HAL Alaska cruise options

[Seminolevet]

Greetings!

 

My husband and I went on our dream Alaska trip last year...and 18 day combination DIY land tour and 7 day Southbound Princess Voyage of the Glaciers cruise. It was the trip of a lifetime, and we now want to plan on sending my parents to experience Alaska next year for their 40th anniversary. They both still work very, very hard, but they've pretty much exhausted their retirement already. Between the recession and a younger brother's legal fees for several really bad choices throughout his teenage/college years, any chance they have at a worthwhile getaway/celebration has kind of disappeared.

 

We can't afford to do a land/sea trip, but I wanted to find the best cruise I can, giving them the best itinerary possible. I think the HAL RT out of Vancouver has a perfect itinerary for them. Stops at Ketchikan, Skagway, Juneau, with scenic cruising through Glacier Bay and Inside Passage (twice), which is where we saw quite a few whales (orcas and humpbacks) along with lots of wildlife.

 

Here's my question: Does Holland do price dumps like Princess does? If they do, will they allow price adjustments as long as it's before final payment?

 

When we were planning our cruise, I was obsessive about fare watching and calling our agent for the price adjustments. Eventually our final price was about 40% less than what we originally booked. I just want to be sure I find the most affordable cruise for my parents, so we can hopefully put any money we save towards excursions or airfare.

 

I really appreciate all the help this board provides...our trip last year wouldn't have been as amazing without the help of everyone here!:D

[Budget Queen]

Over many years- Princess has been the leader with the price dumps. HAL less often, they have the deal of 3/4 free, which I've taken advantage of twice.

 

All cruises do "inside passage" Alaska. It looks like you are also referring to Inside Vancouver Island.

 

I'm assuming flights would be needed? If so, booking a one way, may offer a better price, since these are usually cheaper cruises. Maybe compare and consider other cruiselines?

[Seminolevet]

Thanks for the info BQ. I'd ideally want a one-way for them, but there's no way my dad can take off more than 7-8 days at a time, and I feel like if you go one-way, you should really take advantage of at least some time "on land". I'll have to check flights and see what's cheaper...roundtrip or different depart/arrive cities. We're in Florida, so any flight is going to be a haul. :)

 

And yeah, I meant inside Vancouver Island. Slip of the tongue. :)

 

Hitting some major ports (with enough time at port to enjoy them), seeing some great glacier scenery, and getting inside Vancouver Island for whale/wildlife sighting are kind of my perceived "musts" for a cruise for them.

 

Maybe I should start looking at larger suites on HAL so hubby and I can make a return trip as free stowaways on their cruise :D

[CowPrincess]

Here's my question: Does Holland do price dumps like Princess does? If they do, will they allow price adjustments as long as it's before final payment?

 

 

HAL will adjust prices PRE-final payment.

 

Have a look at the Zuiderdam -- it sails on Saturdays, which means fewer days off required for your dad, probably, for travel. DO get them into Vancouver the day BEFORE the cruise. What category of cabin are you considering for them?

 

Make sure you set aside enough $$$ that you can send your parents on a whale watch in Juneau :)

[Budget Queen]

An alternative would be to stay by SeaTac in a cheaper hotel, take the light rail to the train station and take Amtrak to Vancouver day of embarkment. Plenty of cruiseship passengers take the train. Easy to just get a cab direct to the ship, less than $20ca

[tangerinebunny]

At this time HAL still gives no discount for early bookings; the prices are usually lower closer to sailing. As has been stated, you can ask for a lower fare if prices go down before final payment since you still have the option to cancel and rebook at the lower fare. After final payment OBC is sometimes given in this situation if requested.

 

However, a reliable travel agent who posts on the HAL board has said repeatedly that the HAL model is changing. They are probably going to follow other lines in offering lower pricing for early bookings. She's guessing that this may occur fairly soon.

 

So no matter what you do now, you may want to compare prices next January during the WAVE season sales. You'd still have time to grab a bargain and rebook if necessary.

[Seminolevet]

Have a look at the Zuiderdam -- it sails on Saturdays, which means fewer days off required for your dad, probably, for travel. DO get them into Vancouver the day BEFORE the cruise. What category of cabin are you considering for them?

 

Make sure you set aside enough $$$ that you can send your parents on a whale watch in Juneau

 

I really like the Saturday option, just for that reason for my dad. We're looking at a balcony for them, as long as we can make it affordable. I definitely want them to spend a day in the departure city (or at least on the West Coast) before departure to give them time to adjust and not feel rushed in getting to the ship. I have to make this as simple as possible for them, since my dad gets frustrated when things don't run smoothly (he's ex-military ;) )

 

And the Juneau whale watch is a must, especially since we got skunked on our scheduled whale watch when we went. It's the one thing we didn't get to do, and I'm going to make sure they do! :)

[CowPrincess]

Zuiderdam is one of the mid-size HAL ships (about 2000 pax) and has more balconies available than HAL's small ships (about 1300 pax), SO the balcony prices are lower on the Zuiderdam :)

 

As Budget Queen mentioned, consider flying them to Seattle (likely cheaper than flying to Vcr) and having them take QuickShuttle or Amtrak to Vancouver. If you search this forum you will find a number of posts that talk about cost and amount of time required to travel from Seattle to Vancouver.

 

The "down" side to a Saturday sailing is that there will be plenty o' other ships in every port with them.

 

But that's not a deal breaker IMHO.

 

This is a lovely gift you are working on!

[KAYEF]

What a GREAT idea you have; you will give them memories to share forever.

As mentioned, QUICK SHUTTLE is an easy way to go. You don't have to get to from stain stations, etc. Their buses are very plush and comfortable. They are right outside baggage at SEA TAC and when you DISembark at Canada Place (HAL uses C. P.) the coach will be right there, inside, waiting for them.

We were off onto our drive south before many were off the ship.

Yes, it does cost MORE to fly out of Canada.

Have fun planning!:)

[Seminolevet]

Zuiderdam is one of the mid-size HAL ships (about 2000 pax) and has more balconies available than HAL's small ships (about 1300 pax), SO the balcony prices are lower on the Zuiderdam

 

That's really good to know. I hadn't even noticed the difference until you mentioned it. I'd been looking at the Volendam, and just assumed the verandah suite was similar to Princess balconies, but now I see the Zuiderdam has a whole other cabin level called verandah. That must be the balcony equivalent. Thanks so much for the info!!

 

We're planning on "giving" this gift to my parents this weekend. Saturday is their anniversary, so we figured it'd be fitting to give it a year in advance. Obviously they won't be traveling on their anniversary next year, but my dad's going to need plenty of advance notice to plan to take off for work. Plus it'll give us all plenty of time to get the cheapest flights and best selection of excursions. I wanted to keep them involved in the planning process to really make this "their trip", and not just my version of what that should be ;)

 

Thanks for all the help guys, I really appreciate it. I'm sure as things get closer, I'll be enlisting more help :)