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This has probably been covered before, but here goes anyway.

We recently came back from a Denali land tour and Alaskan cruise. The weather was pretty bad in Ketchikan, the clouds were low. They had to cancel our seaplane excursion, which meant we got almost $600 in onboard credit with one day left to go. 
 

The final statement says we will receive the refund to a credit card, but nothing has happened in a week and a half so I decided to call Holland just to find out how they actually do the refund and how long it takes.  My first call was through the Main Number (dealing with the crazy AI who’s telling me that my cruise is leaving and what day is leaving on… Who programs this stuff?) when I got through to an agent, the agent put me on hold and came back and told me there was 100 minute wait for guest relations and gave me the number. I called and AI took my phone number to do a call back. I never received a call back.
 

So I called at 11:03 EDST today, which I believe is when they open up. I was on hold for 53 minutes before somebody answered…that is just unbelievable and never offered to call me back today.   I finally got through to guest relations who had to put me on hold to check the information and a 10 minutes later I had my information.  They told me we would get a check to the address on file and it would take about a month but no guarantee.😳

I am appalled. First that guest relations is not adequately staffed. Secondly, that the statement says they’re crediting a credit card when an actuality they’re going to hold our money for another month and send a check. But I can’t be sure that one or the other is correct.

We are three star Mariners and we have two more cruises booked with Holland America. It’s not our favorite cruise line but we like a lot of their itineraries and that’s how we’ve gotten this far. It’s no surprise that there’s that huge thread about Holland America going downhill…. we are not rushing to book any more cruises with them at this point.  
 

Finally, curious how others have received the refunded OBC?

7 hours ago, NE John said:

the Cunard singers/hosts could make more announcements during the evening to encourage all dancers of all levels that they are welcome. I just hear “and now a quick-step, and now a Samba, etc”. The hosts are only speaking to the ballroom dancers. Bottom line, we often feel the QR dance floor on ballroom nights is not welcoming to those who are not as well-studied in dancing as others. 

Background : My husband and I have taken quite a few lessons over the past seven years minus Covid. We gave up Foxtrot after about 25 lessons because he was new to dancing and was intimidated with leading around the dance floor, he was so consumed with not bumping into others, even though the better dancers would never let that happen. We never even took waltz lessons….

Instead, We’ve become very good at the dances that don’t follow the line of dance. Rumba, swing, hustle, nightclub 2step.  So early on I would say my husband “don’t listen to what they’re saying. Let’s just get up and dance and do what we know.”

Now, we get on the floor and he says “what are we doing?”  He knows that I don’t care what the singer or the DJ says, we will dance what we know, and we rarely bump into anyone. We are not expert dancers by any means….but we enjoy dancing!

So I had to say that I really agree with what you said, NE John. But people shouldn’t feel they have to do whatever the leaders called. You can’t become a better dancer if you don’t get up and do it on a real dance floor.  (And I think you should dance like nobody’s watching, which means do whatever you know and are comfortable with.).
 

My only issue that I’ve ever had on Cunard is that we can do single swing when people are quickstepping. And we know enough to go to the center of the floor. But I have to say we’ve never felt welcomed.  😉

Sorry for going in a bit but we also will be sad if Cunard continues to take away the ballroom dances or relegates them to the gala nights.  We love to watch the dancers do waltzes and tangos.  And if anyone gets up for a samba line dance, I will be right up there with them!

I hope everyone gives feedback about this. We did after the QA cruise.

Thanks.  Good to hear!

What’s happening in the old BBkings club?   I’m reading that it’s gone and there’s Rolling Stones.  The ship listing on the HAL site only lists Billboard which is just meh for us.
 

Please tell me there is Someplace to dance with live music…this is really an issue for us if there is no dance venue with decent music.

thanks in advance….

18 hours ago, NE John said:

A white dinner jacket in the Caribbean may do the trick. I actually wore one for our Caribbean honeymoon cruise, quite a few many moons ago. It felt really good wearing that DJ and no one mistaken me for a waiter… 

This is coincidental to a discussion DH and I were having the other night.  The white dinner jackets are not so popular in the US, but we see them consistently on our Cunard cruises. It’s something we are considering for his wardrobe!

We have noticed that some cruisers dress up a bit more than others.  In QG last September on the QE crossing the were lots of people who seemed a bit more casually dressed. Once we hit Barcelona the crowd dressed up more.  
 

I’m curious to see how folks dress when QE does Caribbean cruises.  Cruisers who typically cruise from Florida don’t dress up as much, on average.  DH has asked if I will pack his tux.  Might only pack a suit….

We haven’t had an issue with the Internet either. We’ve just had issues logging in on sea days.  Once we’ve logged in, it’s great. 

Yes. We are aware we always have to log in.

That’s my point.

And logging in can take multiple attempts..it say “ not connected” on numerous logins.  

I will make a separate post regarding the dancing. For those  people who want to  know how the dancing is going…

There is dancing with live music, just about all evening in the Queen‘s room, and that’s very nice. No canned music.  However, quite often you can’t get a seat in the queen’s room. We don’t recall experiencing that problem on Elizabeth or Mary 2.  Someone misstepped here in the planning. Also we have had two nights where there was actually a show in the queen‘s room as opposed to dancing.  We weren’t crazy about that idea. Maybe everyone else loves it. You think you have a ballroom, the floor should be used for dancing.
 

Though we are not sequence dancers, we used to enjoy watching them on the other ships. Sadly, there’s no dedicated sequence dancing that we haven’t seen. However, the sequence dancers do get up when there’s a song they all want to dance to.   
 

It appears that the gala nights the orchestra has live ballroom style music and do the exact same order of dances for as in the past.  I.E. quickstep, foxtrot, etc. Other nights are theme nights, 70s, Motown, Latin, 80s. It’s a really eclectic mix, people are doing ballroom and freestyle simultaneously.  So people who only do ballroom dancing might not be thrilled…. On the other hand, folks like me who do both ballroom and freestyle like the change!  
 

The Bright Lights Society has nightclub dancing listed at 10:30 but it really doesn’t start till closer to 11. The DJ is very good, she takes requests and my only complaint is that the floor is exceedingly small. There’s seating on the edge of the floor because they’re trying to as many people as possible for the shows. 

Last night there was a silent disco on the Pavilion deck.  What fun for those who enjoy it.   (Yes, I was there, sans DH who was too tired!)
 

Aside from the evening, there are several dance classes, ballroom, and line dancing, and Zumba and chair aerobics during the day. Lots of options for people who want to get some dancing during the day.

That’s a quick commentary.  See you on the dance floor!
 

Currently on QA.  We are having issues connecting on Sea days.  We have to keep retrying to get on. Maybe 8 to 10 tries. Disappointing.

To all,

Yes we are on QA. I will write comments later.

The issue with the drink package is something we’ve had Queen Mary2  and Queen Elizabeth in the past. But the drink prices are higher now…To us it seems hypocritical to even claim this package is a perk if you can’t make it work reasonably for the people are paying the highest prices to board the ship.

Re UK v US….I don’t understand why the prices and packages are different for people in the UK versus the US. I would rather just pay a price for the room and don’t include this ridiculous drink package.  (For those who don’t cruise other lines, for a really reasonable price you can get an elite drink package if you’re in a suite.)
 

Anyway, the concierge didn’t help us, but her boss did. They have removed charges already made, but will not remove with any going forward — and we know better than to order those particular cocktails.

Thanks for you comments.  We know the game and will play by the rules.  But the rules are balderdash.  If Cunard is looking to up its game, especially with US cruisers, who are used to much better drink packages, it will have to do better….

Hattie, Yes.  But we met a couple who weren’t in the grills and also had a $12 limit.  
 

We find these types of perks to be inconsistent with other cruise lines that usually give a suite passenger the higher level of beverage package.  And it’s annoying that there are inconsistencies within different bars on the ship.  
 

And the concierge is useless, to be very frank. I’m wondering who is her superior?
 

We have had this exactly the same package several times since 2018.  But the drink prices keep rising, even thought the $12 allotment doesn’t.  A staffer told us to “ tell them to bill under $12” when you order a cocktail. So maybe you can sometimes order that way but not always.

It’s frustrating when one bar will bill you under $12 for the same drink another will bill you over $12. As customers, my DH and I don’t really want to get into a pricing debate every time we order a drink.  
 

We are looking for advice on how others handle this insane practice.   Especially since you get charged the entire amount on Cunard,  not just the additional cost.  
 

Thanks for any insight.

A couple of comments after reading through this thread.

1.  Buy a bowtie at the ship’s shop because they typically have them and they’re not all plain black ones. And they are pre-tied.  No problem if you haven’t learned to tie a bow tie….
2.  Anyone who is concerned about how many suitcases they have to bring, why not try using one of the luggage forwarding services? There are several.  We’ve had great success with Luggage Forward, especially with Cunard since they partner.  It’s not cheap but we find it’s the best way to get all our dressy clothes on the ship with having to lug another suitcase.

3. If you’re in either of the grills, you can order from the dinner menu earlier that day, and it will be delivered course by course to your cabin.  In Queens Grill, it will be delivered by your butler.
 

Embrace everything that Cunard offers. It’s different than any American cruise line.  We love it , but it’s definitely not for everyone.

We used it for wool trousers and wool tux pants. On two QE cruises.   The trousers were sent on both cruises!  I think it was better than the dry cleaning we have at home. Honestly. I’m not getting paid for this.🤣

I am careful to say, wool, because other fabrics might react differently than wool. I have no clue.  I’m just really pleased with how my husband’s trousers came out when he had made a mess of things at dinner!

Re tipping w OBC.  Two years ago, after Covid, we started taking extra cash with us to tip. We’ve gotten some excellent service from Butlers, stewards, maitreDs, head waiters and waitstaff both in the dining room and in lounges.  
 

We have had some odd occurrences that put us in weird situations and everyone helped us out.  Maybe our situations are not so weird ?  Our experience is that mostly everyone is wonderful on Cunard. (The first room steward we had in Princess Grill was terrible but we’ve done 8 cruises with Cunard now, and we love everyone else.)

BTW,  in all our cruising since Covid, on all cruise lines we’ve used, we’ve been tipping cash to our daily attendants and servers, and anyone who goes above and beyond. It’s now on our packing list to make sure we have the right currency when we cruise.  I have to be honest and say we don’t trust that if we assign tipping with our OBC that it gets to the persons… In any cruise line.  What can I say?

26 minutes ago, exlondoner said:

Do the other Carnival companies let you do this?

HAL does. we are cruising Alaska this summer with them, and I was able to use our OBC, the pittance that it was, towards excursions.  
 

Not sure about others.  

Thanks.  We cruise in the grilles and always end up with lots of OBC at the end of our Cunard cruises.  I don’t want to leave it there but I’d rather spend it on things we actually spend money on, than just shop. It’s one of the very few things I complain about re Cunard.  

This next cruise I will try the canceling and rebooking.

We travel on several different cruise lines as well as Cunard is the only one who still doesn’t let you use OBC to book excursions etc. prior to the cruise.  Am I the only one who finds this annoying? 

I’ve heard you can book and then reverse/ rebook on the cruise, but if you book a popular excursion, will your spots disappear if there is a waitlist?  
 

Curious how others feel and if there is something I don’t know about to circumvent this issue.

thanks,

Norma

As a Floridian with kettles that shut off automatically,😉, I want to note as an aside, that on Cunard, we always get kettles in our cabin, and the water seems hotter!! I’m not sure if it’s because of the higher voltage, or what, because water boils at the same temperature everywhere….or does it🧐?

Anyway, we were once able to get a kettle in our room from our butler on Celebrity. Just once… we’ve never asked Holland America as I’ve gotten accustomed to bringing a large insulated Tumbler, putting my own teabags in it and getting hot water from the Lido deck. No, it’s not as hot as coming directly from a kettle, but it does seem to work, my tea never tastes weak.   
 

All this from an American, who probably doesn’t know what good tea really is🤣🤣🤣…

You do not have to use the app if you don’t want to in the US, and according to the online info it appears similar in the UK.  They provide this information:

So I would think you can send an email with the information attached.  I did it 2 weeks ago and they added the obc in about 4 days.  They emailed to let me know.

Good luck.

We’ve cruised QG and PG, love them both…main difference for us is cabin size and butler, although there are several more.  Check the website.

There ARE diy laundry facilities on most floors at no cost, detergent provided gratis.  Great for every day clothes.  Best time to use is on shore days when you return to the ship.  Also you can send out for pressing, laundry or dry cleaning for a charge….We usually get so much OBC in QG that we send out the items we can’t wash and it’s not big deal.

Yes the beverage package is included up to $12.50 I believe, and most popular drinks are under that price point.  Anyway, their drink prices are very reasonable compared to other cruise lines. This applies to alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages. So things like specialty coffees and bottled water are included.

In your room, you’ll have a small refrigerator and your butler will stock it per your choices with two bottles of alcohol or two bottles of wine if you prefer. They will also stock it with sodas.

Not only is there no service charge for en-suite dining, you can order from the QG restaurant menu and your butler will serve you, course by course if you like.

Gratuities are also covered. Although we like to reward good service and give addl tips at the end of the cruise. 

The QG restaurant has a lovely menu every night. There’s only one thing we don’t love and that’s the beef, the steaks on Cunard. We Americans are used to much more tender quality of steak. We also don’t go to the veranda restaurant—we find there’s plenty of things on the QG menu.  The best meat on the menu is when they have venison. It’s outrageously delicious.  And the lamb is good also.  They serve duck, sole, and lamb table side.  It’s so nice. 
 

Last point, the grills lounge is nice to sit in the morning for a specialty coffee or a pre dinner drink.  It’s open all day and the concierge is located there, his/her hours will be posted.

Overall we love the grills and recommend you try them at least once!

We have been on six Cunard cruises and seven HAL cruises. We typically only choose HAL because we think that it’s got a great itinerary. Other than that, HAL is a decent cruise line and it’s quiet so you get a good night’s sleep. Entertainment is OK. Food is OK. Because we mostly travel in a suite, it’s disappointing that HAL doesn’t have a separate dining room for the suites. But we have been in the main dining room on both cruise lines, and they were fairly similar in our opinion.

We choose Cunard for the itinerary and the cruising experience. The experience is totally different and our opinion. It harkens back to a different age of cruising pre-2000….. just go to afternoon tea one day in the Queen’s room.  And then there is the dress code for evenings. On HAL, 10% of the people “dress” for dinner, On Cunard, 90% of the people follow that suggested dress code. (These numbers are based on my observations. Yes, there are people who complain that no one dresses up, but really most people who cruise on Cunard choose to follow the dress code)

When you’re on HAL, dressing up is not the same as on Cunard. People really do dress for the evening on Cunard. We actually take a separate suitcase with the dinner clothes and we are not alone. For HAL and other American cruise lines, I would say we dress “resort dressy”, which is more like Tommy Bahama and Lilly Pulitzer. On Cunard, we dress like people did 25-30 years go. It’s definitely a different feel.  Cocktail or formal…. 
 

Another difference is that on Cunard you never feel like any place you go is crowded. You can always find someplace to sit in any lounge you go to. I can’t say the same for HAL, or Celebrity, or NCL  or any other cruise lines we have traveled on.

I would say, the quality of the food is similar for the MDR and buffet, although, for instance, in the Buffet, you will find lots of British favorite dishes that you would not find an American cruise line. Which makes sense… we are American but we enjoy having something different!

The entertainment on both lines is decent, and we have had good speakers on both lines. I think the dancing is better on Cunard. Cunard in general has more options to listen to music on the ship.  And I hope that HAL has not gotten rid of Lincoln Center on board because that was one of the things we enjoyed most.  

One of my favorite features of Cunard is that they actually have laundry rooms on the ships. So on a long cruise, you don’t have to pack so much because you can actually do laundry yourself. You can also send out items for cleaning or pressing as needed.

I hope you enjoy your cruise on Cunard, it will be slightly different than Holland America. But we have never had a bad cruise after traveling on seven different cruise lines. It’s what you make of it.  Just be open to something different!

We cruised last September on QE and noticed the lack of dance hosts which we attributed to Covid. And there was a lot of Covid on that cruise.

We also noticed the mix of generic dancing with ballroom dancing. And there was a lot more happening at the yacht club, than on our previous cruises on QE. I’m not a big fan of putting the generic dancing on the ballroom floor, but it’s great to have a disco-like environment in the yacht club.

This year my husband is awaiting hip surgery when we come home from the cruise, so I doubt we’ll be doing much dancing together. I think it would be great to dance with a Dance host for a couple of Rumbas here or there. And if they’re not there, I guess I’ll have to settle for dancing in the yacht club to the disco music.

Calling all Princess experts!
 

We have traveled on several different cruise lines and amassed 20+ cruises. But we only took one Princess cruise 18 years ago and don’t remember much. so we are basically newbies on Princess.  We are booked on the Enchanted Princess for New Year’s  at the end of 2023.

So, I’m wondering what advice you would give to someone that you wish you had known about prior to cruising with Princess?

Thanks in advance!