Bringing Unlimited Wine Policy Officially Change Yesterday

[Wakepatrol]

Sure some, but do you have any idea the percentage of your "some"? 1%, 10%, 50%?

 

No unfortunately not. Hal probably figured out the percentages and then changed the policy. They would know better .

 

Good question.why not shoot them an email?

[sandthrush]

For what it's worth, we've lived with the similar policy on Celebrity for years, and a few notes about enforcement:

 

1. We have brought on more wine than one bottle at embarcation. Often, the security personnel are Port employees, not Ship staff, and they didn't seem to care.

 

2. We don't drink in our staterooms, so always took the wine to the dining room and paid corkage. We asked our stateroom attendant to bring the wine to the dining room each night, so he was well aware of the extra wine. The sommelier was also aware, and had no issue with the number of personal bottles. He even waived the corkage fee a few times.

 

3. At many ports, we purchased wine. If it was wrapped up and inside a backpack, there were no issues. If it was in a shopping bag, it was taken and given back on the last night- the last time was in Lisbon on a TA, and they took away my bottles of port- no worries, as these were intended to come home with me.

 

4. The times when we saw more enforcement were LA cruises to Mexico, and Ft. Lauderdale cruises to the Caribbean. These were also 7- night cruises.

 

The above is not a recommendation to sail Celebrity, nor a guarantee that you will have the same luck, but just a little oil on the water to say that, perhaps as the policy is put in place on HAL, they may or may not be so strict about this if you are just bringing the one or two extra bottles, but are drawing a line in the sand so that they CAN enforce this when the cases of wine roll up to the ship.

 

Time will tell.

 

Andrew

 

 

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Forums mobile app

 

To each his own, but I am not comfortable pushing to see what I can get away with. I'm not that good of an actress. We thought of trying to get away with an extra two bottles of wine on Celebrity last year (out of Ft. Lauderdale). I had gone through the security check point, with no bottles of wine and DH had the two bottles that were allowed. DH told the security officer that he had wine in his carry-on . The security guard then asked the person behind DH if they were with DH. They were not, so no problem. Had we both been carrying 2 bottles, no doubt we would have gotten caught. Call me a wimp, but had we done something wrong and got caught, I would have been terribly embarrassed. Some people can blow something like that off, it would have ruined my cruise.

[ajcruiser]

this would not be correct as Guest Relations only deals with issues that come up for passengers on the cruise like an issue with the stateroom etc. Go to the website for HAL and to the Contact us at the bottom of the page regarding the new wine policy.

 

For people having trouble getting their comments to "submit" on the HAL website...try using Internet Explorer. I could not get my comments to submit with Firefox but had no trouble with IE. It's a program thing.

[lovetocruise2020]

There are so many variations on sangria; one can even get white sangria :eek:

 

From Expedia:

Sangria is a wine from Spain, Portugal and Argentina. It normally consists of wine, chopped fruit, a sweetener, a

nd a small amount of added brandy.

 

Sangria is named after the Portuguese word for "blood" - "sangue"

because of its typical dark-red color

.

 

Right, but that is not the recipe alot of restaurants are using here in CA. Its wine, vodka, simple syrup and fruit. Sometimes flavored vodka.

Its because they are making it by the glass. Its essentially a mixed drink.

 

I prefer either homemade sangria or bottled versus what most restaurants are touting as "sangria"...

 

Either way, not one or the other is on a HAL menu.

 

http://Www.quintllc.com best ive ever had.

Edited July 29, 2013 by surfergirle

[DaveOKC]

Even though I normally only bring 1 bottle per person onboard (so the policy really does not impact me), I sent an email to the Office of the President outlining ny concerns and thoughts on what would be a "fairer" program for everyone.

 

I focused on the fact that HAL brought the wine problem upon themselves by charging unreasonably high prices for inferior quality wines and this is what really should be addressed.

 

DaveOKC

[Mimosa09]

We really enjoy a glass of wine each evening before dinner on our balcony. In addition to the new wine ruling, HAL has discontinued something else we love. They have are not having bridge directors on most cruises. I am a stockholder and don't understand their reasoning as having bridge available doesn't cost them much money. Guess they only want to have things available they can bill to our accounts.

 

Guess there is more than one change in their policy. Guess we should read the "what you need to know" docs now to see what else changed.

 

-Rose

[lovetocruise2020]

Glad it wasn't just me. I did find it using my ipad. Most of the comments aren't worth reading because people seem a bit spoiled. When they start complaining about everything under the sun (not just the wine policy change) I think it's really in their best interest to look elsewhere.

 

Its me too.

[JimmyVWine]

Ive never been in a restaurant with a liquor license that allows you to bring your own.

 

I really could care less what Canadians can and can't do in their restaurants. If I travel to Canada, Im not hauling a case of wine with me. Get over your provinces. Bring your wine here and walk into my restaurants. They'll tell you no or charge you a $50 corkage fee.

Well, which is it? Are diners prohibited from bringing in personal wines, or can they, with the payment of a corkage fee?

 

Your statements on this issue are remarkably uninformed. Do you ever use Open Table to book reservations? The information page for each restaurant will either say "Personal wines welcome, (corkage fee applies)" or be silent on the subject. If it says the former, you can bring your own wine. If it is silent, you cannot. And many, many restaurants in NY/NJ indicate the former. Even the ones with licenses. And to further your education on the subject, here is a website to get you started. http://www.gobyo.com/index.php And yes, The Four Seasons allows you to bring your own wine even if you do not have a wine locker there. So does Aureole; Marea; Per Se; Jean Georges; Grammercy Tavern, Eleven Madison Park, and on and on and on. And these restaurants have some of the finest wine lists in City.

[Sherry H]

Please folks........send where it counts the most:

 

Officeofthepresident@HollandAmerica.com

 

The employees don't have any power to make any changes.

[innlady1]

Please folks........send where it counts the most:

 

Officeofthepresident@HollandAmerica.com

 

The employees don't have any power to make any changes.

 

I sent one to Stein Kruse....

[Mimosa09]

Mid-July, I started the process of online check-in. When I agreed to the contract, this is the Alcohol policy I agreed to:

 

"Except for wine & champagne, alcohol beverages purchased in the ship's stores or otherwise brought on the ship cannot be consumed on the ship. ......A corkage fee of US$18.00 (subject to change) applies to wine & champagne brought to the restaurants or bars for consumption......"

 

I guess I thought the corkage fee was "subject to change", not the whole alchohol policy!!:eek:

 

As others have stated, it would have been nice to phase in the policy!

 

I haven't made the final payment yet (Oct is when it's due), but after looking at the option of "jumping ship" for a different cruiseline - it is going to cost us more. We have a second cruise to follow the HAL we booked, plus we booked our flights there & back. This is our first HAL cruise and we are not having warm fuzzy feelings so far. The itinerary is still the most appealing to us. We decided to just pay more for mediocore wine rather than cruise a mediocore itinerary.

 

-Rose

[cruz chic]

Its me too.

Thank you for the confirmation because apparently I'm a moron incapable of finding things that are clear to everyone else:rolleyes::eek:.

[JimmyVWine]

Seriously, you would cancel your cruise because you cannot bring your wine !!!!

In a heartbeat. You know those bottles that people collect "for a special occasion"? Well, when I am on vacation relaxing, out of the kitchen with someone preparing and serving a meal for me, those are among the special occasions for which I am saving such wines. Earlier in this thread someone posted the X wine list. When I go on vacation, the bottles that I bring with me would be (and some are) found on that list ranging from $700-$5000+. Now, I didn't spend anywhere near those amounts to acquire the wines, but that is what they are worth on today's wine lists. When I am on vacation, be it at a resort or on a cruise, that is what I like to drink. Doesn't happen as often as I like, but 5-10 such bottles a year suits me just fine. If I can't bring those wines with me, what is my recourse? Sail on a line that has them on their list and boost my cruise fare by $5000+ to drink wines that I already own in my cellar? Or better yet cancel my cruise and re-book with a line that treats me like an adult. For $75, we can bring 7 bottles on board Princess--two for free and 5 at $15 per bottle. Would I cancel a HAL cruise to re-book with PCL. Heck yeah.

[serendipity1499]

didn't RCC/Celebrity start 'no alcohol of any kind' a while ago..

 

this new policy really doesn't affect us too much..

 

now HAL ought to stop 'playing games' with how they release the availability of certain Cabin-Categories .. but I guess that doesn't make them any more bucks-- it's just one big computer shell game on their part :mad:

 

What games are they playing with cabin categories? :confused: When Travel Agents have blocked space & don't fill the assigned cabins or release them some categories will be closed..When the TA releases them they open up..Is it possible that the categories you are looking at are not being released early enough..Is that what you are alluding to?:confused:

That has changed since they became more inclusive and started including wine and colas with the cruise fare. There is no 2 bottle restriction. They charge a $10.00 corkage fee if you want to bring your own bottle to the MDR.

 

Jade, I put the bold in your post.. I think you ought to read their policy again in the post you quoted..It clearly states in the first paragraph, which you quote in your post, that Psgrs are limited to two bottles on embarkation..

cheers..Betty

[Sherry H]

Please........send to:

 

Officeofthepresident@HollandAmerica.com

 

Just sent mine and received a confirmation it went to:

 

Stein Kruse President

 

Send your voice where it can truly be heard!

[quartetman]

well, which is it? Are diners prohibited from bringing in personal wines, or can they, with the payment of a corkage fee?

 

Your statements on this issue are remarkably uninformed. Do you ever use open table to book reservations? The information page for each restaurant will either say "personal wines welcome, (corkage fee applies)" or be silent on the subject. If it says the former, you can bring your own wine. If it is silent, you cannot. And many, many restaurants in ny/nj indicate the former. Even the ones with licenses. And to further your education on the subject, here is a website to get you started. http://www.gobyo.com/index.php and yes, the four seasons allows you to bring your own wine even if you do not have a wine locker there. So does aureole; marea; per se; jean georges; grammercy tavern, eleven madison park, and on and on and on. And these restaurants have some of the finest wine lists in city.

well said !!!!

[sail7seas]

still offering Wine packages... sign-in.. go to 'your reservations'.. Purchase--Indulgences.. Beverages.. scroll down to Packages.. Navigator- 7 bottle is now at 248.. it was at 199 last cruise we were on in March.. and half price as 5 stars

 

 

We once bought a wine package.

When they showed us the list from which we could choose, we immediately cancelled the wine package.

We looked at both Navigator and Admiral. Perhaps the list changes but at the time we decided to try it, there was not a single wine we wanted.

 

[arewethereyet]

We once bought a wine package.

When they showed us the list from which we could choose, we immediately cancelled the wine package.

We looked at both Navigator and Admiral. Perhaps the list changes but at the time we decided to try it, there was not a single wine we wanted.

 

On our last HAL cruise (March) we went to two wine tastings. The first tasting was wines from the Navigator package. the second was wines from the Admiral package. DW and I agreed that we would not buy any wine we tasted no matter what the price. HAL needs to work on this too.

[YubaSutter]

I just sent a letter regarding the wine allowance. I told them if it isn't changed back immediately, I will never pay the service charge again. I'll buy wine with the tip money.

[innlady1]

I just sent a letter regarding the wine allowance. I told them if it isn't changed back immediately, I will never pay the service charge again. I'll buy wine with the tip money.

 

And, eventually, they'll include it in the fare rather than make it optional.

This thread has almost 800 posts within a very short time....

[RD64]

What is the correlation between the new wine policy and the gratuities service charge?

[Cruising Ham]

If I have friends on any particular sailing I guess I will be in demand as a mule. That's OK as I am happy to oblige.

We're taking my mother-in-law on her first (and likely only) cruise in September. I've always wanted to call her a mule; now I have the perfect opportunity!!

 

Actually, I like her a lot, but the idea still amuses me.

[HamOp]

I just sent a letter regarding the wine allowance. I told them if it isn't changed back immediately, I will never pay the service charge again. I'll buy wine with the tip money.

 

And if HAL removes the option to change the service charge? What then?

[innlady1]

I have a favorite wine that I bring on board with us. Columbia Crest Grand Estates Chardonnay. Locally I pay $14 a bottle...sometimes on sale for $11. Total Wine sells it for $7.97.

HAL has it sometimes; and sometimes not. It's from Washington so I'm in luck there.

I happily pay the corkage fee in the MDR but on occasion have ordered it...especially in the Pinnacle so they don't have to chase around for my bottle.

Not sure what it is per bottle on HAL but per glass, it is $14.

Last time in the Pinnacle on the Ryndam, and the waiter said he would go an open a bottle. He brought me my glass...I tasted it and knew right away it wasn't Columbia Crest. The little bugger obviously slipped me something else to save the trouble of corking a new bottle...finally brought the correct wine and it was, indeed, Columbia Crest.

[KirkNC]

What is the correlation between the new wine policy and the gratuities service charge?

 

I don't follow that either.