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Last December/January, while on board the Volendam, we booked another cruise on the Volendam starting Dec. 22/14 in Singapore. The promotion entitled us to a $325 pp shipboard credit, a bottle of wine and lunch at the PG.

We made final payment in September and since then, the price has dropped substantially. We booked an FF category guarantee and as of yesterday, the price for both of us has dropped almost $2,000.

I contacted my ta and she contacted their dsm who offered ZERO period. She also spoke with HAL and the only offer we received was a so called upgrade to a D category BUT HAL WOULD REMOVE OUR SB CREDIT OF $650 and instead give us an sbc of $100 pp. Needless to say, I found this offer insulting and refused. Why would we want to change an ocean view for another ocean view, although the new category might be in a better location

Since then, I have called HAL several times myself, finally speaking to a pricing specialist and of course the answer was always the same. When we booked last December, the future cruise consultant said that if there is a price drop, then a pricing specialist would analyze each individual booking if a passenger requests a reduction based on the new price - WHAT A JOKE

We are not looking for a refund but some compensation in the form of a shipboard credit WITHOUT REMOVING THE SBC WE ALREADY HAVE.

Does anyone have advice for us - I AM SO UPSET

Lynne

The current Dawn Princess world cruise had their overnight call to Yangoon cancelled .They were told that the river had silted up and the ship could not dock.

 

 

We are sailing on the Volendam departing Singapore Dec. 22.14 and will be docked in Thilawa for 3 days. After reading your post, I contacted HAL asking if there will be any problems with the ship docking. I was assured that there were no problems.

We had a similar problem on the old Royal Princess several years ago when we were unable to dock in Tristan da Cuhna only to find out afterwards that in fact the harbour had been dredged - I would if this is a similar situation?

Lynne

Thank you both for your replies - I was beginning to think no one was going to respond.

After discussing with dh, we decided to take the ship excursion primarily because of traffic and road conditions. We would have opted for a private tour if the ship was overnighting in Halong Bay. The ship excursion is 3 1/2 hours each way.

Lynne

We will be on the Volendam in January 2015 and will be docking in Halong Bay from 7 am to 11 pm. We have previously visited Halong Bay and now want to visit Hanoi which I understand is 3 1/2 hours by road from where the ship docks.

If any one has done this tour privately and can recommend a good tour operator, it would be very appreciated.

IMPORTANT: We were on the Volendam last December and took a ship excursion to Jakarta, primarily because of the horrendous traffic. We had a police escort throughout our stay. I was in Hanoi 17 years ago and therefore cannot compare the traffic then and now. If the traffic is similar, then we will not consider a private tour.

Lynne

Have never cruised with HA before . There is a 28 day cruise in Asia in December that we are interested in (on Volendam) which goes to quite a number of Asian ports. The HA website is showing "no shore tours" for a number of these ports -- some of which we have been to with P&O and there were shore tours available at these places then.

 

It is a fair time off until December - so just wondering if this is a bit of an aberration which will be corrected in time???

I assume you are referring to the 28 day itinerary starting Dec. 22 in Singapore. We booked this cruise while on board the Volendam last December on a 30 day itinerary including 14 days in Indonesia.

Unfortunately no one has started a roll call yet for the 28 day itinerary but there is an almost dead roll call for the 2nd portion starting Jan. 5. I keep lurking and hoping - if no one else comes forward, I guess I will have to be the originator.

Lynne

While on board the Volendam in December/January, we booked another cruise on the Volendam - 28 days Singapore to Hong Kong. departing Dec. 22/14. However, we are having second thoughts as the 2nd part of this b2b is exactly the same itinerary that we did this past Dec/Jan.

In doing research, I have found a 42 day cruise on the Statendam departing Dec. 3, San Diego to San Diego, visiting the South Pacific, Hawaiian Islands and several ports in Mexico that we have not been to. We have visited the South Pacific four times so this is not the issue.

Our main concern is that there are 20 sea days. Although we enjoy sea days, we are concerned that there may not be enough lectures, movies, etc. We do not participate in bingo, trivia or other games but interesting, informative lectures are very important to us.

Hopefully someone who has done the main part of this itinerary, mainly the Hawaiian Islands and the Society Islands, can comment on the onboard activities.

Please note that the Statendam is doing this itinerary in three phases - 30 day (the main part), 42 day and 45 day.

Lynne

My dh and I have taken 21 Princess cruises, most of them back to back, and all of them 30 days or longer. We have also sailed on Carnival, P and O, Odessa America and Star Cruises but since our first Princess cruise, we felt this was the cruise line for us until a very bad experience on the Sea Princess December 2012 when we decided it was time to try another cruise line. Because of our elite status and our many Princess perks, dh took a lot of convincing and we signed up for a 30 day cruise Dec. 21/13 from Hong Kong to Singapore. -we are so glad we chose HAL and have signed up for another cruise Dec. 22/14 from Singapore to Hong Kong.

My reasons why:

1. We have travelled to more than 100 countries so itineraries are very important to us. When I compare itineraries (primarily exotic) HAL offers far more interesting destinations and HAL does more overnights than Princess. Also, when comparing similar itineraries, HAL is usually longer.

For whatever reason, Princess no longer offers really interesting (at least to us) itineraries as they did in the past, e.g. Bangkok to Venice or Istanbul to Capetown or Capetown to Valpariso - all of which we have done.

2. Room service breakfast on HAL is 100% better than on Princess (where you get a cold continental only), whereas on HAL, you have a large choice of hot breakfast. Also the breakfast menu in the dining room has a much better and bigger selection than Princess.

3.Meals themed to destination - on Princess, we have found you can be in any part of the world and still eat the same food - I was told the menus are designed in the States for all ships of the fleet - no matter where they are located except for Australia based Princess ships where they serve a lot of lamb that tastes like beef. I was particularly impressed with the Asian Night Market on our HAL cruise.

4.Cooking demos - usually one only on a Princess ship with a comedic type theme whereas on HAL there is a purpose built demo kitchen.

5. Little HAL touches like inviting all b2b passengers to a special themed lunch and having cocktail parties for passengers of a particular country - loved the Canadian party. I have never seen this on a Princess ship.

6. Daily news sheets - Princess discontinued this service about 5 years ago. HAL has news sheets from several countries available.

7. Smaller ships - we are not fans of big ships and our favorite Princess ships are the Ocean and the Pacific, unfortunately more expensive than the bigger ones.

8. Problems - when I have had issues on Princess ships, it has taken quite a long time to resolve, if at all, in spite of my Elite status and 400 cruise days. On HAL, there were a few problems and they were quickly resolved.

Lynne

When cleaning out a bathroom cabinet this morning, I found a couple of bottles of Linen Mist. Probably a silly question but I really am not sure if Linen Mist is to be sprayed on my linen or my body:confused:

As Elite passengers, who usually sail on b2b's, we receive items that we may not use on a particular cruise. Actually, I do not recall ever using Linen Mist and have no idea why I brought the bottles home.

So....if anyone knows what the spray is used for, I would appreciate it.

Lynne

Princess Elite Passenger

I am considering this itinerary for March/April next year. I have been to Myanmar many years ago on a land tour. It is one of my favorite destinations.

 

I was wondering if it is possible to tour Bagon and Inle Lake in the 3 days in Myanmar? These are two locations we have not been able to tour. Also, what is there to see and do in these two locations?

 

Can anyone suggest a private tour guide that might be able to arrange such a tour?

See my post immediately above yours - post no. 4, Golden Rock should be able to arrange your tour. I suggest you go on their website.

Lynne

From Hongkong to Dubai with Oceanias Nautica

Does anybody know something about privat tour operaters in the following ports: Nathrang and Saigon in Vietnam, Phuket in Thailand,Yangon ( Rangoon) in Myanmar, Cochin and Mumbai in India? Thank you for your help!

FOR BURMA (Myanmar): I would highly recommend Golden Rock Travel & Tours. They have offices in Rangoon (Yangon) as well as an office in the States. Their toll free US number is 1-888-802-8762.

Paul stated there is no internet in Burma and very little phone service. I beg to differ. DH was born in Burma and although internet use is not as widespread as in more affluent countries, it is certainly available. Internet cafes may be found throughout the country.

Unfortunately because of the upcoming elections on Nov. 7, both the internet and overseas telephone lines have been shut for a two week period.

Lynne

Lynne, if you walk around La Boca at lunchtime, you'll see tons of tango performances. Ok, they're not the sit-down dinner/multiple costume/orchestra tango shows, but they are enjoyable. Just about every outdoor cafe along the one main street (Caminita, I think), has a "free" tango show. The only catch is that, unless you want to stand in the back behind the tables, you really need to purchase something. You could, though, just get a soda or a coffee. We saw a number of tango performances. While they weren't as flashy as the nighttime tango show, we definitely enjoyed them.

Unfortunately, we will only be in BA for one day and really want to maximize our time there as the only other time we have been there was from the airport to the ship and did not have a chance to see anything (it was during their financial meltdown several years ago.

Do you know if there are vans as well as taxis at the pier to take passengers on an all day tour, i.e. sightseeing, La Boca for tango and lunch, etc.

Lynne

The Ideal is a downtown tangueria which is open in the afternoons for dancing to live music. I do not believe there is an afternoon show per se, but if you like to see good dancing by non theatrical members of the public this is a great place. Be forewarned . There is a certain etiquette that frowns upon taking photos of the dancers.

http://www.confiteriaideal.com/index.htm

Really appreciate your help, I would never have thought of a tangueria on my own. I have requested an travel agent based in BA to put together a full day tour including sightseeing, a bbq lunch and a visit to a tango club.

Lynne

We will be in BA on March 19. Unfortunately, the Star Princess is only in port from 8 am to 5 pm. We have signed up for a ship excursion that includes sightseeing, lunch and a tango show. I assume the tango show has been specifically arranged for Princess because of the time. If possible, we prefer to take private tours.

Does anyone have any ideas about attending a daytime tango show?

Lynne