Smoking on HAL

[momatibm]

As "reformed smokers" we try to be tolerant of smokers on cruises. In March on the Westerdam though, our buttons got pushed to the limit so to speak. At the Muster Drill we were in the back row purposely so my scooter and I wouldn't get run over. :rolleyes: Sitting on a bench next to us were younger adults (quite honestly, they seemed too lazy to stand).

 

When one of the men started puffing on his cigar during the Drill, I tried to just ignore the situation. After several others around us complained loudly he did put his cigar out ... right into his Lido coffee cup. :eek: I happened to turn my head towards him just as he did it and I thought I was going to lose my lunch. I can honestly say, I will never be able to drink a coffee out of anything that resembles a Lido cup. I don't care where smoking is allowed/not allowed. I won't attend another Muster Drill without complaining to HAL staff if I encounter another cigar.

 

I've never smoked, however, I do notice when smokers are inconsiderate -- I don't appreciate the 'butts' on the street - particularly don't appreciate the 'snuffing' in coffee cups, etc. That is just rude.

[ruthnlarry]

Please let me know which cruise line is perfect. I'd love to try it.

 

We are 3 Star Mariners, and after experiencing a gradual decline in the HAL, we started cruising with Azamara and Oceania. They are phenomenal. We have found them to be far above HAL in all respects including service, food, itinerary, and interaction between staff , officers, and guests. The only area where HAL surpasses these carriers is in the size of the cabins, except on Oceania's new ships.

 

Last November, we decided to give HAL another chance. During our cruise to the Amazon on the Prinsendam, we experienced problems from the onset with a 4 hour delay on embarkation. Once we boarded, the public spaces were filled with carpet scraps and dirty dishes. Since the ship was coming out of drydock, the ship should have been in pristine condition.

 

There were multiple problems throughout the ship. The air conditioning in many cabins, including ours, did not work. Air conditional is essential in the Amazon! The heat in our cabin made sleeping impossible. Finally, our cabin steward was ale to procure a fan for us. On top of the discomfort of tropical heat and humidity, there were many days where the vacuum system for the toilets was non-functional. Our toilet, as well as toilets in other cabins, overflowed and flooded cabins adding to the exasperation of many cruisers.

 

The quality of the food was mediocre at best. Some of the seafood dishes had an off taste. In fact, DH experienced severe vomiting and diarrhea shortly after eating a small amount of such a dish. While, we cannot prove that this was food poisoning, the coincidence was just too strong.

 

Due to the multitude of problems, everyone that we knew, received a letter of apology from the captain and a substantial credit to be used on a future HAL cruise. We are using this credit for our last cruise on HAL to the Caribbean. After this, we will continue to cruise on Azamara, Oceania, and Celebrity. We will never again spend any more money with HAL.

 

If you value your money and time, try some other options than HAL. You may be pleasantly surprised and converted like us. We now have taken 4 cruises on both Azamara and Oceania. Yes, they are more expensive than HAL, but worth it. Great deals can be obtained on both.

[Cashew14]

We are 3 Star Mariners, and after experiencing a gradual decline in the HAL, we started cruising with Azamara and Oceania. They are phenomenal. We have found them to be far above HAL in all respects including service, food, itinerary, and interaction between staff , officers, and guests. The only area where HAL surpasses these carriers is in the size of the cabins, except on Oceania's new ships.

 

Last November, we decided to give HAL another chance. During our cruise to the Amazon on the Prinsendam, we experienced problems from the onset with a 4 hour delay on embarkation. Once we boarded, the public spaces were filled with carpet scraps and dirty dishes. Since the ship was coming out of drydock, the ship should have been in pristine condition.

 

There were multiple problems throughout the ship. The air conditioning in many cabins, including ours, did not work. Air conditional is essential in the Amazon! The heat in our cabin made sleeping impossible. Finally, our cabin steward was ale to procure a fan for us. On top of the discomfort of tropical heat and humidity, there were many days where the vacuum system for the toilets was non-functional. Our toilet, as well as toilets in other cabins, overflowed and flooded cabins adding to the exasperation of many cruisers.

 

The quality of the food was mediocre at best. Some of the seafood dishes had an off taste. In fact, DH experienced severe vomiting and diarrhea shortly after eating a small amount of such a dish. While, we cannot prove that this was food poisoning, the coincidence was just too strong.

 

Due to the multitude of problems, everyone that we knew, received a letter of apology from the captain and a substantial credit to be used on a future HAL cruise. We are using this credit for our last cruise on HAL to the Caribbean. After this, we will continue to cruise on Azamara, Oceania, and Celebrity. We will never again spend any more money with HAL.

 

If you value your money and time, try some other options than HAL. You may be pleasantly surprised and converted like us. We now have taken 4 cruises on both Azamara and Oceania. Yes, they are more expensive than HAL, but worth it. Great deals can be obtained on both.

 

I think you are entitled after your experiences to change cruise lines and I am glad you are happy with it. We have not yet experienced any significant problems which would have led us to try out another line. But if we would experience major problems in our eyes, I would change in a heartbeat too.

 

And as you said, other cruise lines might be more expensive but you get what you pay for.

 

Andrea :)

[cruz chic]

We are 3 Star Mariners, and after experiencing a gradual decline in the HAL, we started cruising with Azamara and Oceania. They are phenomenal. We have found them to be far above HAL in all respects including service, food, itinerary, and interaction between staff , officers, and guests. The only area where HAL surpasses these carriers is in the size of the cabins, except on Oceania's new ships.

 

Last November, we decided to give HAL another chance. During our cruise to the Amazon on the Prinsendam, we experienced problems from the onset with a 4 hour delay on embarkation. Once we boarded, the public spaces were filled with carpet scraps and dirty dishes. Since the ship was coming out of drydock, the ship should have been in pristine condition.

 

There were multiple problems throughout the ship. The air conditioning in many cabins, including ours, did not work. Air conditional is essential in the Amazon! The heat in our cabin made sleeping impossible. Finally, our cabin steward was ale to procure a fan for us. On top of the discomfort of tropical heat and humidity, there were many days where the vacuum system for the toilets was non-functional. Our toilet, as well as toilets in other cabins, overflowed and flooded cabins adding to the exasperation of many cruisers.

 

The quality of the food was mediocre at best. Some of the seafood dishes had an off taste. In fact, DH experienced severe vomiting and diarrhea shortly after eating a small amount of such a dish. While, we cannot prove that this was food poisoning, the coincidence was just too strong.

 

Due to the multitude of problems, everyone that we knew, received a letter of apology from the captain and a substantial credit to be used on a future HAL cruise. We are using this credit for our last cruise on HAL to the Caribbean. After this, we will continue to cruise on Azamara, Oceania, and Celebrity. We will never again spend any more money with HAL.

 

If you value your money and time, try some other options than HAL. You may be pleasantly surprised and converted like us. We now have taken 4 cruises on both Azamara and Oceania. Yes, they are more expensive than HAL, but worth it. Great deals can be obtained on both.

I'm not a fan of Celebrity so I'm not sure I would cruise Azamara. I would expect Oceania would be top notch but so is their price. I appreciate you taking the time to answer. Hal hasn't chased me off yet but they are going in the right direction to do that with some of their policies.

[ruthnlarry]

I'm not a fan of Celebrity so I'm not sure I would cruise Azamara. I would expect Oceania would be top notch but so is their price. I appreciate you taking the time to answer. Hal hasn't chased me off yet but they are going in the right direction to do that with some of their policies.

 

Try Azamara. They offer a totally different experience than Celebrity. Azamara is more comparable to Oceania. Whether we cruise on Azamara or Oceania is dependent upon itinerary and price.

[cruz chic]

Try Azamara. They offer a totally different experience than Celebrity. Azamara is more comparable to Oceania. Whether we cruise on Azamara or Oceania is dependent upon itinerary and price.

Good info. Thx so much.

[chrispb]

Good info. Thx so much.

 

Why not give it a try? Sometimes it's good to get out of your comfort zone. I don't think I've ever stayed in the same hotel or cruised the same ship more than once. I just enjoy new experiences:D

[cruz chic]

Why not give it a try? Sometimes it's good to get out of your comfort zone. I don't think I've ever stayed in the same hotel or cruised the same ship more than once. I just enjoy new experiences:D

I have tried other cruise lines so it's not a comfort thing for me. I cruise Princess regularly and Celebrity is a hot mess IMO. It's more the fact that I generally cruise solo so things can become uber expensive very quickly. HAL may think they have me in the bag but that's not true. It does give me something to look out for.

[LindaM]

We are 3 Star Mariners, and after experiencing a gradual decline in the HAL, we started cruising with Azamara and Oceania. They are phenomenal. We have found them to be far above HAL in all respects including service, food, itinerary, and interaction between staff , officers, and guests. The only area where HAL surpasses these carriers is in the size of the cabins, except on Oceania's new ships.

 

Last November, we decided to give HAL another chance. During our cruise to the Amazon on the Prinsendam, we experienced problems from the onset with a 4 hour delay on embarkation. Once we boarded, the public spaces were filled with carpet scraps and dirty dishes. Since the ship was coming out of drydock, the ship should have been in pristine condition.

 

There were multiple problems throughout the ship. The air conditioning in many cabins, including ours, did not work. Air conditional is essential in the Amazon! The heat in our cabin made sleeping impossible. Finally, our cabin steward was ale to procure a fan for us. On top of the discomfort of tropical heat and humidity, there were many days where the vacuum system for the toilets was non-functional. Our toilet, as well as toilets in other cabins, overflowed and flooded cabins adding to the exasperation of many cruisers.

 

The quality of the food was mediocre at best. Some of the seafood dishes had an off taste. In fact, DH experienced severe vomiting and diarrhea shortly after eating a small amount of such a dish. While, we cannot prove that this was food poisoning, the coincidence was just too strong.

 

Due to the multitude of problems, everyone that we knew, received a letter of apology from the captain and a substantial credit to be used on a future HAL cruise. We are using this credit for our last cruise on HAL to the Caribbean. After this, we will continue to cruise on Azamara, Oceania, and Celebrity. We will never again spend any more money with HAL.

 

If you value your money and time, try some other options than HAL. You may be pleasantly surprised and converted like us. We now have taken 4 cruises on both Azamara and Oceania. Yes, they are more expensive than HAL, but worth it. Great deals can be obtained on both.

 

I do recall the issues with this sailing. I would be very wary of sailing any ship after a drydock. In fact, I wouldn't do it, for the reasons stated. Most experienced cruisers (who frequent CC) know of the horror stories.

 

If Prinsendam continued to have the issues you dealt with, we would have continued to hear about the problems here. Many of us sail Prinsendam exclusively. We found the food to be superior to Regent, which is the Luxury relative of Oceania. I am sorry you had problems and I don't discount or disbelieve your account. However, you can't honestly believe HAL hasn't dealt with those issues. Unfortunately, the Oceania and Azamara ships from the Renaissance fleet cannot compare with Prinsendam. They were not built to be part of a luxury line. The public rooms on Prinsendam were built with better quality, expensive materials. Celebrity is not what it once was. It is no better than HAL at it's worst, IMHO. We all have our opinions. What I like, you might not. That's OK....we have lots of cruiselines to choose from. Unfortunately, we don't have a big choice in ships holding less than 800 passengers.

[ruthnlarry]

I do recall the issues with this sailing. I would be very wary of sailing any ship after a drydock. In fact, I wouldn't do it, for the reasons stated. Most experienced cruisers (who frequent CC) know of the horror stories.

 

If Prinsendam continued to have the issues you dealt with, we would have continued to hear about the problems here. Many of us sail Prinsendam exclusively. We found the food to be superior to Regent, which is the Luxury relative of Oceania. I am sorry you had problems and I don't discount or disbelieve your account. However, you can't honestly believe HAL hasn't dealt with those issues. Unfortunately, the Oceania and Azamara ships from the Renaissance fleet cannot compare with Prinsendam. They were not built to be part of a luxury line. The public rooms on Prinsendam were built with better quality, expensive materials. Celebrity is not what it once was. It is no better than HAL at it's worst, IMHO. We all have our opinions. What I like, you might not. That's OK....we have lots of cruiselines to choose from. Unfortunately, we don't have a big choice in ships holding less than 800 passengers.

The problems on our Prinsendam Amazon cruise were real, and are documented in a blog posted by HAL 4 star Mariners. http://theamazonadventure.blogspot.com/2012/12/thursdaynovember-29-waiting-to-go-dot.html

 

We are experienced cruisers (20+), and have heard accounts of cruises after drydock. However, we expected more of HAL. In addition, we had booked this cruise before the drydock was announced, and had already made arrangements for many of our excellent private tours. We did not want to cancel this cruise or our arranged excursions that others were also depending upon. We greatly enjoyed our experiences in the Amazon, but not the Prinsendam.

 

During our cruise, we talked with a number of fellow passengers who had previously cruised on the Prinsendam. They talked about past AC and plumbing problems. So, it was unbelievable that these problems were not fixed during an extensive 2 week drydock.

 

While I respect your entitled opinion, how can you state that Celebrity "is no better than HAL at it's worst, IMHO"? Have you ever cruised on Azamara, Oceania, or Celebrity? You said "Many of us sail Prinsendam exclusively."

 

Wishing you the best on your future Prinsendam cruises, but you won't see us back on HAL after our Caribbean cruise booked with our Prinsendam credit.

[LindaM]

The problems on our Prinsendam Amazon cruise were real, and are documented in a blog posted by HAL 4 star Mariners. http://theamazonadventure.blogspot.com/2012/12/thursdaynovember-29-waiting-to-go-dot.html

 

We are experienced cruisers (20+), and have heard accounts of cruises after drydock. However, we expected more of HAL. In addition, we had booked this cruise before the drydock was announced, and had already made arrangements for many of our excellent private tours. We did not want to cancel this cruise or our arranged excursions that others were also depending upon. We greatly enjoyed our experiences in the Amazon, but not the Prinsendam.

 

During our cruise, we talked with a number of fellow passengers who had previously cruised on the Prinsendam. They talked about past AC and plumbing problems. So, it was unbelievable that these problems were not fixed during an extensive 2 week drydock.

 

While I respect your entitled opinion, how can you state that Celebrity "is no better than HAL at it's worst, IMHO"? Have you ever cruised on Azamara, Oceania, or Celebrity? You said "Many of us sail Prinsendam exclusively."

 

Wishing you the best on your future Prinsendam cruises, but you won't see us back on HAL after our Caribbean cruise booked with our Prinsendam credit.

 

I have been on 26 cruises. Two on Regent in the past 2 years. I've been on 2 Celebrity. Prinsendam is the only HAL ship I sail, thus exclusively on HAL. I believe you had those problems and I sympathize. I do!! I know Prinsendam does have problems from time to time. We've been lucky enough to have avoided them. I just don't believe the ship is as bad now as it was on your Amazon cruise. If it was, no one would be sailing it!! Our last Celebrity cruise was not good. The food was poor, IMHO. I've never had bad food on HAL. A friend I met on Regent was just on a Celebrity cruise on one of the newest ships. He was highly disappointed. He's sailing Princess next! I am sure Azamara and Oceania are wonderful. I just don't like the ships from the Renaissance group. I was on Ocean Princess , which is the same configuration. There are people who hate Prinsendam. I'm with the other group. There was no excuse for the ship to have been in such poor condition after a drydock, except that whoever was doing the work, didn't know what they were doing. HAL doesn't have a lot of control over who is working on their ships. They trusted the companies hired to take care of the problems. We've had issues with poor quality control on a car, boat, furnace, air con and more. It just depends who's doing the work--someone with a work ethic, or someone who doesn't care. Things happen! The problems were taken care of for future cruisers and you got reimbursed. I probably wouldn't sail Prinsendam again if I were on your cruise as it was a terrible experience.. But, that's the chance you take with the first cruise after drydock. It happens a lot!! However, your experience won't deter me or the rest of us who love Prinsendam.