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H-A to offer $100 deposits? true or false?

silvercruiser

By silvercruiser,
in Holland America Line

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galipemi

galipemi

Posted
Posted

Someone wondered about the HAL insurance. Yes, this does have to be paid at the time of booking. But it is a separate commodity you are selecting. The $100 deposit applies to the cruise itself. If you choose to add insurance you will be required to pay this at the time you book onboard. My mother booked onboard with her OCC and I seem to have been the only one who asked questions;) :D

 

The $100 deposit can work in two ways.

 

1. You pay HAL $100 and promise that you will either travel with them on any cruise 39 days or less in the next 4 years or forefit the deposit you paid.

 

When you choose to book your next HAL cruise, you advise your TA that you put a reduced deposit and that it is linked to your Mariner number. They will have access to this info and be able to reduce your deposit and apply the onboard credit which is based on the length of sailing and category booked.

 

(FYI, you are actually booking through your TA when you do this. The full credit and responsibility for the booking will transfer to your agent within a day or two. My mother's agent had the booking before she even got home from her cruise)

 

2. You choose the cruise you would like to take, choose your cabin or guarantee and book. The OCC will reduce the deposit to $100 and until final payment, the terms are as though you booked with a normal depoist. You can cancel if needed and apply the deposit elsewhere (to another cruise or have it held to your Mariner number)

 

 

I asked how the Future Cruise Deposit works (option #1 above)

 

Basically, they link the deposit to your Mariner number. It is extremely difficult and sometimes impossible to book for someone not onboard the ship if they have never cruised HAL before and therefore does not have a Mariner number.

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TMJplus1

TMJplus1

Posted
Posted
Basically, they link the deposit to your Mariner number. It is extremely difficult and sometimes impossible to book for someone not onboard the ship if they have never cruised HAL before and therefore does not have a Mariner number.

 

Thanks for the great info! So...if my hubby is not aboard the Zuiderdam with me, but he does have a Mariner number, I should be able to book us a future cruise with the $100/pp deposit?! Crossing my fingers! His 50th birthday is coming up next year and I think this would make a fabulous surprise birthday gift. (How I am going to keep it a surprise is, of course, a subject for an entirely different discussion!)

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Tinknock50

Tinknock50

Posted
Posted

Princess sometimes has "floating" $100 deposits which it offers to agencies. I think it is up to the agencies to apply this benefit to a particular cruise. This allows you to get a $100 deposit from home instead of onboard ship.

 

I hope HAL will also do this.....I really love not having to tie up a big deposit as much as a year ahead.

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Tinknock50

Tinknock50

Posted
Posted
on-board credit or dinner at the Pinnacle Grille?

 

Jade,

Enjoy reading your posts. I wonder if you would do me a favor.

Could you post your message entirely in the lower box instead of starting it in the title box?

 

I have instant e-mail notification and I only get part of your message when it comes bcecause it won't pick up anything in the title box.

Also if we quote your message, nothing in the title box will make it to our response.

 

I generally leave the title box empty anyway.....not required to make a post.

 

Keep up the good posting!:) ,

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Steamboatin

Steamboatin

Posted
Posted

Our TA only requires a $25 per person deposit on any cruise with any cruise company. Should you cancel the cruise prior to final payment you get your $25 per person deposit back.

 

How will HAL rebate me the $150 deposit overpayment should I take them up and sign up for a cruise on board after I switch it to my TA?

 

HAL's $100 deposit fee is excessive. To us anyway and we would never do business with anyone that requires a cruise deposit greater than $25 per person.

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Tinknock50

Tinknock50

Posted
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Our TA only requires a $25 per person deposit on any cruise with any cruise company. Should you cancel the cruise prior to final payment you get your $25 per person deposit back.

 

How will HAL rebate me the $150 deposit overpayment should I take them up and sign up for a cruise on board after I switch it to my TA?

 

HAL's $100 deposit fee is excessive. To us anyway and we would never do business with anyone that requires a cruise deposit greater than $25 per person.

 

Steamboatin,

It sounds like your agency is subsidising your down payment by paying part of it when you book. Makes me wonder about their pricing.....are their prices higher to cover this?

 

Can't believe that HAL would waive a big chunk of a deposit for that one agency. The agency is covering it somehow.

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Happy Tapper

Happy Tapper

Posted
Posted

;) the deal was great for us.Deposit was $ 100 per person for any future cruise

with up to 4 yrs to use the deposit. Of course you can book a selected cruise on board. Came home and selected the cruise a short while later. This setup is fairly

new with HAL .do not have to tie up large amounts for cruise deposit.

Booked : Amsterdam, DEc.11-21,2007 :D looking forward! CRL

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Steamboatin

Steamboatin

Posted
Posted
Steamboatin,

It sounds like your agency is subsidising your down payment by paying part of it when you book. Makes me wonder about their pricing.....are their prices higher to cover this?

 

Can't believe that HAL would waive a big chunk of a deposit for that one agency. The agency is covering it somehow.

 

That "one" agency is an association that is over 100 years old and has over 50 million members.

 

Now that is no ordinary "one" agency.

 

The TA's pricing is competitive.

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Jade13

Jade13

Posted
Posted

Tinknock50, thanks for the tip! (as well as the note that you enjoy my posts).

 

Steamboatin, are you in the US? Are you saying that you give your TA $25pp and you get a reserved cabin and do not have to pay the entire amount until 60 days (or whenever the final mpayment is due)?

 

Do you take out insurance and if so, with whom?

 

Sorry, I ask a lot of questions about insurance. Somehow we went to the Galapagos in 2005, had the Master Suite, only one of two with a balcony and did not get insurance. We booked directly through Metropolitan Touring who owns the Santa Cruz. We are still working and knew that our health insurance, a PPO, was good overseas. We took a risk, but interestingly the deposit was refundable until something like 30 days before the cruise date.

 

Last year we used Hals Platinum, which was cheap in Alaska at 169pp covering our airfare as well.

 

I'm still trying to understand what those who do the $100pp guarantee, a good deal for any future cruise in 4 years do about insurance? The $100 isn't such a good deal if you have to pay $300-$500pp upfront with HAL for insurance because they have made it 100% clear on e-mail to me that if you make any change after initial booking, even the same itinerary two weeks later that insurance can not be moved and is forfit. Since we are young and our medical risk is low, have great PPO insurance anyway that can be used overseas, I'm more interested in the cancellation aspect of cruise insurance...(although now I see that it is foolish not to have medical evacuation).

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Jade13

Jade13

Posted
Posted

TinkNock50/others, I e-mailed the HAL TA this morning (from my home computer) and asked them directly what the deal is with the $100 deposit. I will let you know what I find out.

 

HAL told me directly that their pricing should be identical to an outside TA, the only difference some small incentive the outside TA adds such as $500pp onboard credit or dinner at the Pinnacle Grill. Note we used an Outsifde TA last year and received $100 onboard credit. It was not worth it and booked directky with HAL this year. I had to go through the TA for everything and it took them forever to get my answers. I finally found the Ship Coordinator (not on commission) and went through them directly with Ship questions, booking a refrigerator (since no Verandah was available), Pinnacle grill and Soda Card booking.

 

This year my teenage stepdaughter is coming along, and apparently under 18 is considered a child directly through HAL for third person pricing, just FYI. I like traveling with just the two of us, but I'm a nice stepmom so asked her where she wanted to go (Alaska did not interest her last year). :)

:)

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Tinknock50

Tinknock50

Posted
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TinkNock50/others, I e-mailed the HAL TA this morning (from my home computer) and asked them directly what the deal is with the $100 deposit. I will let you know what I find out.

 

HAL told me directly that their pricing should be identical to an outside TA, the only difference some small incentive the outside TA adds such as $500pp onboard credit or dinner at the Pinnacle Grill. Note we used an Outsifde TA last year and received $100 onboard credit. It was not worth it and booked directky with HAL this year. I had to go through the TA for everything and it took them forever to get my answers. I finally found the Ship Coordinator (not on commission) and went through them directly with Ship questions, booking a refrigerator (since no Verandah was available), Pinnacle grill and Soda Card booking.

 

This year my teenage stepdaughter is coming along, and apparently under 18 is considered a child directly through HAL for third person pricing, just FYI. I like traveling with just the two of us, but I'm a nice stepmom so asked her where she wanted to go (Alaska did not interest her last year). :)

:)

 

Jade,

I think you just need to find a good TA. Anytime I price HAL they are usually a couple hundred dollars more than the TAs I use. Not sure why HAL would tell you their pricing is the same. A good TA will keep after any questions or requests you have.

 

Going through the Ships Coordinater for some requests works no matter who you book with. I have had to do that for special diet requests for my Mom and what we needed was there waiting for us in the cabin.:)

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hammybee

hammybee

Posted
Posted
Hi Jade13

 

Yes we live in the good ole US of A.

 

The association is an American association.

 

Yes, we pay only a $25 per person deposit on any cruise. The balance due in full on that cruise line's normal last day for final payment.

 

cute

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pms4104

pms4104

Posted
Posted

Indeed the $100 deposit is totally nonrefundable ... but if you cancel the original cruise, you can apply that $100 to another booking within 4 years. After that, it's HAL's money/profit. The onboard consultant offers you the option to either go with the $100 or the traditional deposit.

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Jade13

Jade13

Posted
Posted

Steamboatin, OK, I used AAA last year and found no value (OK, we received $100 onboard credit) but the particular TA was no value, expecially since AAA does not allow their reps to have voice mail, so you can't get in touch with them.

 

This TA could "hold" the cabin for a few days but at that point we had to pay the 25 or 30% about 7 months prior to our cruise. This year I booked directly through HAL so I have a TA with a voice mail. I was told I would get any advertised discounts up until the day of departure. I am looking...

 

So, since now HAL (along with other lines) has these low deposits, I assume you can get trip insurance somewhere at the same time as the final payment? I have still not heard whether any companies offer the 90% cancellation for any reason up until the day before departure, because that really isn't insurance, it's cancellation offered by the cruise line. (The fear is that we wouldn't be able to travel because of a sick relative or the person who is supposed to take care of our pets suddenly backs out. Btw, we have reptiles so they are special care and no kennel option available.)

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