Rare sambamama Posted July 4 #76 Share Posted July 4 AThe big moral to your story is to become an informed consumer. Had you come to this board and asked questions and/ or read up, you wouldn't have had some of your problems. You would have known what anytime dining meant, and known that after the first day, you might want to set up a time for dinner the next six nights. You would have known the dressy nights meant you had to wear a collared shirt. On Alaska cruises, most people dress down anyway. Or you may have decided fixed dining was the way to go. I've had complaints on HAL before, and it was usually 2 days before I got an answer. The only prompt answers I've ever got was when I had issues with food or service at the Pinnacle restaurant. If you don't sail with HAL or Princess, you will miss Glacier Bay. Personally, if you won't sail with either of those, I would take a land tour instead. I regard Glacier Bay as the highlight of Alaska. I'm not saying I wouldn't sail with some of those of those other lines, in fact I have, I just wouldn't to Alaska. Actually, the only time I sailed to Alaska was on the Volendam was to Alaska, and I had an amazing time!! I loved the ship with all its flowers! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRLD Posted July 4 #77 Share Posted July 4 5 hours ago, Petronillus said: OP's plain intention from the outset was to warn others away from the Volendam in particular and from HAL in general. He started by venting his frustration and subsequently, when requested, fleshed out the details. Other readers expressed the judgment that what OP described was not the cruise from hell and that his disgruntlement, while genuine, was excessive. Someone along the way asked what remedy OP proposed, i.e., what form of compensation and to what degree or in what amount. So far I haven't seen an answer. In no way, it seems to me, has OP been flamed. Are the other readers wrong for being less than sympathetic? I have seen true cruises from he'll described on these boards. From as far as I can tell most of the OP issues seem to stem from not understanding the process for excursions and dining room. Including that formal nights are not really formal these days, no suit and tie required. The fact that the excursion had no record of a call about his issue from customer service. The most complex issue would seem to be incorrect SPA charges, which while, an annoyance, can he and apparently from the note resolved. So I am also in that camp that most of the issues were because the practices on HAL did not match whatever they were expecting and proceeded to over react instead of learning what those processes are. I sail on a lot of lines. When I go on one that I have not been on before, or when I have not been on a line for a period of time I find it useful to brush up on the policies for that line. 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powlan Posted July 4 #78 Share Posted July 4 10 hours ago, Ileneilene123 said: You have an excellent attitude! However, reading your post makes me nervous for our Zaandam cruise next week. Poor service, so so food, unclean MDR, long lines — definitely not good. I’ll be really sad if our Dog Sledding on Mendenhall Glacier excursion is cancelled. I can’t control the weather, but it doesn’t stop me from worrying this will happen to us too. Any cruise tips or positives to share about your trip on the Zaandam to Alaska? Thx. Although there was a long line at Guest Services, it was almost always because someone took up a lot of time. I felt that the people behind the counter were a bit like those at the airport. They absolutely try their best and usually it's good enough. Regarding another positive. We found the Excursion desk very helpful in terms of honesty. Same with future cruise desk. Very informative. The best tip I can give you is to get yourself a TA who concentrates on cruises. Ours seems to know everything, can get through to Holland and resolves what would be a thorny problem. If we find a low fare on one of the "big box" or hot dog places we tell him and he tries to meet the price or reprice it. Regarding so-so food. That was only in the MDR. Also, the service there may have just been one person who was serving too many tables. However, the Pinnacle was yummy. Morimoto fantastic. Finally. I'm sure there were ways and places I could have saved a few hundred dollars or gotten some more OBC. But so what. I usually can resolve it on line when I get home. And I think about all the things that went right versus a tiny few that were challenges, then I'm ahead of the game. Tip. I don't think that there is anything that is broken in your cabin that can't be fixed. They have plumbers, carpenters, electricians galore. Trust me, they'll take care of you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Mary229 Posted July 4 #79 Share Posted July 4 6 hours ago, TRLD said: I have seen true cruises from he'll described on these boards. From as far as I can tell most of the OP issues seem to stem from not understanding the process for excursions and dining room. Including that formal nights are not really formal these days, no suit and tie required. The fact that the excursion had no record of a call about his issue from customer service. The most complex issue would seem to be incorrect SPA charges, which while, an annoyance, can he and apparently from the note resolved. So I am also in that camp that most of the issues were because the practices on HAL did not match whatever they were expecting and proceeded to over react instead of learning what those processes are. I sail on a lot of lines. When I go on one that I have not been on before, or when I have not been on a line for a period of time I find it useful to brush up on the policies for that line. I absolutely agree. I am sailing a line for the first time in 20 years. I read their FAQ, I read their contract and I visit their section of cruise critic forum to learn any new nuggets of information. It is akin to knowing a retailers return policy. I do agree with the OP, you and others that the spa experience has become as awful. I will not step foot again into the spa until they address the heavy handed sales pitches and underhanded billing practices 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TRLD Posted July 4 #80 Share Posted July 4 (edited) 3 hours ago, Mary229 said: I absolutely agree. I am sailing a line for the first time in 20 years. I read their FAQ, I read their contract and I visit their section of cruise critic forum to learn any new nuggets of information. It is akin to knowing a retailers return policy. I do agree with the OP, you and others that the spa experience has become as awful. I will not step foot again into the spa until they address the heavy handed sales pitches and underhanded billing practices The spa experience, which seems to be similar on most lines is largely due to the contractors compensation approach which, as I understand it, is very much commission based. As a result they are very focused on upselling. As far as we are concerned these days the spa on most lines is just a place to be avoided. My wife will try one every so often, when it has been a while on a given line, just to see if they have improved. Unfortunately the answer is mostly no, they have not. Edited July 4 by TRLD 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare terrydtx Posted July 4 #81 Share Posted July 4 (edited) 18 minutes ago, TRLD said: The spa experience, which seems to be similar on most lines is largely due to the contractors compensation approach which, as I understand it, is very much commission based. As a result they are very focused on upselling. As far as we are concerned these days the spa on most lines is just a place to be avoided. My wife will try one every so often, when it has been a while on a given line, just to see if they have improved. Unfortunately the answer is mostly no, they have not. My wife ordered pre cruise a spa treatment on the K'Dam last year and she paid for the cost pre cruise. After the treatment the charge showed up on our statement and one call to Guest Services got it removed. We had Club Orange and got to dine in the CO dining room, a couple of nights we had to wait about 15 minutes for a table. When we boarded there was not a CO bag waiting for us, I asked our room attendant about it and he said they had run out of them. Did we let all of this ruin our cruise, did I need to go on CC and claim it ruined our cruise? The answer was no way, it was a great cruise on a mighty fine Dam ship. We will be on the Volendam next month and this review in no way has me worried or questioning about how great the cruise will be. Edited July 4 by terrydtx 13 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in AZ Posted July 4 #82 Share Posted July 4 14 hours ago, Ileneilene123 said: We will be staying in a Vista Suite and purchased Club Orange. I understand there is a dedicated Club Orange Concierge. I wonder if they play a similar role to the Neptune Suite Concierge? Yes, there is a dedicated line at Customer Service for Club Orange, however I wouldn’t call it Concierge Service like that in the Neptune Lounge. Various CS reps service the CO line and service can be a little quicker. They might remember you more than if you were in the regular line. The service is not any different than the usual service at CS. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petronillus Posted July 4 #83 Share Posted July 4 1 hour ago, TRLD said: The spa experience, which seems to be similar on most lines is largely due to the contractors compensation approach which, as I understand it, is very much commission based. As a result they are very focused on upselling. As far as we are concerned these days the spa on most lines is just a place to be avoided. My wife will try one every so often, when it has been a while on a given line, just to see if they have improved. Unfortunately the answer is mostly no, they have not. I rarely avail myself of the spa. On our last cruise I cashed in a deep discount on a therapeutic massage. At the end the masseuse pushed a shopping list of must-have products and presented a charge slip that didn't take the discount into account. I refused the up-sale and sorted out the charge, but it reaffirmed my negative feelings about the spa. How can they sustain a business model that actively scorns the customer's goodwill? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CNSJ Posted July 4 #84 Share Posted July 4 12 hours ago, Cruiser Sean said: Thank You to those that provided helpful context and suggestions. I'll pray for those that felt the need to attack, as you probably have bigger problems in your life, and chose this post as a negative outlet. I simply wanted to post in a forum on cruise "critic", and relay our cruise experience. I'm not expecting anything from HAL, I only requested a manager callback to provide our feedback directly and ultimately be removed from HALs future calling list. HAL had an opportunity on the cruise to issue an appropriate remedy, and in our opinion they failed. I wish the best for all future cruisers. Have a wonderful day. Feel bad that you had a difficult and unpleasant experience with your HAL cruise this summer. Everyone has their own experiences, thoughts, and opinions. If you had a bad cruise - that's for you to determine. My only suggestion is one I have a hard time myself following: Try not to let 20% of things going lousy ruin the rest to the point you can't enjoy yourself. I am not saying that you had an 80% good cruise, but I try to not let things that get me or my wife a bit upset ruin the rest. I am not a HAL cheerleader, and have my own experiences with how things can or should be done. After cruising many lines regularly over the past fifteen years of regular cruising, I think they do a very good job for the price point. But that's my opinion. You are entitled to yours and this is the place to vent a bit. When others nit pick your comments, and tell you "how you should have handled it" I call it Cruise Critic Critic where we critique the critique. If you were ever in the nuclear Navy, that would make sense. I once listened to a woman complain for fifteen minutes on a $1.50 overcharge for a drink, and how she would never again sail with that cruise line because of it. I know she was sailing in a suite on that cruise that must have cost close to $10K per person. Letting a $1.50 charge ruin your $20K vacation to me is losing touch. Not saying you are doing the same. Happy Fourth of July and from this retired Navy Submarine Sailor, Thank you for your service Soldier. 8 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare terrydtx Posted July 4 #85 Share Posted July 4 2 minutes ago, CNSJ said: I once listened to a woman complain for fifteen minutes on a $1.50 overcharge for a drink, and how she would never again sail with that cruise line because of it. I know she was sailing in a suite on that cruise that must have cost close to $10K per person. Letting a $1.50 charge ruin your $20K vacation to me is losing touch. Not saying you are doing the same. My favorite story with customer service was last year on the K'Dam. While waiting in line for the CO guest service rep the person in front of me was demanding his pre-paid gratuities be credited back to his onboard account. The rep explained to him that he had booked the Early Booking Bonus HIA that included the paid gratuities, and they could not be credited back. He asked to talk with a supervisor and when the supervisor came out the same thing was explained to this person. He got belligerent and said he always takes care of the people who take care of him personally in cash. He then shouted out that he would never cruise again with HAL for all to hear. I had a feeling he always asks to get credited his daily gratuity charges and never pays anyone who serves him too. 6 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tjcox9 Posted July 4 #86 Share Posted July 4 I believe I read the OPs comment correctly about going to the Lido at 9:00 PM for dinner. I thought it normally closed at 8. Perhaps that has changed???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Mary229 Posted July 4 #87 Share Posted July 4 12 minutes ago, terrydtx said: He then shouted out that he would never cruise again with HAL for all to hear. Sometimes that is oh, so gratifying to hear 😉 3 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Mary229 Posted July 4 #88 Share Posted July 4 4 minutes ago, tjcox9 said: I believe I read the OPs comment correctly about going to the Lido at 9:00 PM for dinner. I thought it normally closed at 8. Perhaps that has changed???? It can very ship to ship and where you are sailing and time in port 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ileneilene123 Posted July 4 #89 Share Posted July 4 (edited) 1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said: Yes, there is a dedicated line at Customer Service for Club Orange, however I wouldn’t call it Concierge Service like that in the Neptune Lounge. Various CS reps service the CO line and service can be a little quicker. They might remember you more than if you were in the regular line. The service is not any different than the usual service at CS. Thanks! HAL also refers to a dedicated “Club Orange Hotline.” That’s in addition to priority lines at the MDR, guest services, shore excursions. So I wasn’t sure if this hotline is an additional contact on board through the Navigator App? Or, maybe they just mean a pre-cruise contact? I’ll find out next week. Edited July 4 by Ileneilene123 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ileneilene123 Posted July 4 #90 Share Posted July 4 10 hours ago, powlan said: Although there was a long line at Guest Services, it was almost always because someone took up a lot of time. I felt that the people behind the counter were a bit like those at the airport. They absolutely try their best and usually it's good enough. Regarding another positive. We found the Excursion desk very helpful in terms of honesty. Same with future cruise desk. Very informative. The best tip I can give you is to get yourself a TA who concentrates on cruises. Ours seems to know everything, can get through to Holland and resolves what would be a thorny problem. If we find a low fare on one of the "big box" or hot dog places we tell him and he tries to meet the price or reprice it. Regarding so-so food. That was only in the MDR. Also, the service there may have just been one person who was serving too many tables. However, the Pinnacle was yummy. Morimoto fantastic. Finally. I'm sure there were ways and places I could have saved a few hundred dollars or gotten some more OBC. But so what. I usually can resolve it on line when I get home. And I think about all the things that went right versus a tiny few that were challenges, then I'm ahead of the game. Tip. I don't think that there is anything that is broken in your cabin that can't be fixed. They have plumbers, carpenters, electricians galore. Trust me, they'll take care of you. Thank you for the additional info about your cruise on the Zaandam. Good tips! I am sorry that you missed the dog sledding excursion on Mendenhall Glacier due to cancellation by HAL. As I said, we are signed up for that as well & hope we can actually go. To be clear, was it cancelled due to weather? How much notice did HAL give you of cancellation & did they attempt to reschedule you? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fouremco Posted July 4 #91 Share Posted July 4 14 hours ago, bartexas said: HAL shouldn't be calling it "Anytime Dining" if that's a misnomer. I can see why that's misleading to first time guests, especially if you only read the description. How is the MDR any different to land-based restaurants? If you arrive at a particularly busy time with no reservation, you're going to have to wait. No reasonable person is going to assume that you can simply show up with a party of four and be seated. We enjoy the flexibility of anytime dining, but always plan on heading to the nearest bar for a pre-dinner drink with our pager in hand. 11 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Projunior Posted July 4 #92 Share Posted July 4 (edited) On 7/3/2024 at 1:33 AM, Cruiser Sean said: We paid over 8k for our cruise and spent another 6k onboard between the Spa, Casino, shops etc. Money isn't "spent" in the casino; it's wagered and you either lose or win. The fact that you consider the gambling part of your $6K as "spent" money that you "paid" to HAL would seem to imply this outlay of cash might be better described as "losing money in the casino". Any chance that a bad run at the tables or slots colored your impression of your cruise? Edited July 4 by Projunior 9 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare albingirl Posted July 4 #93 Share Posted July 4 3 minutes ago, Projunior said: Money isn't "spent" in the casino; it's wagered and you either lose or win. The fact that you consider the gambling part of your $6K as "spent" money that you "paid" to HAL would seem to imply this outlay of cash might be better described as "losing money in the casino". Any chance that a bad run at the tables or slots colored your impression of your cruise? Maybe if he won 6K, this thread would have a different tone. 2 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare terrydtx Posted July 4 #94 Share Posted July 4 (edited) 42 minutes ago, Fouremco said: How is the MDR any different to land-based restaurants? If you arrive at a particularly busy time with no reservation, you're going to have to wait. No reasonable person is going to assume that you can simply show up with a party of four and be seated. We enjoy the flexibility of anytime dining, but always plan on heading to the nearest bar for a pre-dinner drink with our pager in hand. I have to agree and we only book the open or anytime dining on any cruise line for the flexibility. I have also found that if you show up at the MDR between 6:30 and 7:30pm you seldom have a wait of a few minutes or less. If you show up when the MDR first opens, you are going to wait depending on where you are in line. I have seen the line all the way down the hallways at 5:30pm. Having CO gives the added flexibility of being seated before those waiting in line on the non-Pinnacle ships. Edited July 4 by terrydtx 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powlan Posted July 4 #95 Share Posted July 4 1 hour ago, Ileneilene123 said: Thank you for the additional info about your cruise on the Zaandam. Good tips! I am sorry that you missed the dog sledding excursion on Mendenhall Glacier due to cancellation by HAL. As I said, we are signed up for that as well & hope we can actually go. To be clear, was it cancelled due to weather? How much notice did HAL give you of cancellation & did they attempt to reschedule you? Thanks! Due to weather. We waited (per HAL's suggestion) up to last minute to see if the weather got better. They then called us and said that the planes weren't flying. did we want to take a train excursion at the same time or have a refund. We took the train excursion. Since it was only 7 days we wanted to have all the excursions possible. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ileneilene123 Posted July 4 #96 Share Posted July 4 3 minutes ago, powlan said: Due to weather. We waited (per HAL's suggestion) up to last minute to see if the weather got better. They then called us and said that the planes weren't flying. did we want to take a train excursion at the same time or have a refund. We took the train excursion. Since it was only 7 days we wanted to have all the excursions possible. I see. Yep, can’t control the weather. Like you we are most excited for our excursions. Dog sledding is our top excursion but we know it’s often cancelled due to weather. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in AZ Posted July 4 #97 Share Posted July 4 2 hours ago, Ileneilene123 said: Thanks! HAL also refers to a dedicated “Club Orange Hotline.” That’s in addition to priority lines at the MDR, guest services, shore excursions. So I wasn’t sure if this hotline is an additional contact on board through the Navigator App? Or, maybe they just mean a pre-cruise contact? I’ll find out next week. It’s a phone extension on the in-cabin phone. I’ve used it a few times but really prefer face to face interaction. Have a great cruise and enjoy Club Orange! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ileneilene123 Posted July 4 #98 Share Posted July 4 1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said: It’s a phone extension on the in-cabin phone. I’ve used it a few times but really prefer face to face interaction. Have a great cruise and enjoy Club Orange! Thank you so much! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LAFFNVEGAS Posted July 4 #99 Share Posted July 4 4 hours ago, Projunior said: Money isn't "spent" in the casino; it's wagered and you either lose or win. The fact that you consider the gambling part of your $6K as "spent" money that you "paid" to HAL would seem to imply this outlay of cash might be better described as "losing money in the casino". Any chance that a bad run at the tables or slots colored your impression of your cruise? I have to admit this was my first thought reading this yesterday morning. It reminds me of a TikToc review that someone was having an amazing cruise till the last night then suddenly the whole week went south when they realized how much money they spent and did not reach the next casino players level. Casinos in Vegas witness this a lot as well and the players unfortunately take it out on the Hotel and Restaurant servers. Basically it is Gamblers Losing Remorse. None of this would have been that terrible if the gambling loss was not there. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare Mary229 Posted July 4 #100 Share Posted July 4 Just now, LAFFNVEGAS said: I have to admit this was my first thought reading this yesterday morning. It reminds me of a TikToc review that someone was having an amazing cruise till the last night then suddenly the whole week went south when they realized how much money they spent and did not reach the next casino players level. Casinos in Vegas witness this a lot as well and the players unfortunately take it out on the Hotel and Restaurant servers. Basically it is Gamblers Losing Remorse. None of this would have been that terrible if the gambling loss was not there. Interesting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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