smgardner

I guess I am in the minority with my thoughts on this. They cancelled my cruise over one month ago, I have yet to receive a refund. This process should be much more rapid than this. They initiated the cancellation. Nobody should have to wait one, two or three months to get their money back. It is 2020, technology is in place to make processes like this quicker. I really dont think they are doing all that they can to expedite these refunds, and they should be. 

Dont think I want to cruise with them any more. 

If I did not hear or see the CD on any of my cruises, I would be just fine. To me, they are of no importance at all. 

23 hours ago, 216Cruiser said:

I did. I had the wife order one to dump into my drink to make it the way it should be. And then it was. 

I had her do it several times. A few of those, I would just take the shot and then carry on with my watered down version. 

I clearly said nobody is going to change my opinion lol, it was a fair warning. If you don't believe so, thats ok. I know what I know. 

No, you didn’t. Order a straight shot and drink it. Is it watered down or not? Having 6our wife dump it into a drink is not a true way to tell. If you are going to make a claim like this, which is pretty serious, don’t dilute the drink with soda pop or have your wife dump it Ning another drink. That’s goofy. You are already diluting it and stating that you know that they are. Try it straight if you want to make reckless claims like that. That’s the only way to tell, not by pouring into a Coke and comparing it to your favorite bar. 

Think we might do one of these trips this fall. We have not cruised for a couple years. Curious why this cruised is only in Sept and October. I understand the ship is being refurbished prior to this fall. I’m off to read some reviews, but I’d love feedback from any that have been on this cruise. 

We stopped at a very little stand on the dock. I had the best clam chowder I have ever had...by far. I had had hundreds of bowls, this stuff just rocked. People on the dok will point you to him.

I find the website cumbersome, I am not a fan. I use Chrome, the site just seems hard to get around on, kind of like a 1990s website. I make it work, just does not seem user friendly.

You couldn't just use another credit card? I always travel with several, since some of my international travels have had unexpected "blocks"

No, I couldnt.

Are you saying those that were with the cruiseline made the flight and those that weren't did not? Or, are you saying it tied up your funds?

I am saying it tied up my funds and took longer to resolve. Had I booked through the ship, I could go to front desk and resolve. That could not be done in this case as I booked independently. When I was weighing whether to book through ship or independently, I had not considered this as a possibility.

This would certainly be a downer. You post is a good reminder to have back up plans ready.

If I book through the cruiseline, the problem is easily corrected. By booking directly through Coastal, it took days to fix their screwup. That decision by me, as well as their carelessness, screwed up our once in a lifetime trip.

We were broken hearted as our trip to the dog sledding camp and the extra stop on the glacier was cancelled. We booked through Coastal. We watched the safety video, put all of the gear on, had our seats assigned and then they cancelled us. That entire episode ate up a good amount of time in port. It did not really matter as they then debited my account $1160 for a second time by mistake. So, we had little funds or time left to do anything. I spent three days on the ship trying to get it fixed, using a bunch of expensive cell time and not having much cash left to do anything else. They really screwed our trip up, not by cancelling but by having somebody carelessly working the accounts. Next time, I will not book independently. I learned an awful lesson.

I just got off of the Westerdam Saturday. We docked in Sitka, immediately got on a shuttle and were taken to downtown. I think Sitka was my favorite port. As with anything, your opinions may be different. It was not commercialized like the other ports were. We did the sea otter excursion and saw a good amount of wildlife. At the end of the excursion, the boat took us back to the Westerdam, a bonus we had not planned on.

We were set to go up with Coastal one week ago today. We watched the training video, stood in line for the helicopter and they cancelled us at the last minute. I was happy that they were looking out for our safety. I kind of wish that we were not taken all the way to that point to have them cancel us, but these things happen. What they did screw up was after all of this, they made an error and charged my debit card instead of refunding me. This put a hold on vacation funds to the tune of $1160. We are not rich folk and this was a great inconvenience and we can not get that time back. Yes, it is only a mistake but it is entirely preventable by being a bit more careful. For this reason, I would not use them again.

It got fixed, but it screwed up our excursion budget. If I book through the ship, this does not happen. In essence, they cancelled our trip and charged us twice. I won't be going back to them.

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Well, our trip was cancelled due to weather. We were ready to get on the helicopter. We were really broken hearted, but grateful that Coastal looked out for our safety. Adding insult to injury, Coastal made a mistake when processing our refund. They charged my debit card the full amount again. So, a bunch of our funds are tied up now. Probably just a fluke, but I won't book outside of the ship again.

There are several options....You can book through your ship, or you can book independently with Coastal, that does not work with the ships. The flight up to the glaciers is spectacular...the dogs are wonderful. I personally fly with Coastal Helicopters. You can google them and see what they offer. They are an experienced careful crew and the person who heads the dog operation is Sebastian Schnuelle who has won the Yukon Quest. All of his crew are experienced mushers, and not someone they just hired from the high school for the summer....You can look up Sebastian on FB.....The name of his kennel is Blue Kennel. My dogs have been on the glaciers, and he is the only person I would let use my dogs. I think it is a great outfit....All of the operators of all of the glacier sled dog tours all go about the same distance, there is not much difference,......I just prefer that one. it is in Juneau..all of them are the most cancelled tour there is....except maybe for Misty fjords flights...

I booked with Coastal and we are going this coming Monday, Memorial Day. Thanks for the info you just posted about Sebastian Schnuelle. I was unaware of this, really cool info. This trip offered a second glacier landing to get out and walk around on the glacier. Heck yeah, go for the gusto. I booked it independently from the cruise line. Really looking forward to it!

This is great! I am on this cruise this coming Saturday, looks like lots of fun stuff.

I have found the HAL site to be awful. Just to navigate around in, add shipboard credit, lok at your upcoming bookings, etc. It may be one of the more unfriendly sites I have done business on.

Hi Guys- Our trip to Alaska is right around the corner. I have a few questions, hoping and thanking you in advance for any help you may provide.

1) Are there a lot of mosquitos? A buddy that lived there told me to be prepared for these.

2) I have read a good amount of HA dress apparel threads. Is Alaska a bit more relaxed? We are taking a lot of comfort clothing, layers, etc. I was really not wanting to haul a suit coat and dress clothes for two dinners, just a bit cramped for room. On that note, I also do not want to be the guy in the dining room that is under dressed. Just wondering if casual is a bit more accepted as it is Alaska.

3) Boat communications- We are traveling with two other couples. I have read the internet service is pretty bad on the Westerdam. I doubt that cell service will work( TMobile, Sprint). Was curious about the most effective means of communications between folks. Shoot, even if my wife wants to know where the heck I am....any good suggestions?

I called HAL about this today. We are doing a seven day to Alaska in a couple of weeks. I have about $500 in credit that I purchased. I wanted to buy another $500 for a total of $1000 in purchased credit. I still have to register a card. If choosing the cash option, they still want a cash deposit, over and above the OBC. I had thought I was getting that out of The way by purchasing OBC. Apparently, I wasnt.

What are folks seeing on trips to Alaska? We have a ton of clothing to take and I am really struggling with taking a jacket, dress shoes, etc for a couple of nights in the dining room. My wife feels the same way with gowns. I do not want to be the couple in the dining room that is sans suitcoat and catching Hell from diners like the fellow I quoted in the post above. If we are way out of place, we will forego the dining room on those nights. I do not want to spoil anybodys experience. I was just wondering if Alaska cruises are a bit more relaxed in terms of dining room apparel.

We are cruising Alaska at the end of the month on HA. We have done some cruising in the past, I have always taken a black suit, white shirt and black tie. I think we will opt out on this cruise. I just do not want to pack all of that, iron it, etc. It is a lot of hassle and we have done all of that. This might mean that we forego the dining room on that night and eat at the Lido. While I do not want to take all of that stuff, I also do not want to be that guy that upsets others because I am not wearing a suit. I respect the dress codes, just not worth my while to pack all of that.

We are doing the helicopter/ dog sledding excursion on Memorial Day in Juneau. I am torn on booking through Holland or directly with Coastal. Holland is $580/perso, Coastal is $510. Or, Coastal will do a second stop or $580. So, you get a bit more bang for the buck. It is a different glacier, not Mendenhall. Not certain that matters any. Booking directly with cruise ship provides a bit of security I guess...not certain which route to go.

Are the rates per cabin or per person?

Any idea how it will be on an Alaskan cruise? We are on te Westerdan in Alaska in June. I wont spend much time with it, but I have a few things I will need to do.n

We booked through an agent. So, if I go in and buy credit right now it will not reflect on their website?