HAL Hotels in Seattle

I cannot find either on the West Coast Departure threads or on the HAL site which hotels HAL usually uses for Seattle departures. Our cruise is next summer so I suppose it could be too early.

I'd sure appreciate some help.

Thanks in advance,

Ruth

You can find your HAL hotel by going to the website hollandamerica.com, Already Booked tab, click on Manage My Bookings and log in using Find My Booking.

Click on Travel Planning and click on Pre & Post Cruise Travel.

You will than be shown your choices.

HAL hotels include transfers, but you can often save some money by booking directly with the hotel.

One year I compared HAL's hotel price with booking it on my own -- just out of curiosity. There was a $125 difference.

One year I compared HAL's hotel price with booking it on my own -- just out of curiosity. There was a $125 difference.

We've often found when booking with HAL in Canadian dollars the price differential is not that great. It's all a gamble on currency rates of course. And we no longer collect hotel points.

Ruth

Thank you Hunky for your detailed advice. I guess the site is again acting up as when I've got to the pre and post cruise step multiple times the darn image of the ship starts an endless cycle of slithering around!

And almost each time I log in it refuses to accept me; I then offer feedback and within minutes I can get in.

We're in NO great rush. But I get great pleasure in planning our day explorations in the general area as we've never been to Seattle and plan to go a few days early.

Thanks though for your suggestions.

Ruth

Thank you Hunky for your detailed advice. I guess the site is again acting up as when I've got to the pre and post cruise step multiple times the darn image of the ship starts an endless cycle of slithering around!

 

And almost each time I log in it refuses to accept me; I then offer feedback and within minutes I can get in.

 

We're in NO great rush. But I get great pleasure in planning our day explorations in the general area as we've never been to Seattle and plan to go a few days early.

 

Thanks though for your suggestions.

 

Ruth

I'm leaving on Zaandam from Seattle in just over 3 weeks so I logged in and checked.... they have the Fairmont Olympic Hotel ($249 pp :eek:) and the Hilton Seattle Airport ($169 pp :eek:) hotels listed for my cruise. Hope this helps! Enjoy your cruise. :)

Thank you so much Obnxshs for taking the time to find out the current hotels for us.

We'll sure have to go the expensive option as we'll want to be in town. Again thanks for checking,

Ruth

I'm booked at the Seatac Hilton on May 4, 2019. I made my rez as soon as they became available, and used 21,000 Hilton Honors points for a room with 2 queen beds. Now that same room costs 45,000 points. If paying cash, the room rates range from $186 - $205 US, so the quoted price of $169 shouldn't elicit an "eek". ;)

Roz

I'm booked at the Seatac Hilton on May 4, 2019. I made my rez as soon as they became available, and used 21,000 Hilton Honors points for a room with 2 queen beds. Now that same room costs 45,000 points. If paying cash, the room rates range from $186 - $205 US, so the quoted price of $169 shouldn't elicit an "eek". ;)

 

Roz

Wish you were correct BUT the HAL price is pp and there are two of us!

But thanks so much for checking for us. The advantage of booking with HAL in Canadian is that it fixes the exchange rate, for goodness knows what will happen until the NAFTA dust has LONG settled.

Ruth

If it's per person, that's insane. The prices I quoted are for 2 people in the room. Excuse me if you've already explained why you want to book with HAL, but why don't you book on your own? OK, I re-read your post and see you're trying to protect against currency fluctuations.

Roz

Don't know about the single rate but our experience for two people is that the cruise line hotels are often as much as double what we can get on our own. Especially for business or airport hotels on weekends when they tend to have special weekend rates to fill the hotel. You also need to watch out for exact where they are located vis a vis the main tourist areas.

You also need to watch out for exact where they are located vis a vis the main tourist areas.

Sound advice, thanks

Ruth

We used the Hilton Airport Convention Center last month through HAL. I am Hilton Honors and know I could have booked it for less and gotten points, but convenience won over price. Flight landed at 12:30 PM. HAL rep met us in baggage claim with a luggage cart and loaded our bags herself and delivered us to the hotel shuttle. Upon arrival at 1 PM hotel had our room ready for check in immediately. Transfer to ship was easy bags were delivered from our room to the ship.

Only complaint was the hotel restaurant is very expensive. 13 coins restaurant down the street was a much better choice.

I asked if I booked the hotel on my own could I pay to take the HAL transfer from the hotel. HAL said No, I would have to go back to the airport and take that transfer.

Karen

They know (or figure) they have a captive audience. I just spent last evening and all day today, finding and booking a week on Alaska soil after a 7-day northbound cruise, for five people. Cost for that cruise plus three nights (two days!) in Denali from HAL was about $12000, sans airfare. I can do it for just over $14K including airfare from home (LAX). For FIVE people. And all it cost me was 20 hours of computer time!

It's all what convenience is worth to you.

We used the Hilton Airport Convention Center last month through HAL. I am Hilton Honors and know I could have booked it for less and gotten points, but convenience won over price.

 

 

Only complaint was the hotel restaurant is very expensive.

 

 

I asked if I booked the hotel on my own could I pay to take the HAL transfer from the hotel. HAL said No, I would have to go back to the airport and take that transfer.

 

 

Karen

After decades of three star, truly independent travel around the world, we're ready for the ease of cruising and hand-holding travel.

You're correct Karen and crystalspin, it's expensive this way with any cruise line or land tour company, but we're at the stage of life where we'll have to splurge if we wish to continue travelling.

But we too have noticed that meals in such hotels are expensive, but then we've come from hotels, where no food is available or if any it's a dry roll and coffee.

Ruth

I understand and agree, there are some conveniences worth paying for. It does include the hotel to ship transfer and luggage handling. We've stayed in Rome at the Hilton at the airport and walked back to the terminal with our luggage to take the HAL ship transfer too. So we balance thrift with convenience too. And having to consider currency fluctuations does factor into the calculation. Expensive restaurants come with the territory. I know I could stay at Motel 6 if I wanted to, and have. Nothing wrong with that. We just plan for treating ourselves on vacation these days.

The Fairmont is a very nice hotel.... :D

HAL typically offers the Seattle Sheraton, the Fairmont and the airport Hilton as options. Their rates include all hotel/city taxes and transfers. As comparison I looked at my 7/29/19 Cruise on Amsterdam and used for 1 night booking with HAL, total with tax/transfer for 2 vs 1 night with tax booked direct with the hotel (lowest flex rate w/o any special discounts): Fairmont $544.42 HAL / $694.44 Direct; Sheraton $499.56 HAL / $435.50 Direct; Hilton $363.56 HAL / $232.42 Direct. The Fairmont is actually less through HAL, The Sheraton while a little more through HAL is probably a wash by the time one factors in Taxi/Uber/Shuttle costs, The Hilton shows the only significant saving of the three when booking direct vs through HAL.

That said, one can potentially find something lower than the Sheraton in the downtown area, but you have to be very careful as there are many hotels on the North and East areas of the Space needle in a less than tourist friendly area that are quite remote from the true downtown core. I looked at over two dozen hotels for our trip next summer, and with the exception of the Paramount (which I booked at about a $200 savings vs the HAL Sheraton offering for 2 nights) almost every other hotel I looked at in the areas near the Sheraton and Fairmont were equivalent in cost or higher than the HAL rates. Some markets like Seattle and Vancouver are actually not a bad value (for certain properties) through HAL, others, not so much. You just need to decide if price or convenience is more important and if you are willing to do the legwork to find a better value.

THANKS one and all, who suggested specific less expensive options and those also who understood our need for convenience and ease of travel.

I hope others read and benefit from such sage advice, both to those doing things independently and those of us who have different needs.

Over the years Bob and I have appreciated all the expert advice we've received and found on CC.

Ruth

If you're staying several days and you find a good deal for an airport hotel the light rail to downtown from the airport is very easy to use. Senior fares are available if that applies. If I remember correctly, one of the downtown stops is in the underground tunnel near Macy's dept. store-very convenient.

If you're staying several days and you find a good deal for an airport hotel the light rail to downtown from the airport is very easy to use. Senior fares are available if that applies. If I remember correctly, one of the downtown stops is in the underground tunnel near Macy's dept. store-very convenient.

We prefer a central location so we can venture out and return to our room two or three times a day. We'll be doing museums and art galleries and perhaps the theatre. And of course the Needle. Now that most of the big US stores are available in Canada, the novelty of shopping in the US is long past. Why there are now those huge outlet malls in most big cities.

But thanks for this advice Susiek.

Ruth

In 2015, we re booked our cruise after a price drop , once Explore4 was over. Price went down 1100.00. As I was doing that with my PCC, she offered us a night at the hotel before the cruise for no extra fee. We took it and chose the Fairmont Olympic. Wow!! Great hotel and location. And at check in, they upgraded us to a suite. I wouldn’t have paid extra for it but it was really nice. And the transfer to the port in the morning was quick and efficient

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In 2015, we re booked our cruise after a price drop , once Explore4 was over. Price went down 1100.00. As I was doing that with my PCC, she offered us a night at the hotel before the cruise for no extra fee. We took it and chose the Fairmont Olympic. Wow!! Great hotel and location. And at check in, they upgraded us to a suite. I wouldn’t have paid extra for it but it was really nice. And the transfer to the port in the morning was quick and efficient

 

 

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WOW! Canadian TAs don't seem to be as generous with OBCs or such gifts. But out of loyalty we deal with a small agency where we get excellent service.

We've had three great price drops on our 30 day winter HAL cruise, but booked the Alaskan August one a month ago at just an ok price and no incentives.

May your down pricing and upgrading continue,

Ruth

We are taking the Seattle Dbl Denali June 2019. It includes Seatac Hilton, trsfr to airport, flight to Anchorage Hotel in Anchorage (? name), What hotel in Anchorage does HAL use? It them has a trasfer from Vancouver to Seattle. Will they drop you off at a hotel?

We are taking the Seattle Dbl Denali June 2019. It includes Seatac Hilton, trsfr to airport, flight to Anchorage Hotel in Anchorage (? name), What hotel in Anchorage does HAL use? It them has a trasfer from Vancouver to Seattle. Will they drop you off at a hotel?

I believe their primary is the Westmark Anchorage, and overflow is the Sheraton Downtown. Also looking at the R6L cruisetour for all departures in June 2019 they currently list the Seattle hotel as the Four Points by Sheraton, so either they have switched the hotel and you haven't been informed, or for your specific date the Hilton is being used as well as the Four Points by Sheraton. Both are good properties.

The Vancouver-Seattle transfer is a special bus direct to the Seattle airport and they cannot drop off at intermediate points. The Seattle Light Rail comes directly to the Airport and goes to Westlake station downtown (if that is where your hotel is), or you can uber/lyft/taxi/super shuttle wherever you need from Sea-Tac. Many airport area hotels have a courtesy shuttle

Well the experts were correct.  Against expert advice we stayed in HAL's choice of Sheraton Hotel and Marina on Harbor Island Drive for the sheer and expensive convenience of HAL pick up at airport.

Once we'd paid and actually read the fine print, what they provided was the already included hotel airport shuttle.

After three flight cancelations before we left home under clear blue skies, we didn't arrive in San Diego until almost 12:00PM instead of the early afternoon time we'd planned.  The hotel stops pick ups at 11:30.  When we lined up for a cab, the poor driver was upset that the hotel was so close.  Promise of a generous tip ensured he took us the few blocks.

But the location met our needs.  After almost 23 hours travel time, door to door, we simply enjoyed the Old Town Trolley Tour to a part of the city we'd not visited and opted to eat in the hotel which again met our needs.

The chorus of 'told you so' or 'there are better options' may ring loud and clear from the generous posters.

Ruth