Jade13

I wouldn't cruise on Constellation again either, but I would not cruise Celebrity either.

When was your last cruise on Celebrity? Why are you here and which cruise line do you go on now?

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Thank you thinfool. Maybe the coverage without the cancellation part should be less expensive? I just wonder why this coverage was sold to us when we actually missed the deadline (prior to canc.fees started to accrue).

 

Who actually sells the plan to the customer: HAL or TA? That I would like to understand

Are you sure the date of purchase was after HAL’s final payment date? Many outside agents collect early so they do not miss a date.

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I tried the sparkling wine (champagne) and threw it down the sink, it was dreadful. And as for BLU well someone else has t old you to read up on other threads you might catch up with my comments about dreadful breakfasts and best evening meals, on M class, from MDR.

You can trade it in for something else which is exactly what I did on Summit in November/ December.

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It’s the passengers responsibility to find out what paperwork they need to travel. We got Brazilian visas one time just to cross the border from Argentina for a day tour.

What I don’t understand is why are they not flying to meet the ship. It’s a 30 day cruise and that is what they should be doing. They are not going to get any refund.

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I wouldn’t do it because you haven’t thought out the issue if one couple/person had to cancel for a medical or other emergency.

If you are going to do this consider HAL’s premium travel protection so you can all cancel for any reason and only lose 5-10% of your cruise fare plus the premium if someone needs to cancel last minute.

It’s too bad HAL doesn’t treat everyone like adults. Even on Celebrity one person in a cabin can purchase a drinks / alcohol package.

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Last year HAL started offering deals with non-refundable fares...which would get the booker a lower fare. NOT! What happens is that if and when HAL further reduces the fare (even well below what was booked with their non-refundable fare) they will not allow you to re-price the cruise. So what HAL has done is lock the customer into a higher fare. The only alternative is to cancel the booking, sacrifice the deposit, and then perhaps rebook (or maybe just forget it and look to a different cruise line).

 

 

 

So I will repeat my warning...do not make the mistake we made and get sucked into a non-refundable fare and think you are getting a good deal! You are likely getting screwed.....

 

 

 

Hank

So what are you going to do? Are you going to lose your deposit and just re-book? How much of a difference are we talking about?

Hank, with all of your travel I am surprised that none of your few favored travel agents that you say you always use explained the terms and conditions to you.

Also, until the past few years all of our HAL cruises (none in the Caribbean) have sold out, so I wouldn’t have expected a price decrease to happen.

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i got a great deal cruising on the Equinox Dec 2018. Hoping it’s not too good to be true. Perks included pre-paid gratuity’s, beverage package, $300 onboard credit, one night speciality dining and pre-cruise hotel stay. I know I can’t post the name of the company, but I checked around and no one could come close to this deal.

The question is what is the per diem (price per person per night)? What type of cabin?

You pay for those perks within the cruise price but deals are better than others. You also don’t say where you are cruising? The Caribbean usually has the best prices.

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Thanks for the review.

 

OP, next time try the Nieuw Amsterdam or Eurodam that are 1* above the Koningsdam less the Dutch Cafe.

What do you like better about those two ships? We have not been on NA, but really liked Koningsdam.

The only design feature I did not like is that the thalassotherapy pool takes up the entire space that would be the entrance to the lido deck on most ships with large doors off of the elevators. As I recall on Koningsdam you have to go around a narrow corridor off to the side to get to the pool deck.

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Pool Areas

 

Although there were not many kids on board, what kids there were pretty much took over the pools and hot tubs the entire time. The aft pool should be made adults only as many lines do to address this, especially since it is also the smoking area and packed with smokers. …

It used to be adults only

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I agree with all Hank said about Celebrity's Captains. They and their senior staff are all over the ship and very personable with the passengers.

Agree. We had Captain Kate on Summit in November and she was by far the friendliness Captain we have ever had. Most of the Celebrity Captains and senior staff are out and about interacting with passengers which we never find on HAL, and one did have a late night show. We didn’t even have a cruise critic party on our last Celebrity cruise but still met the Captain and senior officers at the past passenger party and they were greeting us every time we saw them on the ship. On our last HAL cruise on Koningsdam the senior staff could not wait to leave the CC get together in the Crows nest. They greeted people at the door and than left.

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Whenever we have booked an SS (similar to an SY, I think) we have gotten a decent upsell to Neptune, so you never know. I've never actually booked a Neptune, but have had one for almost all my cruises. I don't care for the PG breakfast perk, nor the Neptune Lounge, but the king size bed is nice.:)

Interesting. Can you tell us how many times you have paid for an up sell/ended up in a Neptune Suite? I remember when they used to sellout early. Maybe not any more but are you primarily cruising in the Caribbean?

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Nice comparison. We think the dining room food is overall better on HAL. On Celebrity you now need to pay for a higher class cabin for a smaller more private dining room and better quality food. However, if you order off of the everyday menu the food is the same on Celebrity.

We think Celebrity keeps their older ships in better condition than HAL. HAL tends to wait as long as possible for a dry dock to change anything. You were on the newest Celebrity ship. We find the entertainment much better on Celebrity and a more fun vibe.

As far as drinks, most people have a package but if you wait until after final payment to pay in the Caribbean, you typically get the best price but not extras such as the drinks package.

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https://www.hollandamerica.com/assets/eBrochures/destinations/Cuba_Affidavit__MP.pdf

Go to 2) and it seems quite clear to me. There are some 3rd party tours permitted (non HAL but they have very specific criteria.

 

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Yes! The website is quite clear. You can take a third party tour. You DO NOT need to take a HAL sponsored tour.

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There typically isn’t a choice. On our last cruise the invitation was for Elite and up, plus suites. It was once for the cruise, but that was on a 7 night.

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Be careful. We once went out of our way to get a passport stamp on an island in the Caribbean and sometime later got stopped by US immigration when leaving Ireland. The issue was that we had the entry stamp and not one exiting the country. We did eventually get through after explaining that we were on a cruise, and just wanted the stamp. But it made us think twice about just getting stamps to fill the passport.

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If you booked AFTER June 16, 2017, you MUST do a US sponsored tour (usually HAL). HAL makes you sign an affidavit that you will fulfill the requirements when you board the ship in FLL.

 

 

 

The documents say that ALL HAL passengers must fulfill this requirement.

That is not true. The information is right on the HAL website.

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You need to purchase refundable flights and they are generally more expensive.

Choice Air is just cruise air. Celebrity is acting as a travel agent and terms vary.

If you can use points I think that is your best option to cancel for any reason. Typically, depending on the airline or type of flight booked you may just have to pay to re- bank the points.

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I have to wonder if the population of anti-smartphone posters is a reflection of the HAL age demographics.

 

 

I had no idea there were still so many people without a smartphone until I saw this thread. I only know one person who does not have one, and that is my dad who is 88. Obviously those without them have no clue of the convenience they are missing. I couldn’t do without mine.

 

I don’t understand why some people seem to be so adamant about not embracing new technology or changing with the times. I see people still writing checks at the grocery store or to pay bills and just wonder why when there are much faster, easier options.

 

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My parents are in their 80’s and have them. They really like the technology and have learned how to send text messages.

 

 

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Neat idea. Very forward thinking.

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Camera and Go Pro

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Sorry, but every cruise line out there has the same rule. None, to my knowledge, allow only one person in a cabin to purchase an Alcoholic Drink Package.

 

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Celebrity does. My DH does not drink alcohol.

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Most dreadful breakfast I have ever been served even in a UK greasy spoon. It was appalling in content and appallingly slow, I preferred eating from the buffet than the rubbish they put before me in BLU on Constellation this last September. And as I said of the evening meals which were about par in BLU the best ones were from the MDR menu.

 

 

 

Book concierge, save money, eat in the speciality restaurants which far surpass BLU and the buffet was much better for my money, just wasted money on BLU that was all.

 

 

 

What planet are you on, one that prints money for you to waste in poor quality dressed up restaurants like BLU?

What do they serve in the MDR that is not available in BLU? What did you eat in BLU that was so terrible?

Also, what do you like about concierge class? If I was going to save money I would book a Verandah., not concierge. The cabins are the same size and you eat in the same MDR.

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Edge will and I understand it’s inaugural is scheduled this year.

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Not exactly true. Some TAs do not accept AMEX - for example, the well known Big Box based out of Seattle no longer accepts AMEX but they do make the payments directly with the line - obviously with other credit cards - and the charge shows up as made to the cruise line. This is one reason we book directly with the cruise line and wait until closer to final payment before moving the booking to the TA, so we can take advantage of offers like this.

I think I know who you are talking about based on other comments on this board. I would never use them for this reason but it does seem those who do are happy with the ( group?) rates.

I use AmX wherever I can, and about the only place I don’t is to pay my real estate taxes which I can do with another credit card.

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so our TA does not accept Amex.... any way around this? It appears I cant make a payment direct to holland?

That is a big red flag! Your agent should be charging your money directly to the cruise line.

Are they putting it in their bank account and paying the cruise line some other way? I would never ever use an outside agent that was not taking my credit card and paying the cruise line directly.

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