Beverage Shortages and Other Cuts

[RICHARD@SEA]

As far as shortages - people should read the current World Cruise blog onboard Zuiderdam - not a happy crowd - shortages of fruit , fresh veggies, certain drinks since January when the cruise started.

As far as supplying ships - HAL is part of the Carnival Corporation  an extremely large corp that has leverage w supply vendors from all departments... so the should be quite qualified to deal w such vendors & logistics throughout their lines.

 

As far as costs of goods - HAL didn't discount passengers fares due to cutbacks - they simply cutback to maintain profit margins - its the business model of today.  The people that make excuses for their preferences / lines are entitled to do so...just take off the rose colored glasses and see others point of view!!

 

And the person who  said costs are high in Brazil should note the Brazilian REAL is worth 20 cents US dollar....

[mcrcruiser]

What is a plus for Holland ,  are  longer & some unique itineraries as most  of the frequent patrons already know . This is why we still sail with them & bear the food /drink negativity & very limited  main shows  for  entertainment .Music Walk is nice but loud on  the Pinnacle class ships .

We were attracted to Holland America  our first cruise on the old Ryndam  which had better entertainment than todays . Also the food selection & quality was better then 

Edited April 24, 2023 by mcrcruiser

[Mary229]

23 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

Holland  America pre pandemic was a different cruise line that it vis today  .On the other hand Celebrity although not there totally ,is much closer to pre pandemic times than Holland America  .Any one to say this is not so is not telling the truth 

I was asking to see what logistical and operational differences there would be for supply chain issues.   A long cruise far from home ports have a far greater chance of supply chain issues. Cruises in post Covid start up markets, like Japan,  are having issues also.  Labor issues seem to be worldwide with pockets of severity.
 

 I have found only cutbacks not major operational differences.  I have found the cutbacks have not been in shortages but elimination of certain items.  I am indifferent to entertainment as I do that at home.   The enrichment program reductions started pre Covid.  I have always held that specialty dining has created operational issues since introduction, it is now playing out.  The same dilution and loss of scale of economies that occurs with multiple dining venues is now also playing out in the multiple entertainment venues.  It was bound to have to reconsolidate.  I was not a fan of either and would like to see something new.

 

to paraphrase, anyone who cannot accept the economics realities of the supply chain and labor issues is not telling the truth 

Edited April 24, 2023 by Mary229

[mcrcruiser]

About entertainment .We counted 18 singers & dancers  & 8  piece band  on the Celebrity Soltice  main stage  .We only wish they sail more often from California ports 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Mary229]

24 minutes ago, RICHARD@SEA said:

And the person who  said costs are high in Brazil should note the Brazilian REAL is worth 20 cents US dolla

I use spent a few weeks in Brazil, costs are high.  

[mcrcruiser]

9 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

I was asking to see what logistical and operational differences there would be for supply chain issues.   A long cruise far from home ports have a far greater chance of supply chain issues. Cruises in post Covid start up markets, like Japan,  are having issues also.  Labor issues seem to be worldwide with pockets of severity.
 

 I have found only cutbacks not major operational differences.  I have found the cutbacks have not been in shortages but elimination of certain items.  I am indifferent to entertainment as I do that at home.   The enrichment program reductions started pre Covid.  I have always held that specialty dining has created operational issues since introduction, it is now playing out.  The same dilution and loss of scale of economies that occurs with multiple dining venues is now also playing out in the multiple entertainment venues.  It was bound to have to reconsolidate.  I was not a fan of either and would like to see something new.

Mary what people called or still call supply chain issues caused by the pandemic are not all true .Many were designed   to take  power .I will not get into  the politics of this in this forum but  ,mark my words  every one who loves democracy  will know the truth in the future

Edited April 24, 2023 by mcrcruiser

[Mary229]

Just now, mcrcruiser said:

Mary what people called or still call supply chain issues caused by the pandemic are not all true .Many were designed   to take  power .I will not get into  the politics pf this in this forum but  ,mark my words  every one who loves democracy  will know the truth in the future

It matters not the cause or how it plays out it is an economic reality. 

[Stateroom_Sailor]

The largest shortages mentioned so far have come from three ships:

 

Westerdam in Japan

Zuiderdam world cruise

Oosterdam South America

 

This is somewhat reassuring for our upcoming cruises.  Since the ultra premium market is the most competitive in exotic locations, this is even more incentive to take the leap abroad.  For those who like HAL and care about shortages, perhaps saving it for North America is our best bet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[slidergirl]

6 hours ago, PalmSprings said:

 

Or perhaps it’s that I’m on a ship that originated - and therefore provisioned - in North America and thus had easy access to american products.  On a sailing in Asia, I don’t think it’s at all inconceivable that some of those items would be harder, or indeed impossible, to come by.

Black tea?  Whiskey?  Lemons?  Bottled water?   

[mcrcruiser]

6 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

It matters not the cause or how it plays out it is an economic reality. 

Mary we can only go by our San Diego county area & we do not see shortages in any thing we want or buy . Thus ,we are not impacted .I like to hear from people who shop what their experience has been in their locals

[mcrcruiser]

2 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

Mary we can only go by our San Diego county area & we do not see shortages in any thing we want or buy . Thus ,we are not impacted .I like to hear from people who shop what their experience has been in their locals

Every thing is just more expensive than pre pandemic  times

[Mary229]

2 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

Mary we can only go by our San Diego county area & we do not see shortages in any thing we want or buy . Thus ,we are not impacted .I like to hear from people who shop what their experience has been in their locals

I mentioned our restaurant experiences here and you reacted with disbelief.  Many of our restaurants lost staff and have not been able to get new staff. Some even now have reduced hours or reduced menus.   Hotels only have maid service upon request, you do not get it for a weekend stay. I could go on but it is easily discovered also in the economic press.  We have travelled quite a bit and I don’t disagree that things are in transition. I am more tolerant of inconveniences and am willing to let it play out.  If it loses value for me I will travel by other means. 

[mcrcruiser]

We certainly hope for improvements because we so nor want to be on a 18 day cruise ,spend over $6000 & not enjoy the cruise . Additionally ,to insure such a trip when you are our ages  is up there as well . We must treat all trips in a business like manner 

[Mary229]

12 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

We certainly hope for improvements because we so nor want to be on a 18 day cruise ,spend over $6000 & not enjoy the cruise . Additionally ,to insure such a trip when you are our ages  is up there as well . We must treat all trips in a business like manner 

So you are going to take the cruise?  I thought you cancelled. There are ways to deal with costs.  Things like we use a Chase Sapphire card which has insurance as good as any Allianz mid level policy and during the Covid era we coupled it with a geoblue annual medical policy.   We don’t buy suites - we consider HAL a base mid tier cruise line and I follow the principle of never buying the best real estate in the neighborhood.  These two methods free up my budget so I never need to be concerned about my expenses while cruising 

Edited April 24, 2023 by Mary229

[Laminator]

26 minutes ago, mcrcruiser said:

Mary we can only go by our San Diego county area & we do not see shortages in any thing we want or buy . Thus ,we are not impacted .I like to hear from people who shop what their experience has been in their locals

You are relatively close to some of the largest offloading ports in the world. My product would come into those ports and due to it having to be shipped to the midwest get delayed anywhere from 2 weeks to 3 months before it left the port. I could care less about the politics behind it. I just want to take care of my customers. So unless you have hands on experience in moving containers to the US and then to a final destination inside the US from several different countries please stop speculating. My main problem now and has been for several months is moving that product inside the US. This is a problem for all as my competitors are stuck. They are calling me product. 

 

 

Edited April 24, 2023 by Laminator

[mcrcruiser]

2 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

So you are going to take the cruise?  I thought you cancelled. There are ways to deal with costs.  Things like we use a Chase Sapphire card which has insurance as good as any Allianz mid level policy and during the Covid era we coupled it with a geoblue annual medical policy.   We don’t buy suites - we consider HAL a base mid tier cruise line and I follow the principle of never buying the best real estate in the neighborhood.  These two methods free up my budget so I never need to be concerned about my expenses while cruising 

  We have the Chase Sapphire preferred credit card .

  We did cancel a 14 night  cruise on Zaandam .Still have a 18 day cruise booked 

 

   

[Mary229]

Just now, mcrcruiser said:

  We have the Chase Sapphire preferred credit card .

  We did cancel a 14 night  cruise on Zaandam .Still have a 18 day cruise booked 

 

   

Have you ever done a side by side comparison of the insurance.  You may be pleasantly surprised and save a lot of money

[mcrcruiser]

2 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

Have you ever done a side by side comparison of the insurance.  You may be pleasantly surprised and save a lot of money

yes there is not much we have not delved into ,even to the point all we need is medical evacuation insurance & found a company who is looking into developing a stand alone policy on  med vac

[RICHARD@SEA]

43 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

I use spent a few weeks in Brazil, costs are high.  

generalities are not valid points - only opinions.

Its like comparing what someone would pay for the same product in a local family owned store vs AMAZON or another big box organization.  

and what you consider high is not necessarily true for others.

 

If Carnivore Corp really were concerned about its customer satisfaction & ongoing operations it would of rolled out the ships at a slower pace(even after selling several ships across all their lines), have them fully staffed & made sure certain standards were maintained.  Communication is key(many of the ships have such poor IT equipment the WIFI is out for days on end - yet HAL is charging passengers as if there wasn't any problem.

As far as food - so many complaints about poor menu options, cold food being served or incorrectly and the shortages of basics.  This is not covid related, shut down related or supply chain delivery problems - IT'S POOR MANAGEMENT!!!

 

As far as long term HAL devotees( I was one of them at one time) this sounds like teh same tune that was sung over on the CRYSTAL Boards awhile back....people swore their Crystal wouldn't leave them stranded(both physically & economically) -well we all read how that panned out.

 

HAL just announce the 2025 voyage of POOLE to POLE  - on the VOLENDAM...I sailed in her when she was new...for years now there has been plumbing /sewage issues w her - imagine a long cruise....

[PalmSprings]

2 hours ago, slidergirl said:

Black tea?  Whiskey?  Lemons?  Bottled water?   

 

✅, ✅, ✅ and ✅ (technically canned water on the last one)

[mcrcruiser]

There are many other good options to travel it is not just cruises . We  own so many Marriott & Hilton Honor hotel points we could stay close in to Balboa Park ,here in San Diego ,see the Zoo ( never gets old) & on  each Tuesdays we  have a selection of  free entry to  the museums in Balboa Park . There is the Gas Lamp district , Little Italy ,Old Town , Sea Port Village ,Hotel Del Coronado ,Sea World , major league baseball at Petco Park  ,the San Diego Padres &  live plays That alone could keep us busy for months  .We just do not want to drive far to see these attractions .Thus ,free hotel stays for couple of days at a time . We do have great weather  here

 

 Cruises are nice but there are other options .We done many cruises when imo the industry  gave  us much better value .I call it the golden days of cruising

 

 We are not against cruises or any cruise line but there are better choices  . We are now too old to fly to far off  destinations but ,we have been there is the past & got through our bucket list .Now it is your turn 

 

 

[mcrcruiser]

3 hours ago, Mary229 said:

Have you ever done a side by side comparison of the insurance.  You may be pleasantly surprised and save a lot of money

  The only area we must cover is medical evacuation . We have world wide medical 

 

The  Chase Sapphire CC covers as you know the cruise cancellation , cruise interruption & baggage .

 

We have checked all over the internet & so far No  company is selling  medical evacuation as a stand alone .

 

We did look at Allianz  for just  their med vac insurance but it  ,medical for $20 k each ,med vac $100 K each &$1000 each baggage & $200  each baggage  delay for one full year at a cost of $276  total  . There is also $600  each  travel delay ,$45000  rental car damage & theft,$ 25000 each travel accident insurance per person . 24 hour hotline & Concierge   included  & Epidemic Coverage Endorsement is also included .This is the total package from Allianz

 

 Our quote in writing cost for one full  year of insurance ,at our ages of 83 & 84 .is $276 . No doubt younger people will pay less

 

 imo the above Allianz & the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit card used to booking any travel is all one should need

[Hlitner]

1 hour ago, mcrcruiser said:

  The only area we must cover is medical evacuation . We have world wide medical 

 

The  Chase Sapphire CC covers as you know the cruise cancellation , cruise interruption & baggage .

 

We have checked all over the internet & so far No  company is selling  medical evacuation as a stand alone .

 

We did look at Allianz  for just  their med vac insurance but it  ,medical for $20 k each ,med vac $100 K each &$1000 each baggage & $200  each baggage  delay for one full year at a cost of $276  total  . There is also $600  each  travel delay ,$45000  rental car damage & theft,$ 25000 each travel accident insurance per person . 24 hour hotline & Concierge   included  & Epidemic Coverage Endorsement is also included .This is the total package from Allianz

 

 Our quote in writing cost for one full  year of insurance ,at our ages of 83 & 84 .is $276 . No doubt younger people will pay less

 

 imo the above Allianz & the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit card used to booking any travel is all one should need

If you simply want a med evac policy, check out medjetsssist.com.

 

Hank

[Mary229]

9 hours ago, RICHARD@SEA said:

generalities are not valid points - only opinions.

Its like comparing what someone would pay for the same product in a local family owned store vs AMAZON or another big box organization.  

and what you consider high is not necessarily true for others.

 

If Carnivore Corp really were concerned about its customer satisfaction & ongoing operations it would of rolled out the ships at a slower pace(even after selling several ships across all their lines), have them fully staffed & made sure certain standards were maintained.  Communication is key(many of the ships have such poor IT equipment the WIFI is out for days on end - yet HAL is charging passengers as if there wasn't any problem.

As far as food - so many complaints about poor menu options, cold food being served or incorrectly and the shortages of basics.  This is not covid related, shut down related or supply chain delivery problems - IT'S POOR MANAGEMENT!!!

 

As far as long term HAL devotees( I was one of them at one time) this sounds like teh same tune that was sung over on the CRYSTAL Boards awhile back....people swore their Crystal wouldn't leave them stranded(both physically & economically) -well we all read how that panned out.

 

HAL just announce the 2025 voyage of POOLE to POLE  - on the VOLENDAM...I sailed in her when she was new...for years now there has been plumbing /sewage issues w her - imagine a long cruise....

Do the research.  I saw the prices then i did the research.  Brazil is not cheap and certainly if you expect to buy non-local items in foreign ports they are not cheap.   There are certain economies of scale in purchasing provisions.  If you only visit a port 3 or 4 times a year, at most, you are not going to get a command contract with nice discounts.  Don’t assume people just speak off the cuff.  

[Mary229]

5 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

  The only area we must cover is medical evacuation . We have world wide medical 

 

The  Chase Sapphire CC covers as you know the cruise cancellation , cruise interruption & baggage .

 

We have checked all over the internet & so far No  company is selling  medical evacuation as a stand alone .

 

We did look at Allianz  for just  their med vac insurance but it  ,medical for $20 k each ,med vac $100 K each &$1000 each baggage & $200  each baggage  delay for one full year at a cost of $276  total  . There is also $600  each  travel delay ,$45000  rental car damage & theft,$ 25000 each travel accident insurance per person . 24 hour hotline & Concierge   included  & Epidemic Coverage Endorsement is also included .This is the total package from Allianz

 

 Our quote in writing cost for one full  year of insurance ,at our ages of 83 & 84 .is $276 . No doubt younger people will pay less

 

 imo the above Allianz & the Chase Sapphire Preferred Credit card used to booking any travel is all one should need

Sapphire does have a medical component.  I agree though if you have conditions and advanced age you need a medical supplement.