HAL Changed the dates

[TheCalicoCat]

I'm kind of bummed that HAL changed the dates on my cruise. I had already booked private excursions - I've contacts those companies & hope that I can change the dates...

[ger_77]

Which ship and what date were you originally scheduled to sail? How many days later/earlier was the change made?

 

Smooth Sailing ! :) :) :)

[DaveOKC]

What just occuried was that HAL moved Oosterdam from Europe to Alaska for the 2017 summer season, sailing out of Seattle. This move resulted in Amsterdam 2017 summer sailings being moved to Monday from Sundays, plus some of them are now 14 days.

 

This move also impacted the Amsterdam Panama Canal April 26, 2017 sailing from Fort Lauderdale to Seattle, by extending it to a 19 day (from 18), so Amsterdam could now depart Seattle on Mondays instead of Sundays.

Edited September 4, 2016 by DaveOKC

[Krazy Kruizers]

Check this link that OP wrote on the Alaskan board:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=50957914#post50957914

 

OP was already booked on the Amsterdam -- but HAL moved the date of their cruise to a much later date.

[TheCalicoCat]

I'm the OP on this post & my cruise was moved from 7/23/17 start to 7/17/17 start. Not a huge amount of time, but I've already booked 2 expensive excursions that I now need to try to reschedule.

 

Without any reason, "Were sorry, but..." etc.

 

They just moved it & sent me the generic, "We’re happy that you’ve chosen to cruise with us, and we encourage you to make the most of your cruise vacation. Adding a pre- or post-cruise Hotel and Vacation Package will enhance your experience, while exciting Shore Excursions will bring each port of call to life. Plus, ensure your peace of mind by making use of our cost-effective Cancellation Protection Plan." e-mail. (Like the switch was my idea...)

 

& I heard about it here first - which is not the best way to hear about your cruise being changed.

 

I guess I would have liked an e-mail to see if the new dates were acceptable to me rather than the assumption that they could just change it. (I'm only glad that I hadn't booked airfare & hotels yet.)

Edited September 4, 2016 by TheCalicoCat

[dakrewser]

I'm the OP on this post & my cruise was moved from 7/23/17 start to 7/17/17 start. Not a huge amount of time, but I've already booked 2 expensive excursions that I now need to try to reschedule.

 

No reason why you couldn't cancel this and book another cruise for the dates you'd rather have...

[JoAnnaBullhead]

I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THE DATE CHANGES TOO.. from ..on HAL Alaska July 23, 2017 ( to July 17th, 2017 )ALREADY BOOKED AND PAID FOR HOTEL.. SET UP BEING ABLE TO CONNECT WITH FRIENDS IN SEATTLE, HOMER AND VICTORIA! No one even notified us of these changes!! I am really pissed off!

[Fouremco]

Not a huge amount of time, but I've already booked 2 expensive excursions that I now need to try to reschedule.

I've had to reschedule or cancel private tours on several occasions and have never had any problems. Tour companies are very conscious of their reputations and aren't going to risk getting a poor reputation within the cruise community for the sake of keeping a handful of down payments.

[kazu]

I've had to reschedule or cancel private tours on several occasions and have never had any problems. Tour companies are very conscious of their reputations and aren't going to risk getting a poor reputation within the cruise community for the sake of keeping a handful of down payments.

 

Umm, we don't disagree often but.....downpayments are not an issue if they are required -they are refundable.

 

I rarely book with a downpayment BUT top guides are busy. If you booked for x date and now change it to Y date, there is a good possibility they are booked up unless there are no other demands for the Y date.

 

I have had this happen and while I was successful on one, I was not on the other. I would never give the guide a poor rating because our itinerary changed and they were already booked up.

Edited September 4, 2016 by kazu

[Fouremco]

Umm, we don't disagree often but.....downpayments are not an issue if they are required -they are refundable.

Not automatically. I think you'll find that the reason refunds are made with no difficulty in most cases isn't due to consumer protection laws obliging the operators to make a refund, but because the tour organizers don't want a bad rep.

 

The Canadian government's Office of Consumer Affairs gives the following warning on its website:

 

A deposit is usually a lump sum of money required to reserve or hold a product or service. Whether it's a deposit on a vehicle, a hall rental, a grad outfit or for a photographer's service, be sure that you want the product or service. If you change your mind, you are not, by law, entitled to get your money back. Be sure to ask what the conditions are before you put down a deposit, and only put down the minimum amount required.

 

Any excursion I've booked requiring a deposit has stated clearly what the conditions are for a refund, so I'm not particularly concerned. On the other hand, there are some requiring deposits that make no mention of refunds at all. One Halifax-based company that I looked at very recently has an extensive terms and conditions page but is totally silent on the issue of refunds. Under Canadian law, you'd not be entitled to get your money back, although the lack of any negative reviews for the company suggest that they probably do.

[easyboy]

Not automatically. I think you'll find that the reason refunds are made with no difficulty in most cases isn't due to consumer protection laws obliging the operators to make a refund, but because the tour organizers don't want a bad rep.

 

The Canadian government's Office of Consumer Affairs gives the following warning on its website:

 

Any excursion I've booked requiring a deposit has stated clearly what the conditions are for a refund, so I'm not particularly concerned. On the other hand, there are some requiring deposits that make no mention of refunds at all. One Halifax-based company that I looked at very recently has an extensive terms and conditions page but is totally silent on the issue of refunds. Under Canadian law, you'd not be entitled to get your money back, although the lack of any negative reviews for the company suggest that they probably do.

Are these kind of non-refundable deposits not covered by trip insurance?

[Fouremco]

Are these kind of non-refundable deposits not covered by trip insurance?

I think that would depend on the reason for the cancellation and the details of your insurance policy.

[kazu]

Not automatically. I think you'll find that the reason refunds are made with no difficulty in most cases isn't due to consumer protection laws obliging the operators to make a refund, but because the tour organizers don't want a bad rep.

 

The Canadian government's Office of Consumer Affairs gives the following warning on its website:

 

 

 

Any excursion I've booked requiring a deposit has stated clearly what the conditions are for a refund, so I'm not particularly concerned. On the other hand, there are some requiring deposits that make no mention of refunds at all. One Halifax-based company that I looked at very recently has an extensive terms and conditions page but is totally silent on the issue of refunds. Under Canadian law, you'd not be entitled to get your money back, although the lack of any negative reviews for the company suggest that they probably do.

OK, I see where you are coming from.

 

I rarely need to do downpayments for private tours, but, when I do, I make sure I understand the terms of them. (Ie. Ship doesn't dock/can't tender/itinerary changed, etc.) and that they are refundable. Of course any guide with a good reputation wants to keep it.

 

If deposits are simply "non refundable" I don't book those guides. You just never know what can happen on a cruise. We've missed ports before (and not just tender ports). I waste no time reaching out to the guides when I get word that this can/will happen, but I'm not going to be penalized for something that is not our fault ;)

 

Apologies, as I automatically did not consider the latter situation since we don't do it ;)

[Fouremco]

OK, I see where you are coming from.

 

I rarely need to do downpayments for private tours, but, when I do, I make sure I understand the terms of them. (Ie. Ship doesn't dock/can't tender/itinerary changed, etc.) and that they are refundable. Of course any guide with a good reputation wants to keep it.

 

If deposits are simply "non refundable" I don't book those guides. You just never know what can happen on a cruise. We've missed ports before (and not just tender ports). I waste no time reaching out to the guides when I get word that this can/will happen, but I'm not going to be penalized for something that is not our fault ;)

 

Apologies, as I automatically did not consider the latter situation since we don't do it ;)

No worries. If you challenge me on a post, it probably lacked clarity to begin with. :)

[TheCalicoCat]

No reason why you couldn't cancel this and book another cruise for the dates you'd rather have...

 

Except for the fact that there are very limited number of 14-night cruises to AK - one of the reasons why I chose this one & the bear season is limited with in that time frame - the other reason why I chose this cruise.

 

But you are right I can cancel, not that that would change how the information was sent out to the customers.

[TheCalicoCat]

I've had to reschedule or cancel private tours on several occasions and have never had any problems. Tour companies are very conscious of their reputations and aren't going to risk getting a poor reputation within the cruise community for the sake of keeping a handful of down payments.

 

Yes, but those planes only carry a few people...

[TheCalicoCat]

I JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT THE DATE CHANGES TOO.. from ..on HAL Alaska July 23, 2017 ( to July 17th, 2017 )ALREADY BOOKED AND PAID FOR HOTEL.. SET UP BEING ABLE TO CONNECT WITH FRIENDS IN SEATTLE, HOMER AND VICTORIA! No one even notified us of these changes!! I am really pissed off!

 

So sorry to hear this, I tentatively made plans with a friend in Anchorage too... Didn't even think of that one because they were tentative to begin with based on her work schedule.

 

(I have let her know about our schedule change.)

[frankc98376]

Except for the fact that there are very limited number of 14-night cruises to AK - one of the reasons why I chose this one & the bear season is limited with in that time frame - the other reason why I chose this cruise.

 

But you are right I can cancel, not that that would change how the information was sent out to the customers.

 

The good news for Seattle is with the Amsterdam moving to Mondays there will be a two week Alaska cruise every other Monday all season

[easyboy]

I think that would depend on the reason for the cancellation and the details of your insurance policy.

Thanks.

[JoAnnaBullhead]

oK.. After much frustration... I was able to rebook cruise on the July 31st 2017 date.. same cabin.. same perks! Actually, Hal gave us an additional $100 OBC for the change. I was able to rebook our hotel with no penalties, and our friends are redoing their stuff to accommodate our change of dates...

This morning I redid all of our check-in stuff.. ie passports and updating credit card on file.. Soooo.. Life is Good! Thanks all for your great feedback, suggestions and empathy. Jo-Anna

[Sequim88]

The good news for Seattle is with the Amsterdam moving to Mondays there will be a two week Alaska cruise every other Monday all season

 

So with Oosterdam taking over the 7nt R/Ts and sailing every week this becomes a net addition of cruise traffic for Seattle? Good for the local economy but bad for locals trying to fly anywhere in cruise season when the airlines jack up fares.

 

Like the OP we had no notice at all that our ship had changed from Amsterdam to Oosterdam and I found out by accident when checking the account. At least our date did not change. Living near the port we don't have flight or hotel issues but I really feel the pain for those who do. We picked the sailing date because it is our exact anniversary and would have been bummed big time if that changed on us.

 

Also the Oosterdam move left a whole bunch of people with Europe bookings for summer of 2017 with no cruise at all and having to switch departure port from Barcelona to Rome (Civitivechia) on Konigsdam. HAL opened a huge can of worms there.