Notification FRom HAL re: dining on Westerdam 2/20

[Tina G]

Well, at least it isn't The Bears.

[CruisinChris]

He didn't specify. He just said they told him I was welcome to dine 5:45-9:00. I think they say that and when you get on board and ask for a later time you find out that time isn't available. How many people are in this group?

 

Texas - When I check a while back the group was approaching 900. Given that they are taking the entire dining room and doing a fixed seating - they must be above that number now. I would guess at least half the passenger capacity. And as noted, there remain unsold staterooms.

Perhaps we can meet onboard. We should be easy to spot! :rolleyes:

Not sure who your agent spoke to. I don't know that the regular support agents would know about this. There was a phone number in the memo to call with questions. That was who I spoke to and they definitely confirmed the information in the memo and clarified that the unavailability of late traditional and open dining after 6:30 were due to this group. Another department who would have correct info on this situation would be the Groups Department (clearly a busy little bunch).

 

I appreciate the support of everyone who has responded on this thread. That's very nice.

 

I will report back on how my agent does. And I will report in either during or after the cruise.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

I was once on a cruise with about 600 psychics. Every time I tried to hide from them, they found me;)

 

Seriously, after that cruise I decided to be more pro-active in researching what groups I might possibly encounter in my future cruise choices. I am so grateful to CJcruzer for her list and the work she does to put it together.

 

I still managed to have a great cruise despite the psychic convention on board. I think it helped that it was an Alaskan cruise, rather than a Caribbean cruise. I didn't have to worry about them taking over the swimming pool areas:)

 

Cruisin' Chris, I hope your travel agent can work something out for you. I would not be a happy camper, and I'm sorry this has happened to you on your first HAL cruise. Please do let us know what transpires going forward.

[joepeka]

I'm usually a half-full kind of person, but I think this thread hit a nerve for all of us. If it was just one part of my cruise that was affected (such as dining time, show times, lounge access) that would be bad enough. But all of that and more.....too much. :(

 

Yes, it definitely hit a nerve with me for sure. DW and I don't have the resources to cruise a lot so when we do and pay what we consider a pretty penny, we expect to have full use of the ship's guest facilities because we can't simply say "oh well, our next cruise four months from now or six months from now will be better." The cruise lines should show more integrity and communicate the presence of large groups on particular sailings but we know that integrity and the financial bottom line are not always compatible concepts.

[sail7seas]

Is there somewhere on the HAL website that one can look to see if there is a large group booked on your sailing? It's too late for me to change anything for my March 20th cruise, but I would like to be prepared.

 

HAL and most of the other cruise lines who do charters do not share that information even if directly asked. I have asked in the past and they act like they have no idea what I am speaking about. No..... they most definitely do not have it on their website.

 

[sail7seas]

I'm usually a half-full kind of person, but I think this thread hit a nerve for all of us. If it was just one part of my cruise that was affected (such as dining time, show times, lounge access) that would be bad enough. But all of that and more.....too much. :(

 

Yes, this. ^^

 

We most assuredly would not have booked that cruise had we known about that group and what would happen as a result of having such a large group aboard.

 

[John Reid]

Were we thus affected by a large group,with the loss of services and access described here, it would be awfully tempting to have Jim Walker on speed dial. However tightly written the Cruise Contract might be, it would seem that a pattern of "bait and switch" could be established.

 

Out of my 14 cruises, I have only sailed HAL once; it was on Eurodam and I enjoyed my cruise immensely. When I am looking for a cruise I always check the HAL cruises to the Caribbean if they are sailing there during that time period.

 

But for some time now, I have been well aware that HAL seems to attract a higher percentage of large groups on its Caribbean sailings than any of the other three lines I sail and that influences my decision. And because the ships are wonderfully smaller, the impact is much greater. It is also becoming obvious that HAL has a very carefully planned and orchestrated response to those who are impacted. To be forcibly excluded from venues on a ship that has fewer venues to share is deplorable. No one is paying a reduced fare for a reduced experience.

 

One wonders what the response would be if two hundred slighted and angry passengers approached a reserved area and just said, "Sorry, we ARE going in." One wonders if change would occur if social media were bombarded with reports of what is occurring. Yahoo's homepage would love posting a story about this.

 

Though I am not a litigious person, only having used lawyers for home-related financial transactions, contacting Jim Walker is an interesting idea. We may not like him, but he could bring the attention needed.

 

HAL is intentionally deceiving some of its customers, and that's not right.

[sppunk]

This week Princess cancelled an October sailing entirely because a charter bought the cruise over.

 

This can happen anywhere, HAL ships are about the perfect size for groups and cost bracket so you see it more often.

[Kathyfromstl]

My July 16, 2016 cruise to Alaska was cancelled after I booked it because a charter took it over.

[LMaxwell]

Atrocious customer service by HAL. The OTHER guys money is better than yours:mad:

[LMaxwell]

Where are all the make lemonade people?

 

 

 

Even they recognize a lousy deal when they see one!

[iancal]

I would MUCH rather have a cruise cancelled because of a charter than have to take a cruise where the entire ship was taken over by a large group.

 

The former allows me freedom of choice to fully enjoy another ship/itinerary. The latter potentially deprives me of enjoyment and the ability to use all the ships facilities. That is why I call it cheating the customer....you are not getting what you paid for. And the cruise line knows it but does nothing about it.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Atrocious customer service by HAL. The OTHER guys money is better than yours:mad:

 

Yes, because there are more of those other guys. So they get what they want. And if the group is happy, that's more happy people than unhappy people. That's a win in the cruise line's eyes. And if the group is happy, they may book again--more money!!! Great customer service for the group, and definitely atrocious customer service for everyone else.

 

 

I would MUCH rather have a cruise cancelled because of a charter than have to take a cruise where the entire ship was taken over by a large group.

 

The former allows me freedom of choice to fully enjoy another ship/itinerary. The latter potentially deprives me of enjoyment and the ability to use all the ships facilities. That is why I call it cheating the customer....you are not getting what you paid for. And the cruise line knows it but does nothing about it.

 

I agree. The cancellation comes with options. And yes, it is cheating the customer, especially in the cases some posters have mentioned, where there's a HUGE group, and the remaining cabins are being sold with no warning that multiple venues may be unavailable.

[Lizzie68]

I would MUCH rather have a cruise cancelled because of a charter than have to take a cruise where the entire ship was taken over by a large group.

 

The former allows me freedom of choice to fully enjoy another ship/itinerary. The latter potentially deprives me of enjoyment and the ability to use all the ships facilities. That is why I call it cheating the customer....you are not getting what you paid for. And the cruise line knows it but does nothing about it.

 

I agree. They have completely changed the terms of the cruise, willy-nilly without any consideration for anyone but the group members. And being told you have a small window of opportunity in which to have dinner, too.

[RocketMan275]

Atrocious customer service by HAL. The OTHER guys money is better than yours:mad:

 

Au contraire. No one's money is any better or worse than anyone else's. It's just that the group has more money than anyone else.

 

I do wish the cruise lines would adopt some policies.

 

Charters within 12 months of a cruise owe booked passengers 100% of their booked fare. Paid by the booking TA. No charters within 6 months of sailing.

 

No group larger than 20% of capacity. Nor can the sum of the groups exceed 20% of capacity.

 

Groups larger than 10% of capacity must be disclosed on the line's website.

 

No venue can be reserved more than once on a six day cruise or less. No more than twice on a cruise of less than 14 days.

 

TAs must post a bond for their customers behavior. The bond is forfeit and used for compensation should a group attempt to bar other passengers from a venue.

[Rowsby]

Charters within 12 months of a cruise owe booked passengers 100% of their booked fare. Paid by the booking TA. No charters within 6 months of sailing.

 

No group larger than 20% of capacity. Nor can the sum of the groups exceed 20% of capacity.

 

Groups larger than 10% of capacity must be disclosed on the line's website.

 

No venue can be reserved more than once on a six day cruise or less. No more than twice on a cruise of less than 14 days.

 

TAs must post a bond for their customers behavior. The bond is forfeit and used for compensation should a group attempt to bar other passengers from a venue.

 

Excellent......!!!

[sail7seas]

I would MUCH rather have a cruise cancelled because of a charter than have to take a cruise where the entire ship was taken over by a large group.

 

The former allows me freedom of choice to fully enjoy another ship/itinerary. The latter potentially deprives me of enjoyment and the ability to use all the ships facilities. That is why I call it cheating the customer....you are not getting what you paid for. And the cruise line knows it but does nothing about it.

 

I agree. I would much prefer not going at all than to be aboard again with a very large group.

 

[serendipity1499]

Is there somewhere on the HAL website that one can look to see if there is a large group booked on your sailing? It's too late for me to change anything for my March 20th cruise, but I would like to be prepared.

 

No cruise line or airline will share that info with you.. You should try to Google your ship & the date of departure to see if there are any group listings..

 

Then you can call the group organizer(s) or Travel Agent(s) who booked the group(s) & ask them about their group on your ship..If you act like you are interested in booking as a group Psgr they may give you the number of Psgrs. in their group.. They may not give you exact figures though..

 

If your cruise is a longer cruise such as 14 days or more, I would not worry about having group Psgrs on board..

 

Hope you still have a great cruise..

[sail7seas]

No cruise line or airline will share that info with you.. You should try to Google your ship & the date of departure to see if there are any group listings..

 

Then you can call the group organizer(s) or Travel Agent(s) who booked the group(s) & ask them about their group on your ship..If you act like you are interested in booking as a group Psgr they may give you the number of Psgrs. in their group.. They may not give you exact figures though..

 

If your cruise is a longer cruise such as 14 days or more, I would not worry about having group Psgrs on board..

 

Hope you still have a great cruise..

 

That is exactly what I do, as I mentioned above.

I call the group and express interest in possibly booking.

 

[RocketMan275]

I've heard the cruise lines do not release information on whether/what groups are on board as it would violate the groups privacy. I think that is BS, since a waiver of privacy could be a part of the Terms and Conditions for group bookings.

[John Reid]

No cruise line or airline will share that info with you.. You should try to Google your ship & the date of departure to see if there are any group listings..

 

Then you can call the group organizer(s) or Travel Agent(s) who booked the group(s) & ask them about their group on your ship..If you act like you are interested in booking as a group Psgr they may give you the number of Psgrs. in their group.. They may not give you exact figures though..

 

If your cruise is a longer cruise such as 14 days or more, I would not worry about having group Psgrs on board..

 

Hope you still have a great cruise..

 

Unless the 14 is a back to back.

[sail7seas]

I've heard the cruise lines do not release information on whether/what groups are on board as it would violate the groups privacy. I think that is BS, since a waiver of privacy could be a part of the Terms and Conditions for group bookings.

 

It has nothing to do with group's privacy. :rolleyes:

They often have websites/ads on the web where those interested can learn about their group and presumably book.

 

[alibabacruisers]

Au contraire. No one's money is any better or worse than anyone else's. It's just that the group has more money than anyone else.

 

I do wish the cruise lines would adopt some policies.

 

Charters within 12 months of a cruise owe booked passengers 100% of their booked fare. Paid by the booking TA. No charters within 6 months of sailing.

 

No group larger than 20% of capacity. Nor can the sum of the groups exceed 20% of capacity.

 

Groups larger than 10% of capacity must be disclosed on the line's website.

 

No venue can be reserved more than once on a six day cruise or less. No more than twice on a cruise of less than 14 days.

 

TAs must post a bond for their customers behavior. The bond is forfeit and used for compensation should a group attempt to bar other passengers from a venue.

 

 

Sounds great to me!

[Texasgirl52]

Well those would be great policies but it isn't happening for this cruise unfortunately. My travel agent said he had never heard of this happening and he's been doing this 15 years. How is that possible? At this point I'm going to go (after all there's no refund!) with the hope that it will be a great cruise. If I'm not allowed in a venue I really want to be in (like the pool), I will definitely complain both on the ship and to my travel agent. And maybe I would have the nerve to go in anyway and see what they did-after all I paid to use the venue. And it's supposed to be a Christian group...

[NCLbigfan]

Part of the excitement of the cruise is the time leading up to it; the picking out of excursions, picking out the specialty restaurants, packing, and trying to learn as much about the ship as possible. I must say that after reading about what is happening on this/my cruise all the excitement has been sucked out.

 

The wife has been very upset and has already told me she will create a problem if we are not allowed to eat when and where we want and go when or where we want, something I am not looking forward to. I am the one who is laid back, goes with the flow, who makes lemonade from lemons but she is right in the fact that we paid our hard earned money for this cruise.

 

I'm hoping HAL will try to steer people away but will not restrict people. This is our first time on HAL and I'm hoping it will not be our last but that remains to be seen.