Club Orange

[Roz]

Thank you for your kind words.

 

There were a lot of passengers onboard who were not US or Canadian, and I think there were "cultural differences".

[JeffElizabeth]

On 11/13/2020 at 12:41 PM, KirkNC said:

Nothing gets me madder at HAL then this program.  I spent hundreds of thousands of dollars getting 4&5 star status and someone can get most of the same benefits for $15/day.

My wife is in agreement with you on this. We are four stars. We went on a cruise with her sister, her first cruise, and she paid for OC and got many of the same perks as us for only a few dollars a day. My SIL would do it again. 

[ScottC4746]

How rude!  That solo diner could have been a Travel Agent scoping out the ship and service for future travelers.  The Lido good move for you.  You were there and you stood your ground.  After the first issue in the MDR I would have complained.  It sounds like you had my choice dining,  If you had had a reserved time, which I am not a fan of, the table would not have had a choice as you were assigned that table.

[Roz]

@ScottC4746, yes, I had open seating.  What was interesting is that I was on a back to back.  The first 4-day cruise was wonderful.  The next 7 days, the vibe completely changed when we picked up a new contingent of passengers.  Others who stayed on like me commented on the different atmosphere.  I wasn't the only one who experienced rudeness.

[ScottC4746]

Very strange for HAL's service.

[KirkNC]

Ah the bane of short cruising.

[Hhagatha]

On the Koningsdam last December,  Club Orange was given to the suite passengers and they were not given a MDR assignment.  Our key card only said Club Orange. We enjoy getting to know new people and always ask for a large table for dinner, which there were none offered in CO.  If you had a group of people you wanted to eat with they would accommodate you.  The CO is like eating in a fish bowl, the wall between you and the hallway is glass, and everyone walking by looks right in. After the first night we decided it wasn't for us and asked for an assignment in the MDR.   The meal was nothing special.  The service was attentive and not as harried as in the MDR.  We always enjoyed a quiet breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill, which was no longer offered, you had to eat in CO if you wanted a quieter venue.  The environment  was more like a cafeteria.  Food was NOT cooked there - as an earlier poster stated, it is still cooked in the MDR kitchen and brought to the "chefs" in the CO who add whatever to the plate.   At night they had table cloths, but for breakfast it was just the plain table.   They were really looking for feedback on what people did or did not like about the experience so maybe some of the issues will have been taken care of.  Apparently the "fish bowl" experience was a major complaint.  As we are 5 star, the other benefits were already available to us.  I would not pay to eat there, but for someone else the other benefits may make it worthwhile to them.

[oaktreerb]

9 hours ago, Hhagatha said:

On the Koningsdam last December,  Club Orange was given to the suite passengers and they were not given a MDR assignment.  Our key card only said Club Orange. We enjoy getting to know new people and always ask for a large table for dinner, which there were none offered in CO.  If you had a group of people you wanted to eat with they would accommodate you.  The CO is like eating in a fish bowl, the wall between you and the hallway is glass, and everyone walking by looks right in. After the first night we decided it wasn't for us and asked for an assignment in the MDR.   The meal was nothing special.  The service was attentive and not as harried as in the MDR.  We always enjoyed a quiet breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill, which was no longer offered, you had to eat in CO if you wanted a quieter venue.  The environment  was more like a cafeteria.  Food was NOT cooked there - as an earlier poster stated, it is still cooked in the MDR kitchen and brought to the "chefs" in the CO who add whatever to the plate.   At night they had table cloths, but for breakfast it was just the plain table.   They were really looking for feedback on what people did or did not like about the experience so maybe some of the issues will have been taken care of.  Apparently the "fish bowl" experience was a major complaint.  As we are 5 star, the other benefits were already available to us.  I would not pay to eat there, but for someone else the other benefits may make it worthwhile to them.

I hope that HAL will take the feedback seriously.  From some reports I have read Club Orange sounds like eating in a diner which I would not consider an upgrade from the dining room.  

[Hhagatha]

4 minutes ago, oaktreerb said:

I hope that HAL will take the feedback seriously.  From some reports I have read Club Orange sounds like eating in a diner which I would not consider an upgrade from the dining room.  

Exactly as we felt.  Maybe the other perks make it worthwhile for new cruisers, but for 5 star the trade-off of losing the Pinnacle is not worth it.

[DaveOKC]

9 hours ago, Hhagatha said:

Exactly as we felt.  Maybe the other perks make it worthwhile for new cruisers, but for 5 star the trade-off of losing the Pinnacle is not worth it.

I am confused, so please clarify - what does being 5 Star have to do with losing the Pinnacle?  5 Stars do not get the Pinnacle breakfasts if that is what you mean.

[Floridiana]

My experience is different. I did not mind the 'fishbowl'. I enjoyed looking out. Service was excellent and it was a quiet room. The huge dining room on the Koningsdam was noisy and the service was harried. I would have been sorely disappointed if I had had to eat there all the time.

We were in Club Orange because we were in a Neptune suite. But I would not have minded if somebody paid extra for it. I did not acquire my 4 star mariner status to get privileges. I became a 4 star mariner  by cruising and enjoying the cruises.  That's what I paid for. A positive side effect were privileges.

[Hhagatha]

I used "Pinnacle" instead of  "Pinnacle Grill".  Suite passengers can eat there for breakfast, but that is no longer available, you eat in CO.  I confused the two (it was late).  If you are 5 Star, what would you gain by the CO package? Don't you already get most of those benefits, except for eating in the CO?  For $50 a day (what it was selling at on that trip) I wouldn't buy it.  We could eat every night in Tamarind, Pinnacle Grill, or Cannoletto for less.  Sorry for confusion.

[zelker]

The Club Orange benefits are automatically included if you're in a Neptune or Penthouse suite.  5 Star Mariners don't get any of the CO benefits except priority check-in, tendering, and disembarkation.