DaveOKC

Due to some Covid related issues (I assume), the train is only going up to the border and back for this season.

I suspect it is due to the inexperience of my PCC - not pushing the issue enough!

Thanks for the information. The reason I tried to purchase Club Orange was to use it to get my SC moved up to a specific cabin. but they would not let me.

Not true. I have done last minute upsells many times and each was after I had completed the checkin process. I generally do not print off my boarding pass and luggage tags until I am past the upsell/upgrade window, but not the last minute (in case of a printer problem).

So true! In my example this guy was so upset about the lack of a butler it was unreal.

Interesting. I have tried this and been told that I could not upgrade my SC - I even tried buying Club Orange to accomplish this but to no avail. Do you mind sharing how much HAL wanted to upgrade (and how long the cruise was)?

Sometimes free is not really free! I have experienced situations where using my casino discount rate along with all the perks at the time and being able to select my own cabin (plus no stockholder credit), was almost the same as accepting the free cabin offer, giving that I had to upgrade myself. So, keep this option in mind.

As already stated, HAL does not employ butlers for their suites. Funny story - a couple of years ago we were talking to a couple at the Neptune cocktail reception who were VERY upset because they did not get a butler, even though they said they had one on their last HAL cruise! They refused to believe me when I told them that HAL (in at least the last 20 years) has not had butlers. They continued to raise a fuss about it, so we just moved on. I guess some people just get confused.

Not sure it is really needed now. It would be easier in some cases, but I like the way it shows all the cabins in the Mega category by deck (and section). I used it again yesterday to search for an aft facing cabin and it was much easier than in the past to see what my options were.

I just was working on a potential booking on HAL's website and found it much improved over the previous version (we was terrible IMO). I only went as far as looking at the available cabins, but I have to report that it is much easier to use and MUCH faster than before. BIG PLUS - I was able to see all the cabins in the category I wanted (by deck though), where before it would limit me to only 10! Example - I was looking at SA cabins on deck 7 and found 21 (of the 38) open for booking. Just for fun, I compared this result to another travel booking site and they showed exactly the same thing. I sure hope that this new option continues!

We just did the Springhill Suites/Residence Inn (they are together). Very nice rooms and hotel, fairly new. Right across the street from the pier (2-300 yards) so no need for a shuttle. Rates not too bad - we paid a bit over $200 plus taxes, but this can vary alot. Senior rate.

I agree with the Club Orange approach, especially on the Koningsdam which has a separate dining area (for breakfast and dinner) - we really enjoyed this. Since you are doing Alaska and I assume out of Vancouver, I would go for an aft view cabin (decks 5, 6 and 8 are Verandahs which should be open to you with a Club Orange upgrade. I would avoid 8, as it is right below the aft pool deck. I like aft cabins for Alaska due to the great views while cruising the inside passage. Also, the waters are calmer on this route, so aft should be fine. Hopefully the cost for CLub Orange will be no more than $25 pp per day. That seems to be the current going rate.

No lineups on ours either, but the tables were all prettty filled and the noise level was higher than normal IMO.

Ditto this exactly! The Pinnacle lobster was a waste of $20 while the Rudi's was excellent.

We were on the K in late April for a California cruise. Less than 50% occupancy, so service was great! The only negative I expereinced was that the second (top) floor of the main dining room was closed for dinner, thus the lower floor was a bit crowded.

In normal times, I would take Vancouver for all the things already mentioned. But with the Covid restrictions and testing, this year we are sailing out of Seattle.

Normally open just on sea days, but have experienced it open on days when we had a late port arrival, so check once onboard. Also its been 12-1PM only.

Actually neither. I would book aft.

I wonder if the free testing is due to HAL recently changing its procedures away from testing onboard for free?

In my experience, the FREE cabin offers do not qualify, but cruises booked with casino discount rate (like 20% off) do. Recently I submitted two requests at the same time and the discounted rate one was accepted while the free cabin one was rejected.

HAL does seem to be slow in recognizing casino players. Two people I know have experienced the exact same thing, even though they are good amount players and receive multiple offers from other lines for the same level of play. It took us a long time to "get on the list" but now that we have we get alot of offers, but for discounted and free cabins. And we are lower level players than the two other people. You might try contacting the Players club and asking them to review your account.

Agree - Things change and you need to adapt. I learned long ago as a store manager that the one thing you do not mess with is people's pay and in this case thats what your friends are doing, even though they think they are not.

With all the turmoil going on with airlines right now I would book direct with the airline if at all possible. Just this morning I received two emails from American telling me of flight changes on two different flights (going and coming home). One was just off by an hour, so no biggie, thus I just accepted that. The second one moved my flight arrival by 6 hours to 11 PM in a strange town, so I was not happy. I called the airline (after researching my options) and requested a different flight(s) which got us home 30 minutes later than original, even though we had to depart one hour earlier. MUCH better situation. The airline agent was quick to accept my suggestions and moved me at the same fare I paid! What is funny is that the current fare on the flight they first put me on was about HALF the price as the one I requested (and ended up getting), so you can easily see what they were up to! You really have to take control of your airline reservations these days.

Do they realize that by removing the automatic tips they are requiring all the people they gave envelopes to turn that in? Seems like a big waste of time for everyone IMO. And in fact, the "extra" they give out also must be turned in, so they are not helping out the people they want to at all (actually hurting them). You need to clue them in on how this works.

In my experience, the guarantee cabins on a Pinnacle class ship are usually around 10-20% less than a specific cabin (Verandah mega category). Depends on the cabin location of course. Sometimes you can get lucky and select a specific cabin (say in the VH category) for the same price, sometimes not.