itinerary change

Our 2019 Alaska cruise has yet another itinerary change. It has removed Kake, Alaska and instead will be "cruising Frederick Sound" . I know nothing about Kake , and who knows why they removed it, or if it was even a worthwhile potential stop,but this is the 2nd itinerary change. Getting a bit frustrated with HAL :(.

What was the other change?

Gee, most of the itinerary’s “cruise” Frederick Sound......

The removed Victoria, BC and changed it to Port Alberni and they removed Eureka, CA, as well.

Exchanging the port with cruising is not an exchange in my book. It's an elimination of a port.

Our 2019 Alaska cruise has yet another itinerary change. It has removed Kake, Alaska and instead will be "cruising Frederick Sound" . I know nothing about Kake , and who knows why they removed it, or if it was even a worthwhile potential stop,but this is the 2nd itinerary change. Getting a bit frustrated with HAL :(.

All cruise l lines cancel ports from time to time for a greatt many reasons and those reasons my not be in the controlof the port. Cruising is not for everyone and if cancelled ports are too irritating fo rf you as they are for some people.....

Our 2019 Alaska cruise has yet another itinerary change. It has removed Kake, Alaska and instead will be "cruising Frederick Sound" . I know nothing about Kake , and who knows why they removed it, or if it was even a worthwhile potential stop,but this is the 2nd itinerary change. Getting a bit frustrated with HAL :(.

I know nothing about Kake

Suggest that you google...Kake...read up on it. You may change your mind.

We've booked one of the three round trip San Fran cruises offered on the Maasdam for next year, and are not surprised that the itinerary is "evolving" since this is a new roll out with the Zodiacs that will be added for small group excursions. They are still working on the EXC offerings, logistics, etc. from what I've read. I will continue to watch as they add the excursions and if for some reason the final plans don't appeal to us, we can always cancel. At this point, I'm still looking forward to this new type of HAL cruise and the appeal of sailing round trip San Francisco, and experiencing a number of different ports in Alaska, from those we've already visited.

We've booked one of the three round trip San Fran cruises offered on the Maasdam for next year, and are not surprised that the itinerary is "evolving" since this is a new roll out with the Zodiacs that will be added for small group excursions. They are still working on the EXC offerings, logistics, etc. from what I've read. I will continue to watch as they add the excursions and if for some reason the final plans don't appeal to us, we can always cancel. At this point, I'm still looking forward to this new type of HAL cruise and the appeal of sailing round trip San Francisco, and experiencing a number of different ports in Alaska, from those we've already visited.

It sounds v ery exciting for you :)

From the time we starting cruising in the 80's, and on different cruise lines, we have had itinerary changes. Some were good and some were not.

HAL is still probably working out the kinks for this new itinerary for the Maasdam.

We've booked one of the three round trip San Fran cruises offered on the Maasdam for next year, and are not surprised that the itinerary is "evolving" since this is a new roll out with the Zodiacs that will be added for small group excursions. They are still working on the EXC offerings, logistics, etc. from what I've read. I will continue to watch as they add the excursions and if for some reason the final plans don't appeal to us, we can always cancel. At this point, I'm still looking forward to this new type of HAL cruise and the appeal of sailing round trip San Francisco, and experiencing a number of different ports in Alaska, from those we've already visited.

I guess I didn't realize how many changes were going on with this ship and itinerary, which appealed greatly when first introduced. After reading a little bit about Kake it may not be "missed" as a stop.

We certainly do enjoy cruising but we go for the itineraries first. At first choosing there were 10 ports that we had not visited. Victoria was one stop I was looking forward to. I hope they don't keep whittling.

We will continue to watch how this one evolves and as mentioned cancellation is always an option

I was on the Eurodam a few weeks ago and I heard the Future Cruise presentations ad on this Alaskan Cruise out of San Francisco the cruising of Frederick Sound was included.

Kake was an unusual port not only because of its small population (about 500) and having the world's tallest totem pole, but because the itinerary indicated that only those who had an EXC shore excursion booked were allowed off the ship. The Roll Call for the first of the three 21-day trips is here: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=56554380

Our 2019 Alaska cruise has yet another itinerary change. It has removed Kake, Alaska and instead will be "cruising Frederick Sound" . I know nothing about Kake , and who knows why they removed it, or if it was even a worthwhile potential stop,but this is the 2nd itinerary change. Getting a bit frustrated with HAL :(.

Also we are on May 28th cruise which still goes to Victoria.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

only passages with shore excursions ate allowed to disembark.

The same things happens on partial transits of the Panama Canal. All shore excursions are thru the ship...the ship never docks. Tenders approach the ship to load for excursions and then transfer their passengers to onshore facilities.

The same things happens on partial transits of the Panama Canal. All shore excursions are thru the ship...the ship never docks. Tenders approach the ship to load for excursions and then transfer their passengers to onshore facilities.

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

Thank you for the explanation. Does that mean the ship will anchor or just cruise around the area?

 

Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk

Unknown....you are talking about a new itinerary. In the Panama Canal the ship does not drop anchor. It's in a lake.

The HAL map today still shows Kake, but it's gone from the itinerary. However, I grabbed the list (along with the footnotes) and it showed Kake's note was SW, "EXC Tour Guests Only", which I took to mean that only those with shore excursions were allowed off the ship. There was no note (TR, "Tender Required") that tenders would be used.

This reminds me of St. Lucia, where HAL docks in Castries for the day, but after departing will pick up passengers on certain HAL excursions in Soufriere, tendering them to the ship.

For those that specific ports or itineraries are the main reason you chose the cruise, consider getting a Nationwide Luxury Cruise policy. You can cancel the cruise for any reason up to 2 days prior to the cruise and they will pay up to $ 1,250 if you miss a port or have an itinerary change.

They don’t sell the policy in all states, but it is definitely worth a look if it is available in your state.

https://travel.nationwide.com/plans/cruise/

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

Frederick Sound and the waters around Kake are known for great whale watching. Likely HAL is planning that.

For those that specific ports or itineraries are the main reason you chose the cruise, consider getting a Nationwide Luxury Cruise policy. You can cancel the cruise for any reason up to 2 days prior to the cruise and they will pay up to $ 1,250 if you miss a port or have an itinerary change.

 

They don’t sell the policy in all states, but it is definitely worth a look if it is available in your state.

 

https://travel.nationwide.com/plans/cruise/

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

$1,200 is not much. I echo the earlier poster that said cruising might not be the best vacation for someone who is concerned about itinerary changes.

All cruise l lines cancel ports from time to time for a greatt many reasons and those reasons my not be in the controlof the port. Cruising is not for everyone and if cancelled ports are too irritating fo rf you as they are for some people.....

in all due respect, I am not so sure that this is a fair statement. We enjoy cruising very much and have been cruising for many years (more than is listed below). This is actually the first time that we have ever experienced itinerary changes with our other cruises, let alone 3 in just this one cruise.

Many people cruise because they love cruising and really are not bothered by itinerary changes, and in fact, some don't even leave the boat when docked.

Many people do cruise with specific itineraries in mind. That doesn't mean cruising it not for these people. Does it mean we should adjust to the changes that are out of our control? Of course it does, if we have our heart set on that cruise. Does it mean we shouldn't get a bit frustrated if the changes are repetitive? Or maybe we booked this cruise too early and should have waited til the itinerary was adjusted accordingly..of course that could be while on board.

Well, said OP!!!! I would be bummed if the itinerary started changing. That said, if you go, I hope you enjoy the changes.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

For those that specific ports or itineraries are the main reason you chose the cruise, consider getting a Nationwide Luxury Cruise policy. You can cancel the cruise for any reason up to 2 days prior to the cruise and they will pay up to $ 1,250 if you miss a port or have an itinerary change.

 

They don’t sell the policy in all states, but it is definitely worth a look if it is available in your state.

 

https://travel.nationwide.com/plans/cruise/

This. It's a great idea to insure for whatever you would be unhappy if it changed.

This message may have been drafted using voice recognition. Please forgive any typos.

$1,200 is not much. I echo the earlier poster that said cruising might not be the best vacation for someone who is concerned about itinerary changes.

I guess it depends on the cost of the cruise. The $ 1,250 is for an itinerary change. They will reimburse you for your for cruise cost if you cancel for any reason up to 48 hours before it leaves. The insurance also includes a substantial amount for medical coverage emergency Air evacuation, etc.

Sent from my iPhone using Forums