SSKJ572

2 week cruise in Neptune (2guests), we tip 20.00 to each Neptune concierge, if we've  been to Neptune Lounge a few times and not had them assist us with reservations, etc. If we've asked them to help with issues, reservations, etc, we'll tip more. One year, 75.00 to each, but they did a ton for us. We usually tip around 100.00 a week to each room streward for 2 weeks, so 200.00 for each. 

On 12/3/2021 at 5:46 PM, KAKcruiser said:

Not exactly the same.  We are paying for the first day of the cruise and the sooner we get on the ship, the sooner we can begin to take advantage of our vacation. For example, lunch is usually served in the MDR between 12 and 1 or 1:30.  Having a later boarding time will cause you to miss the lunch.  Some people really enjoy this as opposed to the lido which is open later.

I agree with you. We are in Group A for our upcoming cruise and I'm relieved. I want to get on the ship asap and start enjoying my trip. 

14 hours ago, cruisegirl said:

Please post what you find out as the same thing happened to me. 

Call HAL!  They said it was error on their end. They cancelled it and rebooked and said I'll see the credit on my credit card in about 5 days. Hope this helps. They said the idea is NOT that they charge and you just get onboard credit for that amount!!!  It will happen if you just let it go. But that's not how it was supposed to work. 

I just called HAL. They said it was charged to us in error. They cancelled it and rebooked it. We'll see the credit on our credit card in about 5 days. 

I just made reservations today for The Pinnacle for our Jan 2nd cruise. I checked off “complimentary” as we do receive one free specialty restaurant, but now there’s a pending charge on my card. I’ll call them tomorrow. 

We just talked to our travel agent again. We decided on Thursday to go on the Zuiderdam for one week and then transfer to Nieuw Amsterdam second week. HAL has confirmed we will get 100% future cruise credit for that one week. We were previously told it was 50%. Although this has all been a hassle, we are happy with the future cruise credit of 100% as we have Neptunes and it will be a lot of credit. We are guaranteed Neptune for both weeks, but haven't been assigned cabins yet. 

26 minutes ago, mimianderson said:

If someone could be so kind as to let me know what those 4 choices are, OR to provide a link to the "other thread", I would appreciate it.  It will be helpful when I speak to my TA tomorrow.   My TA says he is holding something for me - with more details to come.

 

I want to make one thing perfectly clear - my issue with HAL is NOT that they have had a technical problem and had to cancel the cruise.  Stuff happens and that is why, as a company, there should be alternate plans for communication and remediation in place.  HAL seems to be hit or miss in both departments.  We have the technology in place today to determine whether emails have been received and READ - Celebrity requires me to link back to them when they have a message of importance.  HAL apparently doesn't or doesn't care.  It seems to be hit or miss and the onus has been placed on the passenger to make themselves aware of this problem and to pursue a solution.  I really think that is bad customer service.   

I was wondering if we were given many choices because we have a travel agent that has worked with HAL for many years.  She has a lot of contacts there and was even able to speak to a few people at HAL on Saturday to get items clarified.  I cannot come up with any other reasons. 

34 minutes ago, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I think you're right. When I saw the first post about the cancellation, I went to the HAL site to see what other cruises were available in Feb. Not surprisingly, the NA cruise did not come up. Neither did the Feb 1  Zuiderdam cruise. I didn't know about that cruise until I saw posts about people being move to it. So I think HAL pulled the Zuidy  cruise out of inventory as soon as they cancelled the NA cruise. 

 

There is no ideal solution here. HAL can't manufacture cabins out of thin air. The four options that I've seen on the other thread do give passengers a reasonable slate of choices. I don't understand why we're seeing so many people saying they weren't told about the cancellation and weren't given those choices. HAL should have given everyone the same offers.

 

We had the same cruise booked. It is disappointing!  We are traveling with my sister and her husband. As always, we had Neptune suites next to each other. 

Our travel agent called us Friday morning and was on the phone with HAL for four hours. We decided to do the Zuiderdam for the first week and board the NA on the second. We were able to again get Neptunes, but probably won't be next to each other. We won't know cabin numbers until we board. 
 

Our TA was also on the phone with a HAL rep Saturday because of questions we had. 
 

We not only will get one week 50% for future cruise credit, we also received additional obc, a refund of a few hundred (because Zuiderdam a bit cheaper) and $50 beverage card. 
 

I am not happy about changing ships and I'm sad our cabins won't be next to my sister and brother in law, but I like the itinerary the first week on Zuiderdam more than first week of NA and I'm just going to try to stop being upset. I certainly feel your pain. 😢

We did this on a Zuiderdam cruise.  I am particular about what I drink, but my husband, sister and brother in law wanted to do it, so I paid to join in and I did not drink any of the drinks on the pub crawl.  I just ordered my own.  It was super fun and no one was out of control or acting like they were on a Carnival cruise.  My husband and I also did a mixology class on a HAL cruise. We enjoyed it.

We just booked this on Sat and I had our travel agent contact HAL to refund today.  I am worried if we keep it, that that HAL will end up substituting Cuba with other ports and I am already doing a 2 week cruise a few months before what was going to be our cruise to Cuba. I don’t need to spend a week on the Veedam to visit ports I have been to many times.  

So glad to hear this! Thanks for taking the time to reply! quote=pmoniz;56256254]The weather was fantastic!! Tuesday (our last day) it was cloudy and we had some showers - which happened to be our beach day - but didn't seem to bother anyone LOL! The weather said that for our sailing too and we had beautiful weather!

How was the weather? We will be arriving on the 16th and when I check current and future weather it looks to be cloudy all day and either raining or thunderstorms. Was that your c experience?

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We get room service most mornings and tip depending on how much we've ordered. On our cruise in Jan my sister and brother in law were in the suite next to us and the four of us ordered room service for dinner most nights. I felt so sorry for the person that had to bring all that food on all the trays, but we tipped well.

And we've also learned to have that money ready so we're certain to get it in their hands before they scurry off!

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It's worth it in my opinion

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We were on 10 day Panama Canal cruise mid January. We were offered upgrade for $300 per person to go from SS to Neptune. We've stayed in Neptune before and we were happy to grab the offer. My sister and husband were cruising with us and they were offered same deal and we were even able to have cabins next to each other. Well worth it. SS are fine, but love the perks with Neptune.

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We've only had priority three times due to being in a suite, but were always lucky enough to not have to wait after security. We are in a cabin so quickly and I love it. I'm sure we'll experience a long wait at some point. [emoji22]. But even the times we didn't have priority, I felt like everything moved quickly.

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We loved our 10 day Panama Canal cruise last Jan on Zuiderdamon Zuiderdam so much, we booked again right away. We returned this past Saturday and after dry dock, it's better than ever. We were in a Neptune Suite and it was beautiful. Love the flat screen with on demand tv, live tv, movies, menus. We don't really watch tv, but nice to turn it on while trying to sleep. The staff was wonderful as I expect from HAL and as always, we enjoyed BB King. Love Zuiderdam.

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We will be on our 4th HAL cruise next week. In all of our previous 3 cabins, there was a makeup mirror mounted and if you turned it around it was magnified. It was always on a desk. I always use a makeup mirror at home and have never considered packing one, but now I'm reading here that they can vary even from cabin to cabin. Yikes!

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Applying your definition - essential items - Nothing other than your passport, ticket and credit card- if you forget anything else or need any clothes there's shops on board or you can try asking your cabin steward.

 

Emphasis on the OPs use of the word "ESSENTIAL " is misleading as the OP goes on to talk about paper magnets and sea pass card holders - I think most people of sound mind might agree that whilst these might be useful they are not strictly essential . So I think the OPs use of the word essential has some scope built in.

 

We park within 50ft of the ship so taking extra luggage for us is an essential luxury that we don't get to have when we take a land based holiday involving flying

.

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Good attitude!

 

 

 

We are actually taking a 3rd suit case on our next cruise as we are bringing snorkeling gear including fins which we typically do not bring. That decision allows me to bring a few other items I might have left at home, like another pair of shoes, duct tape, bungie cord with clips for drying stuff, etc.

 

 

 

Have a great cruise!!:)

Twice we have brought along air mattresses to use at beaches and that means a third suitcase! But we enjoyed them. Our next cruise is in a week and we aren't taking them this time. Sometimes we can do 11 days with just carry on, sometimes we check one or two bags. But we always have fun! Hope your next cruise is great!!

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sorry i meant to delete the whole post, not just the comment...

 

I found NOTHING to be offensive, but if you really want to know.....I was just trying to make a joke about not being a germaphobe...but I find jokes don't come across the same way as if we were sitting and having a drink vs. reading on a message board.

No worries. I wasn't offended. [emoji846]. You saying items that others find necessary for them are useless can be construed maybe differently than you intend.

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Why are you so negative Don If you don't want to read these questions or reply's then don't :) but keep your negative words to yourself and your life may be happier :)

Yes, it seems a couple people got upset, thinking others were packing too much. If I end up taking an extra suitcase because I've packed extra items I feel I'll need based on my other cruises, so what?

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Love your reviews. Thank you!

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