ferretktf

Not when you book but when you check-in you provide contact details. I have mentioned that this does not cover those who do not have International Roaming (or change Sim Cards in your example) so this is not perfect but it is the best that HAL (and all other Cruise Ships) can do really. And as I mentioned, I also think that those who believe "every single passenger each time they disembark should hand over full contact info for the day" are massively over-reacting. HAL reached all but 2 passengers using existing methods. That counts as a great success in my book.

I am on the ship and I am not astonished in the slightest. There was not a problem in Haifa. Haifa was not close to the conflict areas (and remained so). Haifa would have been safe that day but the Israeli Ministry (correctly) opted for "safety first" and effectively closed the country down for tourism at 10:30am.

Yes this was known (and commented on by our tour guide when we boarded the coach) but, as I said, there were no rockets in Haifa or the North, which was (correctly) considered safe. It was only when the Israeli ministry of tourism decided on a blanket countrywide notification at 10:30am that tours were then cancelled. This was not due to Haifa suddenly becoming “unsafe” but the Israelis trying to ensure full control of the situation as regards tourists.

Yes and No, after you have disembarked the ship do not know when you are returning, and you do not need to tell them… as long as you return by the time the ship is due to leave that port … in the case of Haifa that was 10:30pm the following night. You are free to leave and come back whenever you wish. However in the event of you disembarking in one port (e.g. Haifa) and re-embarking in a different one (e,g, Ashdod) then you need to let the ship know this so that they can get the passenger count correct for the first port. I suspect (but don’t know for certain) that the ship would ask for additional contact details in this event in case there were issues with the timings of the subsequent port.

The final two passengers would have had no knowledge that they were in an emergency situation. Haifa was completely “normal” and unless locals approached them and told them that elsewhere in the country there had been attacks they would have been oblivious to this.(and even if that had happened they still would probably not have considered that it warranted an immediate return to the ship, as these attacks were happening “elsewhere”)

Just to provide some clarity, as there is a degree of misinformation floating around. There were no rockets over Haifa or anywhere near Haifa, Nazareth or Galilee. Because of this there were no concern over tours departing the port. our tour guide told us that our Jerusalem trip two days later was in doubt due to the attack by Hamas in the South. This was just after we boarded the coach. He reassured us that where we were in Haifa was safe. the call to abandon tours and return to the ship did NOT come from the US State Department or HAL executives. It came from the Israeli Ministry of Tourism at 10.30 am. All registered tour guides were contacted throughout Israel and were told that all tourist tours had to cease immediately , with guests returned to their origins, be that Hotels, Cruise Ships or wherever. this was a blanket instruction to the whole country, so it included us in Haifa - which remained safe and a long way away from the nearest missile. there were NO fighter jets flying over the ship at any time, contrary to other stated reports. The ship left port some 10 hours later, after waiting for two passengers who travelled independently without a tour guide and, like perhaps the majority, did not have international roaming in Israel so could not be contacted by the Ship - who DID have the cellphone contact of EVERY passenger on board - its part of standard registration. There were also additional delays due to a medical emergency and the unavailability of a pilot. However, and I stress this, at no time was the ship under any threat whatsoever. Had it been then undoubtedly we would have left port sooner, with ground agents assigned to look after the final two passengers.

They are back on board.... But We now have a medical emergency and are waiting for ambulance to arrive before we can leave

Bon Voyage all

Is that an NCL rule/principle? As other lines operate more like @Monorail Driverstated

I had the same problem but eventually found the page where I could select just one person …keep persevering!!

Hi, you can add me to Nieuw Statendam - 1st Oct - 15 day Holy Land (Greece, Turkey, Israel) First time on HAL for us. Looking forward to the experience 🙂

also interested in this! Particularly if it also applies to table games (I dont play slots) - and if it is only applicable if you play above a certain limit (e.g. $25 per hand in blackjack) or whether it is open to all stake levels

Thanks but no, the HIA package is not worth it for us as we only light drinkers ... instead we will get the Coca-Cola package and utilise happy hours for the occasional alcoholic drink. .... Also the Excursion Credit is fairly worthless for us as most excursions are now sold out - we booked the voyage 7 weeks before departure so are having to arrange independent excursions

No email, and I don’t even know if the offer is a standard one (not having travelled HAL before) my cruise is in October and it’s in my planner as available to purchase at that price

Hi all - first HAL voyage coming up. I have been offered Premium Internet for 14 days at $207.99 - this seems a great discount on the $34.99 per day My question is - I don;t actually need the internet for the first 5 days ... will there be similar offers onboard where I can get 9 days for say $150 ... or is it that if I do not take the full package then the prices will be higher or even daily rate. Also, if I go for the package, will it be the same price if I buy it as soon as I board? Or is this $207.99 typically a special pre-cruise only price? I ask because I have OBC I'd like to use on it.

so just for clarity - drinks packages purchased before the cruise also count for bonus cruise days? The T&C's make it seem like it is onboard purchases only? Side question - my first HAL voyage. Is the Quench package same price onboard as if you buy in advance? Second question - we board late on day 1 - departure is 11pm - if i buy in advance that very short period is included as if it was a full day. Can i purchase onboard on day 2 for the rest of the 14 day voyage

No … all cabins in the same booking must have the same packages (obv applies to the adults only) to circumnavigate this would require 2 seperate bookings .. but then you have the challenge of proximity

Priority to get off the ship … you get on the next available tender (but on a cruise with a lot of gold+ members that might not actually be the very next one) no priority to get back on though … 90 minute queue for all apart from YC and MSC Tours on my last voyage

Royal Caribbean status would carry over to immediate GOLD status with MSCs match programme

yes, i think that's a combination of things 1: you are reliant on the Dealer or Pitboss correctly monitoring your table play and assigning spend/points accordingly 2: The house edge on slots is mahoosively larger than on tables, so they can afford to give (for example) 1 point per £/$ and you will still (on average) have lost around £/$3000 before getting your "free" cruise

I played table games - blackjack at £25 per hand. after 1 session I checked the points I had earned. at £25 level, I would have had to play 14 hours a day, every day of the cruise, in order to hit the 9999 points required to win a free cruise. can’t comment on the slots requirement but unless you are a high roller at the tables, playing £100-£200 hands, it is pretty much unachievable without spending your entire holiday trying to win another holiday!!

Unlikely. 4 times on virtuosa in 18 months and still same shows …. Different cast though

sorry, i may not have explained it clearly You could go in anytime after 6pm (first sitting) or anytime after 8pm (second sitting) but when you arrived at the desk they told you if they had any tables available. The later you arrived the less chance of getting a table. So it was "anytime dining" but with some constraints

True, but they still have two notional sittings (starting at these times) and we regular saw people being turned away if they arrived 'anytime' but there were no 'anytime' tables left

the two sittings last month were 6.30 and 8.30 (6pm and 8pm for the AUREA restaurant) when we left the ship they were preparing for 3 sittings the next cruise, which were 5.30, 7.30, 9.30 which set of sittings depends on how busy your cruise is. outside of these hours you have the buffet of course