Responses from HAL Office

[Funsun60]

After booking our own cruise online with HAL, we had some additional inquiries and requests for changes. Used both email and phone for contact over the past couple of months. These are the results:

 

1. Requested change to category of stateroom: done immediately.

2. Having been automatically assigned to open dining, requested fixed early dining: done immediately.

3. Requested no upgrade at time of embarcation, i.e. want to keep our assigned cabin. Received confirmation via email immediately we would not have different cabin when we boarded.

4. Noticed the price for our cabin category had decreased by over a thousand dollars. Had adjustment made to our account immediately, and was told to keep watching as if prices dropped further, we should call back for further reduction.

5. Inquired about renewal of vows ceremony: very detailed response with suggestions and helpful information

 

All emails and phone contacts were handled professionally and with concern for client satisfaction. We are very pleased: if this is an indication of HAL services, I am sure we will be pleased with our ship experience.:)

[Typhoon1]

We have alway had timely and satisfactory responses to email inquiries sent to HAL.

[NoobCruise]

That sounds like great customer service :)

 

I would love to hear more about the vow renewal ceremony. Our next anniversary is 25th so I was kind of checking out the vow renewal.

[iancal]

We get the same great service (never asked about renewal of vows though) from our US based on line TA. The only difference is that she rebates anywhere from 8-12 percent of our fare, net of taxes, as on on board credit.

 

On average we save 10 percent, which is one free cruise in 10 for us.

 

I am certain that you will enjoy your HAL cruise.

[IRL_Joanie]

After booking our own cruise online with HAL, we had some additional inquiries and requests for changes. Used both email and phone for contact over the past couple of months. These are the results:

 

1. Requested change to category of stateroom: done immediately.

2. Having been automatically assigned to open dining, requested fixed early dining: done immediately.

3. Requested no upgrade at time of embarcation, i.e. want to keep our assigned cabin. Received confirmation via email immediately we would not have different cabin when we boarded.

4. Noticed the price for our cabin category had decreased by over a thousand dollars. Had adjustment made to our account immediately, and was told to keep watching as if prices dropped further, we should call back for further reduction.

5. Inquired about renewal of vows ceremony: very detailed response with suggestions and helpful information

 

All emails and phone contacts were handled professionally and with concern for client satisfaction. We are very pleased: if this is an indication of HAL services, I am sure we will be pleased with our ship experience.:)

 

Now you understand why I only use HAL PCC and book directly with HAL:)

 

Glad to hear your experience(s) are just like mine!!:)

 

Joanie

[Hawaiidan]

Great to see you had a great experience. However, you paid top dollar for it

 

Its like going to a car dealer who gives you good service and then paying full sticker price for the car because they did their job.

 

I personaly like the service I get at a price many times $1000+ dollars or more less that I get from the Holland call center:cool:...

[Funsun60]

Well, we watch our pennies quite well, and do not feel HAL has ripped us off on this cruise. As a matter of fact, we were going to take this cruise last year (booked through a discount travel agency), and had to cancel. This cruise is now costing us less than last year and the price we got through the discount agency last time was not significantly different from HAL prices on their site. And you are quite right...we will continue to frequent vendors that give us good customer service. We have walked away from many car lots due to the attitude of the sales person or the history of follow up service if there is a problem. Old adage..you get what you pay for often holds true.

[DFD1]

Funsun60... Good for you! Sounds like you have worked out a successful and satisfactory way of booking your cruise. That's what it's all about.

 

Hope you have a great time.

[DaveOKC]

That sounds like great customer service :)

 

I would love to hear more about the vow renewal ceremony. Our next anniversary is 25th so I was kind of checking out the vow renewal.

 

We did the Renewal of Vows ceremony last Oct. Found info on the HAL site under Weddings (scroll down). Cost was just over $100. Reserved through ships services before we left.

 

Onboard - a couple of days before the ceremony we received a notice as to the time and place (Crows Nest - time between the two dining times (early and late). The day of the ceremony we received flowers and a bottle of champaign (I think this is not normally included, but we were in a deluxe suite).

 

At the appointed time, we were a few minutes early and saw a roped off enterence to the Crows Nest, with a sign saying private party. Were greeted by the ship's party planner (a nice lady). We were seated and they brought us some champaign and snacks. I asked the party planner how many people were doing the event and she said we were the only couple! In fact, we were the only ones to sign up for this on the ship's entire summer/fall season (NE/Canada)!!

 

A few minutes later the Captain and his wife came in and sat with us, the five of us chatting for about 15 minutes (nice touch). Then we did the renewal ceremony and pictures were taken. Afterwards we all sat down again and had cake and more drinks, for about another 15 minutes. Captain and his wife then had to leave for dinner. We got to take the rest of the fairly large cake back to the cabin with us.

 

Two days later we received a nice album with a large photo (8 x 10) in it. Of course they let us buy a couple of more photos!

 

OK, now tell me if you think all of this, plus spending a good 30 minutes one on one with the Captain and his wife was worth the $100? I sure do. In fact, I am a bit surprised that HAL even offers such a great deal (perhaps that is why they do not promote it much).

 

Any questions?

 

DaveOKC

[mudscraper]

We did the Renewal of Vows ceremony last Oct. Found info on the HAL site under Weddings (scroll down). Cost was just over $100. Reserved through ships services before we left.

 

Onboard - a couple of days before the ceremony we received a notice as to the time and place (Crows Nest - time between the two dining times (early and late). The day of the ceremony we received flowers and a bottle of champaign (I think this is not normally included, but we were in a deluxe suite).

 

At the appointed time, we were a few minutes early and saw a roped off enterence to the Crows Nest, with a sign saying private party. Were greeted by the ship's party planner (a nice lady). We were seated and they brought us some champaign and snacks. I asked the party planner how many people were doing the event and she said we were the only couple! In fact, we were the only ones to sign up for this on the ship's entire summer/fall season (NE/Canada)!!

 

A few minutes later the Captain and his wife came in and sat with us, the five of us chatting for about 15 minutes (nice touch). Then we did the renewal ceremony and pictures were taken. Afterwards we all sat down again and had cake and more drinks, for about another 15 minutes. Captain and his wife then had to leave for dinner. We got to take the rest of the fairly large cake back to the cabin with us.

 

Two days later we received a nice album with a large photo (8 x 10) in it. Of course they let us buy a couple of more photos!

 

OK, now tell me if you think all of this, plus spending a good 30 minutes one on one with the Captain and his wife was worth the $100? I sure do. In fact, I am a bit surprised that HAL even offers such a great deal (perhaps that is why they do not promote it much).

 

Any questions?

 

DaveOKC

 

Weren`t you also given dinner for two in the Pinnacle Grill?

[sunviking90]

We have also had very good service and pricing booking from HAL. As Canadians sometimes the HAL pricing is much more favorable to us, but lately I've asked them to charge me in US$ and it works out cheaper.

 

For the vow renewal, does anyone know if it is possible to involve the on board priest?

[HamOp]

Well, we watch our pennies quite well, and do not feel HAL has ripped us off on this cruise. As a matter of fact, we were going to take this cruise last year (booked through a discount travel agency), and had to cancel. This cruise is now costing us less than last year and the price we got through the discount agency last time was not significantly different from HAL prices on their site. And you are quite right...we will continue to frequent vendors that give us good customer service. We have walked away from many car lots due to the attitude of the sales person or the history of follow up service if there is a problem. Old adage..you get what you pay for often holds true.

 

Well said.

[serendipity1499]

After booking our own cruise online with HAL, we had some additional inquiries and requests for changes. Used both email and phone for contact over the past couple of months. These are the results:

 

1. Requested change to category of stateroom: done immediately.

2. Having been automatically assigned to open dining, requested fixed early dining: done immediately.

3. Requested no upgrade at time of embarcation, i.e. want to keep our assigned cabin. Received confirmation via email immediately we would not have different cabin when we boarded.

4. Noticed the price for our cabin category had decreased by over a thousand dollars. Had adjustment made to our account immediately, and was told to keep watching as if prices dropped further, we should call back for further reduction.

5. Inquired about renewal of vows ceremony: very detailed response with suggestions and helpful information

 

All emails and phone contacts were handled professionally and with concern for client satisfaction. We are very pleased: if this is an indication of HAL services, I am sure we will be pleased with our ship experience.:)

 

OK We'll accept that HAL is efficient, but let me give you another scenerio..Our TA is not only efficient, but his prices are much less than HAL..

 

 

We've been on 21 cruises & prior to our 2006 to the Amazon, always booked with either the Cruise line Directly or a Group Wholesaler which had land tours..

 

For instance, In 2005 we booked an outside “F” cabin (mid-ship) on Dolphin Deck on HAL’s 25 day Amazon Cruise for April 2006 directly with HAL..

 

Thanks to Randy & Heather on this board, four months after booking, I checked a couple of on-line Travel Agents who advertised on Cruise Critic.. Discovered one who could give us $1078 (8.9%) off the HAL fare with a better “E” cabin (mid-ship) on Main Deck…With this Agent had to book via Internet only as he could not be contacted by phone, which I normally like to do..

 

When I called & asked to speak to a HAL Supervisor, he informed me that they could not compete with the fares of their high producing Agents..On his suggestion, we then Faxed HAL & had them release the booking to the Travel Agent to get the cheaper fare & better cabin…

 

I'm retired from International Airline Sales & was chagrined to learn that I had been a complete dummy.. :oShould have realized that we had the same way of doing business in the Airline Industry..

 

In Nov. 2006 we booked a last minute 14 day on the Ryndam with our Agent & his fare again was 9.9% less than HAL’s fare…This time he put us into his group allotment & in addition gave us the Pinnacle Grill ($30 pp extra) plus wine & two massages…

 

On our Oceania 26 day Cruise to the Amazon in Nov. 2007, we received a better rate with another Agent than Oceania could give us...This Agent gave us an additional $150 OBC & a wine package…

 

Since then we've booked several more cruises, all with large discounts over the HAL fare..I always price the booking on HAL first..

 

Just yesterday booked the Prinsendam to South Amer & Antarctica..I priced the cruise on HAL & then called our Agent, who was able to get us into one of his groups for a $4900 savings..That is equal to $72 dollars a day that we can spend elsewhere.. In addition the TA is giving us a free tour in one of our ports, providing a concierge on board for the group use only, & also gave us a big discount on our the TravelEX insurance.. We're saving over $5,000 by booking with this Agent plus we're still getting the early booking amenities from HAL in the form of a large OBC , luggage pickup etc..:D:D

 

BTW, when I e-mail our Agt. for any reason he always phones me back within the hour & then follows it up with an e-mail..We can't beat that & it would be foolish for us to go back to booking directly with a HAL PCC..

 

You can't go by TA's on-line fares any more as they are no longer permitted to under cut HAL by advertising lower fares..You have to talk directly to them & have it priced out.. I'll guarantee you will save from 8 to 12% on your cruises..

 

cheers...:)Betty

 

PS..Have no idea why some posts chage from blue to black or vv.

[DaveOKC]

Weren`t you also given dinner for two in the Pinnacle Grill?

 

Thanks for reminding me - add a great meal for two at the Pinnacle to the value equation!

 

DaveOKC

[iancal]

Betty...you ae absolutely correct. When you price with an internet based TA the price will invariably reflect HAL's price or be within a percent.

 

You get the discount by calling and asking for it or getting a private quote.

[PathfinderEss]

After booking our own cruise online with HAL, we had some additional inquiries and requests for changes. Used both email and phone for contact over the past couple of months. These are the results:

 

1. Requested change to category of stateroom: done immediately.

2. Having been automatically assigned to open dining, requested fixed early dining: done immediately.

3. Requested no upgrade at time of embarcation, i.e. want to keep our assigned cabin. Received confirmation via email immediately we would not have different cabin when we boarded.

4. Noticed the price for our cabin category had decreased by over a thousand dollars. Had adjustment made to our account immediately, and was told to keep watching as if prices dropped further, we should call back for further reduction.

5. Inquired about renewal of vows ceremony: very detailed response with suggestions and helpful information

 

All emails and phone contacts were handled professionally and with concern for client satisfaction. We are very pleased: if this is an indication of HAL services, I am sure we will be pleased with our ship experience.:)

I'm glad to hear that you got such great service from Hal for whatever the reason. Good for you, and good for Hal.

[kjw869]

We get the same great service (never asked about renewal of vows though) from our US based on line TA. The only difference is that she rebates anywhere from 8-12 percent of our fare, net of taxes, as on on board credit.

 

On average we save 10 percent, which is one free cruise in 10 for us.

 

I am certain that you will enjoy your HAL cruise.

 

 

Same here. We get an average of a 14% discount off HAL's net stateroom prices, or "barebones" as our large online TA calls it. She also gives a small OBC $50 in addition, and has secured the dining tables we requested (#88 or #24) in our last four cruises on the Vista ships, secured $175 OBC from HAL on our upcoming cruise, which I had no idea about until I got our confirmation.

 

We have called HAL the last two times to match the price and they couldn't. We were told to grab that price by the HAL rep.

 

HAL has always been helpful when we call or email for information.The Mariner Society representatives bend backwards to help.

[erewhon]

Funsun60,

 

It is pleasing to read that you experienced good service when dealing with HAL office.

 

Have a fabulous cruise.

[kazu]

Well, we watch our pennies quite well, and do not feel HAL has ripped us off on this cruise. As a matter of fact, we were going to take this cruise last year (booked through a discount travel agency), and had to cancel. This cruise is now costing us less than last year and the price we got through the discount agency last time was not significantly different from HAL prices on their site. And you are quite right...we will continue to frequent vendors that give us good customer service. We have walked away from many car lots due to the attitude of the sales person or the history of follow up service if there is a problem. Old adage..you get what you pay for often holds true.

 

well said:) I noticed earlier on the HAL website that some of the cruises are cheaper in CDN $ than with the US discount TA's. Might be the timing of when HAL hedged it's Cdn $ but no question that it may have been in the op's best interest to pay in Cdn $ this time:) and even with the discount offered by TA's - still could be cheaper:)

 

Have to remember that the op is Canadian:D and that exchange rates play a role in our pricing when comparing US and Cdn $. I still use my TA whom I LOVE but no question it may have been just a few pennies max that the op would have saved based on some pricing I have seen.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you OP for letting us know that you had excellent responses each time you contacted Seattle.

[sapper1]

Well, we watch our pennies quite well, and do not feel HAL has ripped us off on this cruise. As a matter of fact, we were going to take this cruise last year (booked through a discount travel agency), and had to cancel. This cruise is now costing us less than last year and the price we got through the discount agency last time was not significantly different from HAL prices on their site. And you are quite right...we will continue to frequent vendors that give us good customer service. We have walked away from many car lots due to the attitude of the sales person or the history of follow up service if there is a problem. Old adage..you get what you pay for often holds true.

The bottom line is if you are happy with your deal than that is all that matters. What does it matter if someone you will never meet likes to deal with onlline discount agencies?

 

We use a bricks and mortar agency and I am more than sure we could lower our price by going online. However, we like the face to face contact and the fact that our agent looks after us very well. In an emergency we know that we can get in touch with her quickly and things will be taken care of. She also knows our preferences and can often make decisions based on that.

It all goes back to your comment about getting what you pay for.

[Funsun60]

I posted my thoughts because some previous posters in other threads had indicated disatisfaction with the service they received through the HAL office and I wanted to share my experiences that showed we had great customer service. I was not discussing price comparisons. I presume all of us book/plan our trips according to what works best for us, including cost and our individual budget. Thanks to everyone who have added their own opionions and suggestions and I hope you all have wonderful future cruising experiences.

[kakalina]

Funsun60: You have explained very well exactly why we prefer to book with our PCC and have for 10 years. You can't beat good service. If something goes wrong I want HAL to deal with it directly not through a 3rd party. It is a personal preferance.

[SJSULIBRARIAN]

Sometimes I deal with a brick and mortar travel agent out of loyalty to the university I went to, and sometimes I deal directly with HAL. With the travel agency, I have never gotten a better price unless it was part of a group. No flames here, but service is more important to me than price. And I have gotten great service both with the travel agent and with HAL To each his own.

[iancal]

We live in Canada and we always get cruise quotes in CAD and USD.

 

We find that differences occur mainly when there are sudden and relatively large shifts in the value of either currency within a short period of times.

 

The cruise lines do not seem to 'float' their pricing but instead adjust it forward every 3-6 months.

 

We have only had one cruise where the CAD pricing in Canada was actually less than the USD pricing in Canada or the USD pricing from our on line agent That was about three years ago when the USD was depreciating in value quite rapidly in comparison to CAD.