What Makes Hal A 5 Star Cruise Line?

[many cruises]

We are planning our first HAL cruise for November. We have cruised on RCI, Princess, & Celebrity with Princess & Celebrity being our favorites. What makes HAL a "5 star" cruiseline. ;);)

[refman]

you`ll know when you experience it in november.have a great time!

[AAAAmerican]

Which ship?:eek:

[AirGorilla]

If you're referring to HAL as a "5 Star Line", what is the maximum number of stars that a cruise line can be rated?

 

Although HAL is a fine mass market line, it isn't near the top of the heap, when all cruise lines are included!!

[localady]

What makes HAL a 5 star experience IMHO,

is their crew and staff!!:D

[CruisinGrams]

Ambiance, service, decor, staff, officers, the overall beauty of the ship (not gaudy but elegant and tasteful, refined, fresh flowers, heated pools, the total experience of pampering that you get.... the total experience makes it 5 :) 's to me.

[M.S JAZO]

6 stars is the most i think, i have seen that on some sites, 6 stars for Seabourn, Radisson, Silverseas.

[WillK]

1. Ships are kept in pristine condition.

2. Impeccable service.

3. Restrained, elegant decor.

4. Fresh flowers.

5. Superior mattress/linens.

6. Waiters who remember your preferences.

7. Excellent gym facilities.

[Bramcruiser]

1. Ships are kept in pristine condition.

2. Impeccable service.

3. Restrained, elegant decor.

4. Fresh flowers.

5. Superior mattress/linens.

6. Waiters who remember your preferences.

7. Excellent gym facilities.

 

Hmmm. Rating my cruise on the Oosterdam last fall:

 

1. Yes, ship was in good shape

 

2. Cabin service was fantastic, dining room was okay, bar service sucked. However, I would rate this as good overall.

 

3. Yes decor was elegant and not Las-Vegas flashy.

 

4. Flowers. I was told HAL has fresh flowers all over their ships but I never notice these things. Still its an extra plus.

 

5. Bedding is the best on the high seas or anywhere. I'll join the chorus on that one.

 

6. Waiters never really remembered my preferences. Maybe I should be more demanding or at least memorable.:)

 

7. Gym? What's a gym? Yikes. I failed on that one.

 

Overall, I'd rate a 4 or 5 to HAL.

[djallar]

<snip> Although HAL is a fine mass market line, it isn't near the top of the heap, when all cruise lines are included!!

 

A little supporting info. please?

 

Any rating list I've ever seen has HAL well represented in the "Premium" group of lines. No, it is not included in most "Luxury" lists, but I suppose that could be just a matter of semantics.

 

If, like me, you like what HAL has to offer on a cruise, it'll be 5-star. If you don't, it won't. Simple as that.

[Jules1]

We're going on our first HAL cruise in April - Oosterdam. I am puzzled by the HAL ship ratings here on cruisecritic. When you look at the critic's review of the ships most of the HAL ships rate 3 blue ribbons (some 3+). Most of the Princess/ and larger Celebrity ships rate 4 blue ribbons. The 3 blue ribbon rating is what comes up for HAL on orbitz, travelocity, etc. Anyone have thoughts on this?

[Pete Jackson]

I believe that the most important factor in grading the best cruise lines is the willingness to satisfy special requests. While cruising on HAL, we have never failed to have a special request filled, such as a bowl of raspberries or for items not on the room service menu. HAL is excellent at filling special requests for cabin and dining room service, but not so much for bar service. The six star lines will do so for bar service as well.

 

Sophisticated cruisers will be aware of this and make special requests freely, and rate the cruise lines accordingly. When you make polls among all cruisers, many of them will not appreciate the value of special requests and weigh their votes more on items such as shore excursions, activities, and entertainment where HAL is more 'ordinary'.

[dot73]

Great service with a smile would be my first reason, especially from the Filipino and Indonesian staff. They are hard working, eager to please, and spoil me shamelessly. After the first day, they all know my name and when they find out I am travelling solo, they literally adopt me. I have also experienced excellent service on Crystal, but it lacked the warmth of the HAL staff. It breaks my heart when some passengers treat them rudely or brag how they little they tip them. As a solo traveller, I am on a tight budget, but I always make sure that I have budgeted for a good tip because these people truly have earned it. I have been on five HAL cruises and the service has been consistently great and that is what basically keeps me coming back.

[spirithaven]

You have gotten a lot of good feedback. I too have travelled Princess and Celebrity. My opinion Celebrity does not come close. Princess is just

below HAL but offers good value.

 

I think that if I was to pick several things that I liked best on HAL it would

be how the staff remembers my name and is cordial. Was on the westerdam last year to the caribbean. I really like the older dam ships at 1200 passengers so I had concern for the Westerdam. Never felt that I was on a big ship, as Princess. Things are different and more refined.

It was nice to see how HAL kept things the way they were.

 

My favorite was and still is, of all the cruises I have taken, the old Westerdam but this was much more than acceptable.:o

[jhannah]

For me, in addition to the decor/crew/service mentioned above, it's the wonderful feeling I get when I cross the gangway. It's as if I'm arriving back home ... even if it's the first time I've been on that particular HAL ship. Can't think of a better way to put it.