colbe

8 minutes ago, Cruisin'allovertheworld said:

Thank you both.

If you have your HAL booking number, phone the HAL Sydney office and ask whether they are able to help you. 1300 987322.

16 minutes ago, Kkniter said:

Rotterdam is not listed in August.

Rotterdam 8th August is listed. Is this your cruise?

https://www.lerwick-harbour.co.uk/sectors/cruise/2023

7 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Was this recent?  I haven't seen fruit , nor a request to get any since pre covid.  Thanks.

November/December 2022

19 minutes ago, seagarsmoker said:

We just stayed in a PS last week. No fresh fruit,  no stationary (let alone personalized), no HAL pen, but we did get fresh flowers.  

Did you request fruit? There was no problem on Noordam, room steward asked what fruit we wanted, how many and how often.

The rooms with a sofa bed have  ⚪ symbol in the PDF deck plans.

Enjoy your cruise.

3 minutes ago, Andona said:

Hi, First time cruiser here 🙂 We have the HIA package and I prebooked the Pinnacle Grill one night using our Specialty dining credit. I would like to cancel that booking and change to another night but want to be sure that the Dining credit will be refunded to me.

When I clicked on the "Cancel Dining" in my itinerary on the website it indicated that I would receive $0.00 credit ( which makes sense as I didn't pay anything ) however it doesn't say that my credit will be refunded?

So I thought I'd asked more experienced cruisers if I will get my credit back by cancelling online... or will I have to call them? ( I'm in Australia)

TIA

Andona

 

Call HAL Australia and ask. 1300 987322

1 minute ago, bikevegas said:

Never cruised on HAL before and wanted to know if you can get a table for two in the main dining room ? No,  we are not anti-social but sometimes just want a nice dinner with just the two of us. Thanks in advance for your reply!

Yes you can. Just ask at the front or ring and pre-book one. Often it will be a 4 top that they have removed 2 places from. You can also stipulate (at a 4 top) how you want to sit - across the table, or beside each other. Enjoy your cruise.

22 minutes ago, triiip42 said:

Hi @iflyrc5under feedback section......they say "E-mail us at navigator.support@HollandAmerica.com."

Where is the 'feedback' section? I have searched but can't find it. Thanks.

I am sure that one of the Round the World bloggers will be happy to answer this for you. It is 5am in Cape town right now so it will be a couple of hours before they start posting.

9 minutes ago, gregma60 said:

outstanding! thank you so much for the information! 

 

-gregma

No need to book. Just show up (same hours as for the MDR) and tell them your cabin number. Sometimes have to show your key card on the first morning. Enjoy.

4 minutes ago, LegalRN said:

What is HMC? I'm new to HAL. TIA!

 

 

Half Moon Cay. A private island port stop owned by Carnival.

1 hour ago, USN59-79 said:

Is the Rotterdam the only HAL ship where we might expect this annoyance?

Ray

On Noordam Nov Dec last year. Silent auctions and live auctions took up a large chunk of the bar and seating area. Saw passengers reserving seats for the auction with "reserved" signs.

schag001 have you been able to sort this out for your parents? Is there anything that I can do to help in Auckland?

28 minutes ago, Sir PMP said:

You'll be in the clink for 10 days, across from the potatoes..

.

1 hour ago, john2003 said:

Self tests are great if they meet the requirements but they aren’t for everyone. Someone has to be able to cope with the details, prior during and after. 

Supervised RAT tests can be requested at many of the pharmacies in Auckland. There is a 15min wait and then you receive an official report to show at boarding.

2 hours ago, mcrcruiser said:

Has any one here ever has a Holland America   cruise booked by the cruise line that was not wanted  ? 

 

 We were  interested is a 14 day  Alaska   cruise for May 2024 .So we phoned HAL & got a rep in Colorado on the phone .She came up with a handicap balcony cabin   but in the very front of the ship   on deck 6 of the Nieuw Amsterdam  .We told her that was a bad location & not for us . Well a day later we get a e-mail from HAL telling us this cruise was booked for us  .We returned that e-mail saying we never booked the cruise even though there was a booking number .Not a cheap cruise price 

 

This experience sends up  red flags   

 

 

 

That is just a curtesy hold for you. It will drop off when you don't pay the deposit.

33 minutes ago, NancyDrew1953 said:

Currently on the Noordam. We are missing two ports - Gisborne and Napier, but are scheduled into Wellington on the 21st as a replacement with the other day (the 22nd) currently being called a sea day. Yesterday the cruise director indicated that HAL is still working on finding a replacement for this additional sea day, but that they are not having much luck.

 

Our weather so far has been outstanding, and it has been an excellent cruise. You should have a great time.

 

Thank you for being so positive. Enjoy the rest of your cruise.

I have had a quick look at your itinerary. I would expect that Napier will be the only port that will be a definite change. Enjoy your cruise.

1 hour ago, erewhon said:

 

Thank you, is there a book exchange shelf?

Yes there is. It was very popular on the Aussie Circumnavigation in Nov-Dec. The shelves were stacked and packed tight on the last day!

On 1/11/2023 at 3:35 PM, VermeulT said:

Can anyone give me a rough guess on laundry prices for a 28 day cruise (I'll be doing Alaska Jun 2024)?

 

And if you have the info also - Thermo Suite pass?

 

 

Trying to get an idea on overall trip cost and my budget.

Not sure if you got an answer to the laundry price question. If you log on to your HAL account and go to "packages" for this cruise you will see that the laundry price is $196 for the full cruise. They also have the Thermal Suite prices there.

1 hour ago, Calypso54 said:

How do you prepay for laundry? I looked on Hal's site and could not find anything.

Log into your HAL account for your cruise. Click on 'Cruise Activities', then on 'Packages'. Scroll to 'Unlimited Laundry'. This however is the same price that you will pay if you sign up after you board.

8 minutes ago, colbe said:

Requirements may well change by the time they board. In November when we boarded Noordam only a self administered test was required. Check for a direct message from me. I will send you my email address so that you can contact me closer to the time if they still need help. Colleen

Hmm. Messenger is not available. I will 'follow' this post. If you need help with your parents in March post another message on this thread and I will see it. (We will be flying to Sydney in April to board this cruise as well).

8 minutes ago, schag001 said:

Hello Community,

 

our 80+ year old parents are boarding the Noordam in a few month to sail from New Zealand to Vancouver Canada.
One of the requirements to even board the ship is to still show a COVID Test no older than 24 hours at embarkation.

 

They are not very good with technology and so far HAL is just telling them to call their hotel (they are staying in Auckland 3 days prior boarding) and ask "Where is the closest COVID test station?".

Obviously we live in 2023 now and those test stations are far an between, unlike in 2021 or early 2022 when you were able to find this service anywhere.

Anyone here that lives in Auckland that can give us some pointers how to navigate around this to find them a test station?

Any tips are appreciated as we want to ensure this embarkation is as painless as possible.
They are 4 Star Mariners, so travelled a bit however this requirement gives them and us anxiety.

 

Thank you

PS: We are actually wondering how this will pan out if they for some reason test positive before the cruise.
Stuck in Auckland....bye bye ship....

 

Requirements may well change by the time they board. In November when we boarded Noordam only a self administered test was required. Check for a direct message from me. I will send you my email address so that you can contact me closer to the time if they still need help. Colleen