HAL has refined the art of Making it near impossible to book a cruise with them.

[sail7seas]

I tried to make a booking ttoday wi th a 'random' PCC who spouted so much in correct information it was not possi ble for me to book with him. He said way too many things I knew to b e inaccurate, I said, thanks but ' see ya.

 

I went to H AL website to book there and though I knew the destinattion, ship and date I wanted to c ruise, I stilll have not made the b ooking. I promise, if I call tomorow and learn that cruise is sold out for the cabin I want, o n th datee, I want, I am going to be saying

 

words I cannot print here.

Do they actually not want to book cruises? What gives with that horrible website ?

Edited January 15, 2017 by sail7seas

[sppunk]

What web problems are you facing?

[CaveDiving]

I tried to make a bookig ttoday w th a 'random' PCC who spouted so much in correct information it was not possi ble for me to book with him. He said way too many things I knew to b e inaccurate, I said,thaanks but ' see ya.

 

I went to H AL website to book there and though I knew the cestinattion, ship an ddate I wanted to c rfuise, I ttill have not made the b ooking. I promise, if I call gomorow and learn that cruise is sold ogt for the cabin I want, in the, I want, I am going to be saying

 

words I cannot print here.

Do they actually not want to boo cruises? What gives with that horrible website ?

 

I have to agree that in my personal experience, the HAL website certainly is not user friendly.

 

Scott & Karen

[sail7seas]

I entered destination, number of days and the cruise they selected was way more days, to a diferent destination. When I finally ggot to the right ship, I could not make the slection for cabin c ategory I wanted. They offered much lower categories than whose in which I w as interested. I gave up in disgust and frusration.

 

The irony is a friend in vited me to sail with them on Celebrity for a nice cruise but not what I really anat to do though I vefy much appreciate them thinking to include me. HAL well could have lost a nice booking today if I decide to cruise Celebrity becaus e I don't want to work so hard to book HAL. I wnat to sail HAL but I don't want to have an anxiety atttack trying to book i t.

Edited January 15, 2017 by sail7seas

[freestyling]

You might try a PCC on Monday. I know the PCC I use only works M-F. Perhaps the "seasoned" PCC only work during the week?

I agree that HAL's website is not user friendly!

[sppunk]

I entered destination, number of days and the cruise they selected was way more days, to a diferent destination. When I finally ggot to the right ship, I could not make the slection for cabin c ategory I wanted. They offered much lower categories than whose in which I w as interested. I gave up in disgust and frusration.

 

The irony is a friend in vited me to sail with them on Celebrity for a nice cruise but not what I really anat to do though I vefy much appreciate them thinking to include me. HAL well could have lost a nice booking today if I decide to cruise Celebrity becaus e I don't want to work so hard to book HAL. I wnat to sail HAL but I don't want to have an anxiety atttack trying to book i t.

 

What ship/date?

 

Always the chance the category you seek is sold out, hence not showing. I'll be glad to search for you.

 

As always I recommend using a TA (there is one on this forum who is exceptional and well known).

[sail7seas]

free stryling You might try a PCC on Monday. I know the PCC I use only works M-F. Perhaps the "seasoned" PCC only work during the week?

I agree that HAL's website is not user friendly!

_________________

:The PCC I used f or years retired I have the name/numvber of a new one u but yths is NOT THE POINT.

 

The POINT is reallly, should someone have to strugle like this to get a booking? Rhetorical question, of course not. I should be goingg to bed tonight happy I have a cruise booked after going through a long drought of no cruises. BU, t, no,,,,, I don't have a cruise booked though i tried.

Edited January 16, 2017 by sail7seas

[sppunk]

I've had no issues booking through the site, hence why I offered to help.

 

:shrug:

[sail7seas]

There are no brick and mortasr TA's in my area Iwcould use. i don't eish to get invofved with a TA I don't know. I had one fro years, they could not compete with internet and went out of business.

 

thank you for your offer to help but I really don't want to publish here, what date, ship etc. I think it a really bad idea to write wuch on the internet, at least until I know I will have my house sitter all arange and I cannot ddo that until I know I have my cruise booked..

Edited January 15, 2017 by sail7seas

[joekerstef]

You might try a PCC on Monday. I know the PCC I use only works M-F. Perhaps the "seasoned" PCC only work during the week?

I agree that HAL's website is not user friendly!

 

Our PCC is quite good and works Sunday - Thursday.

[jtl513]

Instead of starting with the basic Destination/Date/Duration options, click More Filters. That allows you to add the ship and embark port to greatly narrow the starting set of choices.

[whogo]

Holland America has a dreadful website, I am waiting for the main page to load as I type. I do not see what a PCC could possibly add to the purchase experience. If you know the ship, sailing date, and cabin that you want, book with whoever answers the phone. 1–877–932–4259

 

Still waiting for the page to load.

[Copper10-8]

S7S; check your FB page for a PM and some info

[sail7seas]

What web problems are you facing?

 

Instead of starting with the basic Destination/Date/Duration options, click More Filters. That allows you to add the ship and embark port to greatly narrow the starting set of choices.

 

\

 

OR Book ethC

 

elebrity cruise my friend invtred me to sail with them.

 

Th e POINT is this is ridiculous, I am a competent adult, certain ly well traveled aND HAVE sailed / booked dozens and dozens of HAL cruises.

For anyone to be witing a thead such as this says much more about HAL and theirb ooking pocess th an about the individual trying to make a bbooking.The fact my injured hand still makes it hard for me to type, it has not impacte3d my ability to travel through life.

Edited January 16, 2017 by sail7seas

[Toad]

Sail:

So sorry you are having such a difficult time. I am however happy to hear you are back in to the cruising mode. I hope that whether you go with HAL or choose to go with Celebrity that you have a wonderful time.

 

Personally, I use an internet site, since I never really found the benefit of using a PCC.

 

Good Luck!

[sail7seas]

S7S; check your FB page for a PM and some info

 

So happy I went there right away and learned about af riend with hahppy news I had not yet heard. :) Wishing her the very,vcery best. :)

[sail7seas]

S7S; check your FB page for a PM and some info

 

Sail:

So sorry you are having such a difficult time. I am however happy to hear you are back in to the cruising mode. I hope that whether you go with HAL or choose to go with Celebrity that you have a wonderful time.

 

Personally, I use an internet site, since I never really found the benefit of using a PCC.

 

Good Luck!

 

 

Thank you, Toad.

 

I'LL POST Heree when I have the4e isssue ssesttle3d.

 

Itr pareeticularly saddens me as I have wqited a long time to book again with hl AN i DINLLY DLETR THE TIME WQAS RIGHT FOR ME TO GO BACCK TO SEE IN A BLUE HULLED BEauty and I had this awful experiencce. I wouldn't be whocked if i wake tomorrow and, maybe I'll wait a bit longer. Perhaps this isn't the right time, after a ll. This shouldn't happen to any one but it really stinks that my excitement at fiinally getting up the gumption was chopped at the knees.

[sail7seas]

This is what the above gibberish is supposed to say: :

 

 

Thank you, Toad.

 

I'LL POST Heree when I have the isssue ssettled.

 

Ir particulicularly saddens me as I have waited a long time to book again with HAL and I finaLly felt THE TIME WAS RIGHT FOR ME TO GO BACK TO SEa IN A BLUE HULLED BEauty and I had this awful experiencce. I wouldn't be shocked if i wake tomorrow and, decidemaybe I'll wait a bit longer. Perhaps this isn't the right time, after a ll. This shouldn't happen to any one but it really stinks that my excitement at fiinally getting up the gumption to sail HAL again, without my much missed DH was chopped at the knees.

Edited January 16, 2017 by sail7seas

[Florida_gal_50]

I don't have a problem with Hal's site but I'm on it several times a week. I think that helps a lot. Why does hal have to make things difficult? Having knowledgable people in Seattle would go very far. I've been emailing hals ship services since long before Christmas with a question I have. The answers they have given me don't make sense. They tell me one thing, paperwork I have says another.

 

I hope the op is able to book the cruise she is interested in.

Edited January 16, 2017 by Florida_gal_50

[crystalspin]

In 2009, HAL's site was so unfriendly, we found a local TA. As far as we could tell, they didn't WANT to do business with individuals!

 

Since 2014, I have been able to book three HAL cruises (some with multiple cabins) by myself with the internet/website, and very helpful phone operators. In the middle of those, we also did one HAL cruise through a mail-order mass TA, where I found the booking procedure quite UNacceptable and thanks to bait-and-switch wound up not saving us any money over doing it ourselves... which cemented my preference for doing it myself.

 

I find HAL's website workable enough when it is working, but also that it is "off" either entirely or just flaky much more frequently than it ought to be in this day and age. When this has happened to me and I was feeling a pinch -- like the risk of losing a cabin I strongly wanted to book -- I've resorted to the 800 number and have been happy with the help I've gotten. So I second WHOGO in that recommendation.

 

Also, as little as I branch out to other lines any more, when I have (since-and-including 2009), HAL hasn't really seemed any worse than others in the industry.

 

(That said, the fact that I still had an e-mail from a PCC assigned to me some cruise ago, whom I had never returned any communication, saved me $2400 when I had to cancel two cabins on Christmas Eve! So I am giving her a chance to handle the replacement booking... so far so good.)

[BruceMuzz]

Like most everything else in the cruise industry, this issue is "all about the money".

 

If you follow the money, you will find the answer.

 

Hiring, training, and employing enough employees to handle the majority of cruise bookings for a major maas market cruise line is a very expensive proposition in America. It can be done, but the bottom line will suffer as a result.

 

Outsourcing is a cheaper possibility - but that option is not a very popular political choice in America right now.

But if a cruise line could outsource all the "grunt work" without going abroad, it would be nearly ideal. And that is exactly what they have done.

 

It is far cheaper for a cruise line to pay Travel Agent Royalties than it is to hire, train, and employ thousands of extra booking agents who would work for the cruise line in their American offices.

 

Some booking agents who do work for the cruise lines are rather famous - here and in other places - for giving incorrect information. Part of that problem is the very high turnover of people in that position. Their salaries are quite low, training is minimal, workload is very high, and being screamed at all day long on the telephone by frugal cruisers who are trying to get something for nothing is not very pleasant.

 

When an independent travel agent enters the picture, the cruise line has an added advantage. If anything about the cruise goes awry - as it often does - you suddenly have fingers pointing is several directions - instead of just at the cruise line. The cruise line blames the travel agent and the travel agent blames the cruise line. You are caught in the middle and have to wait it out.

 

If you telephone a high-end cruise line and want to book a cruise, you will probably have no problems. If you go mass market, better to find a great Travel Agent who can advocate on your behalf.

[donaldsc]

I tried to make a booking ttoday wi th a 'random' PCC who spouted so much in correct information it was not possi ble for me to book with him. He said way too many things I knew to b e inaccurate, I said, thanks but ' see ya.

 

I went to H AL website to book there and though I knew the destinattion, ship and date I wanted to c ruise, I stilll have not made the b ooking. I promise, if I call tomorow and learn that cruise is sold out for the cabin I want, o n th datee, I want, I am going to be saying

 

words I cannot print here.

Do they actually not want to book cruises? What gives with that horrible website ?

 

There is a thread on the Azamara board - http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2432721 - which discusses how bad their WEB site is. I believe that the problem is industry wide.

 

DON

[AtlantaCruiser72]

:confused:HAL's booking engine has continued to get worse in the last 12-18 months (not that it was great to begin with). Once you finally get to the cabin selection page if you pick the "choose your own cabin" option it gives you lower grade cabins and a poor selection of location and no ability to select alternate options on that deck. Meanwhile their sister brand Princess has one one the easiest to use and most intuitive booking platforms available from the cruise lines. Meanwhile they share a common travel agency booking platform.... Go figure

Edited January 16, 2017 by AtlantaCruiser72

[grayjay]

:confused:HAL's booking engine has continued to get worse in the last 12-18 months (not that it was great to begin with). Once you finally get to the cabin selection page if you pick the "choose your own cabin" option it gives you lower grade cabins and a poor selection of location and no ability to select alternate options on that deck. Meanwhile their sister brand Princess has one one the easiest to use and most intuitive booking platforms available from the cruise lines. Meanwhile they share a common travel agency booking platform.... Go figure

 

(bolding by me) : That's true and one of the reasons we mostly use an online travel agency that allows to pick more cabins.

Nevertheless I was stunned several times during the last weeks when I tried to book a cruise - found a cruise quite easily, picked a cabin, filled in the relevant information and was told that my country doesn't exist...

[mame42]

Last weekend I spent some time on the phone with a HAL shore excursion rep who was sure that Akrotiri and Acropolis were the same place. Oh, well, at least they are both in Greece.