Can HAL do no wrong? - Ever?

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Just had a chance to read this thread.....Nothing like a few hearty laughes to get your blood pumping in the morning :D

[iancal]

Never. Those complaining about HAL or criticizing HAL must be delusional or just plain lying.

[GarySuzy]

Never. Those complaining about HAL or criticizing HAL must be delusional or just plain lying.

 

That's it they are delusional they dreamed something happened and believe it really did. It was all that chocolate at the late night buffet that caused the nightmares.:D

[iancal]

The mystery for me is why are those other cruise lines stay in business and why do so many people select those cruise lines when it is obvious to anyone how much better in all respects HAL is.

[UtterCaro]

Try a trunk monkey; You can't go wrong!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4HfMUGsniJ8

 

ROFL! Dang, I need one of those.

 

Caro

[twinkletoes4445]

It seems as if every CC cruise line board has at least a few people who have sipped the Kool Aid for their favorite line...some have gulped. They have found the line that best suits their tastes and will accept no criticism of that line.

 

 

Yes, they do. And some are really bad! It's really quite an interesting thing. You don't (or I haven't) seen boards where people defend Marriott hotels, certain airlines or businesses along that line. I could probably apply for a grant and do a study. lol

 

I love HAL. I just don't take it personally when others don't, nor do I feel the need to explain-away or act as if the negative comments or complaints aren't valid or true. HAL is a corporation. I am a consumer. When you start accepting or making excuses for a company for their behavior or incidents that occur, that's when the consumer loses.

 

We own a business. If every one of our customers acted as cheerleaders and didn't care what we did, then there would be no reason for us to try and improve or make our customers happy. Not that I'd want it that way...but it's also not something that typically happens in the business world. So it's in the best interest of the consumer to expect to get what you pay for.

 

 

We've been on a bunch of cruises and cruise lines and we've only had one cruise that we considered marginal (not bad, but not up to the rest of the competition). The rest were good/great. With that said, I don't think we've ever been on a perfect cruise. Stuff happens, particularly when you consider all the ships, all the stewards, all the meals, etc. Lots of opportunity for errors and they happen on every line. When I read critical posts I'm looking for trends and am not surprised that something bad happened to a particular poster. I only respond negatively when I feel the original poster has gone over the top in their expectations or criticism.

 

This is exactly what I was saying. Show me trends in particular things, and then I'll start to question if HAL is right for me. But for now HAL is our #1 choice for cruising. And I've seen posts that are just over the top. But there's always going to be that element of customers. We have customers that we no longer work with. They complain about everything. Every. Single. Thing. And they typically are the slow payers. So those types are out there. But, we've also had things happen that we needed to fix. The problem was OUR fault. Same with HAL.

[RuthC]

That's it they are delusional they dreamed something happened and believe it really did. It was all that chocolate at the late night buffet that caused the nightmares.:D

No, no, no, no, no. Don't you go blaming chocolate.

Chocolate can do no wrong. ;)

[Roboat]

Actually, next month's Consumer Reports is publishing a head-to-head comparison between a 7-day HAL Caribbean Cruise on a Vista-class ship, versus 7 days waiting in line at the Department of Motor Vehicles.

 

HAL emerged as the clear winner in every single category (except Master Chef's Dinner.)

 

So, for those of you who think it is your constitutional right to bad-mouth HAL, nyah nyah nyah!

[jhannah]

Chocolate can do no wrong. ;)

And on the Today show this morning they highlighted yet another new study that shows the beneficial effects of eating chocolate! So knock yourself out!!!

[BettyPC]

I usually stay over in the carnival boards - there are many people over there that won't hear anything even slightly negative about Carnival. Human nature - and some people are NEVER HAPPY- NEVER (as we all know)

 

I have been reading the HAL boards all afternoon (busy life:D ) and I want to now go on a GRAND CRUISE -to Japan!! Sounds like so much fun and if I win the Powerball tonite - I swear I will love every second of any cruise I ever take!

[MeLuvDaSea]

I think if someone saw the captain throw a puppy overboard in 30 foot seas, someone here would find a good reason for it!

 

Supposing the puppy had some sort of plague, and there was no way to quarantine or isolate it? Also, suppose the Captain was certain he would shortly be exposed to said plague, and perhaps acting purely on impulse, he ran to the nearest railing, and oops! there goes Fluffy, plague and all!

 

I'm sure you could understand his acting this way...

 

Me

[Copper10-8]

An engineer finally splurged on a luxury cruise to the Caribbean. It was the "craziest" thing he had ever done in his life. Just as he was beginning to enjoy himself, a hurricane roared upon the huge ship, capsizing it like a child's toy. Somehow the engineer, desperately hanging on to a life preserver, managed to wash ashore on a secluded island. Aside from beautiful scenery, a spring-fed pool, bananas and coconuts, there was little else. He lost all hope and for hours on end, sat under the same palm tree.

One day, after several months had passed, a gorgeous woman in a small rowboat appeared. "I'm from the other side of the island," she said. "Were you on the cruise ship, too?" "Yes, I was," he answered. "But, where did you get that rowboat?" "Well, I whittled the oars from gum tree branches, wove the reinforced gunnel from palm branches, and made the keel and stern from a Eucalyptus tree." "But, what did you use for tools?" asked the engineer. "There was a very unusual strata of alluvial rock exposed on the south side of the island. I discovered that if I fired it to a certain temperature in my kiln, it melted into forgeable ductile iron.

Anyhow, that's how I got the tools. But, enough of that," she said. "Where have you been living all this time? I don't see any shelter." "To be honest, I've just been sleeping on the beach," the engineer said. "Would you like to come to my place?" the woman asked. The engineer nodded dumbly. She expertly rowed them around to her side of the island, and tied up the boat with a handsome strand of hand-woven hemp topped with a neat back splice. They walked up a winding stone walk she had laid around a Palm tree. There stood an exquisite bungalow, painted in blue and white.

"It's not much, but I call it home." Inside, she said, "Sit down, please; would you like to have a drink?" "No, thanks," said the engineer. "One more coconut juice and I'll throw up!" "It won't be coconut juice," the woman replied. "I have a crude still out back, so we can have authentic Pina Coladas." Trying to hide his amazement, the man accepted the drink, and they sat down on her couch to talk. After they had exchanged stories, the woman asked, "Tell me, have you always had a beard?" "No," the engineer replied, "I was clean shaven all of my life until I ended up on this island." "Well if you'd like to shave, there's a razor upstairs in the bathroom cabinet."

The man, no longer questioning anything, went upstairs to the bathroom and shaved with an intricate bone-and-shell device honed razor sharp. Next he showered, not even attempting to fathom a guess as to how she managed to get warm water into the bathroom, and went back downstairs. He couldn't help but admire the masterfully carved banister as he walked. "You look great," said the woman. "I think I'll go up and slip into something more comfortable."

As she did, the engineer continued to sip his Pina Colada. After a short time, the woman, smelling faintly of gardenias, returned wearing a revealing gown fashioned out of pounded palm fronds. "Tell me," she asked, "we've both been out here for a very long time with no companionship. You know what I mean. Haven't you been lonely, too...isn't here something that you really, really miss? Something that all men and women need? Something that would be really nice to have right now!

"Yes, there is!" the man replied, shucking off his shyness. "There is something I've wanted to do for so long. But on this island all alone, it was just...well, it was impossible." "Well, it's not impossible, any more," the woman said. The engineer, practically panting in excitement, said breathlessly: "You mean...you actually figured out some way we can CHECK OUR E-MAIL.!!"

[jhannah]

John ... John ... John. You've outdone yourself! Good one!!! :cool:

[GarySuzy]

No, no, no, no, no. Don't you go blaming chocolate.

Chocolate can do no wrong. ;)

Ruth, what was I thinking assigning blame to Chocolate. :eek: But we do know that newbies tend to over embid. :rolleyes: Let's just say they are delusional from over eating.

[Snorkel2Much]

....(snip)... You don't (or I haven't) seen boards where people defend Marriott hotels, certain airlines or businesses along that line. ....(snip)....

 

There is a site where a huge number of frequent Flyers log on and Talk about these exact kinds of things. The Kool-aid flows even more freely there than here, IMO. It's an interesting phenomenon indeed.

[twinkletoes4445]

There is a site where a huge number of frequent Flyers log on and Talk about these exact kinds of things. The Kool-aid flows even more freely there than here, IMO. It's an interesting phenomenon indeed.

 

After I typed this I remembered my encounter with a poster on an airline complaint I had. lol You're right, the Kool-aid flows pretty freely there. The HAL board doesn't hold a candle to some of the others...when it comes to this. lol

 

I really have nothing but good things to say about HAL...although I did get my knickers in a knot over the Crow's Nest "rental" discussion (and I still feel that way). I guess I really don't let it bother me if people have negative things to say about HAL. I just keep an eye on what's being said and if I see a trend with one particular issue, then I might become concerned. It's in my best interest as a consumer to stay on top of these things concerns.

 

We pretty much stayed away from Celebrity because I read an interesting review from someone here whom I have tremendous respect for. Right or wrong...that's what we did. Now I will say that HAL was ahead in the first place. We love the suite amenities and that's what sold us in the first place, and that's what will probably keep us coming back. But this posters review definitely had a major impact on our decision about Celebrity.

[CroneWynd]

Just to make sure that we don't become unbalanced kool-aid drinkers of just one cruise line, I've gone ahead and booked our very SECOND cruise with HAL

 

We do have a third cruise already booked on that other cruise line, but I'm always willing to sacrifice myself in the name of scientific research, of course, to compare various cruise lines. :D

[UtterCaro]

Just to make sure that we don't become unbalanced kool-aid drinkers of just one cruise line, I've gone ahead and booked our very SECOND cruise with HAL

 

We do have a third cruise already booked on that other cruise line, but I'm always willing to sacrifice myself in the name of scientific research, of course, to compare various cruise lines. :D

 

:D I'm with you, Cronewynd. I'll be on HAL this month, having sampled Celebrity and Princess. Honestly, the sacrifices we make in the name of scientific inquiry! ;)

 

Loved your photos, BTW. The ninja duckies were a special touch.

 

Caro

[cruzincurt]

WB3AFB here. Why can't I take my ham gear on the ship? Will my transmissions cause the ship to veer off course into an iceberg? What about all those WT's people take? I promise not to run a kW out.

 

Some of the veteran bizillion post people don't like newbies stirring up the water sometimes. They consider themselves the experts and last word.

[Snorkel2Much]

:D I'm with you, Cronewynd. I'll be on HAL this month, having sampled Celebrity and Princess. Honestly, the sacrifices we make in the name of scientific inquiry! ;)

 

Loved your photos, BTW. The ninja duckies were a special touch.

 

Caro

Excellent idea, I wonder if I could get CLIA to write a grant to support my dissertation:

"A Longitudinal Study of Brand Loyalty Expression Amongst Frequent Luxury Travel Consumers".

 

Of course such a study would require my ongoing presence "in the field" as it were, to make accurate observations. :cool: :D

[world~citizen]

And on the Today show this morning they highlighted yet another new study that shows the beneficial effects of eating chocolate! So knock yourself out!!!

 

Actually they way the chocolate companies have been studying and improving chocolate, I fully expect Mars bars to be part of a strict dietary regimen to treat/thwart heart disease sometime soon.

 

It is quite obvious that certain contributors to this board are way ahead of the curve on this one.

 

As someone who has lived in Belgium for four years (where chocolate is holy food), I think I can reconfirm a point already made, namely, that chocolate can do no wrong.

 

Smooth sailing...

[CroneWynd]

Excellent idea, I wonder if I could get CLIA to write a grant to support my dissertation:

"A Longitudinal Study of Brand Loyalty Expression Amongst Frequent Luxury Travel Consumers".

 

Of course such a study would require my ongoing presence "in the field" as it were, to make accurate observations. :cool: :D

I think I've seen grants granted for much lesser subjects... ;)

[Gravity Railroad]

^

Who wants to cruise with a yapping dog? Toss it! :D

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Now how can we get the captain to toss cigar smokers over too?

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^ <--------------Who are you going to throw overboard? Me? How could you?

 

I don't know about you, but I would toss deck chair hogs before cigar smokers. :)

[Toad]

Back to the OP, I do agree that there are some people who I swear must be being paid by HAL. They have some "rah rah" comment to say about absolutely every post. It does get a little annoying and I tend to skip their comments most of the time.

[DrivesLikeMario]

You see the same thing on other line boards.

 

You aren't kidding! I think the Princess board is by far the worst out of all of them. Say one thing negative, despite many positives and watch out! :rolleyes: I've found the HAL & RCI boards much more calm & reasonable.