HAL Policy Question

[April42749]

I am on the verge of booking a 5/18 cruise out of NY on the Maasdam.

 

I live right by the port and am retired, so I don't need to book airfare or ask the boss for vacation time. In other words, flexible.

 

I usually go on NCL, where, they give very deep discounts on unsold rooms right before sailing. They like to sail full and I've gotten some last minute great deals.

 

Does HAL discount like this, or do they prefer to keep cabins empty as opposed to "almost giving them away"?

 

This sailing out of NYC is a "one time thing"...unlike NCL, where if it's all booked one week, the next week could have room.

 

Any insight would be appreciated.

[TiogaCruiser]

It probably depends on how well the cruise is selling, and that only known by HAL. If you are not already subscribed to HALs emails you might consider doing so. You just might score a Private Sale after final.

[April42749]

It probably depends on how well the cruise is selling, and that only known by HAL. If you are not already subscribed to HALs emails you might consider doing so. You just might score a Private Sale after final.

 

I get their e-mails and brochures all the time. I think the price they gave me is actually a private sale (very good price)....way below what I'm seeing on line. And the PCC said "Your price is...." as opposed to "the price is".

 

Oh well....going to book now. I can't spend 3 months checking the price hourly.

[Homosassa]

It is always a gamble. On my recent Rotterdam cruise, people in a comparable cabin to mine was boasting about their week before sailing cruise fare.

 

Turns out they paid $200 more for their cabin than we did booking a year in advance (and we also had $100 OBC that they didn't).

[kazu]

There is no way to predict what itineraries will sell well and what ones won't.

 

HAL does have last minute sailing deals, but I heard through the grapevine they may be pulling away from this. No idea if it is true or not.

 

If this is a "one time itinerary" it is entirely possible it could sell out. Hard to say.

 

All you can do is watch and wait. As long as it is not a key cruise, no harm in waiting. For me, our itineraries are important and I have seen prices go UP not down on our last couple of cruises so I was glad I booked early.

 

Good luck!

[3rdGenCunarder]

Getting to sail with HAL out of NYC is a rare opportunity. And people love the Maasdam, so this sailing will be popular. I just looked at this cruise and I see that lanais and neptunes are sold out.

[Lynda S]

From what I see, HAL may be using 'internet last minute discounter' type of shops to fill their ships. I am on a mailing list for one of them that quite often gets some really hot deals at the last moment on HAL ships. The discounter combines them with airfare & pre/post stays and the prices are amazing. I am not quite retired yet, but it makes me wish I was! You will have no choice of cabin though other than general category - inside, outside, verandah & suite, - and - more importantly you must be ready to sit on the phone dialing when he opens up the cruise as he sells out in hours sometimes.

 

The deals are amazing and it is a win-win situation - it fills the ships which HAL does love I am sure!

[April42749]

Booked!

 

Strangely, last week, for an MM (to be paid in full...not refundable) the price was almost identical to what I paid today for a J (picked my cabin) and is 100% refundable before final payment.

 

I can walk to the dock, so combinations with airfare/pre-cruise hotel won't do anything for me.

 

Besides being "a rare cruise out of NY"...it's also a "rare cruise ending in Montreal from NYC". My husband, the non-cruiser, lived there before he came to NYC (about 45 years ago) and since this one ends in Montreal, he's excited about going back for a few days.

[3rdGenCunarder]

Perhaps the excitement of cruising to his hometown will convert your noncruising husband to being a cruiser..

 

If you want a leisurely return home, you might try Amtrak. It's a long day, and I have to admit not Amtrak's best train, but the scenery is nice. Even if you don't take the train, visit the station if you're in the neighborhood. There's a huge mural of scenes of Canadian life and the words to the national anthem run along the bottom.

[Sequim88]

Once we moved to relatively near Seattle we were hoping for "drop everything and go" offers but so far only one from Princess for about 1/2 price for an inside on 7nt Alaska R/T about three weeks out. Unfortunately I'm still working and had no vacation time built up on the new job. I might have to look around for a discounter but if those make their money packaging air and hotels they won't want us. :rolleyes:

[jtl513]

... so this sailing will be popular. I just looked at this cruise and I see that lanais and neptunes are sold out.

The "fish" site that tracks prices says SA,SB,BB,CA,C,CQ,and IQ are sold out but overall the ship is 40% available.

[April42749]

The "fish" site that tracks prices says SA,SB,BB,CA,C,CQ,and IQ are sold out but overall the ship is 40% available.

 

The 40% on the fish site means that 40% of the categories are available, not 40% of the cabins.

 

As to price, I paid more than double for this cruise, 9 nites, mid-ship interior (picked cabin) that I did for the last NCL, 8 nite, mid-ship guarantee balcony (as I said, at the end they almost give away unsold cabins). Not to mention...the additional cost of staying in Montreal for a few days and the cost to travel back to NYC.

 

But, DH, the "non cruise enthusiast" is looking forward to this trip (to be clean, he isn't from Montreal; he lived there for 2 years before ending up in NYC).....and that's worth all the extra expense!

[jtl513]

The 40% on the fish site means that 40% of the categories are available, not 40% of the cabins.

:confused: 22 categories out of 30 are available. That's 76.6%

[kazu]

:confused: 22 categories out of 30 are available. That's 76.6%

 

Those are confirmed cabins. I don't believe the "fishy" site know the guarantees.

 

Guarantees change the entire picture. I don't think anyone knows how many guarantees are in the mix - other than HAL.

 

Or us, after it's sold out ;)

[kira5]

Last summer we decided a couple of weeks before the sailing date to accompany our son and his family on the N.A. to Alaska. The website showed the inside cabins were sold out even at the $1320 price. This was near the end of August and we could have gone on a number of other ships for 2/3 of the price. I phoned and asked the HAL operator if we could be put on the waiting list for an inside and the lady said we could, with a deposit, but then told us that an outside with obstructed view (lifeboat in front of window) had just become available for only $30 more than inside.

 

We're now retired so can go at any time and we will look for deals in the future. The problem gets to be with the airfare. Just yesterday I looked up flights from Vancouver to Papeete Fiji for a South Pacific cruise. Best fare for next fall was around $2300 each. I wish there were more departures from Vancouver.