Mary229

Interestingly if a port is dropped and not replaced prior to cruising I have never seen a refund. Then again, some cruise lines never refund

Whenever you file an insurance claim the insurance company pays you by check or direct deposit. They have no access to your credit card/gift card information.

I was on the Volendam. When we were moving along the river it was open.

I was on the 10th floor of that cruise. As you might imagine my speed was blazing fast. I videoed tai chi and had full Apple Music at will. Remote workers are well advised to grab those rooms in the future

Adding to @REOVA other factors are the port, time in port, docking versus tendering, which dock.

Check HAL prices as their pre hotel extra day price may be reasonable (of course it may not be😉). When I went that is how I handled it and stayed in the same room both nights. Of course calling before final payment date may be the most expedient method. I went in 2022 when tours weren’t filling up so my experience may not be comparable but as I recall it was a month or two before

HAL has a contract with flight ease a separate company who gave the money to the airline. Airlines usually will issue a flight credit. I think there is confusion from the OP. Regardless this is an insurance issue since all contracted service providers acted according to their own contracts. Perhaps @iamtrustworthy could weigh in on insurance related possibilities. We don’t know about the OP’s insurance but that discussion may save others a similar fate

I have only had positive experiences but I choose carefully and manage my own flights. Speaking with others who call and accept whatever the rep assigns appears to be a disaster. Do your homework

One has to watch flight ease often for best prices. The best deals get snapped up quickly. They refill the inventory weekly so watch for new flights often.

It was not available for purchase on my January cruise Regardless it will not be discounted

Second this. Without the app you will need to go down to the shore excursions desk and take notes on when and where to meet and to keep up with any changes. You can use your keycard to join the excursions but there will be no paper notice. I met a gentleman last week who kept missing his excursions and losing his money because of this if you have a tablet or laptop you can keep track and use your keycard as a pass

It rarely is available to buy onboard. You must buy it before you go. Recently the only special has been the early booking package which also includes gratuities That was if you bought a cruise as soon as they listed it. I am not sure that special is available anymore

I am sorry this happened but to make this simpler and more commonplace consider if the flight had been delayed due to weather causing a missed cruise - would that also be HAL’s fault?. No, that is an often cited reason for travel insurance not just by forum participants but by those who advertise insurance. You may have to explain this to your insurance provider in those terms and hope that your preexisting condition did not violate the terms of the insurance I assume someone with a health condition carries insurance

The answer seems simple - go in the afternoon. If lunch is the consideration: The coveted lunch is not always offered and many people go through all types of gyrations for single meal.

This comment was in continuation to the airplane discussion above

I called Chase and they indicated 40% was enough to cover, I do 50% to keep it safe.the line between purchasing gift cards and payment may be too convoluted to trust

I have and sometimes successfully

That would not be the cruise lines concern.

Flight ease should quit selling flights day of embarkation that are over 5 hours. It presents a false sense of security which does not truly exist. On a recent cruise we were forced to stay in a lousy port overnight and miss our next desirable port to wait until an international flight arrived. That was not a reasonable excuse for us not to sail and if flight ease had not sold such an ill timed flight we would not have been forced to miss our port

First, HAL avoids seas during adverse weather seasons. For example they don’t sail Northern Europe after October nor the Caribbean during Hurricane season. That reduces a lot of risk

I pay half of my fare on gift cards but I don’t pay until final payment. By final payment I am usually 100% committed and only an insurable event would cause me to cancel. So no I have no problem with using gift cards. refunds back to credit card only occur on ship if you end up with an outstanding credit on your onboard account

I always ask which rooms are available? I never take an unknown position. I take upsells quite often

In relation to this thread people try to put us back together always say “don’t you want to sit next to your husband” thinking they can shame me by social conventions. Nope, not going to happen. Likewise I don’t think the OP should be restricted by social convention either, if they want separate dining they should both be graciously seated according to their wishes. They both paid for a seat in the MDR

Years ago in a North Atlantic storm it was strongly recommended that we stay in our room. As I recall it was more about containing seasickness to the passengers’ own room. Quite often I have been told to leave the outside decks due to weather conditions

I know of no cruise line that requires an excursion. Many people will tour independently in this ports Just be sure to note the all aboard time and get back to the ship on time.