View & Veranda Sale

The View & Veranda sale starts on Monday, December 5. However, the HAL rep said that some cruises have been loaded into the system and can be booked.

What is the view and veranda? Do they offer onboard credit?

I am on the Amsterdam for a 14 night cruise but there is a big difference in price from ocean view to a Vista Suite so I don't think they will be offering this part on their promotion.

What is the view and veranda? Do they offer onboard credit?

 

I am on the Amsterdam for a 14 night cruise but there is a big difference in price from ocean view to a Vista Suite so I don't think they will be offering this part on their promotion.

View usually refers to a standard room with a window.

Verandah is a standard room with a balcony.

For some reason, on the Amsterdam, the verandah rooms are called Vista Suites, but they are compatible with standard Verandah rooms found on other ships. i have never been in a room called a Vista Suite, they may have some other suite benefits.

What is the view and veranda? Do they offer onboard credit?

 

I am on the Amsterdam for a 14 night cruise but there is a big difference in price from ocean view to a Vista Suite so I don't think they will be offering this part on their promotion.

The View & Verandah Sale typically means that if one books an inside cabin, one can get an outside (view) cabin for the same price. If one books an outside, they can get a verandah for the same price. However, what they don't say is that they raise the price of the original cabin to that of the higher category cabin.

I have a cruise booked for 2018. Today, I got an alert that the price of my cabin (outside) has gone up in price by more than 52%. I suspect that is because of this upcoming promotion. The price of the comparable Verandah also increased but a much smaller amount.

I should add that this promotion can work well on the larger ships, Vista and higher. For the Amsterdam and other smaller ships, it won't work as well because there are no regular Verandah cabins, all Verandah cabins are considered suites.

There is a huge jump in price from outside view to a balcony, an extra US dollars 3,800 for the both of us, so I would be surprised if they do offer it on the Amsterdam.

I was wondering though if they also give on board credit.

The View & Verandah Sale typically means that if one books an inside cabin, one can get an outside (view) cabin for the same price. If one books an outside, they can get a verandah for the same price. However, what they don't say is that they raise the price of the original cabin to that of the higher category cabin.

 

I have a cruise booked for 2018. Today, I got an alert that the price of my cabin (outside) has gone up in price by more than 52%. I suspect that is because of this upcoming promotion. The price of the comparable Verandah also increased but a much smaller amount.

 

I should add that this promotion can work well on the larger ships, Vista and higher. For the Amsterdam and other smaller ships, it won't work as well because there are no regular Verandah cabins, all Verandah cabins are considered suites.

Good points. This new promotion must be significant since my Signature Suite on an 18 day cruise just increased by $900 pp. After Explore4 ended, it dropped by $1000, the Cyber Sale it stayed flat (so I rebooked and got a good deal IMO) and now it is up by $900. I doubt that the V&V promotion will be worth $900 pp (plus the free hotel service charge from Cyber Sale), so I doubt I will be rebooking again.

You sure have to stay on top of HAL's pricing and promotions!

There is a huge jump in price from outside view to a balcony, an extra US dollars 3,800 for the both of us, so I would be surprised if they do offer it on the Amsterdam.

 

I was wondering though if they also give on board credit.

I don't recall there being an OBC component to the V&V promo before. I guess we'll find out for sure on Monday.

Our cruise increased by $1000 since the Cyber Sale, I checked the pricing on a "Vacations" website and its $800 less than what I paid for the cyber sale. (I know I have to factor in the HSC, that's only $300) My cruise isn't till Sept 2017. Would you hold out and see what better promotions come along or would you transfer to a TA now?

I always wait until the last minute to transfer to a TA.

View usually refers to a standard room with a window.

Verandah is a standard room with a balcony.

 

For some reason, on the Amsterdam, the verandah rooms are called Vista Suites, but they are compatible with standard Verandah rooms found on other ships. i have never been in a room called a Vista Suite, they may have some other suite benefits.

It seems the older ships don't have any "verandah" cabins but, as you noticed, they have similarly sized cabins called Vista Suites. They usually come with a hefty price increase over the cost of a verandah on the newer ships. The only suite benefit the Vista Suite cabins come with is double Cruise Day credits.

Just checked the price on my cruise, and the inside and outside cabins are now the same price. One went up, the other down and they met in the middle of £1849 (English pounds), and the vista suite is £3,849 per person. A steep rise to have a balcony. I will give it a miss and see if there are any other sales over the coming months.

Just checked the price on my cruise, and the inside and outside cabins are now the same price. One went up, the other down and they met in the middle of £1849 (English pounds), and the vista suite is £3,849 per person. A steep rise to have a balcony. I will give it a miss and see if there are any other sales over the coming months.

I don't blame you, that is a big difference. That is the nature of the older, smaller ships on HAL. There are fewer balconies, and the ones they do have are designated "suites," even though the room is the same size as any other room.

This is a total misuse of the term suite - a common problem in the cruise industry. A suite should be a cabin with a separate bedroom. But cruse ship lines have discovered they can get more for a regular room simply by calling it a suite.

If you want better prices for a room with a balcony, you will need to switch to a larger ship. The Vista class of ships have many more balconies, and most of the rooms that have them are not called suites. the Vista class includes Noordam, Oosterdam, Westerdam, & Zuiderdam.

Or go with the slightly larger Signature class of ships, including the Eurodam or Nieuw Amsterdam.

We just booked a cruise during the Cyber Sale. To move from an oceanview to a balcony with the V&V promo would cost us about $1100 Cdn. Just doesn't seem worth it for 7 days.

Good points. This new promotion must be significant since my Signature Suite on an 18 day cruise just increased by $900 pp. After Explore4 ended, it dropped by $1000, the Cyber Sale it stayed flat (so I rebooked and got a good deal IMO) and now it is up by $900. I doubt that the V&V promotion will be worth $900 pp (plus the free hotel service charge from Cyber Sale), so I doubt I will be rebooking again.

 

You sure have to stay on top of HAL's pricing and promotions!

Dave,

I've got a March 18 SB booked on Rotterdam out of Tampa. I refared last week for the Cyber Sale, but today the fare has dropped $500 PP. Of course, I'll lose the hotel service charge. I'll be calling on Monday.

Good points. This new promotion must be significant since my Signature Suite on an 18 day cruise just increased by $900 pp. After Explore4 ended, it dropped by $1000, the Cyber Sale it stayed flat (so I rebooked and got a good deal IMO) and now it is up by $900. I doubt that the V&V promotion will be worth $900 pp (plus the free hotel service charge from Cyber Sale), so I doubt I will be rebooking again.

 

You sure have to stay on top of HAL's pricing and promotions!

You might want to check on the new pricing. I was pleasantly surprised.

You might want to check on the new pricing. I was pleasantly surprised.

Although the first and third legs of my B2B2B went up, the second leg went down significantly, enough to recoup my air fare to Amsterdam. I am doing a happy dance.

We have a 12 night booked next October that is in the V&V promo. Currently we have Explore 4 and gratuities in our price. We paid $200 per person more than the V&V price. I realize fine print says new bookings only. Guessing that means has to be cancelled and rebooked.

Anyone had any luck adding a new promo to existing booking? I don't want to lose the E4

Although the first and third legs of my B2B2B went up, the second leg went down significantly, enough to recoup my air fare to Amsterdam. I am doing a happy dance.

So glad that worked for you.

We have a 12 night booked next October that is in the V&V promo. Currently we have Explore 4 and gratuities in our price. We paid $200 per person more than the V&V price. I realize fine print says new bookings only. Guessing that means has to be cancelled and rebooked.

Anyone had any luck adding a new promo to existing booking? I don't want to lose the E4

You probably only have to re-fare, not cancel and rebook. I have had luck adding promos to existing bookings in the past.

Ask your PCC to give you the pros and cons of re-faring. I suspect you would lose E4, if you were to go with the V&V promo. If so, I would keep what you have, since E4 is important to you.

Although the first and third legs of my B2B2B went up, the second leg went down significantly, enough to recoup my air fare to Amsterdam. I am doing a happy dance.

Plus $200 OBC and 10% off excursions, which add up on a sailing with 20 ports!

Plus $200 OBC and 10% off excursions, which add up on a sailing with 20 ports!

Thanks for that. I knew there was an excursion discount but I wasn't sure how much. Really doesn't matter to us, we're not excursion people.

Plus $200 OBC and 10% off excursions, which add up on a sailing with 20 ports!

I don't want to burst your bubble but be aware that not every excursion is going to be discounted. On my Hawaii cruise, only two excursions were discounted and neither were in Hawaii, they were in Victoria on the return portion. As long as they discount one excursion on a particular cruise, they've fulfilled the promotional obligation.

Check for your excursions now, though. I know that our excursions were posted very early because of this promotion. Hopefully, you'll have a better experience than I did and you can book now to take advantage of any discounts, well in advance of the excursion booking deadline (which seems to catch many off guard). Oh, and note that it's not a guaranteed 10% discount; it is "UP to 10% off SELECT Journeys Ashore".

is there a promotion right now with 10% off shore excursions? is it tied to view and verandah promotion or does it stand alone?

I don't want to burst your bubble but be aware that not every excursion is going to be discounted. On my Hawaii cruise, only two excursions were discounted and neither were in Hawaii, they were in Victoria on the return portion. As long as they discount one excursion on a particular cruise, they've fulfilled the promotional obligation.

 

Check for your excursions now, though. I know that our excursions were posted very early because of this promotion. Hopefully, you'll have a better experience than I did and you can book now to take advantage of any discounts, well in advance of the excursion booking deadline (which seems to catch many off guard). Oh, and note that it's not a guaranteed 10% discount; it is "UP to 10% off SELECT Journeys Ashore".

Good points. Thanks.

is there a promotion right now with 10% off shore excursions? is it tied to view and verandah promotion or does it stand alone?

It is part of the View & Verandah Sale.