Visitors on board

[sinclair]

I will be sailing from Singapore on March 14 to Jakarta. My niece and her

family live in Jakarta and I would like to be be able to have them

visit the ship.

I phoned the Holland America number and they stated no one on board except for passengers and crew. They connected me to the corporate number which is closed for the weekend, so I will try again on Monday.

In the past, I have seen guests on board, and I know that the families of crew members are sometimes allowed to visit with pre arranged authorization.

Would anyone have any information on this and what would be the best way for me to try to go about attempting to arrange a visit for family members?

[jtl513]

Yes, it's been done, and there have been threads discussing how it is arranged, but unfortunately with search disabled I can't find them for you.

 

Ultimately it's up to the Captain to allow or disallow it. With such short notice it's not likely you'll be able to jump through the hoops in time IMO.

[Copper10-8]

I will be sailing from Singapore on March 14 to Jakarta. My niece and her

family live in Jakarta and I would like to be be able to have them

visit the ship.

I phoned the Holland America number and they stated no one on board except for passengers and crew. They connected me to the corporate number which is closed for the weekend, so I will try again on Monday.

In the past, I have seen guests on board, and I know that the families of crew members are sometimes allowed to visit with pre arranged authorization.

Would anyone have any information on this and what would be the best way for me to try to go about attempting to arrange a visit for family members?

 

Once onboard, put your request in writing and address it to the Captain (or Staff Captain) via the Front Office. Personal (guest) visitor requests have been granted by the Captain/Staff Captain in the past on some of the longer voyages such as Voyage of the Vikings and the Brazil trip MADM is currently doing. "Passenger visitors" are not allowed on the "routine" shorter cruises from Ft. Lauderdale, Seattle, Vancouver, Boston, etc.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Yes people have had visitors on board ships.

I see that you are leaving on March 14 -- I believe that you need more time to make all the arrangements and get them in writing before you leave.

[holacanada]

I will be sailing from Singapore on March 14 to Jakarta. My niece and her

 

family live in Jakarta and I would like to be be able to have them

 

visit the ship.

 

I phoned the Holland America number and they stated no one on board except for passengers and crew. They connected me to the corporate number which is closed for the weekend, so I will try again on Monday.

 

In the past, I have seen guests on board, and I know that the families of crew members are sometimes allowed to visit with pre arranged authorization.

 

Would anyone have any information on this and what would be the best way for me to try to go about attempting to arrange a visit for family members?

 

 

Hi !

 

As a frequent cruiser with HA, i am asking me the same question. Next summer i'll take a cruise from my hometown, Quebec City.

I am questionning about who do I have to ask this kind of request. I know, with so sad events in the past, this kind of day pass for guests is probably more tough to acquire actually.

 

Holacanada

 

 

Holacanada from Quebec city.

Next cruise on Noordam for the 21 days Collector Cruise / Turkey's At Sea...

[frankc98376]

edited- several beat me to the punch :-)

Edited March 1, 2014 by frankc98376

[sinclair]

I will be on the Rotterdam for a 2 week cruise starting and ending in Singapore.

Thank you for the suggestion of making the request on board. I can try it and see what happens.

[Mary Ellen]

I can't help you with the 'how' but I do have something for you to consider. We didn't go ashore when we were in Jakarta. Yes, there were a lot of visitors on board that day. Not only families of some crew, but also some of the students from the training school HAL runs there. Part of our 'entertainment' that day was watching the hordes (for lack of a better term) that were waiting to check-in with Security in order to get on the ship. Even if you do get permission for your niece and her family to board, the physical process at the dock will not be quick or easy. It will be an ordeal for them. Good luck.

Edited March 1, 2014 by Mary Ellen
Spelling

[sail7seas]

Once onboard, put your request in writing and address it to the Captain (or Staff Captain) via the Front Office. Personal (guest) visitor requests have been granted by the Captain/Staff Captain in the past on some of the longer voyages such as Voyage of the Vikings and the Brazil trip MADM is currently doing. "Passenger visitors" are not allowed on the "routine" shorter cruises from Ft. Lauderdale, Seattle, Vancouver, Boston, etc.

 

 

You should get your family member's passport numbers/country of issue in advance of making your request. Be certain you state their exact names. The ship will do a 'security check' in advance IF they are considering granting permission. IF they grant permission, your guests will need to bring their ID when they come to the ship and it will be left with security at the gangway. It will be returned when they turn in their guest pass upon exiting the ship.

 

[jtl513]

I will be on the Rotterdam for a 2 week cruise starting and ending in Singapore.

Thank you for the suggestion of making the request on board. I can try it and see what happens.

Have their passport numbers and birthdates with you.

[sinclair]

Thank you so much for all your useful information.

I will do my best to get them on board but if it is not possible, I do understand the reasons behind all the security.

[Copper10-8]

You should get your family member's passport numbers/country of issue in advance of making your request. Be certain you state their exact names. The ship will do a 'security check' in advance IF they are considering granting permission. IF they grant permission, your guests will need to bring their ID when they come to the ship and it will be left with security at the gangway. It will be returned when they turn in their guest pass upon exiting the ship.

 

 

That's all good info!

 

To the OP;

 

There is an official "Visitor Request" form on board; You will need

 

1. Full first middle and last name(s)

2. Nationality

3. DOB

4. Passport OR Drivers License # + expiration date

 

of your niece and family

 

Again, this is not being done on the 7-day/10-day/12-day routine voyages to the Carib, Alaska, Canada/NE, Mexico, etc.

 

It's up to the Captain's discretion

[serendipity1499]

Deleted as Copper 10-8 explained what needs to be done.. BTW, In case you are not aware.. Copper 10-8 is a HAL employee..

 

 

Betty[/size]

Edited March 1, 2014 by serendipity1499

[Typhoon1]

John has provided all you need to know. He would be your best source.

[Ine]

We did this cruise last year. I remember in all ports hundreds and hundreds of people were waiting to meet their (crew) family members, who they often hadnot seen for months. Tents were set up with chairs etc., but also some could bring a familymember on board. In Bali our cabinsteward was able to stay at home during the overnight stop.

Of course in Jakarta it was by far the busiest, if I remember well over 1000 guests were expected. It was heart warming to see this, but also sad to realise it might take again months before they will see eachother.

It must be quite a job to organise all this.

I hope your guests will be able to meet you. But in case your request isnot accepted, it might be because of all this.

Have a great cruise, we enjoyed it very much.

[Copper10-8]

We did this cruise last year. I remember in all ports hundreds and hundreds of people were waiting to meet their (crew) family members, who they often hadnot seen for months. Tents were set up with chairs etc., but also some could bring a familymember on board. In Bali our cabinsteward was able to stay at home during the overnight stop.

Of course in Jakarta it was by far the busiest, if I remember well over 1000 guests were expected. It was heart warming to see this, but also sad to realise it might take again months before they will see eachother.

It must be quite a job to organise all this.

I hope your guests will be able to meet you. But in case your request isnot accepted, it might be because of all this.

Have a great cruise, we enjoyed it very much.

 

Those family (crew) visits can get quite emotional! Enjoy PV, Ine and say hi to Ton and Astrid rom Maria and I

[Ine]

Those family (crew) visits can get quite emotional! Enjoy PV, Ine and say hi to Ton and Astrid rom Maria and I

 

I remember the other cabinsteward was so sad to say goodbye to his wife in Jakarta he couldnot stop crying. We also offered various times to take photos of groups of familymembers. It certainly all made this cruise so more special.

I will tell them John, thanks. Too bad we didnot meet this time in Vallarta.

[YubaSutter]

I will be sailing from Singapore on March 14 to Jakarta. My niece and her

family live in Jakarta and I would like to be be able to have them

visit the ship.

I phoned the Holland America number and they stated no one on board except for passengers and crew. They connected me to the corporate number which is closed for the weekend, so I will try again on Monday.

In the past, I have seen guests on board, and I know that the families of crew members are sometimes allowed to visit with pre arranged authorization.

Would anyone have any information on this and what would be the best way for me to try to go about attempting to arrange a visit for family members?

 

Are you a crew member? If not, it's a no go.

[serendipity1499]

Are you a crew member? If not, it's a no go.

 

That is NOT what Copper 10-8 says, & he IS a HAL crew member.. Take a look at his preceding posts on this thread..

Edited March 3, 2014 by serendipity1499

[cruise_bunnies]

We had a visitor on board, December 2013 in the Med. Like Copper10-8's says you have to fill in the form. On top of that I had a printout of my visitors ID (he had it scanned before we met him, so I printed it out) and I wrote a letter explaining why I would love to have him on board. Letter came in handy, because port officials wanted to know the reason for the visit.

 

Our request was granted and we had a very good time on board.

[sail7seas]

Are you a crew member? If not, it's a no go.

 

That is NOT what Copper 10-8 says, & he IS a HAL crew member.. Take a look at his preceding posts on this thread..

 

 

Betty,

I interpreted that YubaSutter was asking Sinclair (OP) whether he is crew? I don't believe (s)he was questioning whether Copper is crew.

Anyone else understand that post to have that meaning?

 

 

 

[holacanada]

Hi All !

 

I am about to mail my request to HA headquarters (!) back in Seattle.

I obtain all the necessary infos (i think so) but...

to whom I have to mail this accreditation to have a follow up ?

Which rank, position in the structure of the enterprise (like manager of…) ?

 

Thank you for your answers at this time, I hope I'll be able to offer this special invitation to my elderly and loving parents.

 

Holacanada live from Quebec city !

[frankc98376]

I believe this needs to be handled once you are onboard the ship.

I'm pretty confident all you will hear from Seattle is "No visitors allowed".

[indokiwi]

Hi All !

 

I am about to mail my request to HA headquarters (!) back in Seattle.

I obtain all the necessary infos (i think so) but...

to whom I have to mail this accreditation to have a follow up ?

Which rank, position in the structure of the enterprise (like manager of…) ?

 

Thank you for your answers at this time, I hope I'll be able to offer this special invitation to my elderly and loving parents.

 

Holacanada live from Quebec city !

 

Hey Hola Canada,

 

I am not sure if you read John's post earlier, but he makes it pretty clear that "normal" cruises (for lack of a better word) are not usually accepted for visitors on board. He classified those as the shorter and standard HAL cruise fare (Caribbean, Alaska, CANADA/NEW ENGLAND, Mexico). You might want to brace yourself for the possibility that your request for visitors in Quebec city will most likely be denied according to his information, however - who knows!

[serendipity1499]

Betty,

I interpreted that YubaSutter was asking Sinclair (OP) whether he is crew? I don't believe (s)he was questioning whether Copper is crew.

Anyone else understand that post to have that meaning?

 

I know he wasn't questioning whether Copper was crew.. And believe you are missing the gist of my post..

 

I thought my explanation to Yuba Sutter was clear...I was explaining that YubaSutter's answer to the OP was not what Copper 10-8 said was possible..

 

YubaSutter asked the OP:

Quote Are you a crew member? If not, it's a no go. Unquote

 

So my reply was to Yuba Sutter stating:

"That's not what Copper 10-8 said & HE is a HAL Crew Member"

 

I wasn't sure if Yuba Sutter knew that Copper was part of HAL's crew when he gave instructions to the OP to fill out a form on board,

as it might be possible to have visitors in the Med if the Captain or staff Captain approves it..

 

I also suggested that YubaSutter read Coppers previous posts & instructions to the OP..

 

Betty

Edited March 3, 2014 by serendipity1499