HAL no longer offers any diving

[Waterskier1]

I just got an email from HAL stating " Holland America Line is no longer offering the Certified One-Tank Scuba Diving excursion in Half Moon Cay. We apologize for any disappointment this may cause and have requested a refund to the credit card used for prepayment of this tour. "

 

This was the ONLY scuba tour/excursion offer on the 10-day Panama Canal cruise, and now it's no longer offered. Looks like HAL is getting out the of the diving business. (They may still be offering snorkeling - I don't know since I didn't book any to be cancelled).

 

This along with the pricing fiasco a short time ago has me wondering the future of this cruiseline. Anyone know what's going on?

[Old As Dirt Mom]

Waterskier:

 

What are your ports on your Panama Canal cruise? On our upcoming 14-day Southern Caribbean/Panama Canal cruise there are scuba excursions still being offered in Bonaire, Grand Cayman, and Costa Maya through HAL.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

Sorry, double post.

[Waterskier1]

HMC, Aruba, Caracao, Christobal Panama, Limon Costa Rica. The general excursions listing shows dives, but when you go to book them, there are none listed for our specific cruise. Are they listed when you go to book them, or just in the general itinerary listing? I called HAL earlier about not being listed in the booking and they said that meant they were not offered for our specific cruise. I'm wondering if there is something unique with our cruise (Amsterdam on 29 Nov 06, or it's a universal policy.

[Old As Dirt Mom]

HMC, Aruba, Caracao, Christobal Panama, Limon Costa Rica. The general excursions listing shows dives, but when you go to book them, there are none listed for our specific cruise. Are they listed when you go to book them, or just in the general itinerary listing? I called HAL earlier about not being listed in the booking and they said that meant they were not offered for our specific cruise. I'm wondering if there is something unique with our cruise (Amsterdam on 29 Nov 06, or it's a universal policy.

 

Waterskier, try to go here, and type in your booking number and last name. This will take you to the excursions that are offered and available for your cruise specifically. Our cruise also stops in Aruba, Curacao, and Limon, and just as you say, there are no diving excursions available through HAL at those ports (Limon I can understand; it's not a diving mecca.) But the other ports I mentioned in my previous post do still show scuba excursions available, at least for our cruise on December 19th. I'm sorry about your situation. Do you have time to book independent diving excursions? Here is the scuba/snorkeling Cruise Critic forum. Maybe they have some info for you there?

[kryos]

I just got an email from HAL stating " Holland America Line is no longer offering the Certified One-Tank Scuba Diving excursion in Half Moon Cay. We apologize for any disappointment this may cause and have requested a refund to the credit card used for prepayment of this tour. "

Oh sh ... I mean, crap! :(

 

I can't believe I actually had that booked on my recent visit to HMC last month ... but then had to cancel due to a sinus infection. Now, I've lost my opportunity for good. :(

 

I think the reason for this is probably that HAL doesn't get many takers for diving on HMC. They never did offer "Discover SCUBA" ... a dive for folks who don't hold SCUBA certification, and there probably weren't enough certified divers to make offering the excursion worthwhile anymore.

 

Shame. If they would have only offered an option for uncertified divers, I think they could have kept those divemasters pretty busy.

 

Blue skies ... and my loss ... :(

 

--rita

[kryos]

HMC, Aruba, Caracao, Christobal Panama, Limon Costa Rica. The general excursions listing shows dives, but when you go to book them, there are none listed for our specific cruise.

I had the same problem on my Hawaii/South Pacific cruise last January. I asked the shore excursion folks about it and was told that because of the heavy insurance requirements HAL makes of outside excursion providers, many of the dive operators simply can't meet them and thus can't offer their services through HAL. In short, unless they can maintain an unreasonably high amount of liability insurance (in order to indemnify HAL in the event of a problem) then the cruise line doesn't want to deal with them. Hence, no diving excursions.

 

Real simple, though ... just book something independently. That's what I did. I booked a two-tank dive with TopDive in Bora Bora and the cruise director even made sure I got off the ship and on a tender well in time for an 8:00 a.m. meet-up with the TopDive people on the pier.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[Waterskier1]

Waterskier, try to go here, and type in your booking number and last name. This will take you to the excursions that are offered and available for your cruise specifically.

Thanks middle-aged mom. I know that is where you go to find out what's available for my specific cruise, that's where I went to book the scuba dive in the first place. That's also what I was trying to explain when I said that the general info shows dives, but when I went to book them, they were not available.

 

I am going to book a dive with someone (yet to be determined) in Aruba for the afternoon we are there. For Curacao, I've already booked an all day snorkel (several beaches) excurision with others (non-divers) on the cruise. And, Panama and Costa Rica are not known for diving.

 

I would if I could book a dive outside the ship in HMC, but I don't think there is that possibility since this is a HAL-owned island.

[Waterskier1]

I asked the shore excursion folks about it and was told that because of the heavy insurance requirements HAL makes of outside excursion providers, many of the dive operators simply can't meet them and thus can't offer their services through HAL.

Does HAL require more than other cruise lines, or do you think this is the way of the future?

 

I have never booked any excursion through the ship yet, until this one, only because I don't think there is any other option since it's a HAL-owned island.

[kryos]

I would if I could book a dive outside the ship in HMC, but I don't think there is that possibility since this is a HAL-owned island.

No, you're stuck with no diving on HMC ... what I meant was you could book something independently on another island. Of course, your ship has to get in pretty early if you want a two-tank dive ... because those dive operators tend to go out pretty early in the morning. But often they return to the dive shop after the first dive, to fill up the tanks (and give the divers an appropriate surface interval) and you can always just go out with them for the second dive.

 

Actually, between you and me ... for SCUBA, I'd prefer to book my own on the other islands. From what I've observed in the past, those dive boats servicing the cruise ships are absolute cattle cars ... especially when they are hauling a load from a large RCI or Carnival ship. I'm too much of a newbie with SCUBA. I feel more comfortable with a little bit of hand-holding when I'm in the water. I've been lucky on my independently-booked dives to only have at max three divers per divemaster.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[bweppner]

Hi,

 

I'm certified, by my wife is not. We always book independently. We're diving in Grand Turk in two weeks, and I had to email several shops as some were only working for the cruise ships in port that day. We have a nice semi-private dive planned and my wife will get some great one-on-one instruction before we get to dive together.

 

Good luck!

[xpcdoojk]

Other than diving at half moon cay being pretty much out, unless you take your own tank or a rental tank, etc. Which you could do, possibly, if you had it filled at either your port of departure, you drive to the port, or have it filled at a port prior to HMC. I know you can not fly with a filled tank, and I would verify with HAL will allow you to take it on the ship, but this would be an option. I have know idea whether the diving at HMC is worth the trip anyway, but you can arrange dive excursion with the operators in any of the ports on your trip. I am sure that finding a dive operator will be a piece of cake. I have not done a dive on a cruise thru the cruiseline since our first cruise. I have had better experiences away from the cruise cattle call dive trips. JMHO.

 

jc:D

[newcruiser08820]

I just got an email from HAL stating " Holland America Line is no longer offering the Certified One-Tank Scuba Diving excursion in Half Moon Cay. We apologize for any disappointment this may cause and have requested a refund to the credit card used for prepayment of this tour. "

 

This was the ONLY scuba tour/excursion offer on the 10-day Panama Canal cruise, and now it's no longer offered. Looks like HAL is getting out the of the diving business. (They may still be offering snorkeling - I don't know since I didn't book any to be cancelled).

 

This along with the pricing fiasco a short time ago has me wondering the future of this cruiseline. Anyone know what's going on?

 

What about other islands? We are on 03/31/07 cruise and planning to dive in St.Thomas and Barbados?

[RevNeal]

The title of this thread is a bit misleading. Scuba (both certified and discover) are still offered at other islands and Shore Excursions (while, properly, demanding high insurance coverages) will still offer it at those other ports.

 

Also, do NOT forget that one can make plenty of arrangements (safe ones) apart from the Shore Excursions Department. I plan on taking one of them on my January cruise aboard the Noordam.