Some virgin questions...

[Despegue]

As HAL-Virgins ( but very experienced cruisers on Celebrity ),

 

I have a few questions I don't seem to find an answer for easily...

 

* we booked on Zuiderdam VC8136, which is an aft veranda on Navigation deck I believe. Any comments on the location? Will we have privacy from the aft pool deck gawkers? Will there be noise issues from the same aft pool deck?

 

* we were not allowed to get the "Thanksgiving promotion" as we are EU residents. We find this insulting and actually bordering on racism by HAL, but alas, the itinerary and price is good...but it leaves an extremely bad first impression...

 

* is the MDR open for lunch on port days?

 

* more regarding food...we ADORE Indonesian food, has there recently been an Indonesian Buffet or theme night? Any chance to get a Rijsttafel?

 

* on Celebrity, we always take a Non Alcoholic drink package, that goes for around 20 us$ a day...anything comparable at HAL? ( we were not deemed worthy enough as EU citizens to get the promoted free Signature beverage package during this Thanksgiving promotion) ( Thanks HAL! Truly the holiday Spirit!)

 

Thanks for responding,

 

D.

[nana541]

Racism because your from the EU... Get over yourself!

 

Cruisers from the EU have consumer protection laws that are likely factored into the cruise pricing of your tickets..... The Racism comment is completely out of line....

 

 

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[Ine]

Many countries/continents have their own rules concerning sales and promotions. HAL doesnot allow european residents to book in the USA nowadays, as in the past. Sometimes prices are better in the USA, sometimes in Europe. Canceling before final pay day is by far better in the USA then in Europe however. I still hope HAL will adjust that.

 

We havenot sailed Zuiderdam so I cannot command on that. During the day yes expect some noise from the pooldeck. Since the pool is closed at night it will be no problem.

The diningroom is most of the times closed when in port. Lido and roomservice is available.

Forget rijsttafel, never have seen that. It is lot of work and not everybody likes it. That will be an indonesian lunch in the Lido and some indonesian items sometimes at dinner. At the Lido there is a small oriental section, they often have very good dishes. Sometimes your table waiter can arrange a certain dish too.

Check the HAL website, the section for booked guests, you will find some information about drink packages. Or check upon boarding with front office or diningroom/Lido manager.

Enjoy your cruise.

[socalcruisers2]

As HAL-Virgins ( but very experienced cruisers on Celebrity ),

 

I have a few questions I don't seem to find an answer for easily...

 

* we booked on Zuiderdam VC8136, which is an aft veranda on Navigation deck I believe. Any comments on the location? Will we have privacy from the aft pool deck gawkers? Will there be noise issues from the same aft pool deck? Love the aft facing verandah for the lock viewing in the canal, but be aware that you will encounter churning noise from the water when cruising. Unsure as to noise and privacy from deck above

 

* we were not allowed to get the "Thanksgiving promotion" as we are EU residents. We find this insulting and actually bordering on racism by HAL, but alas, the itinerary and price is good...but it leaves an extremely bad first impression...

 

* is the MDR open for lunch on port days? Sometimes Yes and sometimes No. Just depends on the port

 

* more regarding food...we ADORE Indonesian food, has there recently been an Indonesian Buffet or theme night? Any chance to get a Rijsttafel? Indonesian daytime buffet is available on most 'collector's' cruises. You may see some items in the lido from time to time, or in the dining room for lunch or dinner - but these are few and far between

 

* on Celebrity, we always take a Non Alcoholic drink package, that goes for around 20 us$ a day...anything comparable at HAL? ( we were not deemed worthy enough as EU citizens to get the promoted free Signature beverage package during this Thanksgiving promotion) ( Thanks HAL! Truly the holiday Spirit!)I think there is still a beverage card (soda card) for $25 that will get you $50 of drinks.

 

 

Hope this has helped.

[kazu]

HAL does have a soda card which you can buy. It's half price but only includes sodas and fountain soda at that.

 

They also have beverage cards you can buy which include any drink. No discount but it is handy as you don't have to check a bunch of charges on your account.

[BumperII]

 

The Racism comment is completely out of line....

 

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Maybe, but I don't find it all that offensive. The processes of discrimination are remarkably similar regardless of the basis. I don't know anyone who wants to be discriminated against on any basis.

[nana541]

 

 

 

Maybe, but I don't find it all that offensive. The processes of discrimination are remarkably similar regardless of the basis. I don't know anyone who wants to be discriminated against on any basis.

 

 

Unfair very likely, but racist is a bit much!

 

 

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[SoCal Cruiser78]

The OP might find it interesting that here in the US, some cruise lines vary pricing depending on passenger age and state of residence. This could be argued as being discriminatory, but I'm sure the cruise lines just see it as maximizing revenue.

 

As another poster said, some countries have more consumer protections (and gratuities) built into their fares than US citizens do, so please don't take it personally.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Ryndam2002

[CaliforniaAC]

Yes, there were days on the Noordam that they served Indonesian fare in the Lido at lunch time.

 

After your second cruise, you will be invited to an Indonesian Luncheon on a sea day for the Mariner's Society.

 

Also, returning guests and people who live near cruise ports will be offered discounts too. You would probably get a much better fare on a European cruise than I would ever be offered.

 

Regardless, enjoy your cruise!:)

 

AC

[sail7seas]

The OP might find it interesting that here in the US, some cruise lines vary pricing depending on passenger age and state of residence. This could be argued as being discriminatory, but I'm sure the cruise lines just see it as maximizing revenue.

 

As another poster said, some countries have more consumer protections (and gratuities) built into their fares than US citizens do, so please don't take it personally.

 

Yes, this is true. All companies have marketing strategies and there are times someone from one U.S. state can get a special promotion while a neighboring state cannot. Companies often promote to one demographic or another at varying time for various reasons.

 

Racism and discrimination are present in real life but we should be careful about categorizing simple marketing as one or the other or either. IMO

 

[KNOT2L82SAIL]

As HAL-Virgins ( but very experienced cruisers on Celebrity ),

 

 

 

* we were not allowed to get the "Thanksgiving promotion" as we are EU residents. We find this insulting and actually bordering on racism by HAL, but alas, the itinerary and price is good...but it leaves an extremely bad first impression...

 

 

 

* on Celebrity, we always take a Non Alcoholic drink package, that goes for around 20 us$ a day...

 

Thanks for responding,

 

D.

 

Wow, I am not insulted that I could not get the Thanksgiving promotion. And I am in the USA. It is just one of those things. You mention that you have a good price for the cruise. Per my travel agent, THAT good price is why I could not get the beverage package...and HAL has to make some money.

 

Anyhow, you can buy a beverage card and that can be used for sodas or whatever. AND you can use it all over the ship, as long as there is a place for it to be swiped. The free beverage card that has you so uptight about is not able to be used everywhere on the ship.

 

Enjoy the cruise.

[suec12]

We are also frequent Celebrity cruisers who are currently booked on HAL Zuiderdam for in the fall. We have done one other HAL cruise, to Alaska, so I am just sharing a few thoughts.

 

We really liked our HAL sailing, obviously since we are now booked again in an itinerary X just didn't have. There were some food items that we missed - escargot and onion soup - but we were pleased enough. Overall, I think the portions are a bit smaller on HAL so go ahead and order appetizer, soup / salad, and an entree. You may well have room for dessert. Our friends that sailed with us (also frequent X sailors) were more disappointed so YOMV.

 

We REALLY liked the promenade deck and the fresh flowers thruout the ship.

 

The buffets must have been OK, I'm pretty fussy, tho far from a gourmet - I look for decent salad fixings, cheese (like blu or goat cheese) and I do like ethnic. I REALLY like lamb and X does that so nicely, I don't think HAL's offerings were as satisfying.

 

Our HAL roll call is dead and I miss the travel chat while waiting for the cruise. What is your sail date?

 

And I could tell your racism comment was a joke, wasn't it? Esp. here in the US these days can't be too careful with the R word :)

[Despegue]

I realize that there are regional promotions, HOWEVER...

 

Nowhere in the detailed explanation regarding the terms and conditions of the promotion is it mentioned that this is a regional promotion for US residents only.

 

They even translated the promotion in Dutch on the Dutch/Belgian website of HAL.

 

Unprofessional for a huge player in the cruise industry, but unfortunately quite common with most, if not all cruise lines.

 

Anyhow, thanks to those with helpful contributions. Really appreciate it.

 

Despegue

[bert425]

HAL does have a soda card which you can buy. It's half price but only includes sodas and fountain soda at that.

 

They also have beverage cards you can buy which include any drink. No discount but it is handy as you don't have to check a bunch of charges on your account.

 

and if you don't use the full amount, it's credited towards the charges on your room.

 

We bought $100 cards for use on our recent Noordam cruise, and ended up only using about $65 (towards sodas, mixed drinks, and a coffee or two). . the remaining $35 was credited towards my room costs.

 

so it was win/win for us to buy the beverage card.

 

one note: when I inquired at the bar about a card, he tried to sell me a $500, then when I said, no, I want a card that costs less than the beverage package (for our cruise, it was over $1100 for the HAL beverage pkg for our room), he then offered me a $250 card.

 

but I was able to get the $100 card after continuing to press him (they also have a $25 & $50 card). . but the $100 cards were perfect.

[Despegue]

SUEC12,

 

Thanks for the advice!

 

In Europe, promotions can be time restricted however, they can not be location restricted as this would indeed discriminate one person against another based on Nationality. In the EU, this is classified as Racism, hence my claim " bordering on r..."

 

We are Elite with X, but last fee cruises, we felt a decline in service, food and the cost cutting last sailing on Silhouette made us look elsewhere.

We are still Celebrity enthusiasts ( I do know quite a few Deck Officers as my line of work is similar), but are open to HAL's " Signature of Excellence" :-)

[iancal]

HAL appears to be one of the most restrictive cruise lines in forcing people to book in certain geographical areas. If you compare like for like pricing based on booking origin you will sometimes see very large discrepancies...not only in terms of pricing but also in terms of contracts. Especially as it relates to repricing when the prices are reduced prior to final payment.

 

We have met a number of people from Europe and from Australia who have abandoned HAL on many cruises for this very reason. Not al cruise lines do this. Shop around on some of the US on line sites. Some will accept cruise bookings on certain cruise lines..often at considerably less than booking in the UK, Europe, or Australia. Not always, but I am told often. It also helps to have an accomodation address you have a friend or business colleague who lives in Canada or the U.S. We have sometimes noticed, though very, very seldom, that a last minute cruise is offerered on a UK or EU site for a lower price or more gimmes than the same cruise on a U.S. website

 

It works the opposite for us. We have in the past booked packaged vacations and hotels,in Europe on a UK site using a UK accommodation address because they were either not available to us in Canada or were priced at a significantly higher price on a North American web site.

 

I do not buy the line about the price delta being attributable to EU or UK travel protection. I can understand five, perhaps ten points but not thirty or forty. let alone the restrictive contract terms

Edited December 1, 2014 by iancal

[YubaSutter]

Racism, really?

[suec12]

Despegue - if you have become disappointed in the X product you might want to consider moving up to Oceania or Azamara (we've sailed both). HAL is pretty much a "lateral move" IMO - Oceania and Azamara defiantly offer more but for a price:). We've just adjusted our expectations down a notch and figure we're still getting decent value for our vacation monies.

Edited December 1, 2014 by suec12

[Wesmoms]

I just wanted to say that for the zuiderdam 1-2-15 sailing, the thanksgiving promotion wasn't available due to the prices being so low. We are Texas residents, so i don't think it is a "racism" thing. C'mon, really?? In the US, pricing often varies as to which state you are in. Is that "racism" also? Hmmm....perhaps a call to the ACLU is in order to let them know about this "racist" cruise line