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

[Mud_Shark]

joekerstef,

 

Thanks very much.  That was the info I was looking for.  As far as I can tell, the current promo does not extend out far enough to include cruises such as ours, which does not sail until Sept 2020.  I will hold off for now and check out the Explore4 sale and decide if it is worth it to book then.  Good point on the refundable deposit booking.

 

Don

[joekerstef]

16 hours ago, Mud_Shark said:

joekerstef,

 

Thanks very much.  That was the info I was looking for.  As far as I can tell, the current promo does not extend out far enough to include cruises such as ours, which does not sail until Sept 2020.  I will hold off for now and check out the Explore4 sale and decide if it is worth it to book then.  Good point on the refundable deposit booking.

 

Don

You might try calling a PCC or your travel agent just to make sure that the current promotion is/is not available for your cruise and see what you can get now. HAL's website since they changed it has been awful to use and of course all promotions are for "select" sailings and may have limits on how many people on a given cruise can use a certain promo (ie if offered, it could sell out). I'm not sure if E4 is the next promo (current one ends 15 May) or if there's something else in between. Good luck! 

[Mud_Shark]

You are right.  I was looking at the wrong promotion on the HAL website.  I didn't understand the main page scrolled through a couple different sales.  I have now found the "early saver fare" that includes the drinks package and yes, our cruise is included in that promotion.  Thanks again.  I guess I can book under that fare, and if later a different one with free grats comes out, it may be worth it to us to  re-fare.

 

Don

[richstowe]

23 hours ago, Mud_Shark said:

Hi.  We are new to HAL, having cruised previously primarily on Princess

We have taken two HAL cruises, booking both direct . We got a very favorable CDN rate the first time and got a great suite upgrade offer the second . I understand some swear by the OBC they get from TA's but we were very happy booking direct .

[beaming90]

Since I have only cruised on Carnival before and I have only sang karaoke on a cruise ship, does HAL have karaoke? 

[AndySandy]

49 minutes ago, beaming90 said:

Since I have only cruised on Carnival before and I have only sang karaoke on a cruise ship, does HAL have karaoke? 

Yes they do,.my first cruise was on HAL & there song selection was better than Princess 

[beaming90]

Thank you!!!

2 minutes ago, AndySandy said:

Yes they do,.my first cruise was on HAL & there song selection was better than Princess 

 

[joekerstef]

2 hours ago, AndySandy said:

Yes they do,.my first cruise was on HAL & there song selection was better than Princess 

Which ship? I've never seen karaoke on any of my cruises. I would so torment people with my singing voice if the correct songs were on the playlist....

[Btimmer]

9 hours ago, beaming90 said:

Since I have only cruised on Carnival before and I have only sang karaoke on a cruise ship, does HAL have karaoke? 

Over the past 2 years and 6-8 cruises there has been no Karaoke on the Volendam, Ooosterdam, Maasdam, or Nieuw Statendam. 

[AndySandy]

11 hours ago, joekerstef said:

Which ship? I've never seen karaoke on any of my cruises. I would so torment people with my singing voice if the correct songs were on the playlist....

Zuiderdam 

[joekerstef]

2 hours ago, AndySandy said:

Zuiderdam 

I was on Zuiderdam in December and there was no karaoke that I saw or heard of. Where did they have it?

[AndySandy]

6 hours ago, joekerstef said:

I was on Zuiderdam in December and there was no karaoke that I saw or heard of. Where did they have it?

Was over 6yrs ago, so must of done away with it. Shame really, I'm a big karaoke fan 

[AndySandy]

Just now, AndySandy said:

Was over 6yrs ago, so must of done away with it. Shame really, I'm a big karaoke fan 

From memory might of been behind casino in a little lounge, wasn't a big venue at all, 

[faerievert]

I remember karaoke being a thing on my past HAL cruises, but it wasn’t on the itinerary at all on my Feb Hawaiian cruise (and that cruise had 10+ sea days, so maximum onboard activities)

[KroozNut]

I believe that karaoke has gone the way of the Dodo bird on HAL ships...

[beaming90]

Well, darn. 
Oh well, won't miss out on karaoke too much I guess

[LRLLSL]

Are only Neptune and Pinnacle suites eligible to use the Neptune Lounge and Concierge?  Can Signature Suites use it too?  If you have a drink package, can you use it in the Neptune Lounge?  TIA.

[oceanmom]

Yes, no, and no.

[Mud_Shark]

Do HAL ships have do it yourself laundromat facilities?  We will be on the Oosterdam if it makes a difference.

If there are no self serve laundromats, what does it cost to have your laundry done?  We will be cruising for 26 nights, so we will definitely need to do the wash.

 

Thanks

Don

[dillpickle48]

The Oosterdam has two options.

1. Fill the blue laundry bag for about $20 a bag.  It is amazing how much you can fit in a bag.

2. Book a laundry package which will cost you about $7 a day.

 

Hope this helps.

[oceanmom]

You don't need to book the laundry package ahead of time. Just mark it on the first bag of laundry you send out on board.

[Katie52]

That is handy to know! Thank you.

[Mud_Shark]

Thanks very much for the info and the timely responses.  This is very helpful to us as we are unaccustomed to the ways of HAL.

 

Don

[cruise47]

We want to try HAL for an Alaska Cruise. We normally sail Royal Caribbean, Disney and Celebrity will we be disappointed?

[Btimmer]

2 minutes ago, cruise47 said:

We want to try HAL for an Alaska Cruise. We normally sail Royal Caribbean, Disney and Celebrity will we be disappointed?

What are your expectations and perhaps we can help you.