Hollland certificate

[danmitch]

last week I attended a charity event and was lucky enough to win a Holland certificate good for a 7 night Caribbean cruise for 2. I was told the certificate never expiries. anyone ever have anything like this, and how does it work

Edited September 27, 2016 by danmitch

[Alberta Quilter]

Congratulations on winning a cruise!!

 

I won a cruise while on a cruise a couple of years ago. Here's the info that I posted on my Live thread:

 

An update on the cruise win:

 

I spoke with HAL yesterday and a very nice man gave me the details on the cruise win.

 

Yes, it can be used for any itinerary, any length of cruise, not just a 7 day Caribbean or Mexico as stated on the certificate.

 

No, it cannot be used for a Holiday cruise (Christmas & New Year's). That is stated right on the form but I had to ask anyway. Christmas is a good time for me to take vacation.

 

The value of the certificate is $450/person or $900/stateroom. I assume that is in US$. I forgot to mention that I was Canadian.

 

Taxes, port fees and non-commissionable fares are not included. These total approx. $600 on a 7 day cruise to the Caribbean/Mexico in a minimum category interior stateroom.

 

There are other terms & conditions that may apply. That means that no other OBC/amenity offer, such as a free beverage card or Explore4 promo, will be allowed if using the cruise certificate. One cannot use an FCD to apply to the tax portion, either, because the FCD has an OBC component to it. One can, however, still get their shareholder benefit.

 

One last thing is that if one was to book a certain category, the certificate would be applied only if the same promotion of the cabin was the same in all cabin levels within that category. One, for example, couldn't use it on a flash sale pricing because that is typically available to only one or two levels within a category.

 

One could still get upgraded to another category. I did not specifically ask about upsells but I assume that those would still be options, if available.

 

A TA would not get any commission on the certificate portion of the cruise fare. If one takes a longer cruise or a higher category, or both, then the TA receives a commission on the price differential.

 

We have not yet decided where we will go. We couldn't really agree on a future cruise before the win, other than a European river cruise. Good thing there is no expiry date on this cruise certificate! Maybe we'll go back to Alaska in a couple of years since it's a nice easy flight to Vancouver for us.

 

As I recall, the instructions are fairly clear on the certificate. Call the phone number on the certificate and they will explain it all to you. You will be able to use it for another cruise and will have to pay the cost differential, particularly if you want to upgrade from the category on the certificate (generally the lowest inside category on the ship). We did use the certificate on a five day coastal cruise but upgraded to an aft balcony.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Congratulations on winning a cruise.

Do let us know what cruise you decide on.

[sail7seas]

Congratulations. :)

[easyboy]

Congratulations on winning a cruise!!

 

I won a cruise while on a cruise a couple of years ago. Here's the info that I posted on my Live thread:

 

An update on the cruise win:

As I recall, the instructions are fairly clear on the certificate. Call the phone number on the certificate and they will explain it all to you. You will be able to use it for another cruise and will have to pay the cost differential, particularly if you want to upgrade from the category on the certificate (generally the lowest inside category on the ship). We did use the certificate on a five day coastal cruise but upgraded to an aft balcony.

Despite restrictions on the certificate, it is still worth winning for that anyone will take anytime.

Congratulations!

[JimnKaren]

Ditto above.

 

And, welcome to Cruise Critic.

 

Jim

[TiogaCruiser]

Were you the person who won twice?

I seem to remember that scenario some years back......

[cbr663]

We won a cruise from HAL in 2014 and received the cruise certificate.

 

When we used our certificate in 2015, we were told that it could only be used for a 7-day Caribbean or Mexican cruise.

 

There wasn't any value to the certificate as the value was dependent upon which cruise you took. Different cruises have different prices.

 

The certificate is for an inside cabin, but you can upgrade to any level that you like and just pay the difference. Taxes, port fees and non-commission able charges are extra, meaning that your cruise will be a great price, but it won't be "free".

 

When we used our certificate, a verandah cabin was on promo for the same price as an inside. This meant selecting a verandah cabin didn't cost us any more than an inside.

 

Congratulations on the win.