doublebzz

11 hours ago, ChinaShrek said:

I would contact HAL and have the cruise transferred back to them. That might teach the TA a lesson!

I didn't know you could do this?

You are going to get a lot of subjective responses to your question none of which will be conclusive.  On a TA, I prefer the larger ships like NA and NS because they ride better in high seas and because they have Tamarind restaurant which is one of my favorites.  

Sailed on both ships and found both equally appealing.  I would base my choice on price and/or itinerary and not on the perceived qualities of the ships based on inputs from Cruise Critic mavens.

On 11/9/2019 at 7:01 AM, kazu said:

 

As per HAL terms and conditions - cruise contracts are not transferable. Name changes require their permission - https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/pre-post-travel-cruise/cancellation-policy.html

 

There is a workaround which unfortunately the OP did not avail themselves of - it’s called insurance.

For anyone who travels with some frequency, I don't understand why they don't have one of a number of credit cards that offer travel insurance.  If there is a fee for these cards, it is more than offset by the cost of insurance and whatever other perks the cards may provide.

Editorial in Today's (Monday) edition of Wall Street Journal provides a rational argument for repealing the Jones Act.

It always pays to address one's concerns in writing.  In this case, a cabin upgrade and drink credit seems fair.

11 minutes ago, 1025cruise said:

I don't remember fences in most places along the canyon. But yes I would be the one getting close (but not that close) to get the picture of me attempting to push my wife over 🙂

There are fences of various types and sizes.  Maybe "fence" is the wrong word.  In some places the barrier is only about 15" high and one can easily walk over them to reach a ledge.  Your idea with the wife is too incriminating;  better to pose her on the ledge and then direct her to keep walking backward while you snap a photo.

Just got back from the Grand Canyon.  Was amazed how many people walk over the boundary fence to walk along the edge to take selfies or whatever in spite of frequent reports of people falling to their deaths.  There are no attempts by park rangers to stop this practice. Probably would have to hire a lot more rangers to enforce the fence boundary.  Personally, I would not like to see my tax dollars used to protect people who take little responsibility for their own personal safety.  Ditto for cruise ships,

3 hours ago, Jareds_mommytoo said:

Is where you pre order stuff for your room its $2.95 its under beverages and water 

 

 

 

Thanks for the info.  Just ordered mine for January Zuiderdam cruise.

Anyone know if Zuiderdam casino has a craps table.

Can a 4 star mariner pick up the tab for another couple who isn't and save 50% off the entire tab?

On 10/2/2019 at 10:29 PM, jb008 said:

Many of the online brokerages are rolling out fee-free trading (TD Ameritrade and Schwab are already moving forward with it).  Now that you can avoid the trade fee it's easier than ever to dollar-cost-average (DCA) your way into CCL (or any stocks).  If you're worried about short term volatility but interested in buying one option is to start to take a small position (e.g., 10-20 shares) and then keep adding over time.  The DCA method generally helps to smooth out the highs and the lows of getting into a stock.  Also consider leaving dividend reinvestment in place, over time that too can help to average out the cost of the stock position (also worth considering opting OUT of dividend reinvestment if you have stocks that have appreciated substantially since you bought since the dividend reinvestment is then actually pulling your average share price higher over time).

Excellent advice.  I recently added 25 shares to my position when the stock fell below $41.  From an investment standpoint, CCL stock is probably never going to make you rich but sitting on a 4.5%+ dividend and the possibility of a capital gain is an appealing proposition in my opinion.  If you cruise HAL with any frequency, the stock OBC provides leverage against downward  movements in the stock.

24 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

Hmmm.  Perhaps because all those other lines have production shows :).

 

Hank

Interesting thought.  How many different production shows do they perform on a 100+ day cruise?

8 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

 The  general age demographics on HAL cruises are  just retired  on up . Yes ,there will be a very small amount of people younger ;however in general HAL has always been known as a older age  cruise line .This is all I was  advising the OP about .  Certainly , the entertainment  on HAL ships does not compare with Princess not Celebrity cruises . We took into consideration  3 young  ages  children & what they might be looking to do on a ship 

If this was a Caribbean or Mexico cruise, I would tend to agree with you.  OP's children are 21+ and I'm sure they would be more attracted to the interesting ports this itinerary provides than entertainment that may be offered by other lines.  Also, a 14 day European cruise does not attract the demographics of their age group on any line.

23 minutes ago, S1drfl said:

I believe this is the article:

 

https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/around-the-world-cruises-2020/index.html

Thank you.  Again, CNN seems to focus on the upscale lines although it does include Costa, Princess and MSC.  Don't understand why HAL is not included as, in my opinion, it provides a better option than the latter three.

4 minutes ago, rhinomike said:

  Yes. That is the one. Departing from Amsterdam. In my original post I said UK. I was not correct. You are correct. It departs from Amsterdam. Thank you. And I agree. I am thinking Verandah and the CO package will be great. 

Have you been on this ship?  I know nothing about it. We chose it b abuse of a good itinerary. Our other option is a similar itinerary on the NCL Star. We narrowed it down to those two. We think the HAL ship might be a little nicer and service might be better. . 

I have not sailed on Nieuw Statendam yet;  Nieuw Amsterdam 2 or 3 times and thought it was a great ship.  I did a 18 day Southeast Asia cruise on NCL Star about 3 years ago.  In my review of the Star, I likened it to the Staten Island ferry.  I realize that cruise line comparisons are very subjective but in terms of food quality, shipboard amenities and design and service, my experience is that Nieuw Amsterdam is vastly superior to the Star and I'd expect the same would hold true for Nieuw Statendam.

17 minutes ago, Windy56 said:

I was surprised to read that HAL was not on the fairly long list on CNN ‘s article titled “The Best Round-the-world Cruises for 2020” published today on their news feed. They seemed to list a range of price points and HAL’s absence from the list was notable to me, at least. 🤔

Can't locate the article to which you are referring.  There is a 2015 CNN piece that omits HAL and seems to focus the luxury cruise lines,

5 hours ago, rhinomike said:

 

 We are going to book a 14 day European cruise on Nieuw Statendam. It sails out of the UK on August 2nd. We will be booking 2 cabins. One for me and my wife and one for our 3 adult children. Any tips on cabin selection or any other booking tips?    

If you are talking about the Aug 2, 2020 Nieuw Statendam cruise, I see it sailing out of Amsterdam to UK and Iceland.  Like most European cruises, this cruise is port intensive with only 3 sea days.  In my opinion and because you will be in port most of the time,  cabin type is less important. Unless money is no object,  I wouldn't splurge on any cabin category above veranda. 

"Dead horses" be damned.  I find these controversial threads far more interesting and informative  than "What activities are available on Grand Turk" or "Where is the nearest liquor store from Port Everglades".  In this thread alone, I learned that Canadians are more law abiding than other nationalities, that some airlines offer PJ's to 1st class passengers and some HAL guests enjoy sipping their martinis in the Explorer's Bar dressed in bathrobes.

Billythekid and Cruisemom:   Both of you have laid out sensible and intelligent arguments for your points of view.  While I don't take sides on this issue, I appreciate your cordial and intellectual discussion of an interesting topic.

2 minutes ago, KirkNC said:

 

I agree completely on that, ship size and itinerary are most important to us.  I was just commenting on the sole aspect of loyalty perks in my previous posts, not all attributes of a line.  Part of the reason for my comments were that on the 2019 WC Orlando said repeatedly how “rich” the loyalty benefits are on HAL.  I maintain that is not true compared to some other lines using X and O as examples.

Agree.  Whiles perks are not a deciding factor in choosing my cruises, If I had to pick which line has the best perks for a 4 or 5 star equivalent I would select RCCL for the following reasons:  (1) Recognition of loyalty status across all lines (RCCL, X and Azamara); (2) four days of free internet (2 24 hour periods pp) and (3) free drinks during happy hour from about 5-8 daily.  

15 minutes ago, KirkNC said:

The number  of cruises depends on length,  the $90k is probably about right though. I have spent way more then that for 5 star status on HAL, 600 plus days.  What do I get for that?  Free laundry and priority tendering and two free Pinnacles....wow.

 

and to clarify, the free cruise is two weeks.  What’s that worth? And that does not include the $500 in OBC you get pp at that level when you book another cruise.

Yes, it does depend on the number or length of cruises.  If you took a round the world and a couple of 3
"weekers", the free cruise is a nice perk;  otherwise it requires an awful lot of brand loyalty to accrue 225 days.  As an aside, my last cruise in May was on Oceania and quite disappointing, particularly the quality of the cuisine for which "O" is noted.  Prior to that, I did a 31 night Asia cruise on Westerdam which I actually found superior.  In my humble opinion, no cruise line offers the perks that would induce me to stick to one or two cruise lines when so many other factors come into play.

On 8/23/2019 at 5:32 PM, iancal said:

Definitely like the free one week cruise after 225 days on Oceana.  Sure beats a bag of laundry, a half price dinner, and especially a medallion to hang around one's neck from HAL.

 

 

"Such a bargain"  Probably works out to at least 20 cruises and $90,000+ as a minimum.

A couple of years ago, we transported two folding bikes to our apartment in Spain.  Actually, the bikes were placed in two suitcases and never removed during the transatlantic transit.  I know this is different to your situation and the safety issue probably didn't apply.

On 8/9/2019 at 6:17 PM, Hawaiidan said:

... 

 

 

Loved the photo.  I cruised on destroyers as well and got paid for it.  Of course, the entertainment was pretty shabby and you couldn't purchase a wine/liquor package but the food was pretty decent.