First HAL Cruise, Not Impressed

[Guest ldtr]

6 hours ago, Mary229 said:

Good move.  You should receive port fees returned for ports you aren’t going on.  Be sure to clear your departure with the front desk. 
 

My view is that cruise lines can never offer the same experience as land based food or entertainment. HAL cruisers are sailing to travel primarily.  The other services are secondary.  Let’s examine this - cruise lines collect provisions by mass order at specific ports therefore they don’t have access to daily fresh markets required for the finest dining experience.  Entertainers don’t have access to their entire production facilities so it is going to be a lesser product (I have actually seen some of these same entertainers on land and they are far better when they are fully accompanied by their own stage crew and musicians. )

 

simply, HAL cruise fares (port fees are non negotiable) range from $80 to $140 a day per person.  One could not buy a decent hotel much less a fine meal anywhere in the US or Canada for that price.  Now add in entertainment and activities such as gym and pool.  One must adjust their expectations in line with the economies.  

After the cruise line charges him the $778 fine for the pvsa violation for transporting them from Seattle to San Diego their costs would rise.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 10, 2023 by ldtr

[IAcruising]

3 hours ago, pmjnh said:

i am wondering about the troll factor here.

 

I'm not wondering at all.

 

[Haljo1935]

4 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

 

Maybe the bananas aren't up to his standards.  I know I like mine just as they turn from green to yellow.  😉🤣

That's the exact sweet spot for a banana. Hard to time it on a cruise, lol.

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, ldtr said:

After the cruise line charges him the $778 fine for the pvsa violation for transporting them from Seattle to San Diego their costs would rise.

 

 

 

 

See above.   

[Abe3689]

11 hours ago, rodndonna said:

 

[Abe3689]

We stopped in Vancouver, so I can get off. Technically it would be Vancouver to San Diego. Many are getting off that I spoke to last night. I assumed others were getting on too? 
 

In any event people can sneer at me and say I’m crying and my expectations are too high, but it’s really not. Asking to have craps open during the day is pretty standard on other lines. Having 3,4,5x odds is standard on all the other lines (as opposed to double).
 

I had no issues with Celebrity, who I assume has access to the same provisions. The food they’ve served at the Buffett on Lido is embarrassing. The dinners have been great. The staff has been very nice and delightful. 

Edited October 10, 2023 by Abe3689

[Shmoo here]

37 minutes ago, Abe3689 said:

We stopped in Vancouver, so I can get off. Technically it would be Vancouver to San Diego. Many are getting off that I spoke to last night. I assumed others were getting on too? 
 

In any event people can sneer at me and say I’m crying and my expectations are too high, but it’s really not. Asking to have craps open during the day is pretty standard on other lines. Having 3,4,5x odds is standard on all the other lines (as opposed to double).
 

I had no issues with Celebrity, who I assume has access to the same provisions. The food they’ve served at the Buffett on Lido is embarrassing. The dinners have been great. The staff has been very nice and delightful. 

Nope.  When traveling between 2 different US ports (in this case Seattle to Ft Lauderdale), you must stop at a DISTANT foreign port.  A distant foreign port is any port NOT in North America, Central America, the Bermuda Islands, or the West Indies (including the Bahama Islands, but not including the Leeward Islands of the Netherlands Antilles, i.e., Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao)." 19 CFR § 4.80a(a)(2).

 

Vancouver doesn't satisfy the PVSA requirement for such a cruise.  The earliest you can debark the ship and not be fined would be in Mexico.

 

You indicated in your initial post that the cruise was Seattle to Ft Lauderdale.  Seattle to San Diego would fall under the same requirements.

Edited October 10, 2023 by Shmoo here

[Abe3689]

6 minutes ago, Shmoo here said:

Nope.  When traveling between 2 different US ports (in this case Seattle to Ft Lauderdale), you must stop at a DISTANT foreign port.  A distant foreign port is any port NOT in North America, Central America, the Bermuda Islands, or the West Indies (including the Bahama Islands, but not including the Leeward Islands of the Netherlands Antilles, i.e., Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao)." 19 CFR § 4.80a(a)(2).

 

Vancouver doesn't satisfy the PVSA requirement for such a cruise.  The earliest you can debark the ship and not be fined would be in Mexico.

 

You indicated in your initial post that the cruise was Seattle to Ft Lauderdale.  Seattle to San Diego would fall under the same requirements.

So if I get off the boat and don’t get back on, a warrant for my arrest will be issued?

 

How are the Canadians getting off?

Edited October 10, 2023 by Abe3689

[Sea42]

2 minutes ago, Abe3689 said:

So if I get off the boat and don’t get back on, a warrant for my arrest will be issued?

 

How are the Canadians getting off?

If they embarked in Vancouver the rules are different than going from one US port to another.

If there is a violation, your fine would probably be added to your onboard account, they do have your credit card info.

[Shmoo here]

26 minutes ago, Abe3689 said:

So if I get off the boat and don’t get back on, a warrant for my arrest will be issued?

 

How are the Canadians getting off?

The fine is assessed against the cruise line.  They pass it onto you via your onboard account, usually backed by a credit card.

 

I'm thinking you had a short cruise Seattle to Vancouver followed by a longer cruise Vancouver to Ft Lauderdale.

 

Anyone boarding in Vancouver can get off in San Diego with no penalty.  

 

Your original post said the cruise was Seattle to Ft Lauderdale.  The law sees YOUR cruise as Seattle to San Diego (if you debark there) and it's not allowed.

Edited October 10, 2023 by Shmoo here

[RD64]

Let the troll pay what he has to pay to get off the ship.

[RD64]

57 minutes ago, Abe3689 said:

We stopped in Vancouver, so I can get off. Technically it would be Vancouver to San Diego. Many are getting off that I spoke to last night. I assumed others were getting on too? 
 

In any event people can sneer at me and say I’m crying and my expectations are too high, but it’s really not. Asking to have craps open during the day is pretty standard on other lines. Having 3,4,5x odds is standard on all the other lines (as opposed to double).
 

I had no issues with Celebrity, who I assume has access to the same provisions. The food they’ve served at the Buffett on Lido is embarrassing. The dinners have been great. The staff has been very nice and delightful. 

If everything is standard on other lines, then why did you not just travel with other lines?

[Abe3689]

12 hours ago, rodndonna said:

 

[Abe3689]

I’m not a troll. 
 

I got off in Vancouver, saw the city, and I got back on in Vancouver .

[Abe3689]

1 minute ago, RD64 said:

If everything is standard on other lines, then why did you not just travel with other lines?

None of them had an itinerary like this that was as long and convenient leaving from Seattle going to a destination my father lives. I learned my lesson that this line isn’t for me.

 

I don’t know what you want me to say?

Edited October 10, 2023 by Abe3689

[CruiserBruce]

4 minutes ago, Abe3689 said:

I’m not a troll. 
 

I got off in Vancouver, saw the city, and I got back on in Vancouver .

Did you sail on the same ship from Seattle to Vancouver, then from Vancouver onward? If so, you will be in violation of the PSVA, if you disembark in San Diego.

 

There was a thread here this summer where someone violated the PSVA, and they were changed the fine to the credit card on file with the cruise line.

[Abe3689]

10 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

Did you sail on the same ship from Seattle to Vancouver, then from Vancouver onward? If so, you will be in violation of the PSVA, if you disembark in San Diego.

 

There was a thread here this summer where someone violated the PSVA, and they were changed the fine to the credit card on file with the cruise line.

Well then it’ll be what it’ll be. Thanks for letting me know.

[Blackduck59]

34 minutes ago, Abe3689 said:

So if I get off the boat and don’t get back on, a warrant for my arrest will be issued?

 

How are the Canadians getting off?

No they will just charge your credit card, I'm guessing Us Customs will probably have something to say about it too.

[Mary229]

1 hour ago, Abe3689 said:

We stopped in Vancouver, so I can get off. Technically it would be Vancouver to San Diego. Many are getting off that I spoke to last night. I assumed others were getting on too? 
 

In any event people can sneer at me and say I’m crying and my expectations are too high, but it’s really not. Asking to have craps open during the day is pretty standard on other lines. Having 3,4,5x odds is standard on all the other lines (as opposed to double).
 

I had no issues with Celebrity, who I assume has access to the same provisions. The food they’ve served at the Buffett on Lido is embarrassing. The dinners have been great. The staff has been very nice and delightful. 

I have left tours before.  It is from that experience that I always have the expectation that my best laid plans may be thwarted.  I find it is best to leave it behind and get on with life.  Returning home from Mexico will save you at least 10 days 

Edited October 11, 2023 by Mary229

[CruiserBruce]

1 hour ago, Abe3689 said:

So if I get off the boat and don’t get back on, a warrant for my arrest will be issued?

 

How are the Canadians getting off?

The PVSA is a US law that affects US citizens, only.

[richwmn]

3 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

The PVSA is a US law that affects US citizens, only.

Not true, all passengers are subject to the PVSA. The Canadians are able to get off because they boarded in Vancouver. Therefore they are not being transferred from one US city to another.

[Blackduck59]

Just now, CruiserBruce said:

The PVSA is a US law that affects US citizens, only.

It is a US law but it effects everyone.

Unfortunately the OP thinks because they got off in Vancouver then they're good to go. Unfortunately they are terribly uninformed. They boarded the cruise in Seattle (their embarkation port) so Vancouver is a port stop. For those who boarded in Vancouver (their embarkation point) in Canada. There in lies the difference.

I see @richwmn just posted basically the same thing

[iceman93]

If I was miserable on a comped cruise, I wouldn't care about paying $778 to get off early.  I'd be upset about the wonderful vacation I had imagined that I didn't get to have, but you couldn't pay me $778 to spend two weeks eating food I found disgusting.  And since the OP sounds like a serious gambler, and the casino isn't to his liking, then he doesn't even get to enjoy the one thing he sailed for.

 

There's no need to hurl accusations at the OP--he tried HAL and didn't find it to his liking.  So be it; life goes on.

[dockman]

So if the food is so bad and if OP is such a high roller why in the world is he waiting for his "comp" dinners in the more upscale restaurants where the fee would likely be less than one bet in the casino?

 

Seems paying for meals or at least see if pinnacle etc would please OP would make more sense than trying to get around psva rules and getting off the ship.

 

And if gambling is the main draw why not ask what the odds are on the games before accepting a comp cruise?  It would take five minutes on cruise critic to get those odds spelled out.

Also as mentioned by many it might be a good idea to do a bit of research by asking front desk if getting off early is even possible without major hassles?

 

It is amazing how much an hour or so of research can save /prevent/mitigate a variety of problems when traveling so you can at least be aware of what you might expect and if it is not working help you avoid the trip altogether rather than be miserable.

 

 

[Shmoo here]

7 minutes ago, dockman said:

So if the food is so bad and if OP is such a high roller why in the world is he waiting for his "comp" dinners in the more upscale restaurants where the fee would likely be less than one bet in the casino?

Actually OP has said dinners were good:

 

2 hours ago, Abe3689 said:

The dinners have been great. The staff has been very nice and delightful. 

He seems to like the crew, also.  

 

Just doesn't like what's available to him during the daytime (and a good deal of that is the casino not catering to his gambling preferences).