awful suite

[travelplus]

Wow this is such a disgrace. You would think HAL would put these kids and Mother off at the next port. I mean throwing things off the ship is terrible and is illegal too.

 

They made lots of noise and you called security who did nothing serious to stop them nor moved you. Why didn't the Hotel Director move you?

 

The Mother should have been in the stateroom per HAL's policy and Maritime laws. They should have been disembarked after the fair warning.

 

For the 10 year old kid to tell you thanks for ranting on me your complaint should have been kept private.

 

If HAL does not get back to you call your credit card company and get a refund for at least part of the cruise.

 

You could not enjoy your stateroom because the kids were acting like brats. Secondly you called security and thirdly you were persistent with your complaint.

 

I was staying at an upscale resort and heard noise from the room nextdoor and security came the offending room and told them to quiet down. They were quiet for about 10 minutes then the noise picked up again and as I was going for an interview early in the morning I told the manager that it was hard to sleep. They refunded me the cost of the room and gave me a free breakfast buffet at their restaurant. I was happy and they apologized for the noise.

 

HAL should do the same with your case.

 

P.S. I was brought up to respect others. If someone knocked on my door or if security told me to quiet down I would apologize and quiet down. Actually if I come back late at night I'm very considerate of my surroundings and rarely watch tv past 10 PM knowing others are sleeping. If I do watch tv late at night its either at a quiet volume or I turn on the captions and watch without the volume.

[George C]

We had a few annoying things when we were in a suite on Zuiderdam , nothing close to what happened to you and we were satisfied with the compensation given to us , but it took a few weeks.

[Joe Dandy]

Actually Im writing now just to keep my thread near page one as it dropped to page 3. So still no word and now I will be very stubborn. Im sorry I didnt stop payment with my credit card as someone suggested. And as we all know CCL owns Holland and all they care about is the stock price and that is why service and food has diminished which I blame on the beancounters. I have found Cunard to be really lacking in the food quality. I will be away for a few days so keep my thread going!!!

[irvington]

Thank You now I understand

The mother was "entertaining" some one "higher up the chain of command" as you state and also had her three boys with her

Of course every one in security or customer service was aware of this and the word was spread to ignore any and all complaints regarding her or her children. Don't want those "down the food chain" to offend someone "higher up the chain of command"

Per the OP security took action on several occassions, , but the problem continued shortly after

As to the other side of the story, hopefully the OP will get an explanation from HAL and share with us

 

One more possible explanation was not that the mother was with one of the higher ups, but was actually a member of a terrorist group taking a break from their bomb making activities.

She brought herr children along and sent a message that they were on the ship and any action taken against her or her family would result in her group either hijacking the ship or blowing it up

 

I guess anything is possible and would be interested in hearing what others on this board think might have kept HAl from acting on the OP's complaint

 

This made me laugh so hard I cried.

 

On a serious note, I am finishing up a cruise with my sons (right now I'm supposed to be packing while my family has lunch). My kids aren't saints, but they say please and thank you, and genuinely mean it, enjoy talking to adults, enjoy getting dressed up and trying new foods, etc. You'd think they hung the moon from all the compliments they have gotten on this and our last cruise. Thanks so much to all of you who compliment well-behaved kids on these trips. I can't tell you how much that positive reinforcement has done. Much more effective than me badgering them (though I do that if needed).

[kazu]

This made me laugh so hard I cried.

 

On a serious note, I am finishing up a cruise with my sons (right now I'm supposed to be packing while my family has lunch). My kids aren't saints, but they say please and thank you, and genuinely mean it, enjoy talking to adults, enjoy getting dressed up and trying new foods, etc. You'd think they hung the moon from all the compliments they have gotten on this and our last cruise. Thanks so much to all of you who compliment well-behaved kids on these trips. I can't tell you how much that positive reinforcement has done. Much more effective than me badgering them (though I do that if needed).

 

It really is a shame - as there are so many good parents and great children out there (I've seen a number in my time). And one bad apple spoils the barrel.

 

Cudos to you and all great parents out there:D

[irvington]

Thanks, but I really do mean it that all the nice compliments (especially the ones directly to the kids) make the parenting easy on trips.

 

I told my guys about the kids making noise all night and throwing things overboard. They couldn't believe it, especially when these trips are like dying and going to heaven.

[Windsailer]

When did you send your letter to HAL and who did you direct it to? Stein Kruse's office?

[the2ofus]

The OP doesn't say when his cruise occurred, nor when he sent his letter to HAL. His first post was on March 20th. If the cruise was recent, then it is possible that HAL is already looking into it and haven't had time yet to follow up with him.

[Joe Dandy]

I wrote an email to guestrelations@Hollandamerica.com. Right now Im fed up with the whole thing and I have better things to do. Someone said it takes a couple weeks. So we will see. Since they have made so many cut backs Im sure they are getting thousands of complaints and it would not surprise me if they did have a shredder by the fax machine as someone has mentioned. They have the ball and they dont care about one couple especially if it impacts the CCL stock price by giving me an obc or an upgrade on a future cruise.

[Windsailer]

and send it to Stein Kruse's Office. The one time I had an issue I wrote a letter (not an email) and sent it there - and had a very positive response in 2 weeks. So when was your cruise and when did you send the email?

[cruz chic]

and send it to Stein Kruse's Office. The one time I had an issue I wrote a letter (not an email) and sent it there - and had a very positive response in 2 weeks. So when was your cruise and when did you send the email?

I agree, I think they take a letter more seriously because it is more effort. The OP should consider it.

[cruz chic]

It really is a shame - as there are so many good parents and great children out there (I've seen a number in my time). And one bad apple spoils the barrel.

 

Cudos to you and all great parents out there:D

Lucky you! You should come to Calgary some time. I would say 80% of the parents here show more interest in their phones then their kids. It's shameful really.

[pammypoo]

Officers and crew know that if their children do not behave the family WILL be put off the ship at the next port - and their contract will not be renewed. We were on board when a Doctor's children were somewhat wild. They were put off the ship along with the doctor. We had to wait for another MD to be flown in. Maybe the Captain or Hot Man can get away with having brats, but no one else can.

[MasterNotCommander]

I do hope you get a reply, the situation is unacceptable. The scenario you described should not have occured, and I hope that HAL compensate you properly, in a way that will let you cruise again and know why so many people love sailing with them.

 

There generally are far fewer children onboard HAL then most ships, as the line simply doesn't provide facilities that particularly encourage them in comparison RCCL etc, which I believe is a good thing.

Complaints onboard, particularly those in the Comments On Board form at the end of the cruise are taken seriously, onboard and in Seattle. In fact the Comments On Board ratings partly affect the bonuses of senior officers working on the ship, so it is in their interest to see conflicts resolved. The Comments On Board are consolidated and forwarded to Seattle, who will see the OP's complaint there and in any other formal complaint made to the GRM/HM/Captain etc.

 

I would like to think that the children are not those of senior officers. Officers and Captains can bring their family onboard to sail with them, and occasionally will be accomodated in a passenger cabin when one is available, once higher approval is obtained. If subsequently a complaint was made about an Officer/Captain/HM's children whilst on the cruise, I would suspect that this would have serious repercussions for the staff involved, regardless of rank.

 

Some posts mention about onboard relationships, intercrew relationships are fairly common, and can occasionally destroy families when it involves adultery. I met my wife onboard the cruise ships, and however much I'd love to return to the major cruise lines, my wife has stated that she'd prefer me not to... When onboard relationships affect other personnel or guests, this will be dealt with by the company.

Relationships between Passengers and Crew are discouraged onboard, and neither should attend one anothers cabin for any reason. This can be a dismissable offence. That being said, I have friends are successfully married to guests they met onboard, and know of one very popular HAL captain who is married to someone he met when she was a guest onboard.

[vbmom87]

I wrote an email to guestrelations@Hollandamerica.com. Right now Im fed up with the whole thing and I have better things to do. Someone said it takes a couple weeks. So we will see. Since they have made so many cut backs Im sure they are getting thousands of complaints and it would not surprise me if they did have a shredder by the fax machine as someone has mentioned. They have the ball and they dont care about one couple especially if it impacts the CCL stock price by giving me an obc or an upgrade on a future cruise.

 

Joe, you really need to send a letter,not an email.

[newlaxfan]

Joe, you really need to send a letter,not an email.

 

I agree! A real letter has more oomph to it -- email is too easy to fire off.

[Joe Dandy]

Well I heard from Holland and they gave me a $200 obc for my next cruise. By the way I paid $7000 for the suite on a 9 day cruise. They said they regretted the situation and that I must understand they have to walk a fine line regarding interactions between guests on board. They must consider the described behaviorand the sensitivity of both parties involved. I should be assured that security and Front Offiice staff are trained to handle these situations as they unfold. They acknowledge that I do not believe they took a satisfactorily strong stanceon my behalf. They stated thet can empathize with my displeasure. Well fellow cruisers is this a good response or bad?

[George C]

They should have done more than the 200, also saying the "Front Offiice staff are trained " is a joke, at least on some ships. I would have created a much bigger scene when I was on board.

[kazu]

Well I heard from Holland and they gave me a $200 obc for my next cruise. By the way I paid $7000 for the suite on a 9 day cruise. They said they regretted the situation and that I must understand they have to walk a fine line regarding interactions between guests on board. They must consider the described behaviorand the sensitivity of both parties involved. I should be assured that security and Front Offiice staff are trained to handle these situations as they unfold. They acknowledge that I do not believe they took a satisfactorily strong stanceon my behalf. They stated thet can empathize with my displeasure. Well fellow cruisers is this a good response or bad?

 

 

Is that a $200 obc for each of you (ie $400) or is it $200 for you both (ie total $200).? To me, it doesn't seem satisfactory, but I have not sought compensation either. It would probably help others who have more experience in this if we knew if they are giving you $200 per person or just per cabin.

[sapper1]

They should have done more than the 200, also saying the "Front Offiice staff are trained " is a joke, at least on some ships. I would have created a much bigger scene when I was on board.

 

 

The front office staff on any HAL ship are trained to be robotic and give canned responses. We love the HAL experience as long as it does not involve interacting with the front desk because this is where HAL fails miserably.

 

We will do anything to avoid dealing with them.

[Joe Dandy]

Thats $200 for the cabin or $100 each

[CowPrincess]

Well I heard from Holland and they gave me a $200 obc for my next cruise. By the way I paid $7000 for the suite on a 9 day cruise. They said they regretted the situation and that I must understand they have to walk a fine line regarding interactions between guests on board. They must consider the described behaviorand the sensitivity of both parties involved. I should be assured that security and Front Offiice staff are trained to handle these situations as they unfold. They acknowledge that I do not believe they took a satisfactorily strong stanceon my behalf. They stated thet can empathize with my displeasure. Well fellow cruisers is this a good response or bad?

 

 

 

Disclosure: we had a similar episode on a Princess cruise, and the ship staff seemed incapable of reining in THAT bad behaviour. My friend and I did not contact Princess; my friend refuses to sail Princess again because of the 7 days of heck we experienced. If we'd been offered a half of a free cruise each, we MIGHT have considered going. Probably not, though.

 

 

 

I think it is a bad response IMHO. $200? Seriously? Doesn't matter if that is $200 per person or per cabin, IMHO. You were treated badly, you had the neighbours from h*ll, and your cruise was certainly unforgettable, and "once in a lifetime" (which is what HAL blabs when you listen to their recorded "on hold" announcement) but not for GOOD reasons.

 

 

 

THEY regretted the situation? Hah, they weren't even there, so have no idea how regrettable it REALLY was.

 

 

 

You saw ZERO indication that anyone WAS trained to handle this situation.

 

 

 

This slays me

 

 

 

They must consider the described behaviorand the sensitivity of both parties involved

 

 

 

To me, that sounds like a veiled suggestion that they don't believe you. Or the "adult" who had the other cabin, where the kids were left, had "sensitivity" that was valued significantly greater than YOUR sensitivity. Or they are prepared to believe whatever sanitized version they got from onboard staff.

 

I've not been back to Princess. Someday maybe. If it were me, and got that response from HAL, I'd think long and hard about sailing HAL again.

[cccole]

$200 would not encourage me to book another $7000 suite on HAL. From what I have read on this thread, I think that your situation was handled poorly from beginning to end. Cherie

[kazu]

Thats $200 for the cabin or $100 each

 

Just me, but knowing how much your cruise was disrupted by all of this, I would not consider this adequate compensation in any way. But that's just me.

[lovetocruise2020]

I book alot of my brides honeymoons at Sandals, Secrets, Excellence Resorts, Couples and recently Sancturary Cap Cana.

 

They are all adult and all inclusive and have some great locations.

 

Just like a cruise, you have to pick the right room catagory for you, the right location and the right time.

 

However, there are no children and its a great value.

 

I just can't get away from my love affair with the sea, so we still cruise.

If we could get away more, we would do these resorts more often.

 

Our last cruise had a really bad family. They were out of control.