All Aboard for CC's 1st Ever "HAL-O-Ween Dam Cruise"

[HeatherInFlorida]

Good morning! Judging from some of your emails I haven't been completely clear about the booking procedures which aren't even set up yet, but I'll do the best I can.

 

#1. This will be the first HAL group cruise that CC has done so LauraS is working to get the policies in line with all other CC group cruises. She wants it set up so that initially HAL releases so many cabins in different categories. Once those have been filled, they release more.

 

And there's the catch. Other cruiselines release new cabins at the same rate originally qoted. HAL does not want to guarantee that. They want have the right to increase the price as they release new cabins.

 

LauraS wants it set up so that even if you choose to book next year ... 5 months out, you would get the same rate as those booking today. That's the glitch she's working on now.

 

#2. Right now the deposit date is 4/22 (she's trying to bump that out a week). That due date is for people booking now. Obviously if you book 2 months from now, your deposit would have a different due date (I would suspect immediately just as if you were booking on your own).

 

#3. Even though HAL releases a certain number of cabins in each category, they are not pre-set cabins. In other words, they might release 10 "SS" cabins (hypothetically). They are not specified cabin #s. You can choose any SS cabin that is available, make the deposit, and it's yours.

 

I am getting emails from TA's telling me they might be able to "do a little better" for us. This will serve as my notice to all TA's: We are not interested in hearing from any TA's. When EKerr and I decided to take this project on, we explained we would only do it through CC. We all met here and I feel we owe it to CC to do our booking through this website. It's also going to be a lot more fun and easier to communicate with our own message board, etc.

 

Any other questions, please let me know. I tried to cover all the questions I got overnight:)

[Ziggy7]

For those who get aft corner suites, are they noisy from the engines ??? and is there much more movement just because they are aft ???? I'm thinking of suprising DH with one :) We dont get sea sick but DH is not as steady on his feet as most and I was wondering how the movement would effect his walking ???? :)

[bepsf]

Morning all!

 

You know I just had to get my finger in this dinner-table pie, didnt you???

 

When the time comes (next year sometime?) I'll download my "Cruiser-Tracker" software from Ziggy's website ;) and work on getting us tables as close together as possible.

 

I just feel for the poor Maitre'd and stewards who will have to put up w/ our antics!

[HeatherInFlorida]

I think that maybe "MaDam of Costumes" isn't for me. :(

I keep asking for some input and other then Heather, so one comments. I definitely had planned on putting this on a another thread when we have our own site, but just wanted to know if the Non-Costume people are willing to try and work a little with the Naughti-cal Theme, so I will have some direction when I start the thread.

 

I guess I just get too enthusiatic and involved and get discouraged when it seems some people are more concern about who is going to eat with whom, rather then focusing on us as a group, and the fun we are going to have!

 

If Anyone wants to take over this job, I will be happy to give it up. That way we can just focus on the happy aspects of this upcoming Cruise on our own.

 

Rita

 

Rita, we are not going to let you give up your title because you're the best one for it. The reason no one is answering is because no one has even booked yet. It's the old "cart before the horse" thing. All your ideas are fantastic, but I think everyone first wants to decide for sure IF they're going to book and then WHEN they are going to book and then start to think more about the other things.

 

As for me, I know I'm going to book so it's not an issue. But others are waiting to see rates, etc. So if you can just keep your notes and ideas until we get set people will show a lot more interest. I'm sure of it. So please don't be hurt or feel anyone is ignoring you.

 

You are still ... and always will be ... our Costume MaDAM!!!:D Okay???

[Oceanwench]

Rita,

 

For me, it is just too early to think about a costume. I have 2 cruises this year, and possibly one in 2006 before the HAL-o-ween cruise!

 

So at this point, planning a costume to wear in Oct. 2006 is not a priority.

 

As Heather said, we aren't even booked on this cruise yet! ;)

 

When the Web site is up, the numbers firmed up, etc. etc. -- then people will be more eager to discuss such things.

 

I see cabin choices and dining room times/table choices to be something done at an early stage of planning; costumes come later.

 

As far as input: I'm a Parrothead [devoted fan of Jimmy Buffett] and I think broadening the category to "tropical" costume would have its advantages. Those who want the nautical look could still dress as pirates or ship captains. And those who don't want to get dressed up could at least wear a lei.

I volunteer to hand out the leis ... Can I be the Lei Mistress?!!! :D

[Renorita]

Brian,

 

I understand from Heather's post that you have now taken on another title - "Dam Host". Just wanted to let you know that DW and I are real flexible about DR assignments. We would like a dining time which would include the majority of our group.

 

Richard & Judie

 

Brian, same for us! As a host, will you be be checking on us at all times to make we are staying out of trouble? :D

 

Rita

[Renorita]

Finally!!! Yikes! I've been trying to get back on here ever since my last post with no luck.

 

I did not hear back from LauraS, but decided to post what she sent me anyway. Just don't hold me to it, okay? But it gives you an idea of where we're at. I think this is pretty much what it will be with maybe a little tweaking here and there.

 

So here it is exactly as Laura sent it to me:

 

Inside (Cat J): $ 802.18 pp

Oceanview (Cat D): $ 915 pp

Balcony (VC): $ 1035 pp

Suite (Cat SS): $ 1449 pp [Triples ONLY- NO QUADS]

Rates are based on double occupancy and include the port charges and gov’t fees.

Single (Cat K): $ 1099 pp

3rd/4th rates are subject to change and vary depending on the age of the passenger….currently the rates are as follows for all the above mentioned categories:

Adult (19 years or older): $ 569

Minor (18 years or younger): $ 485 pp

amenities,

Pinnacle Grill Experience, (for two)

Cocktail party (8 cabin minimum)

2 bottles of wine per stateroom, served at dinner

Cruise Critic Magnets (one per stateroom)

Cruise Critic Lanyards (one per person)

15% discount on all Cruise Critic Logowear

 

Deposit amount: $350 per person by April 22 2005 (I'm working on getting this pushed back a week)

Final payment due 8/6/06 (Ditto)

 

Heather, at some point I may need some suggestions as to a decent cabin in a good location, not having been on a HAL ship yet. Tentatively thinking of a Balcony. Boy the prices have gone up. We got a SS on the "O" in Nov. for $999, which includes most of the amenities you list above.

 

Rita

[thulewx]

It's probably already posted in this thread somewhere but I didn't see it, so here it is (again, maybe):

arrive depart

Sun 29 Oct: FTL 5:00pm

Mon 30 Oct:at sea

Tue 31 Oct:Grand Turk 7:00 4:00pm

Wed 1 Nov: Tortola 2:00pm 10:00pm (then we Celebrate Thulewx's B-day until wee hours :p )

Thu 2 Nov: St. Maarten 7:00am 5:00pm

Fri 3 Nov: at sea

Sat 4 Nov: Half Moon Cay 8:00am 5:00pm

Sun 5 Nov: FTL 8:00

[HeatherInFlorida]

Heather, at some point I may need some suggestions as to a decent cabin in a good location, not having been on a HAL ship yet. Tentatively thinking of a Balcony. Boy the prices have gone up. We got a SS on the "O" in Nov. for $999, which includes most of the amenities you list above.

 

Rita

 

Yes, Rita, the prices have gone way up for 2006 and will continue to do that. There are some threads about that subject here. It's not just HAL. Throughout the cruiseline industry, they're coming out of their bad times following 911 and are increasing their prices. Also, fuel charges affect the price.

 

I just got another note from one of the TA's who had contacted me about possible better pricing and she said that now she realizes it's for 2006 she feels these quoted rates are quite good. So ... food for thought for everyone.

 

Somewhere above, I posted a link to the deck plans. Take a look there and see what looks good to you. In my opinion, location of cabin is very subjective. Lots of folks like the stern for access to certain areas of the ship. Some like to be high, some low. Some like toward the bow. If you have any seasick concerns, then I would aim for midships on a mid deck level.

 

My personal choice is midships ... near the center elevators on the port side. this is for no special reason. It's just what we like. I always say that this way when I get off the elevator on any deck I'm half way to where I'm going:D .

[sail7seas]

For those who get aft corner suites, are they noisy from the engines ??? and is there much more movement just because they are aft ???? I'm thinking of suprising DH with one :) We dont get sea sick but DH is not as steady on his feet as most and I was wondering how the movement would effect his walking ???? :)

 

 

Hi Ziggy......

 

We don't want an aft Suite but are waiting to learn pricing for a mid-ship "S". I hope we'll be able to meet the April 22 deposit deadline but, like everyone else, will need at least a little time to think about what price is quoted us etc, before making our deposit.

 

I don't think the aft suites would be noisy while the ship is sailing. It's possible you would get some thruster/engine noises when docking and leaving the dock. But, that is only a brief time so I wouldn't think it would be terribly bothersome.

[Iggipolka]

I was in aft cabain 5181 (not a suite) and really didn't notice any noise or vibration while the ship was in motion. We had some vibration during docking, but that as more fun than anything else. We're from California and the first morning we docked, we woke up at 7am and felt the shaking. My first thought was EARTHQUAKE! Then I remembered I was on a ship in Key West and went back to sleep. *grin*

[HeatherInFlorida]

Ziggy, I have an article DH cut out for me from something that is all about how to pick a cabin. It has a diagram called Anatomy of a Cruise Ship. According to this, the engine noise and vibration near the stern of the ship is mostly a problem on older ships because the newer propulsion systems elinimate those problems.

 

As to rear-facing balconies, they recommend checking what is above the veranda because the outdoor cafe can mean noise, cigarette butts and even mop water spoiling your space. They say the wraparound corner balconies are the best. If I were going that route (which I'm not) I wouldn't want to be right under the Lido Deck.

 

This article specifies that on the Oosterdam, Zuiderdam and Westerdam "aft corner suites on the Veranda Deck (S5186 and S5187) have huge wraparound alconies ... at least three times larger than those of comparably priced suites ... and are great for entertaining".

 

Of course, these could already be gone. When I found a website that would even quote prices for this cruise, those cabins didn't show as available. Doesn't mean they're not because you don't always see all cabins available on all agent websites.

[Time2sail]

"LauraS wants it set up so that even if you choose to book next year ... 5 months out, you would get the same rate as those booking today. That's the glitch she's working on now." Heather

 

 

 

We want to take our first cruise on HAL in May/June before we put money on another. If we enjoy this first one to Alaska, we plan to go back next year plus we want to plan a cruise to see Italy.

 

But, I think this CC cruise you are planning would be lots of fun and I would love to cruise with all of you and meet you. I know that waiting might not give us the cabin or location we want, but it would be nice if the CC group price was still available after June. We would not have to pay for airfare--just the cruise.

 

I am enjoying your plans and think it all sounds wonderful. RevNeal's Hawaii cruise sounds great too and I am enjoying reading about that one as well.

[Sinbad37]

:rolleyes: Would love to hear about these islands!

 

We have never been there.

There are no posted shore excursions yet on HAL's boards that I could find. Also would like any web sites anyone may have found. I love the "research" in advance of a cruise!:D

 

Also, Heather, can you find out from Laura about b2b for Westerdam's Western Caribbean, either before or after our Eastern week? Would there be any CC benefits? We are Mariners. The itinerary is the same, the week before or week after, for the Western cruise.

 

Sun - Ft. Lauderdale 5:00 pm

Mon - Half Moon Cay 8:00 am 4:00 pm

Tue - Grand Turk, Turks & Caicos 10:00 am 6:00 pm

Wed - AT SEA

Thur - George Town, Gr.Cayman 8:00 am 4:00 pm

Fri - Cozumel, Mexico 10:00 am 11:00 pm

Sat - AT SEA

Sun - Ft. Lauderdale 8:00 am

 

Sailing 10/22/06 before or 11/05/06 after.

 

We did b2b on the Oosterdam, but did not plan ahead so had to change cabins. They were very helpful, but prefer to "pack only once".:D

 

I am really so excited about this cruise!

 

Rita - yes on costumes ..but as stated above, there will be much more interest later IMHO. Don't give up the ship!:eek:

 

Thanks to Heather for her tireless efforts!

 

Hope HAL is ready for a bunch of SCORPIOS - " THE SHY SIDE OF THE

HOR0SCOPE!" Ziggy, are you ready for this!:D

[SANDY BEACH]

Renorita, I, too, think the price for the SS seems high. We have only paid that much for an S Suite which was last July. Hopefully Laura will be able to do better once the final figures are in. Thanks Heather for all your hard work. It is not easy to coordinate for so many.

[Ziggy7]

Thanks everyone for your aft balcony answers, after looking at the prices again (I put on my glasses) and saw that the price for Cat SS the price was not $1,199.00 as I thought sooooo DH will have to settle for Cat VA, as we will be paying for airfare for 2 from one end of the United States to the other :)

I hope we are Sinbad37 (Ginny) hehehe but more importantly I hope HAL is hehehehe. Hmmmmm I think you need a title, what should it be ?????? :p

Brian, I have the dinning room layout of the Zuiderdam if you would like it just email me at ziggysmoney@yahoo.com.

It might be the same layout! :)

[FlorenceItaly]

Can you believe we are sailing in December on the Zuiderdam, in a balcony room, for less than an inside here??? Plus our wonderful TA is giving us a dinner for two at the Pinnacle, each of us a soda card, and 3 bottles of wine!! Yep, cruising is on the rise and the prices reflect it. We will probably book an inside for this group cruise. My only disappointment is the high deposit amount, due so soon. On both my other CC group cruises, we managed to get an initial $25 deposit, pp. Of course, that was an RCI cruise, and my upcoming Princess cruise.

 

Marie

[Ziggy7]

Wait till they see the prices for the Hawaii cruise! My parents are researching that one intenery and wow the price they say is more than a suite just for an inside!

They said these prices were higher but still good for the price surge in 2006! :)

[stanford's girl]

ExaltHim,

 

I noticed that the deposit price for the other cruises in the group cruise area was only $25pp also. Considering that we just put $700 down for our Oct 05 on the Oosterdam to Mexico, this is another huge chunk of change. I wonder if HAL's policy is $350pp, no matter what. Heather, can you get an answer to this? Why is HAL's deposit so much higher?:confused:

[Iggipolka]

I'm reading the posts about the prices of the cruise next year and I just keep chuckling. I know this is a lot of money and it is going to be a streach for us as well. However, we paid over $4000 pp for a VA on the Zuiderdam last April through that infamous lesbian cruise line. Getting a SS for $1400+/- pp sounds absolutely wonderful in comparison! :D

 

However, this is a dam expensive hobby to have!

[Renorita]

I'm reading the posts about the prices of the cruise next year and I just keep chuckling. I know this is a lot of money and it is going to be a streach for us as well. However, we paid over $4000 pp for a VA on the Zuiderdam last April through that infamous lesbian cruise line. Getting a SS for $1400+/- pp sounds absolutely wonderful in comparison! :D

 

However, this is a dam expensive hobby to have!

 

Wow Iggi, no wonder we got bumped from our 10/29 Cruise this year, if that group is willing to pay those kind of prices! :eek: That was the Cruise that only cost us $999 pp for an SS cabin which included the Pinnacle, Wine and a CD of the Cruise. No way could I afford, or would I pay that price for a week of Cruising.

 

Recently I saw a Silversea Cruise special for the Mediterranean. It was a 2 for one at $2160 and that included the AIRFARE! Of course it was one of those last minute specials, but when I am retired it will be much easier for us to go at a drop of the hat. Now THAT kind of a deal I would consider! :)

 

Rita

[bepsf]

I'm reading the posts about the prices of the cruise next year and I just keep chuckling. I know this is a lot of money and it is going to be a streach for us as well. However, we paid over $4000 pp for a VA on the Zuiderdam last April through that infamous lesbian cruise line. Getting a SS for $1400+/- pp sounds absolutely wonderful in comparison! :D

 

However, this is a dam expensive hobby to have!

 

Same here Iggi--

$3000 for an SS is a bargain considering we're paying @ $10000 for the same stateroom for my RSVP B2B next Feb...

...and no free wine, no Pinnacle dinners, etc.!

At least we won't have the "How much did your cruise cost?" discussion over dinner!!!

[Renorita]

Hey Ziggy! Confess now, did you get that "Patience little Grasshopper" from Rev Neal? ;) Like you, I have been following his Hawaii thread and noticed he used the same term. heheheh. :)

 

Rita

[jbhcw]

Yikes, and yikes again. I go away for three days to the coast and it takes me an hour to catch up! I have told hubby and kids I need a laptop but they just laugh at me. They just don't understand the board thing!

 

Costumes - Maybe a sailer hat, hubby probably not.

 

Dinner - With anyone who likes to eat early and do think it would be great if we could be grouped together in same area of DR.

 

Age - We are 59 and 66, so we'll be a lot older in '06, but we don't feel it!

 

Dates - No birthdays (April and June) but anniversery 11-19 and it will be 24 years.

 

Have not had time to check out deck plans but hope to go with a veranda cabin.

[HeatherInFlorida]

First, Ginny I am only involved in the group cruise aspect of this. If you're interested in doing a B2B, the best thing to do is talk to the TA about it when we get that information.

 

Now ... I hate to disagree with some of you, but these prices are EXCELLENT! I have not been wating time while we've waited. I have gone to many online sites to get prices whenever they would even come up. These are the same or lower than those. Most agents aren't even pricing out that far because they know the rates are going up.

 

I'm surprised at the reaction to the deposit information. All cruiselines require different deposits. HAL is asking for $350 pp which is their standard deposit for a 7-day cruise. Some of the other cruiselines have a different set-up for groups. This is HAL's. If you booked a cabin for this cruise thru HAL or any agent today, your deposit would be due within 2 weeks at the most.

 

No one is forced to book this cruise right now. You can take a chance and wait and book later. The bookings are not going to be shut down on 4/22/05. But as of now, that is the deposit due date for booking at this rate.

 

Just as an example I booked a cruise on Celebrity last September 2004 (the cruise is October 2005). I made a deposit of $450/pp. That locked in my cabin and my rate. To book that same cruise today the price would be +$1200 from what I paid last September.

 

The same thing will happen on this HAL cruise. As time goes on they will increase the rates. LauraS is trying to get an agreement from HAL to lock in our rates even as they allot additional cabins to us. If she's able to do that (which we don't know yet), then many of you can wait to book and hope there will be a cabin to your liking at that later date.

 

It's easy to see why HAL doesn't want to do this. The prices are increasing daily. Oil prices are increasing daily. The cost of cruising is increasing daily.

 

I am not going to post this kind of message again. If you are not happy with the pricing, if the timing doesn't work out for you, whatever your reason and you would prefer not to go .... that's okay! We hope as many as possible will come because we think it's going to be a great group cruise.

 

But I honestly don't want to turn this thread into a $ for $ comparison of what you got when and how much it cost and how many bottles of wine and how many Pinnacle dinners you had. It serves no purpose.

 

It would be great if it were 2003 again, or even 2004, but it isn't. These are the rates. It's my opinion, from my research, that they are not high in comparison to what you will get elsewhere. If you think you can do better on your own, I honestly urge you to call your TA and book through them. We'll still all be on the ship together, we'll all get to meet up and have fun. But you would not be part of our group cruise.

 

I'm sorry this has been so long. If I've not been clear about something, please let me know.