Bringing Unlimited Wine Policy Officially Change Yesterday

[startwin]

The comments aren't glaring. You have to hunt for them. I find Facebook a waste of time for the most part. I had one of my so called Facebook friends telling me what an easy life I have because I cruise so much. Yeah, my life has been swell lately. Listening to people like that is a waste of my time. At least you can de friend people like that. I find it to be pretty much a wasteland.

 

Omigod if you have to hunt for them you are doing something wong:confused: But I get when someone is not familiar with facebook, and with HAL's page in particular. There are way too many comments on there today to count, all about this issue.

[Wakepatrol]

But why not fit your product (could be policy, could be inventory) to the demand, versus trying to fit people's demand to fit your product. That just doesn't work.

 

I've let HAL know that I'm available to be their shoreside beverage manager. It's a real easy program. After booking your cruise you will list all the beverages you must have on your cruise. You want Vanilla Gluten free Yoo-Hoo,you want water from fiji,you want craft beer,no worries just put it on the sheet, pay for it upfront and it will be in your cabin waiting for you. Yes there will be a mark-up but they're running a business.

Edited July 29, 2013 by Wakepatrol

[aliaschief]

Several thousand pax have embarked on HAL cruises over the past 2 days and so far not one pax has come on here with a complaint.

 

So true. Just a guess but probably 95% of Mariners are not even aware of the policy change and shame on Hal for not letting their patrons know about it.

 

Very few cruisers are members of Cruise Critic.

 

Look at the number of hits all threads on the subject have occurred.

 

We Mariners need to unite and spread the news to other Mariners we may know.

 

Understand why Hal has changed the policy but they definitely need to improve their selections and excessive mark ups.

 

Totally agree that Hal my as well cancell all wine excursions if you couldn't purchase a fine wine.

 

I did wonder if this announcement of policy on CC was premature but the policy effective date dispels that.

 

Just my thoughts on the issue and yes we have sent a message to Hal Hdqs. reflecting our displeasure on how it was implemented, the poor wine selection choices, prices and disappointment in loss of being able to enjoy some fine wines we may come across on our ports of call.

 

IMO it will require more than the CC minority to send a strong message to Holland Ameica.

 

Spread the word and give the bean counters something to ponder about their policy decision.

Edited July 29, 2013 by aliaschief

[Wakepatrol]

Imagine nightmare on boarding day and some people are allowed to bring on a case of wine while others are only allowed one bottle.

 

 

Who would bring a case of wine on a (oh never mind)

[serendipity1499]

On RCI they have x-ray scanners to scan all handbaggage when boarding the ship and also after a port day.

My traveling companion had a very small bottle of ouzo in her bag which was picked up and confiscated until disembarkation day.

I am sure the scanners will soon appear on HAL too.

 

They are on HAL..They have been there for years.. We & all of our packages have always been scanned every time we've boarded & re boarded in all ports..They even check out my cane when I use it.. When we were in Europe several years ago I bought a special bottle of Brandy as a gift for the couple who was taking care of our Dog & put it in a carry on bag..It was confiscated & returned to us the night before disembarkation..

 

Several thousand pax have embarked on HAL cruises over the past 2 days and so far not one pax has come on here with a complaint.

 

I've been wondering the same thing & would bet that Security has let the extra wine slip by..;)

Cheers...:)Betty

Edited July 29, 2013 by serendipity1499

[kazu]

I am guessing that while still in port their Wi-Fi would be free so I am not sure overpriced internet is relevant at that time. Perhaps HAL bean counters actually know what they are doing.

 

I doubt it very much - I could have come up with something a lot better that would have made sense for everyone without too much work.

 

The bean counters are making loyal people look elsewhere - cancel/think of cancelling bookings. This is good business???

 

I guess my financial background has a problem with this - but what do I know? It will be HAL's problem, not mine.

 

A lot of cancelled bookings from people who used to book them loyally (or mostly loyally) and booked far in advance are the people they don't want to lose - or shouldn't want to lose. I guess, if they want the people waiting for the flash sales - life is good - heaven knows, I am sure they will spend more than those that pay more up front:rolleyes: and somehow, after they give the cabins away, they are going to make money:rolleyes:

 

Business sense 101 - take care of your customer and they take care of you. I think that includes communication?:rolleyes:;)

[Wakepatrol]

Let's raise a glass of wine and thank HAL for allowing such a liberal policy for such a long time when all the other lines didn't.:)

[jebhoward3]

Here's a thought.

Purchase a decent but inexpensive ($10) bottle of wine in port. Purchase or take along some small plastic or paper cups. If they will not let you board the ship with your bottle just politely say you will take it off the ship. So you are off the ship, at the gangway, now pop the cork or unscrew the top and share that wine with your fellow passengers.

 

Sure hope I can remember to do this in December. And remember that wine you paid $10 for that HAL would charge you $35 - $40 probably only cost them $5 or less as they buy in bulk. We get 20% off at a local winery when we buy a case as we are wine club members. How much discount do they get with buying thousands of cases at a time?

 

I'll probably get flamed for what I am about to write, but here goes....

If the cruise lines think they need to make more $ they should raise the price of the cruise for everyone and lower their profit on things that only part of the people utilize. I'm not saying give product away, but be reasonable about the prices.. Those who drink should not make up for lost profit for everyone. Seems to me that the current price for that inside cabin is the same or even less than it was when we first started cruising for the same ports and number of days.. What has increased the price over the years is that we have choosen to book higher categories, longer cruises, and more exotic ports.

 

We will attain 4*'s during our next cruise. Booked a great deal with $1375 OBC from online TA. $400 OBC from HAL, and will have $250 OBC from owning CCL stock. If it wasn't for all the OBC I would be talking DH into canceling. We always take wine onboard, purchase wine packages, and drinks at the bar.

 

We are people who worked hard for our money and we live a simple life. We grow most of our vegetables and fruit, hunt for most of our meat which we butcher ourselves. We freeze, can, preserve, and dehydrate. We live this way so we can travel and feel like we can afford to splurge, we like good value for our money. We enjoy wine on our balcony, and wine with dinner but we can decrease how much we drink if we feel it is not a good value.

[startwin]

I doubt it very much - I could have come up with something a lot better that would have made sense for everyone without too much work.

 

The bean counters are making loyal people look elsewhere - cancel/think of cancelling bookings. This is good business???

 

I guess my financial background has a problem with this - but what do I know? It will be HAL's problem, not mine.

 

A lot of cancelled bookings from people who used to book them loyally (or mostly loyally) and booked far in advance are the people they don't want to lose - or shouldn't want to lose. I guess, if they want the people waiting for the flash sales - life is good - heaven knows, I am sure they will spend more than those that pay more up front:rolleyes: and somehow, after they give the cabins away, they are going to make money:rolleyes:

 

Business sense 101 - take care of your customer and they take care of you. I think that includes communication?:rolleyes:;)

 

 

You are just making way too much sense for the cheerleaders on here:rolleyes:

[22Vines]

Amazing, we need to come to grips, grieve, and accept that this is the way it will be. HAL is a business and they are there to make money. Change is always scary and uncomfortable.

 

I hope we can all say thanks for the wide latitude we have been given for a long time. A new day, adjust, budget for a bigger wine tab, and enjoy the cruise. Cheers

[OlsSalt]

Perhaps they don't care to pay for overpriced internet and we will hear when they post a trip report...or...they were given some slack as they were not aware of the policy change.

 

There is still the option the policy did not change as much as has been written about here - only the embarkation limitation in carry-on. Not the later purchase and consumption of a bottle from each port, for in cabin use?

Edited July 29, 2013 by OlsSalt

[kazu]

Amazing, we need to come to grips, grieve, and accept that this is the way it will be. HAL is a business and they are there to make money. Change is always scary and uncomfortable.

 

I hope we can all say thanks for the wide latitude we have been given for a long time. A new day, adjust, budget for a bigger wine tab, and enjoy the cruise. Cheers

 

I swore I would get off this thread but I can't resist...here's my response...

 

Hello, I'm your friendly bank - for years I was good to you and only charged you 5 % interest on your mortgage - starting tomorrow I will be charging you 25% interest. So your mortgage payment will now be x times what it was before.

 

come to grips and grieve and say thank you to our wide latitude over the years. It's a new day - adjust -= budget for a bigger mortgage payment and enjoy your home - cheers!

 

 

A slight exaggeration for sure - but no bank is allowed to just do this - I don't think any cruise line should be able to either.

 

Sorry, I'm not going to say thank you. When I booked I read know before you go - now it's changed with no consideration, no communication and no empathy and no notice.

 

I feel for those not on cruise critic. I really do.

[lovetocruise2020]

I've let HAL know that I'm available to be their shoreside beverage manager. It's a real easy program. After booking your cruise you will list all the beverages you must have on your cruise. You want Vanilla Gluten free Yoo-Hoo,you want water from fiji,you want craft beer,no worries just put it on the sheet, pay for it upfront and it will be in your cabin waiting for you. Yes there will be a mark-up but they're running a business.

 

And i for one and willing to pay.

 

Diet mtn dew

Craft root beer

Blood orange italian soda

Martinelli's cider

 

 

My preferred port, sparkling wines, sangria

 

And hot sauce.

Edited July 29, 2013 by surfergirle

[Cruising-along]

Omigod, where are you looking? The page is swamped with posts about it. Right hand side, click on "comments by others (or whatever) and the "see all"

 

I'm glad to see more and more posters there complaining (I did as well) and recognize several CC posters as well. ;)

[22Vines]

I swore I would get off this thread but I can't resist...here's my response...

 

Hello, I'm your friendly bank - for years I was good to you and only charged you 5 % interest on your mortgage - starting tomorrow I will be charging you 25% interest. So your mortgage payment will now be x times what it was before.

 

come to grips and grieve and say thank you to our wide latitude over the years. It's a new day - adjust -= budget for a bigger mortgage payment and enjoy your home - cheers!

 

 

A slight exaggeration for sure - but no bank is allowed to just do this - I don't think any cruise line should be able to either.

 

Sorry, I'm not going to say thank you. When I booked I read know before you go - now it's changed with no consideration, no communication and no empathy and no notice.

 

I feel for those not on cruise critic. I really do.

 

Sad

[startwin]

Amazing, we need to come to grips, grieve, and accept that this is the way it will be. HAL is a business and they are there to make money. Change is always scary and uncomfortable.

 

I hope we can all say thanks for the wide latitude we have been given for a long time. A new day, adjust, budget for a bigger wine tab, and enjoy the cruise. Cheers

 

Yes indeed, HAL is a business - and in competition with others in the same business. Nothing much to set them apart now from other mass cruise lines, and hopefully they will stop the never-ending cutbacks and get back on a par with those other cruiselines, and smarten up the ships as well.

[pms4104]

I wonder if this announcement and change in contract wording is a nod to CCL, not the cruiseline but the corporation. Is it possible HAL’s profits are lagging behind other CCL lines? And, perhaps corporate is leaning on HAL to eke out more nickels and dines to improve the bottom line? There are shareholders to consider … and to keep happy.

 

We have yet to hear stories of enforcement. Will this new policy be carried out fleetwide in a consistent manner? Or will the management of each vessel impose the change as it suits them? People often comment here about inconsistencies from one shp to another, and perhaps this will be another area where Seattle policies are not implemented in a rigid and consistent manner.

 

Secondary baggage screening to find concealed/prohibited excess wine, beer, liquor? Like HAL hasn’t already cut staff to the bare bones … I doubt there will be enough pier or onboard staff to carry out a thorough security team inspection of each and every piece of luggage, with subsequent dealings with passengers who violated the policy.

 

The wording, as I said at the beginning of this comment, may have been forced on HAL … but the enforcement may be spotty or even non-existent. Perhaps this contract wording is nothing more than an idle threat, with the hope of intimidating passengers into compliance. Time will tell.

Edited July 29, 2013 by pms4104

[xjust4fun]

Yes indeed, HAL is a business - and in competition with others in the same business. Nothing much to set them apart now from other mass cruise lines, and hopefully they will stop the never-ending cutbacks and get back on a par with those other cruiselines, and smarten up the ships as well.

 

Agree Startwin, otherwise might be time to seriously consider spending my money elsewhere.

[TiogaCruiser]

Just took a quick run through the Rollcalls and there isn't much recent activity, or post boarding activity for the past 2 days. And there are no live-from threads going now. So I really doubt many active CCrs just boarded. It may be another week before we hear much first hand. Come to think of it, the past month or so there has been less a activity on this forum.

[Laminator]

I've been wondering the same thing & would bet that Security has let the extra wine slip by..;)

 

Cheers...:)Betty

 

I am guessing that may be true. Yesterday I was sure we would be hearing about this from pax boarding either yesterday or today. I still think their policy is worded quite strangely.

[Laminator]

I doubt it very much - I could have come up with something a lot better that would have made sense for everyone without too much work.

 

The bean counters are making loyal people look elsewhere - cancel/think of cancelling bookings. This is good business???

 

I guess my financial background has a problem with this - but what do I know? It will be HAL's problem, not mine.

 

A lot of cancelled bookings from people who used to book them loyally (or mostly loyally) and booked far in advance are the people they don't want to lose - or shouldn't want to lose. I guess, if they want the people waiting for the flash sales - life is good - heaven knows, I am sure they will spend more than those that pay more up front:rolleyes: and somehow, after they give the cabins away, they are going to make money:rolleyes:

 

Business sense 101 - take care of your customer and they take care of you. I think that includes communication?:rolleyes:;)

 

 

Would I have done it differently? Absolutely.

 

But I also know there are a lot of people much smarter than I am running HAL. They have been testing drink deals on some of their ships for several months now. I am guessing the results they received from the test marketing has been positive enough to institute this new policy. Hence the new promo.

[Sea-travelers]

I swore I would get off this thread but I can't resist...here's my response...

 

Hello, I'm your friendly bank - for years I was good to you and only charged you 5 % interest on your mortgage - starting tomorrow I will be charging you 25% interest. So your mortgage payment will now be x times what it was before.

 

come to grips and grieve and say thank you to our wide latitude over the years. It's a new day - adjust -= budget for a bigger mortgage payment and enjoy your home - cheers!

 

 

A slight exaggeration for sure - but no bank is allowed to just do this - I don't think any cruise line should be able to either.

 

Sorry, I'm not going to say thank you. When I booked I read know before you go - now it's changed with no consideration, no communication and no empathy and no notice.

 

I feel for those not on cruise critic. I really do.

 

Kazu you always make sense and I almost always agree with you. Thank you for your opinions.

[OlsSalt]

Yes indeed, HAL is a business - and in competition with others in the same business. Nothing much to set them apart now from other mass cruise lines, and hopefully they will stop the never-ending cutbacks and get back on a par with those other cruiselines, and smarten up the ships as well.

 

HAL as a main stream line, still has the best small ships, the best itineraries, the best libraries, the best open windowed public spaces, best art, best flowers, the best beds, the best closet/storage space, best small suites, the largest bathrooms, the best enrichment speakers, best food choices, best specialty restaurant, best sailing traditions, and the best staff and crew. I think I will stick with them for all of the above reasons.

Edited July 29, 2013 by OlsSalt

[Sea-travelers]

I wonder if this announcement and change in contract wording is a nod to CCL, not the cruiseline but the corporation. Is it possible HAL’s profits are lagging behind other CCL lines? And, perhaps corporate is leaning on HAL to eke out more nickels and dines to improve the bottom line? There are shareholders to consider … and to keep happy.

 

We have yet to hear stories of enforcement. Will this new policy be carried out fleetwide in a consistent manner? Or will the management of each vessel impose the change as it suits them? People often comment here about inconsistencies from one shp to another, and perhaps this will be another area where Seattle policies are not implemented in a rigid and consistent manner.

I

Secondary baggage screening to find concealed/prohibited excess wine, beer, liquor? Like HAL hasn’t already cut staff to the bare bones … I doubt there will be enough pier or onboard staff to carry out a thorough security team inspection of each and every piece of luggage, with subsequent dealings with passengers who violated the policy.

 

The wording, as I said at the beginning of this comment, may have been forced on HAL … but the enforcement may be spotty or even non-existent. Perhaps this contract wording is nothing more than an idle threat, with the hope of intimidating passengers into compliance. Time will tell.

 

I think since this hit on a Friday that there has not been time for the full impact of the new policy to be known. Only Reservations works on weekends so no one has read all the emails yet, in my opinion. Also, just like the airlines, HAL has different crews that work on embarkation days to handle all the checking in of passengers as well as luggage. The luggage is put through x-ray just like at the airport. I think the new policy will be upheld by all the ships and not different from ship to ship.

[jschm27]

Here's a thought.

Purchase a decent but inexpensive ($10) bottle of wine in port. Purchase or take along some small plastic or paper cups. If they will not let you board the ship with your bottle just politely say you will take it off the ship. So you are off the ship, at the gangway, now pop the cork or unscrew the top and share that wine with your fellow passengers.

 

Sure hope I can remember to do this in December. And remember that wine you paid $10 for that HAL would charge you $35 - $40 probably only cost them $5 or less as they buy in bulk. We get 20% off at a local winery when we buy a case as we are wine club members. How much discount do they get with buying thousands of cases at a time?

 

I'll probably get flamed for what I am about to write, but here goes....

If the cruise lines think they need to make more $ they should raise the price of the cruise for everyone and lower their profit on things that only part of the people utilize. I'm not saying give product away, but be reasonable about the prices.. Those who drink should not make up for lost profit for everyone. Seems to me that the current price for that inside cabin is the same or even less than it was when we first started cruising for the same ports and number of days.. What has increased the price over the years is that we have choosen to book higher categories, longer cruises, and more exotic ports.

 

We will attain 4*'s during our next cruise. Booked a great deal with $1375 OBC from online TA. $400 OBC from HAL, and will have $250 OBC from owning CCL stock. If it wasn't for all the OBC I would be talking DH into canceling. We always take wine onboard, purchase wine packages, and drinks at the bar.

 

We are people who worked hard for our money and we live a simple life. We grow most of our vegetables and fruit, hunt for most of our meat which we butcher ourselves. We freeze, can, preserve, and dehydrate. We live this way so we can travel and feel like we can afford to splurge, we like good value for our money. We enjoy wine on our balcony, and wine with dinner but we can decrease how much we drink if we feel it is not a good value.

 

Hey Jeb!

 

I was just in your fair city a couple of weeks ago in my motor home. Spent a couple of days and enjoyed the Monument. I congratulate you on your lifestyle. I can see how a person can accomplish that in Grand Junction!

 

Regards

John