Holland America's Seattle HQ Maintains Its Downhill Spiral

[Toofarfromthesea]

I am pointing out how patently absurd it would be for any paying guest to leap to pay more if price increases after they make final payment. This forum is riddled with people who play CFO.

 

No, this forum is riddled with people who have the junior high school mentality vis a vis 'fairness'. It is measured solely from their own perspective and they want what they want when they want it regardless of the merits.

[FredT]

Bravo!

[LMaxwell]

No, this forum is riddled with people who have the junior high school mentality vis a vis 'fairness'. It is measured solely from their own perspective and they want what they want when they want it regardless of the merits.

 

When a cruiselines takes away what you want or like I will be there to advocate for you and provide any assistance I can to help you maximize your value. Would you do the same for me? Doubtful. I don’t subscribe to the “nanny nanny poo poo” type responses of those who happily accept less

[navybankerteacher]

I am pointing out how patently absurd it would be for any paying guest to leap to pay more if price increases after they make final payment. This forum is riddled with people who play CFO.

 

Why would it be patently absurd for a guest to agree to pay more than agreed upon and not just as absurd for a line to accept less than agreed upon?

 

I believe there are for more people on these boards who can only see their own point of view than who play CFO.

 

I think you are only pointing out the group which shares your angle of understanding.

[FredT]

Every flight on every airline is FILLED with people who paid less than you probably did... Yet we never hear screams and wails from those who paid more for the "same seat".....

 

I would love to see the OP's response to a request for an airline to give her something back because she paid more than the airline was now asking for that airline ticket.......

[navybankerteacher]

When a cruiselines takes away what you want or like I will be there to advocate for you and provide any assistance I can to help you maximize your value. Would you do the same for me? Doubtful. I don’t subscribe to the “nanny nanny poo poo” type responses of those who happily accept less

 

Wow ! You will "be there to advocate" for me - and "provide any assistance" when a cruise line takes away what I want or like?

 

Wonderful!!

 

Please start with getting HAL to bring back live music in the MDR as well as other venues throughout the evening.

 

Then work on getting them to restore their policy of bringing on as much wine as they want without charge.

 

I'll let you know if there are other things - but these two would be a great start.

[kevingastreich]

My wife & I recently sailed on the Eurodam, an extremely well-appointed ship. All the staff, as per usual, were superb. However, we were very disappointed in Seattle's continuing penny-pinching actions.

For the past 5 cruises, we really enjoyed the lobster dinner served weekly in the Lido Market. But sadly, we learned that Seattle has cancelled these dinners. Other passengers expressed their disappointment as well.

My wife was also surprised that fresh flowers were no longer placed in our Signature Suite. Save that money, Seattle!! But by all means, keep increasing the cost of liquor and other amenities onboard the ship!!

It appears that Seattle's motto is "Profit, profit, profit - all at the sake of customer satisfaction". Pitiful and sad indeed.

 

On the N/A in April, we did get flowers in the Sig. Suite but I did have to ask for fresh ones after about a week.

[kevingastreich]

Don't forget...right now IS the good old days 20 years from now.

[McFisch]

Don't forget...right now IS the good old days 20 years from now.

 

 

Hi, I'm quite new to this cruise critic board thing so forgive me if I'm posting in the wrong place. My hubby and I came across your review of the N/A Panama Canal cruise you took in April. I tried to find another way to contact you and after a search decided this avenue. Wondering how many Gala nights you had and if you recall on what nights they were?

Thank you and sorry again that I'm posting in a completely different thread.

[kevingastreich]

Hi, I'm quite new to this cruise critic board thing so forgive me if I'm posting in the wrong place. My hubby and I came across your review of the N/A Panama Canal cruise you took in April. I tried to find another way to contact you and after a search decided this avenue. Wondering how many Gala nights you had and if you recall on what nights they were?

Thank you and sorry again that I'm posting in a completely different thread.

 

Hi, no problem.

We were scheduled for 2 Gala nights on our 16 day full canal transit from FLL to San Diego. The first one did not happen. I don't recall any explanation, it just didn't happen. The Gala night we did have was sometime during the second week and it was nice. Lobster in the Lido and no smoking in the casino. There were several nights during the cruise where smoking was banned in the casino. No cruise log but we did have flowers in our SS although I did need to request fresh flowers the second week. Take care.

[SetAnOpenCourse]

The "playing CFO" observation seems a fair description of some posts. Such posts can seem astute but offer IMO one perspective and may not be as enlightening as they sound. The issue of cutbacks refers to the present and an unspecified time in the past. An early post in this thread mentions profit margin and ROI, presumably recent numbers. Wouldn't you want to see what the numbers were at time points in the period when passengers were not experiencing cutbacks? Maybe they would support your argument, maybe not.

[RDC1]

The "playing CFO" observation seems a fair description of some posts. Such posts can seem astute but offer IMO one perspective and may not be as enlightening as they sound. The issue of cutbacks refers to the present and an unspecified time in the past. An early post in this thread mentions profit margin and ROI, presumably recent numbers. Wouldn't you want to see what the numbers were at time points in the period when passengers were not experiencing cutbacks? Maybe they would support your argument, maybe not.

A couple things to keep in mind

 

1. Times and tastes change. The cruise lines have substantial information on utilization of features, consumer tastes, and the competitive environment. They utilize that information to provide a competitive product in a very competitive environment. Remaining in business requires change and remaining competitive.

 

2. The reason why HAL and other cruise lines are now part of the big 3 holding companies is because they were losing the battle to remain in business as individual companies and faced bankruptcy.

[KroozNut]

I did NOT request a price reduction or refund. Rather I am pointing out H.A.L.'s adamant stubborn refusal to even consider some small token, in the form of a bit of on-board credit

 

On board credit is in effect equivalent to a price reduction or refund.

[iancal]

Actually, from the cruise line perspective an OBC is not the same as a cash reduction in fare.

 

If someone uses a $100. OBC it will typically cost the cruise line less than $50. is it is used for food and beverage. Some people tend to spend more money, and thus create more revenue and profit for the cruise line. The exception might be the person who uses the OBC towards gratuities and does not spend anything else on board the ship.

 

Cruise lines prefer a future cruise credit to an OBC. And they prefer an OBC to an outright fare reduction.

 

A fifty percent discount at a dining venue costs the cruise line zero. It may actually result in higher beverage revenue/profit. A bottle of cheap red or white plonk probably costs them $3 - $5 at most.

 

It is exactly the same reason why a retail outlet would rather give a customer a store credit than an actual refund.

Edited December 10, 2017 by iancal

[McFisch]

Hi, no problem.

We were scheduled for 2 Gala nights on our 16 day full canal transit from FLL to San Diego. The first one did not happen. I don't recall any explanation, it just didn't happen. The Gala night we did have was sometime during the second week and it was nice. Lobster in the Lido and no smoking in the casino. There were several nights during the cruise where smoking was banned in the casino. No cruise log but we did have flowers in our SS although I did need to request fresh flowers the second week. Take care.

 

 

 

Thank you!

[drowelf]

Actually, from the cruise line perspective an OBC is not the same as a cash reduction in fare.

 

Quite true and I wonder what the breakage rate is on the OBC the cruise line does give out?

[Himself]

My wife & I recently sailed on the Eurodam, an extremely well-appointed ship. All the staff, as per usual, were superb. However, we were very disappointed in Seattle's continuing penny-pinching actions.

For the past 5 cruises, we really enjoyed the lobster dinner served weekly in the Lido Market. But sadly, we learned that Seattle has cancelled these dinners. Other passengers expressed their disappointment as well.

My wife was also surprised that fresh flowers were no longer placed in our Signature Suite. Save that money, Seattle!! But by all means, keep increasing the cost of liquor and other amenities onboard the ship!!

It appears that Seattle's motto is "Profit, profit, profit - all at the sake of customer satisfaction". Pitiful and sad indeed.

 

 

Sounds like Carnival Corporation is having some influence.

[RDC1]

Actually, from the cruise line perspective an OBC is not the same as a cash reduction in fare.

 

If someone uses a $100. OBC it will typically cost the cruise line less than $50. is it is used for food and beverage. Some people tend to spend more money, and thus create more revenue and profit for the cruise line. The exception might be the person who uses the OBC towards gratuities and does not spend anything else on board the ship.

 

Cruise lines prefer a future cruise credit to an OBC. And they prefer an OBC to an outright fare reduction.

 

A fifty percent discount at a dining venue costs the cruise line zero. It may actually result in higher beverage revenue/profit. A bottle of cheap red or white plonk probably costs them $3 - $5 at most.

 

It is exactly the same reason why a retail outlet would rather give a customer a store credit than an actual refund.

 

Yes and no. While it is true that the items purchased with OBC costs the cruise line significantly less than the value of the OBC, the cruise line also must factor in lost opportunity cost. That is those things that would have been purchased if the OBC had not be available. If the person uses the OBC to get something that they would not have purchased without the OBC then you are correct. If on the other hand they just apply the OBC to reduce their total bill and get nothing new, then they have experienced the loss of revenue (opportunity cost) as well.

[Lovely other]

Our upcoming cruise will be our 20th, but 3d on H.A.L. We booked in April, and in November shortly after final payment was charged to my credit card, saw the advertised price drop by about $500. in total for the two of us. Same cruise dates, same stateroom class. Despite communicating several times with H.A.L. they absolutely refused to offer even a small compensatory on board credit. Their response amounted to: "We don't have to do anything for you, the cruise is sold out." This cruise will be the last on that line.

 

I'm sorry but I think your complaint is pretty unreasonable. so what if the price drops ...HAL owes you nothing. If I buy a coat from a store and then it's reduced at a later date I can't go back for a refund :rolleyes:

[GateGuardian]

Nooooooooo. Will be on the Eurodam in a couple of weeks and was looking forward to the unlimted lobster in the Lido Market :(

[bennybear]

My two cents, several large retail companies will do a price adjustment if there is a price reduction within a short time of purchase.

While I understand both sides of the argument and as a shareholder I want a healthy company, I see the merits of offering something to keep a customer happy. Sometimes even a token gesture goes a long ways.

Our very large travel agent even commented they were surprised by the hard attitude on one issue that HAL had previously offered. So I think there is a different attitude and each situation is different. I prefer the underpromise over deliver model to-its reverse.

[frankc98376]

Lobster was available twice in Lido on our cruise in October.

 

As for price drops after final payment- we have stopped checking the price after final payment, Viola- no anger or frustration. Airlines frequently drop prices on flights close to the flight date. Sure you can get the lower price but with the change and ticketing fees will end up costing more than the original ticket most of the time.

[*Miss G*]

My two cents, several large retail companies will do a price adjustment if there is a price reduction within a short time of purchase.

While I understand both sides of the argument and as a shareholder I want a healthy company, I see the merits of offering something to keep a customer happy. Sometimes even a token gesture goes a long ways.

Our very large travel agent even commented they were surprised by the hard attitude on one issue that HAL had previously offered. So I think there is a different attitude and each situation is different. I prefer the underpromise over deliver model to-its reverse.

How large is he/she? ;p

[Tinknock50]

How large is he/she? ;p

He or She is SOOOOO large.........

[dmg1956]

He or She is SOOOOO large.........

Okay folks. This thread is getting out of hand. Enough already.