New to Holland America? This is for you...AKA "HAL For Dummies"

[cruisincuzz]

7 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

The gratuity is on the package price.  $28.69 + is 15% = $32.99

Actually - and maybe someone can explain this to me - my credit card was charged a total of $57.38 for the two of us.  $28.69 x 2 = $57.38.  They did not charge a gratuity and I'm wondering if it will be charged once they "deliver" the package.  At any rate, my experience is that lying in the sun (hopefully) and being in salt water (hopefully) makes you very thirsty.  Since it also includes soda and bottled water (which I won't drink unless it's chilled), even if we only drink 2 alcoholic drinks each, I still think it's a fantastic deal.

[*Miss G*]

Well that’s fantastic!  I guess the gratuity is included in the cost. Have fun!

[puppycanducruise]

11 hours ago, cruisincuzz said:

Actually - and maybe someone can explain this to me - my credit card was charged a total of $57.38 for the two of us.  $28.69 x 2 = $57.38.  They did not charge a gratuity and I'm wondering if it will be charged once they "deliver" the package.  At any rate, my experience is that lying in the sun (hopefully) and being in salt water (hopefully) makes you very thirsty.  Since it also includes soda and bottled water (which I won't drink unless it's chilled), even if we only drink 2 alcoholic drinks each, I still think it's a fantastic deal.

I thought the fee was 24.95 per person, so if you add in the 15% gratuity it comes to 28.69.

Enjoy the day!

[cruisincuzz]

34 minutes ago, puppycanducruise said:

I thought the fee was 24.95 per person, so if you add in the 15% gratuity it comes to 28.69.

Enjoy the day!

That makes sense. Which makes it an even better deal!

[saltshell]

Received excursion refund today. Still waiting for cruise refund.

[drsel]

I do wish that Holland America would increase the entertainment provided on board to match its competitors like Royal Caribbean, princess celebrity, etc

[jonyboy]

True, but HAL does have the BB King lounge which we always visit

[TheChiefNL]

It's good as it is now! If you want more fun oan board got to Other cruise company's! We liked the entertainment on board the Nieuw Statendam. We would jump overboard if we would be in a cruise like you see in some documentarys where there is loud noise everywhere on the ship!

But everyone has his own taste!

Verstuurd vanaf mijn SM-N975F met Tapatalk

[drsel]

Is it true that Veendam and Maasdam are up for sale

[ski ww]

5 hours ago, drsel said:

Is it true that Veendam and Maasdam are up for sale

Where did you read that, or is it just a rumor? They are the last two S class ships & the oldest. I don't think any cruise line has spare cash laying around to buy ships, and I wouldn't be surprised if some go belly up before this is all over.

[drsel]

Where did you read that, or is it just a rumor? They are the last two S class ships & the oldest. I don't think any cruise line has spare cash laying around to buy ships, and I wouldn't be surprised if some go belly up before this is all over.

I got a video on WhatsApp which shows 40 cruise ships which are on sale, including Veendam and Maasdam

 

 

 

[kazu]

23 hours ago, drsel said:

I got a video on WhatsApp which shows 40 cruise ships which are on sale, including Veendam and Maasdam

 

 

 

 

They’ve been up for sale for some time, just as the Prinsendam was for years.

 

Anything is for sale if the price is right 😉 

[richstowe]

3 hours ago, kazu said:

 

They’ve been up for sale for some time, just as the Prinsendam was for years.

 

Anything is for sale if the price is right 😉 

.....and who is buying cruise ships these days ?

[Dunmore2]

We’ve mainly cruised Celebrity, but an itinerary from HAL caught our eye. Reading through this helpful thread has been great. Thank you for sharing your knowledge . I’m looking for a thread or a sticky where I can compare cabins. Ie not all veranda cabins look equal in size. Sometimes a location looks good, but in actual fact it’s noisy. Is there a place where this information is compiled?

[canadjineh]

On 1/24/2020 at 9:30 AM, drsel said:

So what exactly do you like on your various Holland America Cruises

Sent from my Lenovo K8 Note using Tapatalk
 

I think this is our favorite line now, thanks to the excellent music venues:  BB King's Blues Club, the fun and talented duos that do Billboard, and amaaaaazing Lincoln Centre Stage.  That was all we did on our HAL cruise, except for 'On Board for a Cause' 5km.  Went into the hot tub once, later at night when the rest of the pools were all closed for the evening. It wasn't very warm though, I'm pretty sure because they want you to buy the spa thermal waters package.  Looking for more trips on this line for Feb/Mar 2021 although they don't have all the amazing deals like Princess does right now.  Oops, I forgot, hubby went to a 2 part lecture on the environment which was very informative on specific Mexican concerns and not just the usual general info that gets passed around.  He really enjoyed it, I can't remember why I was MIA.  Probably reading in the shade on a deck.

Edited June 16, 2020 by canadjineh

[canadjineh]

8 hours ago, Dunmore2 said:

We’ve mainly cruised Celebrity, but an itinerary from HAL caught our eye. Reading through this helpful thread has been great. Thank you for sharing your knowledge . I’m looking for a thread or a sticky where I can compare cabins. Ie not all veranda cabins look equal in size. Sometimes a location looks good, but in actual fact it’s noisy. Is there a place where this information is compiled?

We were on Oosterdaam on deck 10 verandah cabin 10011 March 7-14/2021 which was quiet and perfect, just back of the Explorations Cafe/Crows Nest and lots of deck space near us that wasn't used much.  Perfect views off your balcony for Pacific /Mexican Riviera for both arrivals and departures.  I will say HAL cabins have a fair bit of room and I love the actual tub - even though we just shower.  There's so much more room to move around and shower in comfort.

[Dunmore2]

Thanks for your reply. Love your cc name.

[HALover]

Thanks so much! My whole family really loves Holland America, we’re so bummed that we won’t be able to cruise this year for the first time in years. 
it’s so good to see some activity on CC, I hope that it’s a sign of good things to come. Stay safe!

[terrydtx]

18 hours ago, Dunmore2 said:

We’ve mainly cruised Celebrity, but an itinerary from HAL caught our eye. Reading through this helpful thread has been great. Thank you for sharing your knowledge . I’m looking for a thread or a sticky where I can compare cabins. Ie not all veranda cabins look equal in size. Sometimes a location looks good, but in actual fact it’s noisy. Is there a place where this information is compiled?

We had been a loyal HAL customer for last 10 years, however that is coming to an end. After sailing on the Noordam to Alaska last year in a Signature Suite we were 100% dissatisfied. A "Signature Suite" on HAL is a suite in name only, other than a larger cabin and bathroom there are zero other benefits. We have now booked 2 Celebrity cruises next year on the Infinity in Aqua Class which is  close to a HAL Signature suite in pricing. AQ Class cabins are smaller than  Signature but the list of amenities is so much more including the exclusive  use of Blu  private restaurant for dinner and breakfast for all AQ class cabins. HAL has nothing close to this concept except the Club Orange which cost an extra charge per day and is just a roped off area in the MDR for most ships. Celebrity is offering great deals and 4 both of our cruises next year we got the 4 Perks package for no extra cost. HAL has no idea how to offer amenities for any thing other than booking Neptune suites while Celerity has several class of cabins with a long list of good amenities including exclusive dinning venues. For now Goodbye HAL.

Edited June 16, 2020 by terrydtx

[jonyboy]

2 minutes ago, terrydtx said:

We had been a loyal HAL customer for last 10 years, however that is coming to an end. After sailing on the Noordam to Alaska last year in a Signature Suite we were 100% dissatisfied. A "Signature Suite" on HAL is a suite in name only, other than a larger cabin and bathroom there are zero other benefits. We have now booked 2 Celebrity cruises next year on the Infinity in Aqua Class which is  close to a HAL Signature suite in pricing. AQ Class cabins are smaller than  Signature but the list of amenities is so much more including the exclusive  use of Blu  private restaurant for dinner and breakfast for all AQ class cabins. HAL has nothing close to this concept except the Club Orange which cost an extra charge per day and is just a roped off area in the MDR for most ships. Celebrity is offering great deals and 4 both of our cruises next year we got the 4 Perks package for no extra cost. For now Goodbye HAL.

We went from HAL to Celebrity this year also.  Like you we got the 4 perks which adds up to a lot of $$$$.  We also found dining on Celebrity to be better than HAL and liked the infinity balcony in concierge cabin

[HALover]

Sorry to hear that you are leaving HAL, and I agree about the Club Orange format. It seems to work better on the new Pinnacle Class ships, but I still think that it’s way overpriced for what you get. 
The Signature Suite is really just an upgraded cabin and while it’s nicer than a standard Verandah cabin, it’s probably a stretch to refer to it as a suite, in my humble opinion. 
 With that being said, I just haven’t been able to pull the trigger yet on trying Celebrity. My wife & I were very interested in trying the new Edge ship when it came out but we just couldn’t justify the increase in price. Maybe one of these days we’ll splurge.

I will be interested in hearing from you in the future about your experiences on Celebrity as compared to HAL.

Happy cruising!

Edited June 16, 2020 by HALover

[terrydtx]

29 minutes ago, jonyboy said:

We went from HAL to Celebrity this year also.  Like you we got the 4 perks which adds up to a lot of $$$$.  We also found dining on Celebrity to be better than HAL and liked the infinity balcony in concierge cabin

We scored coveted aft facing cabins on both Infinity cruises in the Mediterranean and the 4 Perks: Premium Beverage package, prepaid gratuities, free unlimited internet for 2 and $150 OBC were worth  over $1200pp on a 12 night cruise. This was too good a deal to not book with Celebrity. We also got a 10% Loyalty discount from Celebrity for taking just one cruise with them 12 years ago. 

Edited June 16, 2020 by terrydtx

[jonyboy]

3 minutes ago, HALover said:

Sorry to hear that you are leaving HAL, and I agree about the Club Orange format. It seems to work better on the new Pinnacle Class ships, but I still think that it’s way overpriced for what you get. 
The Signature Suite is really just an upgraded cabin and while it’s nicer than a standard Verandah cabin, it’s probably a stretch to refer to it as a suite, in my humble opinion. 
 With that being said, I just haven’t been able to pull the trigger yet on trying Celebrity. My wife & I were very interested in trying the new Edge ship when it came out but we just couldn’t justify the increase in price. Maybe one of these days we’ll splurge.

I will be interested in hearing from you in the future about your experiences on Celebrity as compared to HAL.

Happy cruising!

We were on the Edge in March, just prior to the end of cruises to anywhere and enjoyed it very much.  With the perks it was actually quite a bit less than HAL

[terrydtx]

12 minutes ago, HALover said:

The Signature Suite is really just an upgraded cabin and while it’s nicer than a standard Verandah cabin, it’s probably a stretch to refer to it as a suite, in my humble opinion.

Its is a huge stretch to call a Signature cabin a suite, it should just be a Signature Verandah cabin to keep from confusing the cruising novice. Even HAL Neptune Suites are way behind Celebrity's suites in amenities provided.

[drsel]

We were on the Edge in March, just prior to the end of cruises to anywhere and enjoyed it very much.  With the perks it was actually quite a bit less than HAL

Yes with all The perks I strongly believe that Celebrity is a much better value Cruise.

$100 OBC per person, unlimited classic alcohol beverage package, prepaid gratuities, unlimited Wi-Fi

I wonder why anyone would choose HAL over Celebrity