Haljo1935

Hope you're feeling better and appreciate the update. Your final experience aligns with mine, as well. Bottom line, I believe, is the rate is tied to Guest 1.

Hey @Denise T now that you're back and have had some time to think about the experience, would you return to AK and would you sail HAL again, whether to AK or not? Curious about your final assessment.

The App is a good idea, but execution is brutally sub-par. HAL IT needs to do better.

Yummy! We had an issue Nov/Dec with the Gelato Bar not being open during the day when it was supposed to be - multiple times. 😪 When it was open & we asked waffle cones, response was "I'm too busy to make them" - the poor guy was the only one working. Clearly the staffing shortages had not been resolved. Hope that's all history - love the Gelato Bar. 😋

Ugh - exact opposite of what I'm trying to do on vacation. I want to spend less time, not more, on my phone 😒 but if this is the solution, I'll do it.

Assume there's really no reason to get a cabana for TA or TP?

Slightly off topic but HIA related. Been trying unsuccessfully to add HIA to a "free" casino rate booking that we added Club Orange to. Multiple calls to HAL: A couple different people said it wasn't available so they couldn't do it. Two tried to add it but after putting me on hold to get Supervisor assistance, I was told they couldn't add it because it's not combinable w/the free casino rate. Any insights from those who've overcome this issue is appreciated. Thanks!!

Thanks for the info and screenshots. We did not receive chat message notifications unless we were actively in the app when the message came over. Eurodam May AK. I will try all this.

THANK YOU @Canadaclyde for sharing your experience and posting about it for others to read. Frequently, cruisers are so quick to post about all the things they think HAL has done wrong, but far too little about when they get it right. 😎

DH went salmon fishing our first AK cruise and was not allowed to keep anything as we were a week too early. He paid $259. Halibut excursions were higher. While he could have bought salmon cheaper, the only place he go go AK fishing is in AK. Having something cooked from that outing is a bonus.

Thanks so much for reaching out. My email is telizking at yahoo.com I would love to search the list, if you would kindly send my way. It won't let me book if it wasn't offered to me, but HAL can quickly look that up for me. Seems there was a Europe list that went out that I AM eligible for, but didn't receive. So, fingers crossed.

That looks encouraging! Although my itinerary is not one where this is being offered.

To clarify - when I said select "beverage option" I didn't mean a beverage package - I meant the phone menu option. The Beverage phone menu option gets you the person who handles HIA.

Similar situation - I'm Guest 1 of 3 on a free casino booking. We paid small fee to upgrade to verandah and added Club Orange so we could get a very nice verandah. We are still outside final payment, although we have paid in full; it is non-refundable because it's casino rate. I called twice to ask about removing myself from the booking - received the same info both times: Rate is tied to me - if I come off and neither of the other 2 passengers have received a casino offer for the sailing, their rate will change. Basically the rate is there because I'm there They checked for both of the other guests and that promo code was not valid for either of them, so no deal on them getting the rate w/o me. Options: 1) I (guest w/the free offer) stay on the booking and just no show - they get to cruise w/no change in rate. You don't tell HAL in advance you won't be there, you simply don't show up. 2) I come off and it gets refared to lowest rate showing under their Mariner numbers (that was $2808pp vs $499 - ouch!). I would receive port fees & taxes refunded. Whether or not Guest 1 (who rate is tied to) has insurance has no bearing - if their name gets removed, the rate is not honored. Definetly call HAL to get specifics for your booking, but I suspect it will be similar to mine. Please keep us posted and hope you feel better.

As @REOVA said vests are great and make layering easy. There's a MN based retailer who sells online and brick & mortar stores who have some nice ones.

Scents are also VERY noticeable in the elevators - I invariably get trapped at the back when passenger #25 steps in wearing Grandma's gardenia spray. No way to get off and I have a headache for next 2 days. That lingers a loooong time so you could step into an empty elevator and have an issue. Ugh...

I continue to receive emails from HAL reminding me to complete VeriFLY. I did for Nov San Diego Koningsdam Mex Riviera & Feb FLL Nieuw Amsterdam Caribbean cruises, but did not last month Seattle Eurodam AK. No issues last month without it.

Definitely better to cancel 1 of yours and do a separate one under the other name to avoid issues onboard. You could also call in and select the beverage option and see if they can correct it for you, less hassle. Love Alaska - envious 🤭 Safe travels - enjoy your cruise!

We very much enjoyed Fortess of the Bears and are ok w/the bears being in captivity vs the alternative of them being put down. They seem happy and living their best lives. We didn’t go last month as our Sitka stop was very short, last time we were there Fortress was doing some remodeling, which I assume is now finished.

Correct as OP said, the status change does get honored for Grand Voyages. So your friends experience was what we would expect to see. @AKJonesy this happened to me twice; the most recent last month on Eurodam moving up to 4* 3 days into 7 day sailing. Based on HALs published policy, I didn't expect to see the change (or benefits) until some time after we returned and didn't ask about "expediting" it. We noticed we were not charged for laundry, which would come w/4* status, even though we were still onboard and still showed 3*. Sidenote - Three weeks after the cruise ended, my profile still showed 3* but was immediately updated when I called the Mariner desk. I would say, HAL is very good about providing besides in class Passenger Services in some areas and not in others, so expect to follow published policy and be pleasantly surprised when an exception occurs. I absolutely would have booked as B2B since the cost was lower - why pay more for the same thing? Since your 2nd leg starts on day 1, I would go to Passenger Services and call Mariner desk just to proactively request the status update. Sounds like a great itinerary - safe travels, enjoy your cruise!

Thanks so much; I will certainly check out the blogs. I love the Crow's Nest going through Glacier Bay and wondered if it would be good for a TA or TP. 🤔

YES!! Laundry service is the best!! They do such a great job, even honoring special requests if you include a note.

Can't say it enough - stunning! Thanks again for sharing and allowing us to come along.

Hi @BtimmerPreparing for our first Trans Pacific (Yokohama->Seattle) and looking to pick up all the tips and insights possible to get the most out of it. Since you've done several, are you selecting an inside cabin due to the weather? We booked an aft portside verandah and are rethinking that decision based on comments regarding potential weather issues - maybe we should change to a true aft (potentially less impact from wind?) or go with an ocean view as there may likely be little opportunity to use the balcony. Thoughts? Good to hear you find the internet acceptable; I'll be working throughout the trip, so that's important. Any other info or tips you'd like to share is appreciated.

Your pictures are stunning!! Looks like you've been blessed with beautiful weather in addition to flowers and towel art!!