Never again

[kidledr]

:(We're taking our first and last HAL cruise 12/24 San Diego,Panama Canal,Fort Lauderdale.Paid $4200 a couple,for a DD obstructed view cabin.Checked HAL site,and discovered same class now going for $1000 less,a couple.Called our TA,asking what could be done to make clients(us) happy?

TA's call to HAL determined that they would(could)? do nothing for an account which had been paid in full,as ours was.No upgrade,no OBC,thanks for your business.

Am I wrong for feeling used,as in gotcha?I believe I've been treated unfairly,and they won't get my money again.

[Druke I]

Guess you will not fly most major airlines either - similar pricing fluctuations happens there also.

[jaspersmycat]

You could have waited and not gotten your choice of cabins or dining time.

 

In fact, you might have waited and no cabins would be available.

 

The choice we all have when booking is to pay the going rate and get what we want or wait for post-final payment date reductions (if they happen) and hope for a decent cabin.

[garydm]

Don't understand your problem. All about supply and demand at a particular time. If the price of your category on your cruise had gone up, would you have expected HAL to bill you for the new amount?

 

Gary

[Jo-Bob]

Can't remember the last time I was given a credit for a cheaper airline 'seat sale,' after my 'regular' fare was already paid. Never? Yes, never.

 

Very sorry you feel cheated, but better to cancel your cruise altogether, than to go with such a sour attitude about the whole thing. I hope I'm wrong, but unless you make peace with the way things are in this regard, you are sure to have a disappointing holiday, unfortunately.

[ariawoman]

Don't understand your problem. All about supply and demand at a particular time. If the price of your category on your cruise had gone up, would you have expected HAL to bill you for the new amount?

 

Gary

 

A refreshing perspective :-)

 

We expect to reap rewards but never look at it from the side of the business owner.

 

HAL is a business. They are doing what they need to do, in order to sell the cabins.

 

Do I think they should have thrown a little bit of OBC your way, sure, that wouldn't have hurt them, but are they obligated to do so (esp when they know how many cabins have sold at your rate and how much that could equate to should everyone that paid that price call up).

 

I personally wouldn't use this as a factor for determining who you'll cruise on in the future. You don't know that NCL or RCCL wouldn't have behaved the same way in this same situation.

 

As another poster mentioned, it's the risk we take booking ahead of time.

[CtheW0rld]

no, i don't think you are wrong, however, i think a lot of the blame may lie with your TA. sounds like the TA was not willing to go to bat for you. any time this has happened to me i received a price reduction, OBC or upgrade. a good TA is worth their weight in gold.

[johnandtrishatom]

:(We're taking our first and last HAL cruise 12/24 San Diego,Panama Canal,Fort Lauderdale.Paid $4200 a couple,for a DD obstructed view cabin.Checked HAL site,and discovered same class now going for $1000 less,a couple.Called our TA,asking what could be done to make clients(us) happy?

TA's call to HAL determined that they would(could)? do nothing for an account which had been paid in full,as ours was.No upgrade,no OBC,thanks for your business.

Am I wrong for feeling used,as in gotcha?I believe I've been treated unfairly,and they won't get my money again.

 

Very weird. We worked through our TA and got a room that was $3300 a person and is now $2900 a person. We were reimbursed $800. (Zuiderdam 10nighter leaving on 11/23).

[Randyk47]

Sorry you've experienced this situation. All of us are actually subject to the same circumstances and it kind of comes with booking early. Many of Holland America's sales, particularly those after the final payment date, are subject to limitations and one of those limitations is that the sale price is only available to new bookings. I don't know how other cruise lines conduct their last minute sales though I suspect it's probably just like Holland America. Again, sorry you feel like it's a "gotcha" but it really isn't.

[CowPrincess]

Am I wrong for feeling used,as in gotcha?I believe I've been treated unfairly,and they won't get my money again.

 

Personally I think you can feel however you want, though I think if you step back and consider this a bit less emotionally, you won't feel used. You've already made final payment, you're in the penalty period if you decide to cancel, so don't do that!

 

It's just like buying a pair of shoes in many ways. You see them, your size is available, and you pay the asking price. At the end of the season, the shoes you bought have been reduced to half price. They don't have your size, but look at the huge saving! Similar kind of thing -- the cruise lines have to "special off" when it gets close to sailing date to fill the cabins.

 

I used to obsessively check the price of our cruises, watching for price drops, until I realized that when I booked I was happy with the price and felt it was good value. So because someone else gets a better price (but perhaps not the cabin they want or the dining they want), does that mean the value we receive is reduced? No.

 

I hope you are able to reconcile this within yourself, and still manage to enjoy your cruise.

[RandyinDEN]

Sounds like you need to now bypass the TA and call HAL directly after getting no satisfaction from the TA. Might be the TA doesn't want to give up a portion of their commission.

[Down-Unders]

:(We're taking our first and last HAL cruise 12/24 San Diego,Panama Canal,Fort Lauderdale.Paid $4200 a couple,for a DD obstructed view cabin.Checked HAL site,and discovered same class now going for $1000 less,a couple.Called our TA,asking what could be done to make clients(us) happy?

TA's call to HAL determined that they would(could)? do nothing for an account which had been paid in full,as ours was.No upgrade,no OBC,thanks for your business.

Am I wrong for feeling used,as in gotcha?I believe I've been treated unfairly,and they won't get my money again.

 

 

I would go back to my travel agent and deal with this issue in person not over the telephone, remember you can get a poor TA. I have always found HAL very decent to do buisness with and remember in future do not pay upfront, good luck and let us all know how you get on.

[IRL_Joanie]

I have paid in full and found out after paying that the cruise was offered at a reduced rate. I was booked into an SZ guarantee, with the possibility of being upgraded.

 

I called HAL, yes I book directly with them, and my PCC (equivalent to your TA) canceled my cruise and at the same time booked me on the cheaper rate and gave me the exact stateroom I wanted, which was an Aft Wrap Around Suite at the same price I'd originally booked the lower category at.

 

As stated by another CC member, your TA did not go to bat hard enough for you. We can always say that you did not research well enough before choosing your TA, but it does not matter now. I would suggest that you try to get hold of your TA's Supervisor ASAP and voice your complaint(s) going up the food chain.

 

Do not blame HAL for this, you chose the TA, not HAL....

 

Joanie

[Mary Ellen]

and remember in future do not pay upfront

There is no way the OP could not have paid by now. It is now 50 days to departure, final payment would have been due some time ago. That is the reason for the reduced price. HAL is trying to fill empty cabins as the ship gets close to sailing.

[CTBob]

I am in a similar situation as the original poster. My TA has talked to HAL a few times and has said that they will not change. My TA says that her boss is trying to get me an upgrade, we'll see. Anyway from now on, unless I want a particular cabin like an aft verandah, I will probably wait until the last minute and take the best deal I can get instead of booking early as I have always done in the past. It's not enough to make me leave HAL, but I will shop around more.

[BumperII]

I very much understand where the OP is coming from, and until we acquired a little experience with cruise pricing, I think we would have felt pretty bad about what happened.

We have learned from experience. When we find a cruise we want to take, and the cost gets to the price we are willing to pay, we simply stop negotiating, make the deal, and stick with it, win, lose, or draw. Sometimes it turns out we got a pretty good deal, once in a while it happens that we could have done better. No one wins them all every time.

I feel a sense of sadness that OP didn't get a good deal on the first experience with HAL. On our first HAL cruise we recieved a terrific bargain for a fabulous vacation, and we have been coming back ever since. :o

[CowPrincess]

I have paid in full and found out after paying that the cruise was offered at a reduced rate. I was booked into an SZ guarantee, with the possibility of being upgraded.

 

So did you make your payment prior to final payment date? I am surprised (if you were past final payment date) that they'd bend their rules to re-book you without penalty. Of course, I suppose that in some circumstances, paying a penalty and rebooking still realizes some saving.

[mudscraper]

I have paid in full and found out after paying that the cruise was offered at a reduced rate. I was booked into an SZ guarantee, with the possibility of being upgraded.

 

I called HAL, yes I book directly with them, and my PCC (equivalent to your TA) canceled my cruise and at the same time booked me on the cheaper rate and gave me the exact stateroom I wanted, which was an Aft Wrap Around Suite at the same price I'd originally booked the lower category at.

 

As stated by another CC member, your TA did not go to bat hard enough for you. We can always say that you did not research well enough before choosing your TA, but it does not matter now. I would suggest that you try to get hold of your TA's Supervisor ASAP and voice your complaint(s) going up the food chain.

 

Do not blame HAL for this, you chose the TA, not HAL....

 

Joanie

Did your PCC do this after final payment was due? This appears to be the OPs situation.

[lstrong]

I know I am going to get flamed, but here goes.... My last two cruises have been on HAL. My next booked cruise is on Carnival, with an "early saver" rate. Carnival guarantees an OBC or upgrade if you find your cabin price for your cruise goes down at any time after booking, up until 48 hours prior to sailing. I am not counting on a price decrease, but I am counting on a great cruise, as all my cruises have been (RCCL, X, HAL, Carnival, Princess). Laurie

[IRL_Joanie]

Did your PCC do this after final payment was due? This appears to be the OPs situation.

 

I just checked my docs and yes, it was before final payment date.

 

We paid in Full on 3 August 2010 and final payment was due on 14 September 2010. We re-booked on 31 August.

 

Penalty though would have still made it worthwhile in our case.

My apologies for misunderstanding the OP's situation:o

 

Joanie

[Jade13]

no, i don't think you are wrong, however, i think a lot of the blame may lie with your TA. sounds like the TA was not willing to go to bat for you. any time this has happened to me i received a price reduction, OBC or upgrade. a good TA is worth their weight in gold.

 

After final payment?

[whogo]

It is a shame, kidledr. Regular readers of the HAL boards know that Holland America does not honor price reductions after final payment is due. Cruisers who do not know HAL's policy will be disappointed. I have received refunds on department store purchases that have gone on sale a few days later. Holland America does not operate that way.

[Jade13]

It is a shame, kidledr. Regular readers of the HAL boards know that Holland America does not honor price reductions after final payment is due. Cruisers who do not know HAL's policy will be disappointed. I have received refunds on department store purchases that have gone on sale a few days later. Holland America does not operate that way.

 

I would like to know who the OP cruises with who will give a price reduction after final payment? Celebrity/RCCL/Azamara just changed their policy in May and they no longer give refunds or price adjustments after final payment. If one books within the final payment due date they have 48 hours to request a price adjustment on Celebrity and RCCL brands.

[peaches from georgia]

I don't understand why the TA is getting the blame. Final payment was made. HAL doesn't doesn't rebook at a lower price after final payment or give any compensation. End of story. It's HAL's policy and they're not changing it. OP might not like the policy, and I'm not saying I blame her for that, but none of this is the TA's fault.

[terigo]

Instead of looking for a refund, how about looking for a higher category cabin?

We have had situations where our cabin price has gone down after final payment.

The cruiselines are not bound to, nor will they, give you the lower price. Can't blame them there.

However, we have never had a problem getting a higher category that is in line with what we actually paid.

Maybe rather than curse the darkness, you can light a candle.