electro

1 hour ago, WriterOnDeck said:

No. I believe it is only the Pinnacle class ships. The vistas don't either.

thanks

If you are bringing wine on board, can you put it in checked luggage or does it need to be in carry on?

2 hours ago, Cruise Suzy said:

If you are on a Pinnacle class ship, at least one forward elevator goes to the secret deck. I forget which it is on Koningsdam, but on Rotterdam it's port.

does the Zaandam has this deck?

7 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

But I deserve more!!!🫢

never said I deserved anything. just passing on information. I asked, they said not eligible, no problem. 

To quote the Great One; "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" 

So I will always ask, the worst they can say is no.

10 minutes ago, Djptcp said:

I've been verified to receive the new AARP onboard credit. When I booked a new cruise last week I asked my PVP to make sure my $200 AARP onboard credit was in the booking. She said that benefit is not available to people who book cruises with a casino offer. I was pretty annoyed and verified that with another HAL agent today. I think that is a pretty raw deal. If it's in the AARP benefit description I didn't notice it.

I have 2 cruises booked with casino offers and was told the same thing.

You do not need 6 months on your passport to enter the US. It only needs to be valid to the date of your return. It is good to have it valid for at least a few days after your return incase of delays.

51 minutes ago, mafig said:

I'm new to Holland  American  (haven't sailed with them in years). So their site is new to me.

 

Is there a place to see that I have purchased Club Orange?

 

 

 

 

nope! Hal's website leaves a lot to be desired!

small ships that don't feel crowded.

Being able to sail out of Montreal (in 46 days)

hopefully they will replace some of the extremely uncomfortable furniture in the lounges.

2 hours ago, SeaCapt said:

I guess it must depend on your ship or itinerary.

We just got off 24 days aboard N. Statendam, so I looked through the daily programs again.

 

The rock band started their last set at either 11:15pm or 11:30pm each night, playing till after midnight.

 

BB King started their last set at 10:15pm, playing till 11pm, then a DJ came on till midnight or later if people were dancing.

 

Trivia was at 4:30pm, and they had a variety of arts and crafts, bridge, line dancing, wine tasting, mixology, outdoor sports, art sales, etc., all in the afternoon hours.

This was the Zaandam and b2b on NA. Only Ocean bar and Mix bar on Zaandam and both finished by 11. ON the NA, BB king and Billboards both done by 11, some nights 10, no music in Ocean bar.

There was one night that there was no live music at all. The had the guest comedian at BB king for a 40 min show and that was it. 

Trivia on both ships were between 6 and 8. I just look at current dailies from the Zaandam and trivia is still between 6 and 8. 

21 hours ago, princeton123211 said:

You're not wrong, but NCL and HAL definitely cater to different age brackets. 

Yes they do but neither are a very young crowd. NCL is mostly families and 40 - 60 age and HAL is 60 and above, neither being really party crowd age, except maybe on short cruises, but that goes for most lines.

for me it is that they end their entertainment too early. sometimes as early as 10 PM and alway by 11.

my other pet peeve is that they have their trivia games during dinner time. It should be a day time event, there is often nothing to do in the morning and between 2 and 6 and then they do trivia at 7 and 8. makes no sense.

I've done 3 -7 day cruises with Hal. Cruise 1 i got the HIA with the booking. Cruises 2 and 3 I added the HIA after booking. On all 3 cruises I got 14 days, I assume 7 for the days sailed and 7 for the HIA package. 

Next cruise I'm not getting the HIA so will probably only get 1 extra day for the wine package.

Just now, ShipWalker said:

In your booking there is "Beverages".

Towards the bottom of the list you will find beverage cards to purchase, $50, $100, $250 and non alcoholic $50

Yes, I've seen them there, but wanted to know if there are any advantages to them, other than prepaying for your drinks.

The only advantage I can see would be if I could by them when the exchange rates are good but there hasn't been a good exchange rate for Canadians in a really long time.

On 8/4/2023 at 1:50 PM, Cali Viajera said:

I just open the app, look for the self-guided tour and open that. At the bottom of the page it has ‘start audio tour.’ 

does it work if your phone is in airplane mode?

On 7/14/2023 at 12:40 PM, Got2Cruise said:

I would definitely take the Holland with your Mom. That NCL will be a party ship. It says OPEN BAR — which is fine if that’s what you want. But that if I want a nice peaceful cruise I wouldn’t chose that. Plus the itinerary looks better on Holland. 

If the "free at Sea" ie included drink package(open bar), makes NCL a party ship then I guess the "Have it all" ie included drink package, must make HAL a party ship!

I am not getting the HIA on my upcoming 13 day Zaandam cruise. I will probably buy a wine package. For other drinks, is there any advantage to purchasing a drink card or shipboard credit as apposed to just paying as I go/having it added to my account.

Thanks

On 8/4/2023 at 8:29 PM, RuthC said:

I've been on several cruises over the years that had Passenger Talent Shows (quite different from karaoke) that were very good and entertaining. Not every act, of course, but the professional entertainers brought aboard aren't all great, either. 
Passengers we had gotten to know a little bit, even people we hadn't interacted with, showed a different part of themselves and it was a really good time. 

These were not evening entertainment, but rather were daytime shows, on a sea day. I'm glad I had the opportunity to see passengers perform. Wish HAL still had such shows. 

My very first cruise in 2002, I was on the Carinnval Paradise. They had a passenger talent show and there happened to be 2 students from Juilliard on the cruise. They were wonderful and it spoilt me for talent shows after that. Never saw another one that could live up to that first one.

On 7/24/2023 at 3:52 PM, Cali Viajera said:

It has an audio section to have the route read to you.

Can this be done offline after downloading the app?

On 7/25/2023 at 6:26 PM, mowogo said:

I’m 38 and joined for the gift card deal.  10% off is 10% off, especially with the other deals.  

Can you post a link to the gift card offer?

Thanks

On 7/24/2023 at 9:44 PM, Nickelpenny said:

Log into the HAL website and then go to Cruise Deals.  It is way at the bottom.  Here is a direct link:  https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/deals/aarp-member-benefit-offer.html 

This is not on the Canadian version of the HAL site. If you click on this link it will default to the Canadian page after about 10 sec. If you click on the "verify my aarp membership" before it switches to the Canadian site, you will be able to register your aarp number.

19 hours ago, YourWorldWithBill said:

You can also get HAL discount gift cards on the AARP website: $450 for a gift card worth $500. That's a clear savings of 10%.

Anyone know how Canadians can get these card. I can't find it anywhere on the AARP site.

1 hour ago, FlaMariner said:

 

According to the recent fine print I've read (I'll have to search for it again, perhaps) but the Sommelier Wine Packages are for wine to be consumed in the dining venues and the stateroom......The fine print says not at the bars....We do take our wine glass with us when leaving the MDR (the waiter switches out the wine glass) and we do finish around the ship....Not sure how that is being enforced now but in the past (March 2023) I could ask for one of my bottles and/or leave one behind at the billboard onboard bar. 

1 glass of wine taken from the dining room is not going to do me for the evening so if I can only use it for the dining room and not bars, then it will not work for me.

2 minutes ago, FlaMariner said:

 

This is the primary reason we wait and buy onboard with our MDR waiter.....I want him to get credit for the sale...He has to do most/all of the work. 

 

Also, we are happy with package #1 (the cheaper package) and when they are out of a certain bottle (which, in our experience, seems to be frequently for package #1) they sub up.

 

(Our math never works for HIA....so we enjoy the wine packages)

I'm sure package #1 would work for me as well. I'm just not sure of the logistics of having a glass of wine in different venues. Will I need to be carrying a bottle around with me all evening if I'm going from the piano bar to the ocean bar, to the casino?

13 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

No, they are the same price on board as they are on line.  

 

The only difference is that the pricing reflects the 18% service charge on line and on board, you see the bare bones price and the note that the 18% service charge will be added to it.

 

Don’t forget the HIA includes other drinks (fresh squeezed oj, specialty coffees, etc as well as the other benefits which may / may not be beneficial to you).

 

Worth taking into consideration when you do your math 😉 

thanks, I'm still deciding but the difference in price is pretty steep. It is an east coast cruise and since I'm originally from NS, I don't need excursions. Not a big coffee drinker, I bring my own tea bags.

I really like the convenience of the HIA but not sure it justifies the price.