SeaSickCecil

Just wanted to add my thanks to the moderators for running a fun, informative and engaging site to exchange info on what has turned out to be my favorite form of vacation. I found CC after my first 'adult' (meaning it wasn't put together by my father or my in law) cruise and was looking for info to enhance my next cruise. The willingness of people to answer questions even if they've been asked and answered 3000 times before and even the cheerleaders and naysayers all make for engaging interaction here. And let me add to the Facebook blow back...I joined a ship specific group to ask questions because it was a newer ship and I hadn't sailed on it and wanted some 'insider' info. Had to be vetted and approved before being 'accepted'...asked one question and mentioned that I had heard this info on CC, was it true...and was banned. Mods said I could 're-apply' in 3 days. I decided then that they were not welcoming and didn't want anyone who might question their 'expertise'. Never went back, not even to lurk. So thank you Cruise Critic and all who make this a place I come back to day after day.

Thanks Kazu (another trusted voice). But I'm with the folks complaining on the other earlier thread (I have a bad habit of not reading down too far) who wonder why HAL makes it so complicated when other lines let you use it as soon as you've booked. But I choose HAL so their ship/their rules. And darajeff...thanks for the confirmation. I don't do HIA so my OBC goes to tips and wifi first and the rest goes to shore excursions since I also like to book private tours. I love that HAL has one of the most active, informative and friendly boards here on CC. You all have made my cruising life so much easier.

I knew I could count on you crystalspin. You are the Wikipedia of HAL info LOL. That makes my stress levels go way down.

I think the title says it all. Yes Sea Sick Cecil is back with another stupid question. I thank you all for your patience with me. For once I have a lot of OBC to use for shore excursions; but I'm seeing that 9 months out they are selling out quickly. I think I remember in the 'before' times, that one could book/pay for the SE prior to boarding and then go to the SE desk cancel, get refunded and then repurchase using the OBC. Is this still possible? Many thanks to all who respond.

Hi travel09, I'll answer your specific question since no one else did "Do they still offer interesting things on board,[a number of sea days] Cooking classes etc,and in general are things fine.?" No more cooking classes, no more America's test kitchen cooking shows (and I really miss those, so much fun and sometimes yummy tastes). On our recent Kdam cruise activities were coloring for adults and other crafty things, lots of trivia (we do like that) and not much else. No guest lecturers talking about the ports or history of the places we were visiting. A couple of scripted info shows where the not a real CD read from the teleprompter and had no independent knowledge of the material and movies in the main theater (Barbie, which was cute). Still love HAL because I'm fine with sitting and doing nothing but watching the ocean go by, but do miss some of the more 'enriching' experiences which apparently they now only have on the extended super voyages (or whatever they're calling them...plus 35 days.) I'm sure someone else will chime in from their own experiences.

I'll help you out. IT'S A SCAM! I refer you to the top Google search from Talk of the Villages January 2023 ( retirement residences in Florida) where the exact same question was posted (was that you as well?) and responses were provided from people who had called the number, friends of theirs who had called/gone to the event etc. It is a travel club and/or timeshare. You will get no bargains out of it. The 'free' tickets come with many many conditions including extra fees. I would also suggest you go to Elliott.org or Christopher Elliott's social media pages where he has many articles on travel scams and timeshare scams. If you're still thinking about this then the adage 'a fool and his money are soon parted' comes to mind. Throw this flyer in the trash...do not pass go, do not collect anything.... You're welcome.

Hey fellswoop...I think HAL is just trying to drive us all mad. I have printed out the general protocol list (the one where you don't put in your voyage info) and have also taken a screen shot, and just put in the voyage # and it came back standard and with the PRIOR 'update' date of October showing standard. I didn't put in my booking number. So I think HAL's IT department needs some work. But armed with 3 different places with the same info, I'm going with 'no test needed'. But I'll bring one, just in case...... and just think of all the cruisers who aren't on CC and aren't worrying about this LOL

Good morning seaver...I just checked the HAL website and the protocols for our 17 day adventure and YIPPEE, it now says 'Standard' no testing required" I printed out the grid, but don't know how to paste it in here. I agree that it didn't make any sense before. Only a little more than a week and I'm looking forward to meeting all of you. Rachel

Thanks mpajra, but that is the cruise before ours which I believe is only 7 days and goes to Mexico. Cate54 , I and others are on the 17 day Hawaii cruise and the test is still required. This may be a requirement for Hawaii. Mexico was never as strict as Hawaii was on Covid restrictions. Have a wonderful cruise.

I’m with you. I hate having to have my phone with me everywhere, make sure it is charged and make sure I know how to access the app. My May cruise my phone stopped working as I got on the ship. No access to my shore ex tickets and limited access to on board activities. I really cruise to put my phone in the safe and relax. Paper tickets and where/when’s mean I can keep track and take pix for my travel diary.

As a long time HAL cruiser with one Carnival cruise to compare, I would say DO NOT try HAL. You will be bored silly and will complain. There is no nightlife to speak of, no shows, on deck activities run to sitting in the sun around the pool and enjoying the quiet. I liked my one Carnival cruise and my DH had a blast playing mini golf and doing the waterslides and sky bike...there's nothing at all like that on HAL. But we have been sailing HAL since I was in my 50's and love the 'old world' ambiance and the fact that a cruise ship is not a floating amusement park. I cruise HAL to enjoy the ocean and some quiet time away from work and being treated so well by the amazing crew. And i don't understand your statement of 'no tipping'...all the cruise lines these days have some type of tipping for the staff whether you pay for it upfront in the cruise fare or on a daily basis. Perhaps this was during the days of cash tips in envelopes and you stiffed the staff? I would say stick with Carnival or perhaps try NCL....HAL is, based on your post, not going to be the cruise line for you.

You can get a free 10 minute chair massage on the pool deck. Other than that, I can't think of any benefit at all. Most of those clinics are just the staff talking at you toting the benefits of whatever it is they're selling, no free samples, no discount on the service. On embarkation day you can take the tour and get a walk through of the spa and the relaxation room and get the same sales talk.

First cruise I was 18 or 19 and went with my parents and little sister. Dad had been a Navy Lt and missed the ocean. Mom got seasick looking at pictures of ships/boats. 3 day LA-Ensenda on Princess. As you can imagine this was NOT the cruise that made my mom a cruise fanatic, but it made me one.

Good suggestions on the internet as well. We don’t really use our tablets for much other than email and reading the paper so the Surf package has been stable enough. Oh, and uploading pix to Facebook to make all our friends jealous 😉

Another good idea AFNavigator. I used to bring on 2 bottles in the olden days. I have lots of time to decide, we don’t cruise until 2023. Just in a little pre-planning overdrive. Fair winds and calm seas to you all and thanks for the help.

I have fairly pedestrian tastes so not worried that I won’t be able to find something I would like. 😀 but do think waiting makes sense. A new adventure awaits me on this cruise. And if I decide not to drink at all, that’s fine too. Just have to have my fancy coffee in the morning and everything is fine.

Thanks Crystalspin....I'll have to spend more time on the HAL website or maybe I'll just wait until I'm on board. I remember the bars would have the packages and prices listed. And the beverage teams would walk around in the Lido trying to sell them as well. And Bruce and Denise, I was joking. But it's still good to know. You three are always so wonderful about answering questions for everybody and so knowledgeable. I feel very lucky that you answered mine. Rachel 🚢

thank you all for the info and replies. Some good reminders about the sales tax, although we're doing the Hawaii cruise out of San Diego, but I know California has never missed a chance to collect a tax LOL. A 4 bottle package is way too much for me to drink unless I can take the unopened bottles off the ship with me. Does anyone know if that can be done? We're not flying home, so taking liquids isn't a packing/TSA problem. This is only our 2nd cruise since Covid, so I'm a bit rusty....

So to add HIA is almost $2K for our upcoming cruise. Since my DH doesn't drink and I only drink one or two drinks a day (if that much) and we don't see any shore excursions we need/want to take, just made 4 star so get discounts on specialty coffee (me only) and at the fancy restaurants, it doesn't seem worth it. So I thought I would try to buy the Surf Internet package and the 3 bottle Navigator wine package. But looking at things you can buy they don't offer any wine bottle packages and only the premium internet package. They are really pushing the HIA. Has anyone tried to purchase the surf internet and bottles of wine at a discount pre-boarding? Am I just looking in the wrong place on their website? Any help appreciated. Rachel

Correct. Also since we fly home from US (Anchorage) no Covid test needed. Seems like the easiest route. And we actually see more since we don’t turn around on the 3rd sea day.

Hi Everybody. Typing to you from 8017 on Nieuw Amsterdam. Check in was quick and easy. You do not need ArriveCan docs to check in if you are starting your cruise in Vancouver. You go through US Customs and Immigration before you board the ship. Covid test done Friday afternoon at Canada Place location was perfect. Started check in at 11:45. Our boarding time was 1pm. No one cared. Got lunch in the dining room and ready to go enjoy sail away. thanks to everyone for sharing your knowledge. Calm seas and following winds. rachel

Hi. Just an fyi you don’t need a Covid test to enter Canada. Currently you need it to board the ship. Your test doesn’t get added to ArriveCan. And be warned…we flew in this past Friday and immigration took 90 minutes to clear. In August it may take longer. Pack your patience. Have a great trip.

DH and I tested there this afternoon after arriving in Vancouver. I made the appointments the night before for 5 pm. We got there early 4:30 and no one else was there and we were done in 10 minutes total. We walked around Canada Place since we weren’t in a hurry and came back 30 minutes later and they gave us printouts of our test results. Friendly fast and efficient. Would definitely recommend.

Thanks. You said there is no prize for winning the trivia. Is there any prize for any of the events? For example, if you win the ping pong tournament? Well having never won a ping pong tournament I can't say. Let me say that over the years the prizes for various activates went from great (umbrella with HAL logo, coffee mugs with the ship's letter) to fair (deck of cards, Microsoft vinyl tote bag) to who cares (ship pins of the various destinations HAL sails...I have a whole collection of those). Post Covid and with financial troubles and fewer passengers who knows if they will have prizes at all. You might get a small token. I'll have to win at trivia next week to find out 😊 The Lotto Jackpot is another gambling activity I'm guessing. Lotto is short for Lottery. You probably buy a ticket or many for a chance for your ticket to be drawn and win a prize. I don't take part in those things. My onboard time is better spent watching the waves or reading a book. If it's like a lot of Casino lotteries it is progressive, so the first draw wins $5, the 2nd draw wins $10 until everyone has bought a lot of tickets and there are very few left to win the big prize. I thought the daily activities used to have a $ next to those activities that cost actual money to participate in. Or the offer of free 'champagne' which is actually really horrible sparkling wine.

Hi again everybody. I did reply on Monday but that response seems to have disappeared. And I didn't have 'follow topic' turned on so missed much of this discussion. Once again I want to thank everyone for their help and comments. The screen shots of the process was especially helpful since I'm a visual learner. I will be filling out the air portion tonight or tomorrow (flying in Friday morning). Once that has been successful, I will see if I can update with the cruise portion on Saturday. If that works, I'll come back here and let you know what happened. You all have been so kind...it's why I'm glad I found CC ages ago. Rachel