Why is it so difficult

[Krazy Kruizers]

I have not have any problems getting prices for cruises.

It doesn't make any difference whether I use Chrome, IE or Firefox OR if I put in our Mariner numbers or not. I get the same price.

And it all goes quickly to get the prices.

I use 8.1 Windows.

[HELENPSL]

I am looking for the cost of the 3rd and 4th passengers in the cabin. That is what started this thread. Their cost used to show on the right hand side of the screen and now it doesn't.

 

Sorry - I missed the part about the 3rd and 4th passengers. My bad!!

 

Helen

[gophercruiser]

A few weeks ago I had the same difficulty as some in that after price checking a cruise out down to room availability, the same info would come up again unless I signed out of my system. Through my PCC I was informed that by using Internet Explorer as my browser I would have this problem. I set up an alternate browser with " Google Chrome" and everything works perfectly.

[david,Mississauga]

...

But I did find out this afternoon that HAL is charging over 30% difference in the US $ price and the Canadian $ price for the 1 week Canada New England cruises. I checked the price in American and on the HAL site which only quotes Canadian.

...

 

:confused:

 

I am unable to check any rates in US $. Unfortunately, the 30% difference may be what we are stuck with for the foreseeable future. I have found out that Cunard is still charging 10%, which has been their exchange rate for quite a while.

 

We have booked a 7-day Quebec to US cruise on Cunard for next October. The Can. $ rate for a humble balcony stateroom is approximately $2200. HAL is charging $3500 for a minimum verandah stateroom on a similar cruise from Quebec (although different ports of call). That difference is more than just the difference in the exchange rate.

[chrismch]

You don't need your Mariner # - unless you expect a booking discount. When I do a search on HAL I review it strictly as non-mariner to expedite. Then you click on the cruise you want. In the top right hand corner there's a box that says "Details" That takes you to a new page with another upper right hand box that says "continue." The next screen you will see is "book your cruise" which is where it asks for Mariner status which I say no.

 

Now you chose your stateroom category and where you want to be on the ship - front, back, mid. Choose "select your own" which will now show you all the cabins available on that deck and the pricing for them. At the bottom of each page it asks "save & continue"

 

Once you do these steps you'll have all the info you need and a good idea of how sold out the ship is. This is where you would exit. The next step takes you to the actual booking with name and info.

[Lizzie68]

I really don't understand why HAL (and other cruise lines) make it so difficult to find the cost of different cruises. You would think they would want the website to be as user-friendly as possible. It's taxing enough to go through the process for one so I can only imagine the frustration of trying to do it for four.:eek:

 

It used to be so easy to use before the "new and improved" (hah!) version.:( If this is progress they can keep it.

[rajkr74]

I must be doing something wrong because I'm actually not having a hard time getting pricing on the website. I never put in my mariner number. I just go to the main screen, click on plan a cruise and then on advanced search. I input the embarkation point and other appropriate info. It comes back with cruises matching that criteria. After clicking on the one I want I just click continue until I get to the point of choosing the deck and then the cabin/category. Once you do that it gives you the pricing plus the taxes on the right side of the page.

 

If I want to search for another cruise I have to start again but the process is pretty quick.

 

What am I missing?

 

Helen

 

I also am having no problems locating cabins prices either with or without logging in. Here is a step by step process to find prices for cabins. No the prices are not listed like they used to be listed on the old HAL site.

 

Find your cruise and then click the green tab on the right side of the page. That will take you to the "Book Your Cruise" page. On this page the only thing you need to input is the number of passengers. Go to the bottom of the page and click the green button "Save and Continue".

 

That will take you to the "Stateroom" page. Select your stateroom type by clicking the picture. Then below the picture click the green button "Select Your Own".

 

That will take you to a picture of the ship broken down into 3 sections. Click the portion of the ship that you wish to view available cabins. Below the ship picture will be a list of the deck(s) that available cabins will be located on. Click a deck, which will turn green. Then scroll down the page and click the green tab "Save and Continue".

 

This will take you to the next page with a deck plan, on the left, for the section of the ship you previously selected. On the top right of this page will be a scroll down box with cabin(s) that are available. Just below the cabin listed will by the price of the cabin (per person) and below that price is the cost of taxes, fees and port expenses. Add the two prices together and you have the cost of the cabin for each person.

 

From there if you want to check different decks for available cabins or Stateroom types just click the appropriate section in the light blue bar above the deck plan that you wish to go back to.

 

If you put your mariner number in or log in you may get a follow up e-mail from HAL asking if you would like to complete the booking of the cruise you were looking at. When looking for prices I have never had to input any of my personal information to get a price. The only thing I have had to do is add the price of the cabin and the port fees together and multiply by 2.

[chefestelle]

This worked. I had actually been playing with it after all the posts and am delighted to see yours. The only thing that would make it better would be if you could make selections that allowed comparisons:

Mexican riviera

All dates

All cabins

All durations

 

That would be so much easier and so much more fun than going back and forth.

But this works... For now

[1of4]

It very much depends upon the itineraries. And the Koningsdam is a larger ship than the Veendam, so that should lower pricing on the Koningsdam, at least usually.

 

Understood. It was just a bit surprising to see so much of a difference. In the Med the Koningsdam seemed to be a bit more expensive than the other ships of the same size but when I did the 7 night Canada New England on Veendam comparison with the 11 night on Koningsdam in the Caribbean the difference was very surprising. It was less expensive for the 11 night in a category V than a 7 night in an L (17 categories lower not counting the family oceanviews and the single cabins that the Veendam does not have).

 

I knew there was a premium on Canada New England cruises but I didn't know it was that much. For our family of 4 it was nearly $2000 more to do the Canada New England in an inside cabin that the 11 night New Year's Eve in a balcony.

Edited September 13, 2015 by 1of4

[1of4]

You don't need your Mariner # - unless you expect a booking discount. When I do a search on HAL I review it strictly as non-mariner to expedite. Then you click on the cruise you want. In the top right hand corner there's a box that says "Details" That takes you to a new page with another upper right hand box that says "continue." The next screen you will see is "book your cruise" which is where it asks for Mariner status which I say no.

 

Now you chose your stateroom category and where you want to be on the ship - front, back, mid. Choose "select your own" which will now show you all the cabins available on that deck and the pricing for them. At the bottom of each page it asks "save & continue"

 

Once you do these steps you'll have all the info you need and a good idea of how sold out the ship is. This is where you would exit. The next step takes you to the actual booking with name and info.

 

This is what I have been doing but it does not give the breakdown per passenger. It is the 3rd and 4th passenger rates that I am looking for in the same cabin. This is the information I need and can not get from HAL.

Edited September 13, 2015 by 1of4

[1of4]

I also am having no problems locating cabins prices either with or without logging in. Here is a step by step process to find prices for cabins. No the prices are not listed like they used to be listed on the old HAL site.

 

Find your cruise and then click the green tab on the right side of the page. That will take you to the "Book Your Cruise" page. On this page the only thing you need to input is the number of passengers. Go to the bottom of the page and click the green button "Save and Continue".

 

That will take you to the "Stateroom" page. Select your stateroom type by clicking the picture. Then below the picture click the green button "Select Your Own".

 

That will take you to a picture of the ship broken down into 3 sections. Click the portion of the ship that you wish to view available cabins. Below the ship picture will be a list of the deck(s) that available cabins will be located on. Click a deck, which will turn green. Then scroll down the page and click the green tab "Save and Continue".

 

This will take you to the next page with a deck plan, on the left, for the section of the ship you previously selected. On the top right of this page will be a scroll down box with cabin(s) that are available. Just below the cabin listed will by the price of the cabin (per person) and below that price is the cost of taxes, fees and port expenses. Add the two prices together and you have the cost of the cabin for each person.

 

From there if you want to check different decks for available cabins or Stateroom types just click the appropriate section in the light blue bar above the deck plan that you wish to go back to.

 

If you put your mariner number in or log in you may get a follow up e-mail from HAL asking if you would like to complete the booking of the cruise you were looking at. When looking for prices I have never had to input any of my personal information to get a price. The only thing I have had to do is add the price of the cabin and the port fees together and multiply by 2.

 

Still does not provide the 3rd and 4th passengers sharing the cabin prices. As I stated earlier choosing a different date can cost a lot of money (not hundreds but thousands in some cases) without having access to this information. Perhaps that is why HAL doesn't show it anymore!

[blizzardboy]

I am pretty well versed in HAL's site, but for quick fare quotes including taxes and fees, I often use the travel dept on a favorite Seattle based (a coincidence) big-box warehouse retailer's site. You do not need to be a member to get an automated quote. You can enter the number of passengers, etc. but I always click 'no' on Previous Cruiser block to save time. The fares are accurate and include HAL promos etc. I find that I can get to the bottom line quicker for comparative purposes. They may not have all cabin choices available, but the fares in a given category are accurate.

[kazu]

I am pretty well versed in HAL's site, but for quick fare quotes including taxes and fees, I often use the travel dept on a favorite Seattle based (a coincidence) big-box warehouse retailer's site. You do not need to be a member to get an automated quote. You can enter the number of passengers, etc. but I always click 'no' on Previous Cruiser block to save time. The fares are accurate and include HAL promos etc. I find that I can get to the bottom line quicker for comparative purposes. They may not have all cabin choices available, but the fares in a given category are accurate.

 

I believe the OP is looking for Canadian pricing though, not U.S. $

[1of4]

I am pretty well versed in HAL's site, but for quick fare quotes including taxes and fees, I often use the travel dept on a favorite Seattle based (a coincidence) big-box warehouse retailer's site. You do not need to be a member to get an automated quote. You can enter the number of passengers, etc. but I always click 'no' on Previous Cruiser block to save time. The fares are accurate and include HAL promos etc. I find that I can get to the bottom line quicker for comparative purposes. They may not have all cabin choices available, but the fares in a given category are accurate.

 

Thank you for this. I found out that big box chain does not have a travel department in its Canadian locations. But I googled it and was able to get even the OBC quote. Very handy to know. :)

[blizzardboy]

Take note: the OBC amount you found might be what the site TA pays - about 8.5% of fare before taxes in OBC. Whatever HAL is giving, like the Explore 4 OBC, is unaffected. That extra OBC is the same as cash to me...beats chocolate covered strawberries, a cheap bottle of bubbly, and a couple dinners like some TAs offer. I use my HAL PCC for info and booking then he transfers the booking to the big-box TA.

[Lizzie68]

Take note: the OBC amount you found might be what the site TA pays - about 8.5% of fare before taxes in OBC. Whatever HAL is giving, like the Explore 4 OBC, is unaffected. That extra OBC is the same as cash to me...beats chocolate covered strawberries, a cheap bottle of bubbly, and a couple dinners like some TAs offer. I use my HAL PCC for info and booking then he transfers the booking to the big-box TA.

 

:confused: The OBC is attached to the Explore4 programme, and the amount differs depending on what category cabin you book. My TA gives a very generous OBC amount in addition to this, when I transfer the booking. Way, way more than a couple of dinners!

[blizzardboy]

I was referring to the OBC shown on the third-party site alluded to earlier. I didn't want CC member 1of4 to mistake what was shown for what might be provided by HAL. My remarks about what TAs provide was a dig at what I see offered in email blasts from some out there, i.e., coupon books, the previously mentioned chocolate covered cherries and bubbly in your cabin upon arrival, etc. I prefer getting a nice chunk of OBC, as it sounds like you do. With the site alluded to earlier, it's always around 8.5% of cruise fair in OBC.

[FLACRUISER99]

I am pretty well versed in HAL's site, but for quick fare quotes including taxes and fees, I often use the travel dept on a favorite Seattle based (a coincidence) big-box warehouse retailer's site. You do not need to be a member to get an automated quote. You can enter the number of passengers, etc. but I always click 'no' on Previous Cruiser block to save time. The fares are accurate and include HAL promos etc. I find that I can get to the bottom line quicker for comparative purposes. They may not have all cabin choices available, but the fares in a given category are accurate.

Thanks I like it!

[TiogaCruiser]

I was referring to the OBC shown on the third-party site alluded to earlier. I didn't want CC member 1of4 to mistake what was shown for what might be provided by HAL. My remarks about what TAs provide was a dig at what I see offered in email blasts from some out there, i.e., coupon books, the previously mentioned chocolate covered cherries and bubbly in your cabin upon arrival, etc. I prefer getting a nice chunk of OBC, as it sounds like you do. With the site alluded to earlier, it's always around 8.5% of cruise fair in OBC.

 

Maybe OT but that specific site was not offering a particular cruise I was looking at if you were solo. It WAS available as double occupancy.:mad:

[crusinpsychRN]

I couldn't figure it out either. I find it very frustrating. Hopefully either someone will tell us what we are doing wrong or HAL will realize this rates low on the customer satisfaction level!

 

The entire site is difficult to use including excursions, and indulgences. I use another travel o city site.

[blizzardboy]

Maybe OT but that specific site was not offering a particular cruise I was looking at if you were solo. It WAS available as double occupancy.:mad:

 

You got me there. I have not looked seriously looked at solo cruises on any site.

[blue whale]

I agree. I just looked up pricing on the VOV for 2016. I finally just gave up. I wanted to contrast pricing for a verandah, window, lanai. It was just too complicated. Thank you to the person who suggested going to an online site big box agency. Good idea.

 

D

 

HAL please go back to the old system which I found so easy to navigate.

 

D

[1of4]

Maybe OT but that specific site was not offering a particular cruise I was looking at if you were solo. It WAS available as double occupancy.:mad:

 

That is another issue. So singles and quads are in the same "boat" so to speak. It is imperative to see the pricing for 3rd and 4th passengers (at least it is for me). That is why I was logging in our Mariner #s to see the "discount" offered for 2 star as there is supposed to be one on "some" cruises. I can not seem to find this discount unless I log in as a past passenger on to some non-HAL sites.

 

For HAL to say a benefit of being any star level over 1 is discounted 3rd and 4th passenger rates is misleading if they don't allow you to see what that discount is and on which sailings.

Edited September 14, 2015 by 1of4