Are the Changes Temporary or Permanent?

[localady]

I have noticed a serious decline in the Cruise Industry ever since the Beatles broke up.

 

It's all Yoko Ono's fault.

 

It's always the woman's fault! ;) :eek:

[localady]

Interesting comment. I took the OP's comment to be a confirmation that others on the cruise felt the same way, not that the OP was influenced by others.

 

I have found that I have been influenced negatively by tablemates. Constant complaints seem to accentuate the negative and make for a less enjoyable cruise. Perhaps the cruiser was not influenced, but I know it has had an affect on my prior voyages.

Perhaps it's a sign of my weak mind :p ;)

Edited July 26, 2014 by localady

[PathfinderEss]

In all the years we have sailed with Hal, some things have been cut out and some things have been added. I think it is a draw in our estimation. We just avoid all the negative passenger on the ship, as they can drag you down with them. Not that there aren't any negatives when we cruise, there are, we just try not to make mountains where there is only mole hills.

[harrodsfan]

Table mates can certainly complain.. " ain't it awful.."we heard the same thing on Regent.. Seaborn and Carnival etc"We have been cruising for many many years and throughout that time we have had good experiences and not so good.. On many different cruise lines luxury and not luxury. It's just the luck of the draw. I think overall cruising is getting better. Looking forward to our Hal cruise in two weeks.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

[sayaguru]

Will be taking my first cruise on Holland in the near future. Am I to assume that the steak in the main dining room is not worth eating? How disappointing!

 

I was a first time HAL cruiser last week. Having read that HAL food was better than Princess (who I think have good food) I was excited. I did not, however, find this to be the case.

The steaks were of good quality though. I had steak twice, once with the surf and turf. My only complain though, which was echoed by many others, was that it was not hot. In fact quite a few meals were lukewarm.

I will write a full review when I get home.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Sadly we will never see HAL like she was when we first started to sail on her 1996.

The cabin stewards have many more cabins to service, the dining room staff have more tables to service. Food -- subjective here -- but cost of food has gone up everywhere and we see many places like the ships having to buy lower quality food.

[kazu]

Will be taking my first cruise on Holland in the near future. Am I to assume that the steak in the main dining room is not worth eating? How disappointing!

It seems to depend on the ship. It was quite good on the Prinsendam and the Maasdam when we were on

[BruceMuzz]

Sadly we will never see HAL like she was when we first started to sail on her 1996.

The cabin stewards have many more cabins to service, the dining room staff have more tables to service. Food -- subjective here -- but cost of food has gone up everywhere and we see many places like the ships having to buy lower quality food.

 

So long as the majority of passengers is unwilling to pay for quality, they are not going to get it.

[PROCRUISE]

OTOH if Carnival Corp had not purchased HAL it likely would not exist today. Superb just wasn't making enough money. Isn't today's HAL better than no HAL? ;)

 

Perhaps any cruise depends upon ones expectations. We haven't been cruising nearly as long as many of you have been. but we board every ship with just the expectation that we'll have a pleasant time of relaxation. We've also learned that every vessel in each cruise line may have some differences. Example would be NCL: cruised on NCL Star and said, never again. Years later cruised on NCL Sun and said, outstanding!

 

Just spent two weeks with HAL in Alaska and aboard the Oosterdam. Our reaction - outstanding! Comfortable cabin, excellent cabin steward, as always, general friendly atmosphere on entire ship, good service and food in MDR, well run vessel and we were very pleased. Could we find anything to complain about, no not really. We went on this trip for pleasure and to see some of Alaska and HAL delivered. We didn't expect 5 star dining and service but HAL came close and exceeded our expectations. Do I read CC reviews, yes I do and yes, there are a few low ratings for the Oosterdam but I've learned that many who write these types of reviews had just one "bad" experience, at least from their perspective, and therefore announce that HAL, or any other cruise line just isn't what it used to be. I guess we, on the other hand are just grateful that we can travel and feel that HAL, along with another cruise line we enjoy, are still excellent and meet, if not exceed our expectations.

 

Happy cruising to all. :)

[tangerinebunny]

Over time any cruiseline's emphasis changes: main dining room food isn't as good as it once was on many lines; prices are more affordable. It's fairly simple to find a line with better MDR food and higher price tabs if that's what you're looking for.

 

But complaining about brands is like asking your Honda to drive like a Porsche....ain't gonna happen.

[cruisemom42]

Over time any cruiseline's emphasis changes: main dining room food isn't as good as it once was on many lines; prices are more affordable. It's fairly simple to find a line with better MDR food and higher price tabs if that's what you're looking for.

 

But complaining about brands is like asking your Honda to drive like a Porsche....ain't gonna happen.

 

The problem lies in the disconnect between the fact that HAL continues to market itself as being a step above other mass market lines when in reality they aren't.

[tangerinebunny]

Surely we're not asking veracity from the PR folks?

 

Our next cruise is on X and I'm not really expecting 'modern luxury.'

[Sam.Seattle]

Will be taking my first cruise on Holland in the near future. Am I to assume that the steak in the main dining room is not worth eating? How disappointing!

Correct!

[Aquahound]

Will be taking my first cruise on Holland in the near future. Am I to assume that the steak in the main dining room is not worth eating? How disappointing!

 

I just got off the Zuiderdam and I thought the steak was delicious. It was nice and tender and had a great taste to it.

[peaches from georgia]

So long as the majority of passengers is unwilling to pay for quality, they are not going to get it.

That pretty well says it all.

[iancal]

Carnival did not ruin HAL. Carnival saved HAL.

 

HAL was insolvent and could not get one dollar in financing to rebuild the fleet. Carnival bought HAL, along with their very, very tired fleet of ships in desperate need of rebuild.

 

Carnival Corp has made changes. But many of those changes can be attributable to the changing nature of the industry. Oversupply has led to lower pricing and financial pressures on the industry as a whole.

 

I sometimes wonder about the people who complain about HAL going downhill.

They say they would be willing to pay for a better product but how much more? But would they really?

 

Most would not....otherwise they would have moved away from HAL to a premium cruise line.

Edited July 26, 2014 by iancal

[jtl513]

The cabin stewards have many more cabins to service,

That's misleading. It used to be that each man worked alone and had about 15 cabins. Now two work together and have 30 cabins.

 

The problem lies in the disconnect between the fact that HAL continues to market itself as being a step above other mass market lines when in reality they aren't.

:confused: Doesn't every company say they are better than the competition?

[summersigh]

As long as the focus of many, many cruise passengers is CHEAPEST POSSIBLE cruise lines will make cuts to be able to accommodate that desire.

 

The price of a cruise to Alaska today is about the same price we paid back in 2001. Inflation has wayyyyy surpassed that so the savings had to come from somewhere.

 

No opinion stated here .... just stating my observations :)

[iancal]

Last month HAL was offering insides on a seven day Statendam Alaska cruise for under $295.

 

 

Yes, many companies claim that they are better than the competition. But if they fail to change their customers eventually catch on. Just look at what happened, and is happening to GM, Chrysler, etc.

Edited July 26, 2014 by iancal

[jtl513]

Yes, many companies claim that they are better than the competition.

Many? I don't recall ever seeing an ad that said "We're no better than our competitors" ... or not quite as good as them. Even Avis when admitting they were Number 2 said "We try harder", therefore we're better. Edited July 26, 2014 by jtl513

[Aquahound]

Many? I don't recall ever seeing an ad that said "We're no better than our competitors" ... or not quite as good as them. Even Avis when admitting they were Number 2 said "We try harder", therefore we're better.

 

Yep. I even got a good laugh on my last HAL cruise when the CD said HAL has more repeat cruisers than any other cruise line. I've heard that from every line I have been on.

[innlady1]

One of the reasons DH and I prefer either dining with friends or dining alone for set dining on HAL is because we have been stuck with whining table mates before.

 

I am not saying that HAL is the same line it was 10 or 20 years ago, but sometimes a trip can be ruined by listening to repeated remarks about falling quality.

 

We so often hear from 2 cruisers on the same ship and their varying experiences and satisfaction. We try to judge a cruise on our own experience and try not to let others affect our trips in a negative fashion.

 

I am so with you on this post! This is precisely why we always book a table for two unless we're cruising with friends.

[iancal]

Complainers are just one reason why we prefer as you wish dining...or whatever it is called on various cruise lines.

 

We have had so many great cruises on Princess, Celebrity, HAL, NCL, Carnival etc.

 

Each and every one was good and we received excellent value for our money-especially compared to some other vacation alternatives at the time.

 

But we base that value on today...what we paid and what we got. Not on what we paid today compared to the product we got ten or twenty years ago. The comparison is not reasonable given the changes in the industry and the downward pressure on pricing.

 

Our only comparison on a cruise is with other similar recent cruises/ships/cruise lines or with other vacation options.

[cruisemom42]

It's odd -- is it a HAL phenomenon to have experienced so many complainers?

 

Ever since open seating started to be introduced on ships, it's what I've done and I almost always share a table with others (since I mostly travel solo). In all my cruises in that time (since around 2005/6), I can only remember two times when I was seated with a "complainer".

 

The first was on a Princess cruise where the elderly woman next to me spent most of the meal bemoaning the lowered service standards in the MDR at dinner ("I can't believe they don't dress the salad at table any more!" "He removed my plate from the wrong side." and so on....)

 

The other time was on a HAL Med cruise where the mother and son next to me, having spent the day in Athens, regaled us with all of their negative impressions, starting with how it was "too hot" and the Greeks "too untrustworthy" and out to rip you off at every juncture. They were terrified at the thought that I, a single woman traveler, was going to be venturing out on my own in Istanbul. Apparenty the Turks are even worse than the Greeks. :rolleyes:

 

I've never had a "complainer" on any of the smaller ship cruises I've been on. Most of my dinner companions have been quite interesting, mostly well traveled, and entertaining -- at least for the duration of a shared meal.

[Host Jazzbeau]

It's odd -- is it a HAL phenomenon to have experienced so many complainers?

 

Check out the Celebrity forum if you want to see complaining! ;)