New to Holland America? This is for you...AKA "HAL For Dummies"

[grsnovi]

On 10/27/2018 at 7:22 PM, Woodfaerie said:

Are we allowed into our stateroom upon boarding? 

In a word YES. We have never boarded in Vancouver, BC so I can't begin to imagine how somebody had that experience but we have boarded HAL cruises in Seattle, Copenhagen and Amsterdam. We always arrive early and are always on board in time for lunch. Years ago you often had to wait to access your stateroom however these days the rooms are typically ready when you board. Sometimes your luggage will be there but you may have to wait for it. Enjoy your cruise!

[Sheri K]

My husband brought his "tuxedo" t-shirt with no collar which looked great but he was not allowed into the main dining room on Gala night.  We wound up eating in the test kitchen instead which was awesome and they brought us lobster from the main dining room. Hardly anyone was there so we were pampered to no end and only cost us $15 each.  Well worth it!

[avian777]

1 hour ago, Sheri K said:

My husband brought his "tuxedo" t-shirt with no collar which looked great but he was not allowed into the main dining room on Gala night.  We wound up eating in the test kitchen instead which was awesome and they brought us lobster from the main dining room. Hardly anyone was there so we were pampered to no end and only cost us $15 each.  Well worth it!

 

Thanks for sharing this story ... & great pic of your hubby in his "Tux"!!!

[KroozNut]

2 hours ago, Sheri K said:

My husband brought his "tuxedo" t-shirt with no collar which looked great but he was not allowed into the main dining room on Gala night.  We wound up eating in the test kitchen instead which was awesome and they brought us lobster from the main dining room. Hardly anyone was there so we were pampered to no end and only cost us $15 each.  Well worth it!

 

See what happens when you don't follow the rules... Cost you $30 for that same MDR lobster..

[Sheri K]

Yes, but we weren't stuck in the main dining room with hundreds of others with the terrible service and the "rushed" feeling.  It was money well spent.  The staff catered to our every whim and we got a lot of extra food and attention to boot and stayed late.  

[ljgordon54]

I have boarded in Vancouver and we had no problem at all. We were on board in time for lunch, and our grandkids had time to investigate the ship before the muster.

 

As for dining in the MDR on gala night, not "galad-up." I just wonder why? It is fun to dress up and see all the elegance. If it isn't your thing, the buffet is always good. Why do people want to push the envelope. When we don't bring our finery, we dine upstairs under the stars. 

[Lindylou08]

Hi.. I’m hoping this is the right place to be asking this question ??  I have just booked the Jewels of the Baltic and Viking Sagas cruise for June next year on the Zuiderdam. The price included the ‘signature beverage package’ which states  for beverage items $9 and under.. Are there wines , cocktails , beer etc available for  that price ??  Thanks 🍷

[grsnovi]

7 hours ago, Sheri K said:

stuck in the main dining room with hundreds of others with the terrible service

Never felt "stuck" in the MDR nor have we ever had "terrible" service in all of our cruises with HAL.

[HALover]

2 hours ago, Lindylou08 said:

Hi.. I’m hoping this is the right place to be asking this question ??  I have just booked the Jewels of the Baltic and Viking Sagas cruise for June next year on the Zuiderdam. The price included the ‘signature beverage package’ which states  for beverage items $9 and under.. Are there wines , cocktails , beer etc available for  that price ??  Thanks 🍷

Yes, this will cover most alcoholic drinks with the exception of "top shelf" items. I believe that someone has posted a drink menu somewhere in one of these threads but I can't seem to find it. Unless you only drink "the best", then you should be fine.

[Sheri K]

2 hours ago, grsnovi said:

Never felt "stuck" in the MDR nor have we ever had "terrible" service in all of our cruises with HAL.

I'm taking about open seating dining during Gala nights. Only felt "stuck" since there was always a massive amount of people and the servers always seemed rushed to get everyone in and out quickly. Service was always better in the specialty restaurants 

[Sheri K]

Actually, there were at least a couple dozen  gentlemen who wore jeans and collared, worn, short sleeve shirts who were allowed in and if I dare say so myself, my husband looked much better in his dark slacks, dress shoes and tuxedo shirt than the ones who looked like they just got off the tractor. By the way making fun of someone's "hairy arms" is a cheap shot at best. I thought we complemented each other perfectly and as you can see in this photo so did the staff at the Culinary Arts Kitchen. Also, he received many  compliments from the younger crowd on the ship and the entire cruise ship staff on how great he looked. Seems like it wasn't so "odd" after all. Just different!

[jonyboy]

5 hours ago, grsnovi said:

Never felt "stuck" in the MDR nor have we ever had "terrible" service in all of our cruises with HAL.

We were on the Westerdam   in July and during breakfast and lunch the MDR was always overcrowded.  Every day

[crystalspin]

8 hours ago, Lindylou08 said:

Hi.. I’m hoping this is the right place to be asking this question ??  I have just booked the Jewels of the Baltic and Viking Sagas cruise for June next year on the Zuiderdam. The price included the ‘signature beverage package’ which states  for beverage items $9 and under.. Are there wines , cocktails , beer etc available for  that price ??  Thanks 🍷

Hi Lindylou!

Yes, all house-brand cocktails, all but the highest (Patron, etc) cordials, all beers, and a selection of wines-by-the-glass will be covered under the package. Some feel it's worth the difference, specifically in wines, to upgrade to the Elite Beverage package. If you want to do that, find a bartender willing to make the charge -- and do so before you buy any drinks on the included SBP. Here is a representative list; some sailings will have different choices. If you order a drink more than the $9, you pay the whole price+gratuity, not the difference. So if you like $15 wine, one glass pays for 3 days upgrade! All adults in the stateroom need to have the same level package and for the full cruise.

 

Oops, forgot to include the link! Even though liqueurs are for some reason not included, all common ones (gran marnier, franjelico, kahlua, baileys) are within the SBP. Each package also includes those beverages to the left on the 'flyer'.

Crew News' beverage menu photo

Edited October 30, 2018 by crystalspin

[*Miss G*]

Great pics @Sheri K!  It sounds like you had a wonderful time.  Sorry for the rude posts directed at you.

[Lindylou08]

17 hours ago, HALover said:

Yes, this will cover most alcoholic drinks with the exception of "top shelf" items. I believe that someone has posted a drink menu somewhere in one of these threads but I can't seem to find it. Unless you only drink "the best", then you should be fine.

 Thanks HALover 😉🥂we are very excited

[Lindylou08]

11 hours ago, crystalspin said:

Hi Lindylou!

Yes, all house-brand cocktails, all but the highest (Patron, etc) cordials, all beers, and a selection of wines-by-the-glass will be covered under the package. Some feel it's worth the difference, specifically in wines, to upgrade to the Elite Beverage package. If you want to do that, find a bartender willing to make the charge -- and do so before you buy any drinks on the included SBP. Here is a representative list; some sailings will have different choices. If you order a drink more than the $9, you pay the whole price+gratuity, not the difference. So if you like $15 wine, one glass pays for 3 days upgrade! All adults in the stateroom need to have the same level package and for the full cruise.

 

Oops, forgot to include the link! Even though liqueurs are for some reason not included, all common ones (gran marnier, franjelico, kahlua, baileys) are within the SBP. Each package also includes those beverages to the left on the 'flyer'.

Crew News' beverage menu photo

Thank you so much crystalspin for the information 😉🥂We are really looking forward to our cruise !! 

[crystalspin]

We never bought the SBP, but it worked out better to accept it with the Explore4 promotional (and a refundable deposit) for a family trip for 10 total that we hosted. Some used it to the max, some it would not have been economical (my mom drinks Lido coffee and one cordial a night), and for us -- retrospectively, how we drank without a thought for the cost -- it turned out just a breakeven proposal, but so FREEING! A couple lattes, a boat drink at happy hour, 2-3 glasses of wine with dinner, a cordial or another froufrou drink listening to the piano bar player... just about $45/day!

[Not Mrs C]

On 10/30/2018 at 1:54 AM, grsnovi said:

In a word YES. We have never boarded in Vancouver, BC so I can't begin to imagine how somebody had that experience but we have boarded HAL cruises in Seattle, Copenhagen and Amsterdam. We always arrive early and are always on board in time for lunch. Years ago you often had to wait to access your stateroom however these days the rooms are typically ready when you board. Sometimes your luggage will be there but you may have to wait for it. Enjoy your cruise!

 

On 10/31/2018 at 7:39 AM, Lindylou08 said:

 Thanks HALover 😉🥂we are very excited

I am told seattle is OK, because if you are from the UK like us you will have already done US customs.  The problem with Vancouver is you are moving from Canada to the States and it is the US border authorities that are causing the problems.

 

[kb4683]

We became 3 star on our last cruise (disembarked 10/14/2018).  Of course, the new HAL website is still having problems updating this information.  I called Mariner Society on Friday and he said to give it 3 weeks.  We are sailing again on 11/19/2018 and would really like to use our 3 star discount on the wine package.  Is there some way to have our status changed onboard if the website isn't corrected by the time we sail?

 

Thanks!

[Btimmer]

I don't believe they will change it onboard.  We've been there before.

[Haboob]

18 minutes ago, Btimmer said:

I don't believe they will change it onboard.  We've been there before.

 

As I understand it, you cannot earn a next level with days/etc from your current cruise, but

if you have unposted days/etc from a prior cruise, they will update aboard as a "correction".

[crystalspin]

Call and make them update before you sail! This is not right. 

[kb4683]

Update.

Called back this afternoon and the rep I spoke with took care of the situation and we now show as 3 star in our profile.  Now if they can just post our bonus days for onboard spending (34 days worth and lots of those 0010 martinis in the Crows Nest )!

 

Thanks to everyone who responded.

Edited November 6, 2018 by kb4683

[TRAYSEE]

On 8/20/2014 at 8:59 AM, capncarp said:

 

OK, I see the unlimited water/soda, and I see the 1 bottle per passenger for wine, but what are the rules about beer?:confused:

 

Is this still true?  Does HAL still allow you to bring unlimited soda and water?

 

thanks

Tracey

traysee@aol.com

[Crew News]

52 minutes ago, TRAYSEE said:

 

Is this still true?  Does HAL still allow you to bring unlimited soda and water?

 

thanks

Tracey

traysee@aol.com

 

Indeed it is true that you can bring as much soda and water as you wish but it needs to be in your carry-on luggage.  Of course you can bring as many carry-on bags as you wish.  I bring a duffle bag that I fill with sodas when I reach the port city and it rides atop my roller bag.  Since HAL rooms are available upon boarding, you don't have to carry your sodas with you during lunch.

Edited November 6, 2018 by Crew News