No more Travel Guides/EXC Guides on HAL

[3rdGenCunarder]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I agree that the port information provided by whomever and whatever their title was generally was informative.  Some were better than others; some had more up-to-date information than others.  The 2018 retired woman from the Grand Cruises, Barbara is her name, I recall, and the current gentleman on the Amsterdam's Grand World Cruise, Ian, were/are among the best that I remember. 

 

What port information that has been lacking for many, many years are the port maps provided to guests.  If one is interested in the "recommended stores" locations:  probably wonderful.  Otherwise, the map is often a waste of the ink/paper resources used to print it. 

 

I have been complaining about those maps for years. Why not include a few points of interest--a local museum, a nice park? And how about some practical things people might need like the post office or a drugstore? Guess what, HAL, not all of us are trying to find Diamonds International!

 

[Alphen]

6 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

I agree that the port information provided by whomever and whatever their title was generally was informative.  Some were better than others; some had more up-to-date information than others.  The 2018 retired woman from the Grand Cruises, Barbara is her name, I recall, and the current gentleman on the Amsterdam's Grand World Cruise, Ian, were/are among the best that I remember. 

 

What port information that has been lacking for many, many years are the port maps provided to guests.  If one is interested in the "recommended stores" locations:  probably wonderful.  Otherwise, the map is often a waste of the ink/paper resources used to print it. 

Ian is indeed a great person and a wealth of knowledgde, had him on Eurodam, Koningsdam and especially on Eurodam he formed a great team with JC, the cruisedirector, doing a lot of fun things on Eurodam morning TV.

[DaveOKC]

11 hours ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I have been complaining about those maps for years. Why not include a few points of interest--a local museum, a nice park? And how about some practical things people might need like the post office or a drugstore? Guess what, HAL, not all of us are trying to find Diamonds International!

 

I agree 100%.  I am a "map person" and really appreciate a decent map as it helps orient me in a new port.

[oaktreerb]

 Zelker,  I like that in 2020 the Maasdam Great Alaskan Explorer sails up the inside passage inside Vancouver Island.  The first year the Amsterdam went up the inside passage from Seattle which was very nice ...then HAL started modifying the itinerary.  I haven’t been to Valdez yet but agree that Kodiak is a better port stop.  I’m wondering if the ship can  actually sail into Misty Fjords....that may change.  

 

There are so many ships in Alaska this year that I think HAL is smart to change thing up a bit.

Edited May 11, 2019 by oaktreerb

[JRG]

3 hours ago, DaveOKC said:

I agree 100%.  I am a "map person" and really appreciate a decent map as it helps orient me in a new port.

 

Me too, but with Googlemaps on your smartphone and GPS pinpointing your location and destination eta , not to mention points of interest, metro stations, restaurants etc,   I find them to be somewhat obsolete.

 

Think about it.

Edited May 11, 2019 by JRG

[JudithLynne]

All of these depressing posts make me wonder what is next for HAL.

Maybe they will start moving furniture out of the cabins like Princess.

[rkacruiser]

23 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

Barbara Haenni, currently on the Amsterdam. She does/has been doing the GWV every year when she's not a pirate mom 

 

Thanks for reminding me of Barbara's last name.  I thought she retired at the end of the 2018 world cruise.  

 

Talk about a wealth of information about ports around the world!  She ought to write a cruise guide!

[Copper10-8]

3 hours ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Thanks for reminding me of Barbara's last name.  I thought she retired at the end of the 2018 world cruise.  

 

Talk about a wealth of information about ports around the world!  She ought to write a cruise guide!

 

 

Agreed! Looks like she's currently on Noordam heading for Vancouver (arriving tomorrow). Will have to find out about retirement

[whogo]

I am surprised that the travel guides/port guides/whatever they are called have lasted this long. They take up a cabin that could be used by someone who could generate money for HAL, maybe a psychic healer, fortune teller, aroma therapist or knee brace salesman.

 

Eliminating the cruise director is an intriguing idea. I would be happy without the noon commercial announcement and the introduction of the evening's entertainment.

[rkacruiser]

18 hours ago, whogo said:

They take up a cabin that could be used by someone who could generate money for HAL, maybe a psychic healer, fortune teller, aroma therapist or knee brace salesman.

 

🤣🤣

[Hlitner]

19 hours ago, whogo said:

I am surprised that the travel guides/port guides/whatever they are called have lasted this long. They take up a cabin that could be used by someone who could generate money for HAL, maybe a psychic healer, fortune teller, aroma therapist or knee brace salesman.

 

Eliminating the cruise director is an intriguing idea. I would be happy without the noon commercial announcement and the introduction of the evening's entertainment.

ROFL!  I suppose a knee brace, walker, cane sales office would do well on many HAL cruises.  And, or course, there would be the usual huge mark-up as well as the sign "Duty Free."

 

Hank

[rkacruiser]

35 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

ROFL!  I suppose a knee brace, walker, cane sales office would do well on many HAL cruises.  And, or course, there would be the usual huge mark-up as well as the sign "Duty Free."

 

Hank

😊

[sfocruiser]

On 5/11/2019 at 6:05 PM, rkacruiser said:

 

Thanks for reminding me of Barbara's last name.  I thought she retired at the end of the 2018 world cruise.  

 

Talk about a wealth of information about ports around the world!  She ought to write a cruise guide!

 

If we are reminiscing about great port guides I can't think of a better one than Frank Buckingham.

[DaveOKC]

53 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

ROFL!  I suppose a knee brace, walker, cane sales office would do well on many HAL cruises.  And, or course, there would be the usual huge mark-up as well as the sign "Duty Free."

 

Hank

I would have used that sales office on a recent cruise!

 

[rkacruiser]

15 minutes ago, sfocruiser said:

 

If we are reminiscing about great port guides I can't think of a better one than Frank Buckingham.

 

Thanks for your post.  I remember the name from those who experienced his efforts.  I have not had the privilege of sailing with Mr. Buckingham.

[sfocruiser]

Just now, rkacruiser said:

 

Thanks for your post.  I remember the name from those who experienced his efforts.  I have not had the privilege of sailing with Mr. Buckingham.

 

I think he has retired.   I fondly remember his port lectures on the Princendam.  A wealth of knowledge and he seemed to always have a great recommendation for lunch in each port.    Barbara is cut from the same cloth.

[Copper10-8]

1 hour ago, rkacruiser said:

 

Thanks for your post.  I remember the name from those who experienced his efforts.  I have not had the privilege of sailing with Mr. Buckingham.

 

The man in the green blazer jacket with a wealth of info

[Hlitner]

3 hours ago, sfocruiser said:

 

If we are reminiscing about great port guides I can't think of a better one than Frank Buckingham.

I mentioned Frank in an earlier post.  He retired a few years ago (apparently it was not completely his choice) but joined us for a few days (as a passenger) on a Prinsendam cruise when we were in Norway.  We were once on a cruise with Frank when one of the lecturers was a Cambridge man (Frank was an Oxford man).  The two disagreed over whether Admiral Nelson was pickled in rum or brandy.  You had to be there :).  No love lost between the graduates of those two great Universities.

 

Hank

[BarbarianPaul]

We were on the Koningsdam for a trans Atlantic / mediterranean cruise last month. Though I don’t think we had a dedicated exc guide, the excursion dept. did offer various non excursion related, more generally oriented port talks. They were still useful.

It seems like the entire passenger enrichment / entertainment budget is now devoted to music walk. We like it, but the main stage entertainment is now almost exclusively mediocre single person musicians or singers , and lame comedians,  with the occasional lame magician mixed in. Feels low end and low budget.

[taxmantoo]

10 hours ago, BarbarianPaul said:

It seems like the entire passenger enrichment / entertainment budget is now devoted to music walk. We like it, but the main stage entertainment is now almost exclusively mediocre single person musicians or singers , and lame comedians,  with the occasional lame magician mixed in. Feels low end and low budget.

Totally agree.  Most of the solo entertainers we have seen in recent cruises on HAL would not make it past the first round of auditions on America's Got Talent, and that is not saying a lot. 

We still cannot figure out why they spent all that money on the World Stage on the two new ships and then cut back the entertainment budget to a BBC show and a night or two with dancers only.  What a waste of a fantastic facility.   

[DaveOKC]

24 minutes ago, taxmantoo said:

Totally agree.  Most of the solo entertainers we have seen in recent cruises on HAL would not make it past the first round of auditions on America's Got Talent, and that is not saying a lot. 

We still cannot figure out why they spent all that money on the World Stage on the two new ships and then cut back the entertainment budget to a BBC show and a night or two with dancers only.  What a waste of a fantastic facility.   

 

Obviously the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing.  Not unusual for HAL - lack of good communication.

[JRG]

The right hand is pouring all-you-can-drink Kool-Aid and the left hand is playing "Hide the Peanut" with the customers.   

 

Maybe HAL knows exactly what it is doing?

 

 

 

 

Edited May 13, 2019 by JRG

[Hlitner]

32 minutes ago, JRG said:

The right hand is pouring all-you-can-drink Kool-Aid and the left hand is playing "Hide the Peanut" with the customers.   

 

Maybe HAL knows exactly what it is doing?

 

 

 

 

That would be a first for the current management team.

 

Hank

[3rdGenCunarder]

4 minutes ago, Hlitner said:

That would be a first for the current management team.

 

Hank

 

Which, doing two things at the same time or knowing what they're doing???

 

[Hlitner]

3 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

Which, doing two things at the same time or knowing what they're doing???

 

Hmmm, now that is a difficult question :). 

 

Hank