The one thing I don't like so far about HAL

[showdog]

This will be our first time on HAL. We usually go on Princess.

 

The one thing I've noticed that I don't like very much is that on Holland America it seems like you have to pay for everything in advance.

 

We booked our shore tours (scuba, clam shell, etc..) on line. They charge your charge card immediately for this. We also made reservations for the Pinacle Grill for 3 (60.00) yesterday. This was also charged instantly.

 

It looks like we won't have anything on our shipboard account except for tips and if we order drinks when we actually do take this cruise. This is nice, however I don't like the fact that I have to pay for dinner 3.5 months ahead of time for dinner. This seems a little crazy to me. Does anyone agree with me?

 

Do you think that HAL does this so that when you do get on the cruise and you start charging stuff to your shipboard account the bill doesn't look as high and you spend more money? I guess they are pretty smart huh?:confused:

 

I know that I will probably be guilty of this. I usually spend about 600 dollars and now that we've paid for the big stuff I'll be more inclined to spend money because I'll forget that we've already paid for most everything.

[sail7seas]

I think that is 'the price you need to pay' in order to make advance bookings. You always have the choice of waiting to book your excursions and Pinnacle reservations when you board. Of course, you run the risk of not being able to get the bookings you want as others have pre-booked. If you want the peace of mind to know you will be able to do what the things that really matter to you, then advance payment is probably worth it.

[RevNeal]

Showdog,

 

You don't HAVE to do book your shore excursions or your dinners in the Pinnacle Grill in advance. You can book your shore excursions aboard ship and you can wait to make your reservations when you board and pay for them from your shipboard account.

 

You have mistaken HAL making it possible to book and pay for excursions and Pinnacle Grill meals with them making it NECESSARY.

 

Just so that you know ... I often wait until I'm aboard to book many of my sore excursions, and I ALWAYS wait until I'm aboard to book Pinnacle Grill meals.

[localady]

I actually enjoy the pre-payment, as I love being able to get on the ship knowing that the lions share of the vacation and shore excursions are already paid for!:D

 

I am surprised that Princess doesn't book their shore excursions a simular way.:cool:

[LAFFNVEGAS]

I agree with localady, it is nice knowing that the cruise I am going on next week the 3 excursion I chose are all paid for and the credit card I used is paid off in full. I also think is is nice that HAL allows the purchase in advance instead of the mad rush once you are on the ship.

 

When I first read your topic I thought you wanted us to comment on one item we do not like about HAL.

I can only think of one and that is the bar of soap they offer. It does not get sudsy. I guess I prefer a skin softening liquid soap.

[Ziggy7]

I booked shore excursions on Princess, I'm going to be upset if they wait to charge my onboard account, I think I will call them and tell them to charge me now! :cool:

[kryos]

I actually enjoy the pre-payment, as I love being able to get on the ship knowing that the lions share of the vacation and shore excursions are already paid for!:D

 

I am surprised that Princess doesn't book their shore excursions a simular way.:cool:

I'm with you. As for the shore excursions, I actually think HAL has the smarter strategy. Paying upfront means it is less likely people will just book the more popular excursions in each port just to have them reserved, even if they're not sure they will actually go through with taking them. This is not fair because it could potentially lock others out of excursions they would like to do. The way HAL does it, charging you upfront if you book them in advance, makes it less likely people will "hog" excursions in the same manner as they do loungers at the pool. If your credit card is going to be immediately charged, you're less likely to book something unless you are really interested in it.

 

Also, like you, I prefer to pay for my shore excursions in advance so that I don't get "sticker shock" when I get the onboard statement on disembarkation day. :)

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[showdog]

I was merely expressing my opinion on how I felt. On Princess you book your shore excursions on line just like HAL in advance but you don't pay for it until the cruise is over. You are also able to cancel your excursion on Princess while on the ship provided that you do so by canceling before the closing date indicated on the booking form you receive on board. On Princess you Pre-reserve your tickets and they are waiting in your cabin I'm sure just like HAL does, but again you don't pay until after the cruise is over.

 

The way that Princess does it, if I have to cancel the tour for a valid reason and I know this BEFORE the closing date my credit card is never charged.

 

 

If you cancel with HAL you only get a shipboard credit. I've already booked about 500 dollars worth of shore tours and if for some reason I'm unable to participate and I know this well in advance and need to cancel I only get a shipboard credit.

 

 

All I was trying to say is that I noticed that on Princess you have the luxury of booking tours in advance but not having to pay for them until your vacation was over.

 

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm under the impression that the Pinacle Grill is much better than anything Princess offers as far as alternative dining???

 

On Princess you are unable to book Sabatini's or the other restaurant in advance before getting on this ship. This indicates to me that the Pinacle Grill must be much better and because it is available to book before you sail and it sells out far in advance of the cruise in some cases according to these boards. This is why I didn't want to miss the opportunity to dine there.

 

 

I guess in the end it's all just money whether you pay for it now or later. I'm happy to try HAL and I'm hoping that I really enjoy it.

 

 

Kryos does have a point that I didn't think about and I guess it does make it worth it in the end and that is ......"This is not fair because it could potentially lock others out of excursions they would like to do."

 

I know that I want these tours and I want to get them before someone else does decide that they want to do them on a spur of the moment. Hopefully I won't have any unforeseen circumstances that prevent me from going scuba diving etc...and I need to cancel before this trip because that will be a lot of pictures and drinks I'll have to buy while on board to spend all this shipboard credit I'll have :)

 

 

So, thanks again for letting me express my opinion.

 

 

[grannynurse]

by calling ship's services. You also have to pay in advance.

GN

[Marie-Claude]

I was merely expressing my opinion on how I felt. If you cancel with HAL you only get a shipboard credit. I've already booked about 500 dollars worth of shore tours and if for some reason I'm unable to participate and I know this well in advance and need to cancel I only get a shipboard credit.

 

I agree with you Showdog, I too prefer the cancellation policy of Princess which is a lot more accomodating. I'm sensitive to this since I'm travelling with my elderly mother, and even if she really wants to do many excursions everytime, we've had to cancel some excursions for her as she was either too tired from strenous excursions, or felt ill etc. and the felxibility of cancelling without having to use the amount in shipboard credit it somewhat reassuring.

 

I do understand Kryos' point, but would like a bit more flexibility from HAL on their cancellation policy.

 

Mind you, we just returned from a cruise on Costa, and my mom did get food poisonning one night. She wanted to cancel her excursion to Olympia (that cost 60 Euros) but to do so, we needed a medical certificate which cost more than the excursion...?!? A bit silly if you ask me!

[jhannah]

Showdog, there are many different viewpoints that people have, and this is the place to express them. Keep 'em coming.

As to the Pinnacle being better than Sabatini's, I don't believe that's really the case. Sabatini's food is outstanding. I just like the Pinnacle better because Sabatini's simply serves too much food for me. They each serve excellent food in wonderful ambiance.

 

Having sailed both Princess and HAL, I believe you will thoroughly enjoy your cruise experience. You will find a classic elegance aboard HAL ships. And for me, add me to the list of those who like to pre-pay shore excursions. It just keeps the post-cruise "damage" to a minimum.

[RevNeal]

All I was trying to say is that I noticed that on Princess you have the luxury of booking tours in advance but not having to pay for them until your vacation was over.

 

Ah, thanks for the clarification! I didn't quite catch the import of your original post. :) Never having been on Princess that distinction wasn't clear. Sounds like Princess may have a little more liberal policy when it comes to refunds. That's nice.

 

I like HAL in that IF I want to buy a shore excursion -- a pricey one, especially -- before the cruise, I can pay for it and not have it maxing out my onboard account. The most expensive section of my onboard expense is always my shore excursions. I really should try to book those ahead of time, but when I cruise with Christopher I usually can't get him to select excursions until we're aboard -- or, perhaps, in flight to the port. I have my preferences selected 60 days before the cruise!!!!! Christopher is doing good if it's 60 minutes AFTER boarding!!!!! :D Yes, he's indecisive.

[peaches from georgia]

[quote=showdog....

If you cancel with HAL you only get a shipboard credit. I've already booked about 500 dollars worth of shore tours and if for some reason I'm unable to participate and I know this well in advance and need to cancel I only get a shipboard credit. o pay for them until your vacation was over.

.... Hopefully I won't have any unforeseen circumstances that prevent me from going scuba diving etc...and I need to cancel before this trip because that will be a lot of pictures and drinks I'll have to buy while on board to spend all this shipboard credit I'll have :)

 

 

That's just not so, showdog. If you cancel before the 10 day window prior to embarking then your credit card is credited for the cancelled excursions. You do not get a shipboard credit if you cancel in advance. We have done it and the credit shows up on your credit card immediately.

 

From the HAL website:

 

What if I decide to cancel a tour?

 

A: In the case of online cancellations made by you (which cannot be made during the 10-day period prior to cruise departure) or cancellations made by us more than 10 days prior to cruise departure, we will issue a credit on the credit card that you used to pay for the booking.

[showdog]

opinion on this than I do. I don't care for HAL's policy on paying for everything in advance like this, but he really doesn't like it. He thinks that paying for a reservation for dinner or tours 3, 6 months, or a year in advance is crazy. Why give them our money and let them earn interest on our money rather than let me leave it in my bank?

The other question is, does HAL not trust their passangers to pay for the tours like Princess does when they get on the ship?

Is it also fair to others who are not as internet savvy like me or who don't research their cruise like I do to get penalized and not be able to eat at the Pinnacle Grill because they didn't book it so far in advance?

On Princess they give everyone the chance as soon as they board at the same time to book at these alternative places. I seriously doubt that all TA's know to tell their clients to book the Pinnacle Grill ahead of time to get the dining time they want. I'm glad I know to read the cruisecritic boards but not everyone who cruises gets all the information they need and will be less fortunate. I feel bad for those people.

A simple sinus infection or ear infection mightl prevent me from diving and I'm unable to cancel and get my money back. I only get shipboard credit.

Does anyone know how this works? What if something like this happens and you must cancel your tour 24, 48, or 72 hours ahead of time? If you have shipboard credit in the amount of say 500 dollars and you don't use it all do they give you cash or credit at the end of your cruise or are you out of luck?

[showdog]

At least I know that I have the 10 day window. That's better than nothing.

 

Still not as good as Princess allowing you to cancel on board the ship provided it's before the closing of the tour.

 

I guess my only point with the tours was that if you have a tour on the last day of your cruise (day 6) and you get the flu or get sick the first day and know you won't be able to take it you can't get your money back. You get shipboard credit.

 

I guess I've harped on this enough. Sorry ;)

[Time2sail]

If someone does not wish to book excursions online, they have other ways to reserve a place on the tour--so I don't buy that all do not have an advance opportunity to choose. Very fair system.

 

I like the fact that you have to commit to an excursion with your checkbook so someone doesn't pick six then do one. I also don't want to stand in line when I get on the ship in order to book an excursion that has just become available. :(

 

What I don't like about HAL? I'll let you know after my first cruise--up to this point all of my dealings with them have been efficient and courteous.:)

[showdog]

I was talking about the Pinnacle Grill. On Princess everyone has the same opportunity to book dinner reservations when they board the ship. I'm just not sure that everyone knows about making dinner reservations on a cruise before they get on the ship.

 

I totally agree that with pre-booking excursions and what TimetoSail is saying. I just didn't agree with paying for them in advance and not being able to cancel for a valid reason 24 to 48 hours prior to the tour like Princess does.

I always book shore excursions in advance before every cruise. I've just never had to shell out the money months ahead of time.

 

 

TimetoSail: "If someone does not wish to book excursions online, they have other ways to reserve a place on the tour--so I don't buy that all do not have an advance opportunity to choose. Very fair system."

 

One thing that will be nice is not having the sticker shock at the end of the cruise. I do have to admit that. BUT....I just know that I'll spend more money now though because I won't see all of the tours and I'll forget how much money I've already spent. I think HAL is very business smart in doing this.

[kryos]

I do understand Kryos' point, but would like a bit more flexibility from HAL on their cancellation policy.

I've already been locked out of two shore excursions I wanted to take on my upcoming Princess cruise, and since one of them is pretty expensive, I'd be willing to bet that some people got online before I did and "reserved" it. Since Princess allows you to cancel up to the closing date on your ticket (with the exception of private cars with guides and helicopter tours) and you are never charged for the excursion, that actually encourages people to go ahead and book something in each port, even though they realize that they will more than likely be cancelling the excursion. While those bookings would become open again if people cancelled once on the ship, that leaves those people who were locked out with the hassle of having to also cancel excursions they booked in advance as second choice in order to jump on the chance to do the excursion they originally wanted to do. Sounds like a convoluted mess to me.

 

My feeling with HAL is that even if I booked $500 worth of excursions on my credit card and paid for them in advance, if I want to cancel and they only give shipboard credit, so what? I'm sure my account on the average cruise will absorb whatever credit I wound up with. Surely it wouldn't be the whole $500 worth of excursions I would be cancelling. At least it shouldn't be.

 

But, of course, everyone has their preferences ... and that's fine. If you don't want to pay in advance, then you can just book your excursions once on the ship. It's easy enough.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[showdog]

rita,

 

sorry you didn't get the tours you wanted. I guess I didn't realize that people would pre-book tours that they really didn't plan on going on. That's not fair at all.

 

 

Maybe I won't be as depressed when I get my bill at the end of the cruise. :)

[Renorita]

Nov. will be our first HAL Cruise, but we paid AFTER our Princess sailing and BEFORE on our RCCL Cruise. It was kind of depressing having this huge bill after our trip on the Sun Princess's Land/Shore package to Alaska, after already paying for our two Balconey Cabin's. With our LOS Cruise, everything was all paid, so most of our post bill was mostly our wine package, other drinks, and a few items from the gift shops. Much less, but makes you realize how much you can spend on alcohol alone, and we are far from being heavy drinkers. :)

 

We much prefer paying ahead of time. But hey, as long as we get to Cruise I will pay either way! :D

[showdog]

Now that I think back on it last year we booked all of our tours in Alaska on our on and not on the ship (Princess).

 

We had to pay a big deposit on these as they wanted the security of knowing that we really wanted to take the tour. Our final bill on the ship wasn't much at all because we didn't book anything with Princess. Just tips and drinks. I guess it will be the same this time.

 

Thanks for making me feel better today about shelling out all the money. I just need to convince my husband now.

[travellady]

We pre-booked scuba diving for my husband and son for our Diamond Pricess sailing 2 weeks ago. We were thankful we could cancel them up to the day before as my husband and son came down with really bad colds just after we sailed. And the water temp in Puerto Vallarta that day was 69.

 

I felt really bad when I went to the Shore Excursions desk to cancel because I know it was a sold out excursion even before we sailed. But, the gal who cancelled the booking told me there were a number of people on the waitlist so they'd be thrilled when we cancelled.

 

Whether the pre-booking is charged beforehand or on board the ship, I prefer the pre-booking method. On Carnival, it's a madhouse the first day to get excursion bookings because that's the first time you can book for that cruise.

[blackbird71]

Radisson is just like Princess, book ahead charge to your ship board account. I like that.

 

heheheeh.... 12 day Amazon tour..... $170 in tours.... $138 in other things brought on ship... - $50 ship board credit..... :D:D:D

[RevNeal]

My parents went on their first post-cancer/post-chemo cruise last spring ... to Canada. They had booked a bunch of excursions online, but once they got on the ship they discovered that Mother's energy just wasn't up to shore excursions (other than to get off the ship and sit for a while). So, they cancelled all but one excursion. At the end of the cruise, even after factoring in wine at meals, an occasional cocktail, and their gratuity charge, Dad still received money back from the Front Desk on the morning of disembarkation. He said it was VERY nice not owing a dime on their shipboard account, and even nicer getting money back. :)

[ha6124]

A question for the people who made the Pinnacle Grill reservations. Did you get to choose the time that you would like to dine. Was wondering because when I called they said all reservations had to be made on ship. Thanks for your help. They would only take reservations for the celebrations package but said the dinner reservations part of it I would have to make once I arrived on the ship. The paper would be in my room and I would have to call down and make the reservation for the requested time. Does this sound right?