1st time booking with HAL... Do they do price drops ???

[KroozNut]

15 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I feel that it should be made crystal clear at the time of booking that you have a non refundable fare. 

It is.. but if you're not paying attention, that's on you.

[Florida_gal_50]

8 minutes ago, KroozNut said:

It is.. but if you're not paying attention, that's on you.

Whatever.  I do check but not everyone is sitting in a chair waiting for something to do.  People get busy, things happen.  Some people take pride in quality work.  Others don’t care.

[Florida_gal_50]

23 minutes ago, walnut99 said:

This one was my fault, I booked online directly with HAL and only realized it when I transferred it to the big box and their representative pointed it out.  

Still, there is no reason to belittle someone for it.  

[walnut99]

3 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Still, there is no reason to belittle someone for it.  

It appears not everyone agrees with you.

[KroozNut]

17 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Yeah, that’s typical.  Don’t take it to heart.  
 

I feel that it should be made crystal clear at the time of booking that you have a non refundable fare.  I’ve heard way to many stories otherwise to believe that’s happening.  I think there are bad ta’s and pcc’s that don’t know what they are doing and the consumer pays for it.  

 

Which is exactly why I prefer to manage my own bookings directly with HAL every time. Eliminates the middle person, so they can't muck something up. If something gets mucked up with my bookings, it's on me, and I have no one else to blame.

[Anubi]

Someone on our rollcall mentioned a price drop.  I called my TA, she called HAL and I got a great drop in price and kept all my perks.  Very pleased.    

[kazu]

On 9/2/2022 at 11:46 AM, Suzanne123 said:

 Can I drop a person from the reservation ( now going solo ) and keep the cabin and perks from the original booking with the new price?

 

Yes you can.  You will lose the other person’s perks in my experience but also eliminate their port taxes.

 

If you have a TA, best to reach out to them or your PCC or HAL if you use neither.  It took over 8 weeks to get my dearly departed DH off my reservation and my TA spent a LOT of time on the phone to accomplish it.

 

3 hours ago, Anubi said:

Someone on our rollcall mentioned a price drop.  I called my TA, she called HAL and I got a great drop in price and kept all my perks.  Very pleased.    

 

Ditto - no issue at all.  My TA got it done and kept my perks 👍 

[cruzercruiser]

21 hours ago, walnut99 said:

I have a few cruises book and one of them is non-refundable.  I have no idea how I ended up with a non-refundable fare either.  It is not something that I would normally miss.  

I also am normally a very careful consumer and would not have easily missed this.  I take full responsibility as I always do in these situations when I mess up but it is clearly not made obvious if a number of people missed it.  In the end the price difference is only about $30 per person so lesson learned without too big a price and we know better for next time.  

[kar1996]

Thank you everyone for the responses as always this board is great to keep up to date was able to able to re-fare and keep all that I had previously . 

 

[AFNavigator]

On 9/2/2022 at 7:11 PM, Florida_gal_50 said:

Whatever.  I do check but not everyone is sitting in a chair waiting for something to do.  People get busy, things happen.  Some people take pride in quality work.  Others don’t care.

Yeah, these things happen. 

I booked a last minute flight last year in basic economy.  Due to just needing a carry-on and no need to pay for a checked bag, the system wouldn't let me check in until at the airport kiosk.  When I showed up to check in, the booking wasn't there.  I asked the agent and she said my booking was for the NEXT week!  Stupid me for not catching that when I was booking.  Luckily, there was a seat open (at a $200+ higher cost) on the flight I needed so I was allowed to pay the upcharge and change fee.  

[mwj]

Hal plays continual games with pricing, especially as final payment date nears. You really need to monitor the Hal website on a weekly basis. In addition, always check around holidays, as the run special week long promos.

[Wakepatrol]

[mwj]

On 9/2/2022 at 2:43 PM, Florida_gal_50 said:

Hal gave me a hard time about getting a lower price even though I had a fully refundable cruise fare telling me I already had one price drop.  I don't think so.  I could cancel the whole thing.  They count on people not being well versed so if you hear something that doesn't make sense it needs to be questioned.

Hal PCC did the same thing to us recently, reluctantly do a re-fare for us. We wonder if corporate is putting pressure on PCC's about doing a re-fare. This is the first time, we have encountered any hesitation. The fare drop was significant; over $1000.

[KroozNut]

On 9/8/2022 at 3:23 PM, Wakepatrol said:

 

Classic HAL cruiser..  🤣

[KroozNut]

8 minutes ago, mwj said:

Hal PCC did the same thing to us recently, reluctantly do a re-fare for us. We wonder if corporate is putting pressure on PCC's about doing a re-fare. This is the first time, we have encountered any hesitation. The fare drop was significant; over $1000.

 

Typically no hesitation whatsoever, just have to be persistent and have your ducks in a row when you make the call.

[Florida_gal_50]

23 minutes ago, mwj said:

Hal PCC did the same thing to us recently, reluctantly do a re-fare for us. We wonder if corporate is putting pressure on PCC's about doing a re-fare. This is the first time, we have encountered any hesitation. The fare drop was significant; over $1000.

I’m glad it wasn’t just me.  That is crazy.  Mine was significant as well. 

[Florida_gal_50]

16 minutes ago, KroozNut said:

 

Typically no hesitation whatsoever, just have to be persistent and have your ducks in a row when you make the call.

Yes, I’m sure no one is just calling in for giggles.  I would imagine if people are calling in they have proof of a lower fare. 

[mwj]

21 hours ago, KroozNut said:

 

Typically no hesitation whatsoever, just have to be persistent and have your ducks in a row when you make the call.

We don't call on a whim. We only call when there is a significant price reduction. This was the first time our PCC has been reluctant to re-fare. If it happens again, we will request a new PCC. We expect our PCC to work with us to obtain the best scenario, without hesitation, and without us having to be adamant to override their reluctance.

[KroozNut]

1 hour ago, mwj said:

We don't call on a whim. We only call when there is a significant price reduction. This was the first time our PCC has been reluctant to re-fare. If it happens again, we will request a new PCC. We expect our PCC to work with us to obtain the best scenario, without hesitation, and without us having to be adamant to override their reluctance.

 

If you know as much (or more) than the average PCC does about the particular situation you're calling about because you've done your homework, they will have no choice but to honor your request; without hesitation, or having to be adamant to override any reluctance.

This is one of many reasons why I act as our own PCC, and deal directly with HAL in every situation. A PCC only serves to muddy up the water in most situations.  

[JesseLivermore]

anyone have any fare trackers they recommend? 

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, KroozNut said:

 

If you know as much (or more) than the average PCC does about the particular situation you're calling about because you've done your homework, they will have no choice but to honor your request; without hesitation, or having to be adamant to override any reluctance.

This is one of many reasons why I act as our own PCC, and deal directly with HAL in every situation. A PCC only serves to muddy up the water in most situations.  

Nope.  Some of us have no desire to sit on hold for hours.  When I used a pcc all I did was send an email.  You do you and don’t worry about how others book their cruises.  

[KroozNut]

1 hour ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Nope.  Some of us have no desire to sit on hold for hours.  When I used a pcc all I did was send an email.  You do you and don’t worry about how others book their cruises.  

 

Have never 'sat on hold for hours', so not sure where that comes from. Pick your poison.. Use a PCC, and hope it works out for you, or manage your booking yourself and own it.

[AFNavigator]

3 minutes ago, KroozNut said:

 

Have never 'sat on hold for hours', so not sure where that comes from. Pick your poison.. Use a PCC, and hope it works out for you, or manage your booking yourself and own it.

I called HAL a couple weeks ago about a price drop.  Expecting extended hold time, I was surprised to get a live voice within 10 seconds of going through the menu options.  When I asked about the price drop, that agent forwarded me to another section.  Once again, expecting extended hold, I found that the agent in the other section answered immediately.  He didn't just match the price drop I quoted...he beat that price by nearly $350 more.  He also allowed the crew gratuities to be included for a total value to us of $699.  That all took less than 10 minutes!  Wish they all went this fast.

[Florida_gal_50]

Good to see hal finally is answering calls in a timely fashion instead of the stories I’ve heard from my ta and also over and over again here of being on hold for hours.  The stories were plentiful even a month ago.  When I’ve phoned guest services I know I’ve been on hold for at least a half hour.  No way around that.