center. Skagway is more focused on the Gold Rush history. Juneau is a good whale watching area for excursions. Princess may bring Iditarod puppies onboard.

Travelers who are visiting Alaska for the first time will not miss what they have not seen before. From recent reports it sounds like animals (bears, caribou, Dall sheep, moose) are still seen in their natural environment. 2026 is two years away, too long to wait for many. The Natural History Tour is informative. We did the NHT on our first trip and saw two moose on the road near where we were standing. That was exciting. We saw Ptarmigan just beginning to get their winter color. I was glad we didn’t take the TWT in the pouring rain! We’ve been back many times to see more. It’s all amazingly beautiful.

I always print out and take with me the confirmation e-mail that the shipboard credit has been added. Your booking confirmation from your TA or PCC will show how much OBC you have but doesn’t show the sources.

It’s a great excursion and it’s a lot cheaper on Holland America. If the company will book you directly be careful of the times. I think the cruise lines reserve most of the bookings.

@AryMay I just checked your itinerary. Tracy Arm is a service call. You need to sign up for the excursion that will let you board a smaller ship for a close up view of Tracy Arm and the North and South Sawyer Glaciers. The ship will continue on to Juneau. This is a highly rated excursion and will sell out early. Just noticed it is Endicott Arm and Dawes Glacier. It may be one or the other depending on ice conditions in the Arm.

I can remember a few years ago before Covid when we kept hearing that the Noordam then in Alaska would be going into dry dock on a certain date. That date kept changing as other ships took precedence. Since then I have considered the Noordam the “workhorse of the fleet’. I like the layout of the ship and it has been one of my favorites for Alaska. A hardy ship for the Alaska waters!

Interesting about the rotations of Captains and Hotel Managers. I suppose it’s like “cross training” in a business environment. I wish everybody who did a cruise commentary or review would include the name of the Captain, Cruise Director, and Hotel Director. We won’t be able to get the Captains information from Capt Albert’s Blog in the future. Do they limit the Club Orange upsells on non-Signature ships? I’m even more curious now since there is no separate section for CO.

@laisHolland America needs to add Neptune Suites to the sign. I’ll be checking it on Nov 4…..!

Neptune Suite has some of the Club Orange amenities. The amenities like dining room/line and priority Guest Services line were added with Club Orange. NS previously had priority boarding and tendering. Neptune Suite should be added to the Welcome sign at the port. Holland America needs to fix the sign.

I agree with you but there are so many 4* and above mariners that if they were included in Club Orange perks CO would be worthless. HAL developed the CO concept as an upcharge. In the beginning it was not very popular and CO has only become a sought after program since cruising has resumed. I think HAL originally included Neptune Suites in the program in order to have enough people to fill the CO dining room. As you said, it takes a lot to become 5*. I’m 9 cruise days away and hope to be there after my next cruise. Most people feel like they have received the best perk when they qualify for the free laundry package at the 4* level!

Roger, Congrats on the Meet and Greet attendance. You are obviously known and respected by HAL staff! There has again been a lot of discussion about Club Orange recently and how it is handled on different ships. On the Signature ships the Club Orange sales would be limited by the size of the dedicated dining room. How does HAL determine how many Club Orange memberships are offered for ships like the Nieuw Amsterdam where CO is seated in the MDR? on the NA does CO have a dedicated seating area? I look forward to your reports. Have a wonderful cruise.