HAL Loyalty Program

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

I have lost my list of the benefits of the various star levels. Where on the HAL website can I find this information? Thanks.

[cruisetravlr]

Here is the link:

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/mariner-society.html

I did a search for “mariner benefits”.

Edited December 8, 2022 by cruisetravlr
Add info

[crystalspin]

I made two screen-shots of the table -- one showing up to 3* and one for 4* which we should attain this coming January!

[Florida_gal_50]

If you are a 5 star make sure you take it with you or bookmark it.  The front desk manager argued with me on the koningsdam saying the dining freebies were only for the pinnacle.  She refused even look at what I had but I had it. She said it was old info 🙄.  The week before on the same ship I had no problem.  Funny thing when I go online to a large cruise retailer it somehow knows I am 5 star and says I can use my freebies at the pinnacle, tamarind or Canaletto.

[jettaleea]

Just now, Florida_gal_50 said:

If you are a 5 star make sure you take it with you or bookmark it.  The front desk manager argued with me on the koningsdam saying the dining freebies were only for the pinnacle.  She refused even look at what I had but I had it. She said it was old info 🙄.  The week before on the same ship I had no problem.  Funny thing when I go online to a large cruise retailer it somehow knows I am 5 star and says I can use my freebies at the pinnacle, tamarind or Canaletto.

The same happened on the Oosterdam. The front desk had a benefits list from 2019. I printed the 2022 benefits list and gave it to them. Hubby and I had gone to the Canaletto and got charged. We were told it was an 'honest mistake'....this girl doesn't make that kind of mistake and wanted to be sure it didn't happen to someone else.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Thank you for the link and the advice. I will take the Loyalty Rewards page with me on my upcoming Konigsdam cruise. I have pre-booked and paid for 4 specialty restaurant dinners. I suspect I will have problems getting the credits since I did have problems last February on the Konigsdam and in 2021 on the Nieuw Amsterdam. 

 

As I have said before, this process should be a simple accounting procedure, but it isn't.

[Florida_gal_50]

51 minutes ago, jettaleea said:

The same happened on the Oosterdam. The front desk had a benefits list from 2019. I printed the 2022 benefits list and gave it to them. Hubby and I had gone to the Canaletto and got charged. We were told it was an 'honest mistake'....this girl doesn't make that kind of mistake and wanted to be sure it didn't happen to someone else.

Right.  Honest mistake.  A person shouldn’t have to fight for what is yours. This isn’t new.  I could understand that.

[Florida_gal_50]

5 minutes ago, SJSULIBRARIAN said:

Thank you for the link and the advice. I will take the Loyalty Rewards page with me on my upcoming Konigsdam cruise. I have pre-booked and paid for 4 specialty restaurant dinners. I suspect I will have problems getting the credits since I did have problems last February on the Konigsdam and in 2021 on the Nieuw Amsterdam. 

 

As I have said before, this process should be a simple accounting procedure, but it isn't.

Good luck.  It was better than it was for me in March.  At least I wasn’t getting charged this time for hundreds of dollars this time for goggles. 

[ShipWalker]

As an FYI the current Mariner Society .pdf file is dated 09/21/21 at the bottom.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

3 hours ago, ShipWalker said:

As an FYI the current Mariner Society .pdf file is dated 09/21/21 at the bottom.

It has not changed much.

[Mary229]

10 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

If you are a 5 star make sure you take it with you or bookmark it.  The front desk manager argued with me on the koningsdam saying the dining freebies were only for the pinnacle.  She refused even look at what I had but I had it. She said it was old info 🙄.  The week before on the same ship I had no problem.  Funny thing when I go online to a large cruise retailer it somehow knows I am 5 star and says I can use my freebies at the pinnacle, tamarind or Canaletto.

From my own experience and others’ reports it seems the Koningsdam is becoming the pill of the fleet.  What is with their restaurant management? 

[Florida_gal_50]

19 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

From my own experience and others’ reports it seems the Koningsdam is becoming the pill of the fleet.  What is with their restaurant management? 

I find usually that the restaurants are a little better at fixing it although they shouldn’t make the mistake in the first place.  It’s the front desk that tries every trick in the book to make you think you don’t deserve the credit.  Sometimes it’s just inconvenient to go back to the restaurant. 

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

As much as I hate ruining the nice experience that hopefully I had at the restaurant, I am going to take someone's advice, and as I exit, talk to the host and tell them I am 5* and will they issue the credit now. I'll even have my "proof of payment" with me. As we all have said, it shouldn't have to be this way. I will report back.

[DaveOKC]

I have been having trouble getting my 5 Star free dinners at both Pinnacle and Tamarind (on the Eurodam for two sailings).  They charged me 50% plus the service charge and I had to fight for the full free cost.

Be sure to watch your bill!

[johnmik1]

I have never been on a HAL cruise that there wasn’t some issue with the billing,always in their favor!

[Stateroom_Sailor]

We're at 29 cruise day credits, if we had only spent a little more on one of our prior cruises!  Prior to the pandemic, we had a 16 night cruise booked in a suite, and would have jumped form 1 star to 3 Star Mariners.

[albingirl]

5 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

I find usually that the restaurants are a little better at fixing it although they shouldn’t make the mistake in the first place.  It’s the front desk that tries every trick in the book to make you think you don’t deserve the credit.  Sometimes it’s just inconvenient to go back to the restaurant. 

It's amazing how much time we waste at the guest services. I give up 

[helby]

4 hours ago, johnmik1 said:

I have never been on a HAL cruise that there wasn’t some issue with the billing,always in their favor!

I've had the same experience on every HAL cruise going back to the early 1990s. It is always difficult to get resolved with guest  services. Somehow it's never their fault....... 

[SilvertoGold]

9 minutes ago, helby said:

I've had the same experience on every HAL cruise going back to the early 1990s. It is always difficult to get resolved with guest  services. Somehow it's never their fault....... 

We have found that the regular Front Desk people are maybe not that well trained or experienced.  If you can get a one-stripe Front Desk Officer, they are almost always very good and seem to clue in immediately.

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, SilvertoGold said:

We have found that the regular Front Desk people are maybe not that well trained or experienced.  If you can get a one-stripe Front Desk Officer, they are almost always very good and seem to clue in immediately.

Unfortunately she was the worst.  Most of the rank and file were better and more knowledgeable than she was which is pretty bad.  When you have leadership like that it's hard for anyone to shine.

[0106]

I check my account every morning on the Navigator app.  If there is a discrepancy, I send a message on the app.  On the Oosterdam in November, I was charged for a “free” excursion and 3 different days charged for a drink even though I had the HIA package.  When I checked the app the following morning, the incorrect charges had been credited. Never had to go to guest services. 

[Mary229]

8 minutes ago, 0106 said:

I check my account every morning on the Navigator app.  If there is a discrepancy, I send a message on the app.  On the Oosterdam in November, I was charged for a “free” excursion and 3 different days charged for a drink even though I had the HIA package.  When I checked the app the following morning, the incorrect charges had been credited. Never had to go to guest services. 

The app is getting better or should I say the staff is becoming more responsive to the app.  

[Florida_gal_50]

I've had mixed results going through the app. Usually if the charge is small they are more likely to reverse it.

[Hlitner]

I admire how die-hard HAL fans excuse just about anything!  The situation with billing errors (and unnecessary time at Guest Relations) has been a HAL staple from our early HAL cruising days.  We have learned to expect wasted time at Guest Relations getting improper charges (such as from the Pinnacle) reversed!  The staff at the desk are not naive or undertrained, but merely tired of hearing the same old complaints about improper billing.  The question remains, "why, after decades, does not HAL learn how to get it right!"  We have cruised on 15 other cruise lines and not had the kind of billing issues we have on HAL.  On most lines we can spend weeks aboard without ever needing to stop at Guest Relations.  On HAL it seems like a rite of passage.

 

Hank