HAL agent says possible to upgrade ... then says it's not

[Barek]

Sorry this is long .... I'm just venting more than anything with the following. We're still keeping a positive attitude about the cruise, and looking forward to our first cruise on HAL. Just feeling a little disappointed and frustrated at the moment.

 

We had been tossing around the idea of upgrading from our current VE to an SZ, SY, or SS if the prices were right. But, because we were past the final payment date, we knew options were limited. Still, it couldn't hurt to ask.

 

So, we contacted our TA, who contacted a HAL agent. After several minutes on hold, the TA came back and told us that the HAL agent had mentioned a current special on SZ guarantees which were actually less than our current VE. But, those deals were usually only for new bookings, so she had asked the HAL agent to confirm that it was possible - then I waited on hold while she talked to the HAL agent some more. Finally, she came back and said good news! The HAL agent had confirmed with his supervisor that it was possible to upgrade us - the only catch was that our CCL share-holder credit would not be honored under the new rate and we would now be charged the fuel surcharge (we had originally booked far enough back to be getting that charge credited back), so technically it would cost us roughly $70 more after all the credit and fee changes. Still, for the upgrade, we had no problem with an extra $70 by the end of the trip. She told me to hold on while she let the HAL agent know that we wanted the upgrade and they would make the change.

 

So far, all was going better than we dreamed. We had hoped for moving up to an SY for a couple hundred more per person, and we were being offered an SZ guarantee for just $35 per person more - needless to say, we were very excited by the prospect!

 

But then, after several more minutes, the TA comes back and says that even though she had asked the HAL agent to confirm with his supervisor that we could get the new price ... when they tried to key it, the computer system refused to accept the new rate. The best they could now offer was either cancel and re-book for the new rate (as we're now past final payment, the extra fees for cancellation keep this from being an attractive offer), or upgrading to an SY at roughly $900 more all total for both of us.

 

AAAUUURRRGGGHHH!!!

 

Now, granted, we were originally just hoping - and had no idea if an upgrade would be an option or not in our price range. But after being informed via our TA that the HAL agent had confirmed the upgrade option ... then basically being told that oops, the HAL agent and his supervisor were both mistaken ... we have been feeling a bit disappointed. Granted, people sometimes make mistakes, but taking us from being thrilled to totally let-down just makes it feel like someone kicked our legs out from under us.

 

Our TA then tried going back to the HAL agent to ask another question ... only to find she had been released back into the general call queue at HAL. So, she said she would wait to talk to a supervisor and call us back. About a half hour later, she called back and said that the HAL supervisor wasn't offering anything better. So ... it looks like we are staying with our VE unless another special comes up that we would be able to take.

 

Like I said at the start, we're keeping a positive attitude and still looking forward to the cruise. We know we're still going to enjoy it. I just had to vent a little frustration here after the disappointment we experienced tonight.

[KAKcruiser]

One of your problems is that you are going through a travel agent. If you had been dealing with HAL directly, you could have demanded that they honor what they offered to you. If you couldn't get anywhere with the rep, you could have asked to speak to a supervisor. Your travel agent should have done that, also, but chose not to.

 

Always get people's names as soon as you start a conversation so you can report exactly who you talked with.

[usha]

Barek, sorry about your disappointment & frustration with trying to get the suite deal.

Here's hoping you get a surprise upgrade to a suite anyway!:D

[Krazy Kruizers]

Glad that you took time to vent your frustration here.

 

Hope something works out for you. You still have a month before you cruise.

 

Enjoy!!

[schoolinmy3]

One of your problems is that you are going through a travel agent. If you had been dealing with HAL directly, you could have demanded that they honor what they offered to you. If you couldn't get anywhere with the rep, you could have asked to speak to a supervisor. Your travel agent should have done that, also, but chose not to.

 

Always get people's names as soon as you start a conversation so you can report exactly who you talked with.

 

We were able to get the SZ guarantee upgrade from a VC recently for only $40 pp (before final payment) but we had booked directly with HAL, not a TA. Like you, I was only hoping to be able to upgrade, but if I hadn't been able to I was still going to have a great time! Not everyone has the chance to even go on a cruise. We've been married 20 years and this is our first one. I doubt we'll have the chance to go again. So I'm planning on enjoying every second :) . We'll be on the Westerdam to Alaska in August.

diane

[lvtotrvl1]

One of your problems is that you are going through a travel agent. If you had been dealing with HAL directly, you could have demanded that they honor what they offered to you. If you couldn't get anywhere with the rep, you could have asked to speak to a supervisor. Your travel agent should have done that, also, but chose not to.

 

Always get people's names as soon as you start a conversation so you can report exactly who you talked with.

 

A TA has many more contacts to talk to at the cruiseline than a consumer...sorry, I doubt you could demand anything....demands don't get far. As we all have read on these boards over and over, you can get different answers from 10 different cruise agents. What happened to the OP is unfortunate, but they knew going into the call that it was for new bookings, so there wasn't much of a chance.

[RedmondCruiser]

Your not venting. You are expressing a complaint that HAL should address. Holland America needs to know when they are doing something right and also when they do something wrong. If no one pointed out things that could be improved then HAL would stagnate.

Holland America needs to improve on its handling of upgrades and upsells. Currently it does a terrible job, that has no consistency. On this subject I think they are their own worst enemy. Inconsistent upgrades and overpriced upsells create more problems. The shoddy treatment of past customers is just bad business and very short sided. Half the time the right hand has no idea what the left hand is doing.

In the posts about upgrades please tell me if you see any consistenty -- I don't.

This is a subject that HAL needs to get its act together. Its not venting, its a subject that needs to be addressed.

[vbmom87]

Your not venting. You are expressing a complaint that HAL should address. Holland America needs to know when they are doing something right and also when they do something wrong. If no one pointed out things that could be improved then HAL would stagnate.

 

Holland America needs to improve on its handling of upgrades and upsells. Currently it does a terrible job, that has no consistency. On this subject I think they are their own worst enemy. Inconsistent upgrades and overpriced upsells create more problems. The shoddy treatment of past customers is just bad business and very short sided. Half the time the right hand has no idea what the left hand is doing.

 

In the posts about upgrades please tell me if you see any consistenty -- I don't.

 

This is a subject that HAL needs to get its act together. Its not venting, its a subject that needs to be addressed.

 

From my dealing with HAL I have a feeling they have a high turnover of customer service employess. They also seem to have poor training of their customer service employees. I am looking forward to my cruise, but I have to say, the company has not impressed me.

[KAKcruiser]

The point is that this person was told something by a HAL rep and then that same person changed the terms during the same phone call. It was not a situation where the person was told something and then called back.

[cruzmaven]

While I understand the OP's frustration, I don't see a real problem with HAL's position on this. The SZ guarantee offer was for new bookings only. Since the OP is beyond her final payment period there is a penalty associated with cancelling and rebooking.

 

The problem here was with HAL's customer service rep first saying something could be done and then finding out the correct policy.

 

I don't think she would have done any better dealing with HAL directly as opposed to going through her TA. However, if this was an offer that was available prior to making final payment, and if the TA was doing his/her job, it should have been recommended to the OP to make this change prior to final payment. I always check fare changes and offers prior to making final payment on my own bookings. Hopefully your TA does the same. If not, what are you paying them for?

[6rugrats]

O.k., the agent was wrong. Agent found out it was wrong when the computer would not let them do this. Why is this a big deal? It happens all the time. Usually these things can't be changed after the final payment.

 

As stated, there is a very high turnover rate for these employees and sometimes they aren't very knowledgeable.

[sail7seas]

Sorry for your disappointment but I'm not quite as hard on HAL about it as some of the others. This all occured during the same call. The HAL rep and the supervisor tried to arrange this for you but they were not able. You didn't meet the criteria to make you eligible.

 

There really is no harm or damage here other than a few moments of thinking you had grabbed a great deal.

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise. Your countdown is getting short!!!

[TTFromSommersTown]

Am I missing something, or are some of the posters not reading the original "Vent".

 

The complaint wasn't that they could not get an upgrade for a small fee, it was that when their TA called HAL and spoke to an Agent, who then CONFIRMED with their Supervisor, that they could have the upgrade for $70, but that it could not get put in the system.

 

It wasn't the Agents fault, they tried to help, it was the Supervisor who should have known better. I feel very sorry for anyone who is given a clear reply to a simple question especially by someone who should know better, and who is then let down.

[sail7seas]

We all suffer little disappointments in life. They tried to grab him a deal and the computer rejected their good intentions. He didn't qualify for the 'deal. As it quite common, it was for new bookings only.

 

 

[Barek]

Sorry for your disappointment but I'm not quite as hard on HAL about it as some of the others. This all occured during the same call. The HAL rep and the supervisor tried to arrange this for you but they were not able. You didn't meet the criteria to make you eligible.

 

There really is no harm or damage here other than a few moments of thinking you had grabbed a great deal.

 

Hope you have a wonderful cruise. Your countdown is getting short!!!

You are correct, and we don't intend to let it mar our cruise experience. Like I said in the original post, people make mistakes. It was just the mini-emotional rollercoaster of going from being offered something that was supposedly confirmed as available to us - then having it vanish that we found frustrating - we're really not out anything; but on top of the stress of wedding planning (yes, this is our honeymoon cruise), I really needed to vent some frustration someplace after the experience (and keep in mind, we didn't even know about the SZ pricing before calling our TA - and it was the HAL agent who first suggested the SZ option to our TA).

 

Thanks everyone for your comments on this. We are very much looking forward to the cruise. I appreciate having others listen and understand on this forum. We're sure we'll still have a great time in Alaska!

[sail7seas]

Barek...... Not to get your hopes hope and again dashed, but there is always a teeny tiny chance you could get an unexpected upgrade as late as when you check in at the terminal. DON'T count on it. I wouldn't want to be the cause of more disappointment.

 

Congratulations on your upcoming marriage and wishes for many years together of happiness and good health.

[gordons4]

Barek--

 

I completely understand your need to vent, and I'm glad we have a safe place to do that. Your original post did not at all sound like you felt mistreated by HAL, simply that you were disappointed and frustrated that the situation didn't work out as originally presented. :(

 

I know you'll have a wonderful honeymoon cruise anyway, and I look forward to reading your review when you return. And, your VE cabin will probably be better than whichever cabin you would have been assigned to on the guarantee. :D

 

Sheri

[hammybee]

We all suffer little disappointments in life. They tried to grab him a deal and the computer rejected their good intentions. He didn't qualify for the 'deal. As it quite common, it was for new bookings only.

 

Sounds to me like the internal system was operating as designed, to prevent well meaning employees from " giving the ship away".

 

Post final payment date upsells and upgrades occur because the cruise line needs your cabin for another passenger.

[Sea Island Lady]

Sorry for your disappointment. I know it must be frustrating and emotional for you during this already stressful wedding planning. If it were my DH and I, we'd pay the extra $900 and upgrade ourselves to a suite. ;) With an itinerary where you'll be spending a lot of time indoors, I sure would want a larger stateroom...especially for my honeymoon. Maybe HAL would cut you a deal and let you upgrade for half that amount (since it's your honeymoon).

 

I am leaving in a week for a Mediterranean cruise and have a VF booked (with my sister). I have watched pricing for months to see if upgrading to a suite were possible, but the pricing was just out of reach. I gave up after final payment, because I knew that changing after final would present some problems with cancelling and re-booking because my TA indicated so.

 

I will go ahead and check at the port to see if anything is available, but currently, my cruise looks full.:( You should do the same if you don't upgrade yourselves now.