What Would You Like to See Added Onboard?

[mudscraper]

Puhleeeze

 

 

Rich

[Sir PMP]

Ditto!

 

 

 

In case HAL is reading...a reasonable compromise would be making one side of the ship smoke-free on cabin balconies and permitting smoking on cabin balconies on the other side of the ship. If HAL ever bans smoking on all cabin balconies, I stop cruising HAL.

 

And that's how we get rid of the filthy habit!:)

[Sir PMP]

Just to register a contrary view of the world.. I could care less if I even HAD a tv in the room, much less an interactive one. I throw my receipts each day in a drawer. If I really want to know where I'm at with my onboard account I can pull them out and add them up.. Or if I don't feel that ambitious, while I'm out and about during the day I can stop by the front desk and they will run me an up to date statement.

 

If there's anything earth shaking going on in the world it will likely be in my morning NY Times blurb that we get or I'll overhear someone on board somewhere talking about it. And regardless of what it is, I'm out in the middle of the ocean and not in a position to do anything about it anyway.

 

And what's the big deal about what's on the menu? Even the need to know 3 days ahead? I get that you might want to plan your visit to the Pinnacle around it.. but hey.. you know the lobster tail is going to be one of the formal nites so if it's important that you not miss it, don't schedule the Pinnacle those nites. Other than that, I've never had a nite where I show up in the dining room and can't find something on the menu I think I'll enjoy.

 

I ask that question not to be argumentative.. a number of people have said that they think menus online would be just great .. just curious as to why what's on the menu tonite is important.

 

Perhaps it's just a fundamental difference in the way each of us approach the cruise experience.. I'm just thrilled to be away from the everyday work world, schedules, voicemail. e-mails, etc.. I want to relax, enjoy and do things on the spur of the moment with no fallout or consequences.. short of the excursions we plan, I don't know or care what I'm going to be doing an hour beyond any given moment onboard, much less 3 days hence.. and as always.. your mileage may vary... enjoy!

 

You're my kind of HAL cruiser, pls give me more of these!:)

[Sir PMP]

Copper, as we have know to expect, has put more thought into his list than my Top Ten!

 

...yes do away with Master Chef night

 

...not only Dutch Night but start offering us more of what the crew is eating.

 

..a Chef's table in the crew's kitchen

 

I'm all for it!:)

[Tamaracboy]

"What would I like to see added on board?"........ ME!

 

The only person on all these threads that has things in their proper perspective

 

I agree whole-heartedly. There are a number of things HAL could to do enhance the cruise experience in this area. I wish that part of the dry dock improvements included upgrading the satellite infrastructure that provides for faster and wider bandwidth dedicated to passenger communication. The TV in the rooms could be interactive to include:

 

Running account & account change information.

Menus

Daily Programs/Activities

Text of Captains logs & announcements

Shore excursion info/reservations

Restaurant info/reservations

Room service info/orders

Messaging to cabin steward

Internet access via the TV

Spa reservations

 

We still enjoy HAL immensely without these things but it sure would be nice!

 

As I mentioned in an earlier post:

The infrastructure is already in place for all these capabilities. The only thing missing is a DECISION in Seattle

 

I have pushed for years to add one office on either side of the Purser's Desk:

1. Psychiatrist / Marital Counselor for those going Postal, and for the increasing number of dysfunctional marriages/families we are seeing on ships today.

2. Lawyers Office for those legions who want to sue the cruise line for lack of trays in the buffets, opening their eggs on the wrong end, or whatever other reason.

Both offices would generate revenue for the cruise line, hopefully replacing the lost revenue from the Art Auctions - and ultimately keeping the cost of cruising down.

The legal office would speed up the litigation process, giving you a chance to sue the cruise line even before the cruise is over. And even if the cruise line loses the lawsuit, they would still receive a percentage of the enormous penalty or settlement they had to pay out.

 

Actually . . . . you've come up with a great idea for an entire new Specialty Cruise Theme ;)

 

Change the pool daily with fresh sea water. It was disgusting after 11 days on last cruise.

Keep the burger grill open until at least 8 pm. [/color][/size][/font]

 

1. Seattle management seems to have trouble locating a source for sea water onboard their fleet :eek:

2. Same individuals are obviously sound asleep by 8:00 PM :p

 

I've never sailed HAL before, so forgive my ignorance, but are you all saying that even Vista-class ships don't already have in-cabin interactive TV-features such as account information, excursion bookings, schedules of activities, restaurant information and room service ordering??

 

Beyond Belief isn't it ?? :confused:

 

Just to register a contrary view of the world.. I could care less if I even HAD a tv in the room, much less an interactive one. I throw my receipts each day in a drawer. If I really want to know where I'm at with my onboard account I can pull them out and add them up.. Or if I don't feel that ambitious, while I'm out and about during the day I can stop by the front desk and they will run me an up to date statement.

If there's anything earth shaking going on in the world it will likely be in my morning NY Times blurb that we get or I'll overhear someone on board somewhere talking about it. And regardless of what it is, I'm out in the middle of the ocean and not in a position to do anything about it anyway.

 

Quill Pens are still available at the front desk upon special request.

Arranging for Pony Express deliveries has proved somewhat more difficult. :rolleyes:

 

I ask that question not to be argumentative.. a number of people have said that they think menus online would be just great .. just curious as to why what's on the menu tonite is important.

 

RuthC eloquently expresses just one of various reasons for MANY passengers

 

Perhaps it's just a fundamental difference in the way each of us approach the cruise experience.. I'm just thrilled to be away from the everyday work world, schedules, voicemail. e-mails, etc.. I want to relax, enjoy and do things on the spur of the moment with no fallout or consequences.. short of the excursions we plan, I don't know or care what I'm going to be doing an hour beyond any given moment onboard, much less 3 days hence.. and as always.. your mileage may vary... enjoy!

 

And, thus, the existence of an "OFF" switch on the TV and the ability to leave your laptop at home. ;)

[Tamaracboy]

Ditto!

In case HAL is reading...a reasonable compromise would be making one side of the ship smoke-free on cabin balconies and permitting smoking on cabin balconies on the other side of the ship. If HAL ever bans smoking on all cabin balconies, I stop cruising HAL.

 

ANNNNND . . . . . Just how would they compensate for the resulting list ??? :confused: :confused:

[jhannah]

... and if need be, dance hosts.

I think they have these on some of the longer cruises. Can anyone confirm for me if this is still true?

[Copper10-8]

I think they have these on some of the longer cruises. Can anyone confirm for me if this is still true?

 

Well, there were two dapper looking ones on our last Prinsendam cruise

[sail7seas]

There were three dance hosts on our Volendam Jazz cruise.

 

[fridayeyes]

Re: Dance hosts - great!! NIce incentive for me to take a longer cruise. ;)

 

Thanks, all!

[beamteam]

Please, please Fox News. If I see one more soccer game on CNN internation I'll get seasick. We too have been putting this on the comment cards for years, just shows you how much attention is paid to the cards. Beamteam

[djhsolara]

This isn't really an onboard addition and it may sound silly, but I would like to receive any and all invitations to events during the sailing immediately upon boarding.

 

An example where this would have been helpful was on our Eurodam sailing. We made Pinnacle Grill reservations as soon as we boarded and then a day or so later received the invitation to the VIP party (or whatever they call it) which was the same evening. We were still able to do both, however we missed the captain at the party (we passed getting on and off the elevator while we were on our way there and we was leaving). If we would have had the invitation when we boarded we could have planned better. This may not be a big deal to many, but I love doing all of these "special" little things for which we receive invitations. :) :)

[DFD1]

I'm wondering out loud whether or not the facts that FOX News is the most successful news channel on television and the most expensive for a system to carry has anything to do with HAL not carrying them.

 

Could it be simply that the costs are too high and that HAL can fill the slot cheaper with CNN International?

[bepsf]

How about coffee tables which allow for height adjustment, as on other lines, for in room dining? No more bending down to eat one's breakfast or dinner. Would be nice, don't you think?

 

Eurodam has these - and Yes, they are nice - but I don't believe the Vista's have the same mechanism (at least not those in the SS's...)

 

I'd like to see Dancing Under the Stars on Lido Deck...

...Perhaps even a reservations-only white-tablecloth full-service open-air dining venue. (Both together?)

 

I'd like to see enclosed rooms and specific outdoor areas set aside for smokers. (I don't, but they need a place too)

I wouldn't mind seeing the roof of Crow's Nest set aside for Retreat/Private Cabanas, like Oceania (Anything to keep them off the Lido Deck)

 

Oh, and I don't care about TV or Movies, but faster internet would be a really good thing.

[ViolaSwamp]

• Add lemonade as a free beverage, along with the iced tea they currently have.
  
• IMPROVE the onboard entertainment offered at the nighttime shows.
  
• Offer more by way of trivia games, board games, scavenger hunts, etc.
  
• Lectures on history and culture of various ports.
  
• Do more karaoke nights. On our Maasdam trip, they did karaoke in the Crow's Nest only one night, for two hours. There were a ton of people who didn't get to do it due to this.
  
• More interactive info on the cabin televisions, definitely.
  
• Take more photos of guests, so we have more to choose from, and lower the cost of the prints.
  
• Have a basket of mints available so as you exit the dining room or Lido there is an immediate "fresh breath" solution.
  
• Leave at least a few coin-operated slot machines for us old-school folks.
  

[COLLEYBERRY]

I would love to see Tamarind fare available for room service( all though venue is so much a part of the experience ,maybe not)

Televised menus for each of the dining options would be very helpful in planing the rythm our cruise day. I remember wishing for televised menus on our last cruise, and quite puzzld as to why it wasn't a feature.

On both our cruises with Holland America, we had charges to our account for items from room fridge( we never, ever use these items )

The amounts were small. (two beers one cruise, one soft drink last cruise)

Perhaps I should have gone to front desk when bill presented , but frankly my time was worth more than monies charged.

My point ,if account televised and checked daily ,I could have asked room steward about charges when they occured.

Just an aside ,my dear laptop was in for repairs I was computerless for many days ,talk about being adrift at sea ,so glad to be back.:)

[debshomespun]

On our Ryndam 30 day cruise to Hawaii and Tahiti, there were 4 dance hosts.

 

I would love to see the interactive tv's in the cabins.

 

I would love to see leamonade with the ice tea, I don't like ice tea.

 

And, of course, I would like to see ME on the ship RIGHT NOW!

[jhannah]

Have a basket of mints available so as you exit the dining room or Lido ...

Better not. Many folks would not use a spoon to get them, and would just dig their fingers into the mints. HAL just needs to make sure the Yum-Yum man is at his station throughout dinner in the main dining room. (We've exited a number of times when he wasn't there.)

[ViolaSwamp]

Better not. Many folks would not use a spoon to get them, and would just dig their fingers into the mints. HAL just needs to make sure the Yum-Yum man is at his station throughout dinner in the main dining room. (We've exited a number of times when he wasn't there.)

 

I was thinking, like at some restaurants, the individually wrapped peppermint disks. ;)

 

What is a Yum Yum Man? :confused:

[RuthC]

What is a Yum Yum Man? :confused:

As you leave the dining room there is a man (the Yum Yum man) behind a table. His job is to give you whatever little "yummies" you wish from a selection of mints, dates, figs, candied ginger, perhaps a few other things.

 

On my last Noordam cruise there were a few nights I saw a chocolate fountain there. The Yum Yum man was kind enough to give me a small cup (hospital meds size) of the delicious stuff. :D

[michmike]

 

The Yum Yum man was kind enough to give me a small cup (hospital meds size) of the delicious stuff. :D

 

 

C'mon Ruth.. fess up.. he told ME you asked for a straw! *S*

[COLLEYBERRY]

[quote name='bepsf;1902853

 

I'd like to see Dancing Under the Stars on Lido Deck...

...Perhaps even a reservations-only white-tablecloth full-service open-air dining venue. (Both together?)

 

Sounds wonderful' date=' love this idea.:)[/size']

[RuthC]

C'mon Ruth.. fess up.. he told ME you asked for a straw! *S*

To tell the truth, I sent him into a panic when I went to put my finger under the fountain.

I had no intention of actually touching the liquid heaven, but was posing for a picture. The look on his face was priceless.

[Copper10-8]

I was thinking, like at some restaurants, the individually wrapped peppermint disks. ;)

 

What is a Yum Yum Man? :confused:

 

Looks like this! Two total on the ship, one at each entrance to the main dining room. Can usually be found with a xylophone playing tunes on same/alerting people to the start of dinner (apparently no longer being done for AYW dining 'cause there is no longer a set starting time)

[sail7seas]

We were chimed to dinner (Main Upper) on our December Maasdam cruise and I think maybe, but I'm honestly not sure, we may have heard the chimes a few times on our Eurodam cruises.

 

I LOVE to hear the Yum Yum passing through Explorers Lounge and Ocean Bar, Dinner is being served! :)