Westerdam: I Hope the Cruise was the Exception for HAL, Not the Rule.

[Cruising-along]

I'm really sorry your cruise didn't live up to your expectations.

FYI, you can also get laundry bags at the front desk. Yes, we had a little bit of trouble getting enough (seems like we always had to ask for them, they weren't left each day even though we had unlimited laundry). We just laughed it off though, and when we were down near the front desk we popped over and asked for some. A minor annoyance, easily fixed.

 

We also found that the front desk wasn't too good about relaying messages for us. These things happen from time to time, but it certainly didn't ruin our cruise.

 

About the meal times, I agree with others who said they would have just had a big breakfast, maybe even a quick snack before going into port. We plan accordingly, and have never been disappointed by planning ahead.

[mudscraper]

OMG - I was tolerant - but honestly - I would not recommend you cruise in the future unless you are taking a luxury line. You can easily get a laundry bag - you call - it doesn't come you call again - they come -- seriousy?

 

If you knew your itinerary was at noon - why not get a big breakfast - for Pete's sake it reminds me of a tour in St. Petersburg where a certain nationality was complaining of the box lunch - the tour guides were drooling and I watched their faces as everyone complained.:eek:

 

I'm sorry but no one goes hungry on a cruise ship for long. You can easily grab a roll and some cheese or whatever - after all dinner isn't that far away - my heavens - you are about to experience some fabulous ports - there comes a time when you have to choose between that and your stomach (which I can assure you will easily last a few hours);)

 

sorry = but watching your posts back to some people - a reality check is in order:) you can flame away but I think we forget how lucky we are to do this and instead of complaining that lunch was hard to get - how about the joy to be at this port - that's a choice we all make and plan around.

 

do you really expect the cruise line to cater to everything???? unrealistic and totally unfair IMO.

 

and I'm one of the nice guys;)

I Totally agree.

[PathfinderEss]

Sorry your cruise did not turn out as you expected it to. Yes I think you should find a different cruise line to go on, maybbe you'll have better luck.

[Cruiser M]

Perhaps you should mention that your 3 year old just might have eaten the moldy strawberry if she had seen it first!

[SwissMyst]

Wasn't penicillin first discovered on moldy cantaloupes?:confused: I also would reasonably suspect that inventory is so tightly controlled these days, the return of a drink which was charged to your account would have to go through a more formal routine rather than each server having the authorization to handle this individually.

 

HAL is a "mass" cruise line with varying levels of staff expertise and authority, especially when it comes to exchanges. I think the protocol followed - refer to a head person with more authority --was probably very appropriate in this setting. Since your expectation was more for a full service ship with a higher level of personal attention to detail, a more premium line would be a better fit. Regent, Crystal, Silversea come to mind - there are others like Seabourn, Oceania and Azamara that also take many of these detailed attentions up a notch compared to mainline cruising HAL. I can see why you were disappointed. But even with Crystal if one is in the lower category cabins, it is pretty routine service on that line too.

[hrhdhd]

Certainly one shouldn't have to pay Crystal's prices to get a laundry bag. I agree that if one isn't in the cabin upon embarkation, it's not a problem to call and ask for one. But then if it doesn't appear? That's a lapse in service, and combined with the numerous other issues pointed out by the OP, that's cause for concern.

 

I don't want to spend my cruise in line at the front desk asking repeatedly for items I've already asked for.

[jaguarstyper]

I also would reasonably suspect that inventory is so tightly controlled these days, the return of a drink which was charged to your account would have to go through a more formal routine rather than each server having the authorization to handle this individually.

I think this is total nonsense. I have been in hotels, restaurants and bars all over the world and have never experienced anything like this. Every business is under financial stress and needs to control their inventory. But when that inventory control creates a bad customer experience, its a bad control. Ask any restaurant owner. I'm sure any of them would take the loss of a single bad drink, no questions asked, versus giving the customer a hard time about it and possibly losing their future business.

 

I would reasonably suspect that HAL is making a very high profit on drinks and can afford to pour one down the drain once in a while without having to present it to a committee for approval.

[SwissMyst]

Certainly one shouldn't have to pay Crystal's prices to get a laundry bag. I agree that if one isn't in the cabin upon embarkation, it's not a problem to call and ask for one. But then if it doesn't appear? That's a lapse in service, and combined with the numerous other issues pointed out by the OP, that's cause for concern.

 

I don't want to spend my cruise in line at the front desk asking repeatedly for items I've already asked for.

 

Considering all that a cruise offers 24/7, you most assuredly will not be spending your cruise time in line at the front desk. ...for a laundry bag.

 

No, those lapses reported are not cause for concern about HAL ships. But they might be on higher-priced lines. The name of the game when choosing cruising is travel and ports. Not laundry bags. Really. :cool:

[SwissMyst]

I think this is total nonsense. I have been in hotels, restaurants and bars all over the world and have never experienced anything like this. Every business is under financial stress and needs to control their inventory. But when that inventory control creates a bad customer experience, its a bad control. Ask any restaurant owner. I'm sure any of them would take the loss of a single bad drink, no questions asked, versus giving the customer a hard time about it and possibly losing their future business.

 

I would reasonably suspect that HAL is making a very high profit on drinks and can afford to pour one down the drain once in a while without having to present it to a committee for approval.

 

I personally do not apply land-based expectations to cruise ship offerings. But I also do not let one drink get between me and the enjoyment of an overall vacation experience. :cool:

[sail7seas]

I always am happier when I can hear 'the other side of the story'.

It's a funny thing but I am someone who strives for fair. Yes, I know there is no fair in life and no one promised us fair but yet I continue to seek it.

 

We have not heard from cabin steward, front office, or anyone else from HAL's 'side' of the story.

 

Of course, I accept what OP tells us but I would be interested to hear more about some of these situations, HAL's view of how they handled them and how they would respond to the criticisms.

 

JMO .....

[Weathertrader]

Sigh... I know that this post is going to be controversial. I saw a review for the Westerdam before our cruise left that mentioned some concerns and a lot of people accused the person of being a fraud and not taking the cruise.

 

Well, I just got off the July 21-28 Alaskan cruise and was extremely disappointed with the service my family received. I had heard that HAL was the best when it came to service, but I just encountered disappointment after disappointment. If anyone else experienced what I experienced, they would never cruise HAL again. I know I won't be cruising with them again. I feel like I should write a letter to someone, because what happened on the cruise was far from the reputation HAL should expect from its ships... but I don't know if anyone would ever read it or act on what happened.

 

Anyway, here are the things that went wrong for us in order of them occurring:

 

There was a moldy chocolate-covered strawberry on the floor of our cabin when we first entered it. When we notified our steward, he removed it without apologizing or really saying anything. (Hey, mistakes are made, I am willing to let this one slide, no big deal).

 

Our room did not have bathrobes in it, until they magically appeared on day 3.

 

We had prepaid for an unlimited laundry package and packed lightly because of this. We had spent a couple of days in Seattle before boarding and really needed our clothes laundered on the first day. There was no laundry bag in our room on the first day. We called down around 7:00 and asked for one. The person said "We'll have one sent to your cabin right away." It never came. I called again the next morning and again was told one would be sent right away. It didn't come until after dinner that day. This meant we had to wear dirty clothes to our call in Juneau.

 

Juneau day dining: Here's where it got really frustrating. Because of a time change, clocks were set back the day we were scheduled to arrive in Juneau. This meant to our bodies and the 2,000 other passengers on board, 11:00 was lunchtime. The all ashore time for Juneau was 12:15. The lido did not open until 11:00 AM and the dining room did not open until 12:00. This meant that 2,000 people had to cycle through the Lido in 1 hour. Ridiculous! I called room service at 11:00 to order a steak sandwich. They would only have the limited menu until 12:00! What good is that when everyone is going on shore? The food options up at the Lido were very limited even at 11:00... only sandwiches and potato chips. Why couldn't the kitchens be opened early to accommodate the port schedule? The lines at the lido were ridiculous and people were very agitated.

 

Similarly all aboard in Juneau was after 10:00. The only food available at that time was room service. So 2,000 hungry people clogged the room service line right at 10:00. I sat on hold for 15 minutes before my order was taken. My brother called a few minutes later and waited almost 30 minutes. I was told 45 minutes for delivery, but it was delivered an hour. My brother was also told 45 minutes. After 90 minutes he called them and they said it was almost ready. He waited another thirty minutes (now it was after midnight!) and told them to cancel his order because he was going to bed. The guy told him, "But we just dropped the pasta in the water!" and my brother said "Sorry, we really need to got to bed." and the guy kept saying, "But it will only be another few minutes." My brother was APOLOGIZING to room service for canceling his order that was already over an hour late! WHAT?!?!?!

 

My sister really liked a cocktail called the wine country collins. She ordered it four times on the cruise. At dinner one night (the fifth time she ordered it) it came to the table tasting really bitter. It was not made properly. She asked the server to take it back and replace it, and he said, "No, I can't do that. Let me find the chief steward." WHAT???? A $7 drink tastes bad and you can't replace it without finding the chief steward? How does this make ANY SENSE? I have never been in any restaurant that won't replace food or drink that is not made properly immediately without questions, and here we are on a really expensive cruise and we are again being given grief for a mistake that THEY MADE! WHAT?!?!?! Sorry, this one really hurt. I get angry just thinking about it!

 

At the Pinacle grill (Best steak I've ever eaten, by the way), my wife and I each ordered a wine flight to try several different wines with dinner. Two full glasses of wine were brought to our table. At first I thought, "Hey, this is going to be a generous flight," but I knew I should ask the server to be sure. I said, "Which wine is this one?" and he mumbled something about a pinot something or other as he backed away and then left quickly. We didn't drink the wine, and when our server came back, we told her we had ordered wine flights, but we think the beverage server poured us full glasses instead. After a few minutes a different beverage server came and told us that wine flights were several "very small" glasses of wine (very small were his words) and we said that we knew what it was, that's why we ordered them! And he said "ooookaaaay..." and took the glasses away. I'm guessing not many people order the flights at the Pinacle. When the first set of wines came out... boy was very small right. These were maybe one ounce pours. There was not enough wine in the glass to cover the tongue when you sipped it. I don't know if this is standard for HAL or if he was pouring extra small to make a point.

 

Remember the laundry bag that wasn't in our room? Well when it finally came and we used the service, we noticed that they had charged us for the laundry service despite having pre-paid for it (there was even a card saying we had pre-paid in our cabin). I called the front desk and asked the charge to be removed. Went down later the day to check the balance and again the laundry charge was still on there! Before leaving the front desk I asked again for the charge to be removed. The lady there checked and said "Oh, you do have it pre-paid. I'll contact housekeeping to have it removed." It was removed, but again, so aggravating to have to ask for something to be fixed twice!

 

Finally, the day we were pulling into Victoria, I called the front desk to ask what the exchange rate was for Canadian dollars. I didn't want to exchange currency. I just wanted to know what the rate was so I knew how much things were in American dollars when I used my credit card in town. The lady who answered told me "I should bring small dollar amounts because they would only give change in Canadian dollars in Canada." I told her, "OK, but I'm going to use my credit card. I just want to know what the rate is so I know how much things really cost when I use my credit card." She said, "It depends on the store. Some places charge different amounts than others." I don't know if there was a communication problem or what, but it was a simple question. One that I would imagine was asked on every cruise. I can't be the only guy who wants to know what the exchange rate is. I guess I should have looked it up online before leaving! Is this question really left field? I don't know. I just felt it should be the kind of thing easily answered by the front desk!

 

Alaska itself was great, and so was Victoria. I would love to take this cruise again, but I am definitely going to use a different cruise line this time.

 

What do you guys thing? Is this odd for HAL? Am I being overly picky? Should I write a letter? Do you think it would do any good for them?

 

Interesting comments==I was on the same cruise with my family (wife and two daughters) along with my parents and my sister/her family. In general, I was pleased with the cruise/level of service.

 

On your specific points:

 

Can't offer much commentary on the strawberry, robes or laundry. Our cabin stewards were great, rooms always clean and requests honored in a timely fashion.

 

Juneau: We had zero issues simply heading up to the lido pool deck and grabbing sandwiches as we rolled into town. We headed up to the pool deck where they had sandwiches set out, a nacho/taco bar and variety of other 'fast' service options. These areas were well staffed, very quick at moving folks through and honestly, I was shocked how easy it was to eat with the rush going on as we came into port. We returned to the ship around 9 and had no issues getting some pizza/sandwiches/ice cream in the lido, again sitting in the pool area and enjoying the scenery.

 

Room Service: If there ever was a 'concern' this was it--we ordered three times between my family's two cabins (daughters sharing a connecting room) and while the food was always delivered within the 30 minute time window, it was always on the absolute tail end of it. In contrast, after advising my sister of this, she marked an 'early' window and assumed it would be on the late side, it arrived 5 minutes early. There did generally seem to be a confusion with orders when you specified 1 or 2 by an item and how that worked. Sometimes we got 2 of everything if a 2 appeared anywhere on the menu. Other times, the 2 seemed to be ignored and we would get 1 of the items for which we requested 2. No big deal really though.

 

Returning your cocktail: Only 'bad' drink we had was at the premium wine tasting after re-boarding in Ketchikan. Our chardonnay was obviously bad--we called one of the bar servers helping with the tasting and had him smell it/taste. He agreed immediately and without seeking any further approvals he immediately opened a new bottle for our table and re-poured everyone's glass. Even offered me another glass although mine had been borrowed from a bottled that had not spoiled. He was very apologetic about the situation. The situation was handled perfectly in my opinion.

 

Pinnacle: My father had breakfast there one morning and had terrible service. He complained and asked to cancel our family reservation for dinner the night. The director apologized and convinced him to keep the reservation--we had impeccable service that evening, wonderful food and a great experience. (Steak was very good although won't call it the best I've ever had--very, very good though). My father had breakfast there several more times and service was great--I never visited for breakfast.

 

Victoria: Seems like the front desk should have been able to at least give you an idea of the exchange rate, but given it is so easy to determine--internet search, smart phone, apps etc, I guess I can understand them deferring to you. The other option--just ask in the shop. I did that to determine what conversion rate they were applying. It did vary--some places just charged $ as I determined.

 

Overall: Sorry to hear your experiences weren't great and obviously on a ship that size they can vary, widely. I would definitely write a letter to HAL, it is worth your time. My comments are only offered to let you know that you can get good service on HAL/the Westerdam. We enjoyed the cruise and Alaska/Victoria were awesome!

[kazu]

Certainly one shouldn't have to pay Crystal's prices to get a laundry bag. I agree that if one isn't in the cabin upon embarkation, it's not a problem to call and ask for one. But then if it doesn't appear? That's a lapse in service, and combined with the numerous other issues pointed out by the OP, that's cause for concern.

 

I don't want to spend my cruise in line at the front desk asking repeatedly for items I've already asked for.

 

If my laundry bag didn't show up in a timely manner, I would just call and/or get one from my steward (who are frequently in the hallways, etc.)

 

No need to line up at the front desk. There have been times when they bring the laundry they don't leave a bag - I just ask for one (or two;)). I really don't see that this is a big issue - but that's just me:D

 

Frankly, if my bag didn't arrive I would call/ask room steward and politely explain that this was my second request and when could I expect the bag?

 

I think a 1 minute phone call takes less time than stewing about laundry not being able to go out. but what do I know:rolleyes:

[kazu]

Interesting comments==I was on the same cruise with my family (wife and two daughters) along with my parents and my sister/her family. In general, I was pleased with the cruise/level of service.

 

On your specific points:

 

Can't offer much commentary on the strawberry, robes or laundry. Our cabin stewards were great, rooms always clean and requests honored in a timely fashion.

 

Juneau: We had zero issues simply heading up to the lido pool deck and grabbing sandwiches as we rolled into town. We headed up to the pool deck where they had sandwiches set out, a nacho/taco bar and variety of other 'fast' service options. These areas were well staffed, very quick at moving folks through and honestly, I was shocked how easy it was to eat with the rush going on as we came into port. We returned to the ship around 9 and had no issues getting some pizza/sandwiches/ice cream in the lido, again sitting in the pool area and enjoying the scenery.

 

Room Service: If there ever was a 'concern' this was it--we ordered three times between my family's two cabins (daughters sharing a connecting room) and while the food was always delivered within the 30 minute time window, it was always on the absolute tail end of it. In contrast, after advising my sister of this, she marked an 'early' window and assumed it would be on the late side, it arrived 5 minutes early. There did generally seem to be a confusion with orders when you specified 1 or 2 by an item and how that worked. Sometimes we got 2 of everything if a 2 appeared anywhere on the menu. Other times, the 2 seemed to be ignored and we would get 1 of the items for which we requested 2. No big deal really though.

 

Returning your cocktail: Only 'bad' drink we had was at the premium wine tasting after re-boarding in Ketchikan. Our chardonnay was obviously bad--we called one of the bar servers helping with the tasting and had him smell it/taste. He agreed immediately and without seeking any further approvals he immediately opened a new bottle for our table and re-poured everyone's glass. Even offered me another glass although mine had been borrowed from a bottled that had not spoiled. He was very apologetic about the situation. The situation was handled perfectly in my opinion.

 

Pinnacle: My father had breakfast there one morning and had terrible service. He complained and asked to cancel our family reservation for dinner the night. The director apologized and convinced him to keep the reservation--we had impeccable service that evening, wonderful food and a great experience. (Steak was very good although won't call it the best I've ever had--very, very good though). My father had breakfast there several more times and service was great--I never visited for breakfast.

 

Victoria: Seems like the front desk should have been able to at least give you an idea of the exchange rate, but given it is so easy to determine--internet search, smart phone, apps etc, I guess I can understand them deferring to you. The other option--just ask in the shop. I did that to determine what conversion rate they were applying. It did vary--some places just charged $ as I determined.

 

Overall: Sorry to hear your experiences weren't great and obviously on a ship that size they can vary, widely. I would definitely write a letter to HAL, it is worth your time. My comments are only offered to let you know that you can get good service on HAL/the Westerdam. We enjoyed the cruise and Alaska/Victoria were awesome!

 

Glad to hear that YOU had a good time:D Wise move on the Pinnacle. Our first breakfast on one ship was not good (service wise) and when the manager came to ask we politely told him and why. He assured us that if we returned it would not happen. And it didn't. Service after that was excellent - sometimes you have to speak up (nicely). After all, if they don't know - they can't fix it:D

[jaguarstyper]

I personally do not apply land-based expectations to cruise ship offerings. But I also do not let one drink get between me and the enjoyment of an overall vacation experience. :cool:

Could you explain to me why I should lower my expectations when dining at a restuarant on a ship? If my expectations should be lower, maybe they should charge me less for that drink or bottle of wine. And, I agree I would not let the incident ruin my cruise, but it would annoy me at the time. And, If I were running HAL, I would not want a passenger to be annoyed over the cost of chucking a drink down the drain once in a while. Not everyone may be as understanding as you and may just decide to take their money to a competiting cruise line the next time, just because they were hassled over a drink.

 

And, how much does it cost HAL to convene this committee of stewards to deliberate and determine if the drink should be replaced? No one works for free. Time is money and if more than one person's time is wasted by this control, then its pretty stupid if they are trying to save 75 cents by not discarding a single drink without requiring multiple levels of approval.

[kazu]

Could you explain to me why I should lower my expectations when dining at a restuarant on a ship? If my expectations should be lower, maybe they should charge me less for that drink or bottle of wine. And, I agree I would not let the incident ruin my cruise, but it would annoy me at the time. And, If I were running HAL, I would not want a passenger to be annoyed over the cost of chucking a drink down the drain once in a while. Not everyone may be as understanding as you and may just decide to take their money to a competiting cruise line the next time, just because they were hassled over a drink.

 

And, how much does it cost HAL to convene this committee of stewards to deliberate and determine if the drink should be replaced? No one works for free. Time is money and if more than one person's time is wasted by this control, then its pretty stupid if they are trying to save 75 cents by not discarding a single drink without requiring multiple levels of approval.

 

I was in the service industry for years - and the attitude that the customer is right (even if they are wrong) really pays off. If the drink is not what the client thinks it should be, then yes, replace it. No questions asked. (now, if the customer does it over and over - that's a horse of a different colour).

 

As far as we know, this is a one only situation - a new drink should have been brought right away and then if they had to have a committee to 'discuss the refund' they could do so after solving the problem.

 

Time is money and so are customers. i don't know how it works as I have never had to return a drink but once (wrong one) in all my cruises. There was no delay - there was an apology and a new drink in front of me so fast your head would spin - so I am at a loss to understand this scenario.

[SwissMyst]

Could you explain to me why I should lower my expectations when dining at a restuarant on a ship? If my expectations should be lower, maybe they should charge me less for that drink or bottle of wine. And, I agree I would not let the incident ruin my cruise, but it would annoy me at the time. And, If I were running HAL, I would not want a passenger to be annoyed over the cost of chucking a drink down the drain once in a while. Not everyone may be as understanding as you and may just decide to take their money to a competiting cruise line the next time, just because they were hassled over a drink.

 

And, how much does it cost HAL to convene this committee of stewards to deliberate and determine if the drink should be replaced? No one works for free. Time is money and if more than one person's time is wasted by this control, then its pretty stupid if they are trying to save 75 cents by not discarding a single drink without requiring multiple levels of approval.

 

No, I can't explain why you should lower your expectations. I just related my own. Yours are yours to enjoy or not enjoy, on your own. Drinks apparently matter more to you than they do to me, so this is obviously your Golden Mean for ship service.

 

You now know you may not have your prior expectations met 100% on HAL ships. This is valuable information for you to have, which was lacking before you made your decision to sail with HAL. Now you can contract for this expectation ahead of time, or take your cruise dollar elsewhere. Sounds fair in today's open marketplace.

[wallyboag]

If my laundry bag didn't show up in a timely manner, I would just call and/or get one from my steward (who are frequently in the hallways, etc.)

 

No need to line up at the front desk. There have been times when they bring the laundry they don't leave a bag - I just ask for one (or two;)). I really don't see that this is a big issue - but that's just me:D

 

Frankly, if my bag didn't arrive I would call/ask room steward and politely explain that this was my second request and when could I expect the bag?

 

I think a 1 minute phone call takes less time than stewing about laundry not being able to go out. but what do I know:rolleyes:

 

Just for the record as the original poster, had the laundry bag been the only issue, I wouldn't be complaining at all. And I did call the front desk (and sat on hold for well over a minute both times, by the way) and asked for a bag two times before one showed up. Between the first request and the second request (two days) I never saw my room steward in the hall.

 

It was the combination of several service issues and the lack of response to the issues that made my cruise far lower than my expectations. I am certainly not one to gripe about any one or two or even five things to happen, but when it is a pain to get them fixed/replaced/solved, that's when it's an issue!

[kazu]

Just for the record as the original poster, had the laundry bag been the only issue, I wouldn't be complaining at all. And I did call the front desk (and sat on hold for well over a minute both times, by the way) and asked for a bag two times before one showed up. Between the first request and the second request (two days) I never saw my room steward in the hall.

 

It was the combination of several service issues and the lack of response to the issues that made my cruise far lower than my expectations. I am certainly not one to gripe about any one or two or even five things to happen, but when it is a pain to get them fixed/replaced/solved, that's when it's an issue!

 

I was actually answering someone else but that's ok - I guess my point is that I wouldn't be waiting 2 days for a laundry bag to show up. I would have been back on the phone to find out what the heck was going on. 2 minutes of my time versus dirty laundry and being upset on my vacation - I'll use the two minutes of my time:D

 

I know those weren't your only issues - I wasn't discounting your issues although for me, some of them would not be an issue as I wouldn't let it be one. I deal with any items on board - I don't let things build up and ruin my cruise. Haven't had the items that you are describing as issues per se but there are always some challenges. How you overcome them is key.

 

As I previously stated some of your issues are non issues to me (but that's me) - exchange rate? seriously? when the two dollars are so close that it's negligible?

 

Each to their own - smooth seas:) on whichever line you choose to sail on

[Viesczy]

 

I've had things like that happen on every cruise I've taken, and all my cruises were wonderful. I just shrug it off as "ship happens" and move on.

 

 

^quoted for agreement and truth.

 

To the OP and not being a brand cheerleader here but there is little bit of onus on you to know your schedule and to adjust to that schedule; knowing that if you're coming back late the crew will have all their job duties @ that time so any request will be delayed as the crew is stretched too thin. You finger if during normal times a request takes 30-60 mins, if you request something on an off time at least double that as the crew is all dedicated to doing their other duties and have to get that work done. You're just tossing sand in the Vaseline @ that point.

 

I am sorry that the cruise wasn't what you had hoped for as it was hard earned/saved money spent. Maybe the Regent/Oceania/Crystal might be a better way to go than HAL, even their smaller ships, as those lines have a lower guest to crew ratio?

 

Derek

[wallyboag]

As I previously stated some of your issues are non issues to me (but that's me) - exchange rate? seriously? when the two dollars are so close that it's negligible?

 

I didn't know that they were so close. I am used to seeing two amounts on say the back of books. $10USD and $14 Canadian for instance. I should have checked the rate before leaving on the cruise, but I forgot. So I asked a simple question that in my opinion should have simply been answered at the front desk. On the ship I had no access to the internet (save paying a huge rate to access the internet up in the library, which shouldn't be necessary to get the answer to one simple question about a port the cruise was about to dock at).

[RuthC]

ISo I asked a simple question that in my opinion should have simply been answered at the front desk.

You asked the wrong people. Front Desk people have no need to know exchange rates, so they probably don't.

The person to ask is the port lecturer. Knowing exchange rates is part of that job.

[kazu]

I didn't know that they were so close. I am used to seeing two amounts on say the back of books. $10USD and $14 Canadian for instance. I should have checked the rate before leaving on the cruise, but I forgot. So I asked a simple question that in my opinion should have simply been answered at the front desk. On the ship I had no access to the internet (save paying a huge rate to access the internet up in the library, which shouldn't be necessary to get the answer to one simple question about a port the cruise was about to dock at).

 

OK - let's get this clear - if you are going to use US $ in a Canadian port - each merchant (store) will exchange at the rate they choose that day. They have to take the risk of the ups and downs. There is NO way anyone - even a banker = can tell you what the different stores will give for an exchange rate. With the US dollar being only 2.6 points above at the bank based on today (and that's at a premium) obviously the stores are going to have to allow for what they will be charged.

 

and yes, you are right - we Canadians are thoroughly ripped off at the price of books with the current parity!

 

for me, this is standard research before I go on a cruise - I don't blame HAL - all you had to do is ask them what they are charging for Canadian dollars and that would have given you a good idea.

 

Huge rate for the internet? You can sign on by the minute if you want. You don't have to buy a package! Looks like we are going to agree to disagree as I really think this was an unreasonable expectation. sorry.

 

It's not like the currencies are 20 points apart and have been fluctuating crazily after all:)

 

Personally I have been following the Euro, the US $, the Krone, the Krona and British pounds carefully in preparation for my upcoming cruise so I have the currencies of the countries at the right price. i don't go to another country expecting to use my currency. I honour them by taking and using theirs:)

 

so we will agree to disagree - each to their own and smooth seas:)

[CowPrincess]

I didn't know that they were so close. I am used to seeing two amounts on say the back of books. $10USD and $14 Canadian for instance. I should have checked the rate before leaving on the cruise, but I forgot. So I asked a simple question that in my opinion should have simply been answered at the front desk. On the ship I had no access to the internet (save paying a huge rate to access the internet up in the library, which shouldn't be necessary to get the answer to one simple question about a port the cruise was about to dock at).

 

The exchange rate is really between the customer and the shop. Can you imagine the # of complaints HAL would have to deal with every single day of every single month if the front desk said "$1 Cdn is about $0.98 US" and then the pax get charged a LESS FAVORABLE exchange rate? The USPS would be operating at a huge profit from all the letters that would be written to HAL Seattle, demanding compensation, for something that is outside HAL's control.

 

Currently, IIRC the actual exchange rate IS $1 Cdn to about $0.97 US but around here the merchants are charging $1 Cdn at $0.90 USD. And you most assuredly will NOT get the actual rate even at a bank, whether buying or selling.

[wallyboag]

I was using a credit card. I know what my credit card charges for international purchases. I did not intend to use cash at all. All I wanted to know what the current exchange rate was so when I went into a shop and saw something that was $10 I could convert it in my mind into US Dollars. I did not ask what individual shops were charging. I did not ask what my credit card company was charging.

[SwissMyst]

I didn't know that they were so close. I am used to seeing two amounts on say the back of books. $10USD and $14 Canadian for instance. I should have checked the rate before leaving on the cruise, but I forgot. So I asked a simple question that in my opinion should have simply been answered at the front desk. On the ship I had no access to the internet (save paying a huge rate to access the internet up in the library, which shouldn't be necessary to get the answer to one simple question about a port the cruise was about to dock at).

 

This seems to be the crux of the issue... your pre-set expectations. Not sure how one gets around that. Or even who is responsible, so one can feel a legitimate complaint. Again, since shore time is the passenger's own planning responsibility, this currency exchange information falls squarely in your own lap first.

 

Sometimes the failure is in the detail (drinks always had to be sent back but everything else was good) Or, sometimes the failure is in the overall percentage expectations - 80% good service, 90% good service, 100% good service?

 

I agree, it would have been a convenience to get this information, or even an estimate from ship staff. Why not, you asked, you wanted to know and you could not get what you needed for yourself. But I think the lesson here is it should not have risen to the level of an expectation demand. There are other ramifications why ship staff would not want to be responsible for this passenger convenience information. Lesson learned.

 

I think we operate on an 85% expectation level - I think HAL is a very nice B+ cruise ship. And with that expectation we have been 100% happy.