Some oddly familiar things

[Sea Hag]

Background. We've cruised on Princess exclusively for a lot of years now. After our last trip, my hubby expressed interest in trying something else. We've never cruised on HAL, and they had a nice promo on a sailing that really appealed to us. So, I booked it.  I'm not regretting this, but there are some things that are oddly familiar.

 

Half the time, their website doesn't work. Presents a white screen of death with a system message. I don't get the same snafu on HAL's website as I do with Princess, but it's the same basically crappy website situation.

 

People on the HAL board here complain about the HAL app, and I can certainly see why. It works fine on my phone, but it's extremely limited in what it has and what you can see. And it doesn't sound like it works well for everybody. Just for me, personally, I'd rate the medallion app way (way!) above HAL's app.

 

People on the HAL board here also complain about customer service, but I imagine people everywhere complain about customer service in pretty much everywhere.

 

 

[cavecreekguy]

Prior to booking my recent Princess cruise I was a regular HAL cruiser and frequented that board. Since I booked the Princess cruise I started reading here. I was kind of amused that so many of the complaints I saw about Princess where the same complaints I saw on the HAL board.

[RedIguana]

15 hours ago, cavecreekguy said:

Prior to booking my recent Princess cruise I was a regular HAL cruiser and frequented that board. Since I booked the Princess cruise I started reading here. I was kind of amused that so many of the complaints I saw about Princess where the same complaints I saw on the HAL board.

I've been on HAL, Celebrity, RCI, and soon to be Princess. (I won't mention that other brand related to HAL and Princess 😁). The comments on all the boards from all these lines can be pretty much interchanged at will 🤪.

[voljeep]

what kind and how much are beverage packages on HAL?

[RedIguana]

5 hours ago, voljeep said:

what kind and how much are beverage packages on HAL?

Booking with the current have-it- all package, assuming under 10 day cruise (add more shore ex and dining for longer):

roughly $55 per person/day for regular beverage package (15 alc max, up to $11), 1 specialty dining, $100 shore ex credit, and 1 internet PP.

Not sure if trying to add to a booked cruise.

 

Edited April 5, 2023 by RedIguana
per person/day

[coo359a2]

3 hours ago, RedIguana said:

Booking with the current have-it- all package, assuming under 10 day cruise (add more shore ex and dining for longer):

roughly $55 per person/day for regular beverage package (15 alc max, up to $11), 1 specialty dining, $100 shore ex credit, and 1 internet PP.

Not sure if trying to add to a booked cruise.

 

Does it include gratuities also?

[RedIguana]

2 hours ago, coo359a2 said:

Does it include gratuities also?

some offers do, some also include premier package and more OBC. Seems to vary by sailing. Seen the price from higher and lower than that $55. I do use one of the online TA's via the find a cruise tab on this site.

[Times Prince]

I can envision some similarities as HAL and Princess Cruises are both part of Carnival Corporation, which also owns Carnival Cruises, Cunard, P&O, AIDA, Seabourn, and Costa.

 

While each line has their place and clientele it is possible some economies of scale are accomplished through using a core set of software, food and fuel sourcing, etc.

 

[caribill]

2 hours ago, Times Prince said:

I can envision some similarities as HAL and Princess Cruises are both part of Carnival Corporation, which also owns Carnival Cruises, Cunard, P&O, AIDA, Seabourn, and Costa.

 

While each line has their place and clientele it is possible some economies of scale are accomplished through using a core set of software, food and fuel sourcing, etc.

 

 

And HAL and Princess both report to the same person.

[Coral]

2 hours ago, caribill said:

 

And HAL and Princess both report to the same person.

I was just going to say that. HAL and Princess are more "sisters" than Princess and Carnival. HAL and Princess are both part of the Holland America group that is run by Jan Swartz (former head of Princess).

 

Not surprised by any comments that the same issues exist.

[justafem]

I just looked at HAL for the first time.  I can't afford HAL!  OUCH!

[Lady Arwen]

1 hour ago, justafem said:

I just looked at HAL for the first time.  I can't afford HAL!  OUCH!

We just booked Rotterdam TA for 2024 with standard HIA perks and early booking bonus, which includes prepaid gratuities, shore excursions, specialty dining and more.  We also receive a 25% discount (casino rate) on any HAL cruise we book, and no, we are not big gamblers.  We qualified in 2008 and have been blessed with this perk since then.  HAL for us is a bargain.

[justafem]

5 minutes ago, Lady Arwen said:

We just booked Rotterdam TA for 2024 with standard HIA perks and early booking bonus, which includes prepaid gratuities, shore excursions, specialty dining and more.  We also receive a 25% discount (casino rate) on any HAL cruise we book, and no, we are not big gamblers.  We qualified in 2008 and have been blessed with this perk since then.  HAL for us is a bargain.

I looked at comparables.  16 day Hawaiian for April 2024.  Same room type (window).  Princess $5000 all in, and $1000 onboard credit.  HAL $10,000 all in and $100 onboard.  

 

Princess wins!

Edited April 6, 2023 by justafem

[Roatanfans]

I think most cruise lines have complaints about websites and customer service.  We sailed on MSC a few years ago and it made me appreciate how good we have it at Princess!  (Even trying to call them now vs calling MSC then!)

[Lady Arwen]

20 minutes ago, justafem said:

I looked at comparables.  16 day Hawaiian for April 2024.  Same room type (window).  Princess $5000 all in, and $1000 onboard credit.  HAL $10,000 all in and $100 onboard.  

 

Princess wins!

Yes, for you HAL is not likely your go to cruiseline.  Personally, I find the lower rates on Princess come at a bigger cost in amenities and the shipboard experience.  We do sail Princess, depending on itinerary.  We love sailing out of Southampton, so that attracts us.  We find that price alone is just not a deciding factor.  Luckily, there is something for everyone’s taste and budget.

[RedIguana]

1 hour ago, justafem said:

I looked at comparables.  16 day Hawaiian for April 2024.  Same room type (window).  Princess $5000 all in, and $1000 onboard credit.  HAL $10,000 all in and $100 onboard. 

I don't even see a 16 day Hawaiian in April 2024.  25 day from Australia to Vancouver with 4 Hawaii ports runs about 11k total for 2 all in balcony. And it is possible if you saw a 16 day in April 2024 it is the eclipse cruise...so huge premium on that one, and probably mostly sold out.