Your Opinions please. - as to invitations for travel companions.

[RuthC]

Some do not wish to 'get it'

 

This is not confusing and I am (finally) starting to under sttand those who repeatedly posggt she was not eligibile. That foggy haze is not credi ble . It is only confusing, IMO if one wishes to not

grasp the issue.

No one is disputing that your friend, since she has previous HAL cruises, was entitled to an invitation to the luncheon.

 

What people are saying is that she may not have been entitled to an invitation to the medallion ceremony, luncheon at the same time as you, the situation could have been easily remedied, and that it was her responsibility to do that---if she cared to.

Apparently, it didn't matter enough to her to ask about her own invitation---a choice that should be respected.

[taxmantoo]

Without in any way absolving HAL, I think that maybe the fact that the cabins were "linked" actually caused this entire situation. When making invitations to the Medallion reception, HAL's computer system properly invited Sails and not the friend because, according to her status, she was not entitled to attend. Since she was not invited to the reception, this entailed also that she would also not be invited to the ensuing brunch.

A computer glitch that could easily be fixed for all future occasions if the situation was brought to the attention of HAL's computer folks.

[sammiedawg]

The food is so bad at these lunches and the crowd extremely pushy, queueing up for about half an hour prior to the doors opening, that I cannot understand why anyone would be upset at not getting invited.

 

The food is pre plated and of low quality, banquet calibre at best. Served with a glass of low quality swill. I've never understand the appeal. We didn't get invited on our last HAL cruise and didn't care. The invite was probably lost in the shuffle.

I've never been to these medal ceremonies and have zero interest. We've left the HAL tiles and pins on the ship, IMO junk. I don't personalize the experience in an emotional way.

[wander]

From personal experience - I do not think having "linked" cabin reservations is in any way electronically connected to event invitations, only dinner seatings. It simply does not happen in my numerous experiences! Whether or not they should be linked - that question remains. (Where would it end - what if the solo passenger was linked to a cabin with two folks - should all 3 be invited?

 

BUT - there is a possible other explanation for your friend not getting an invitation on her own to the Brunch for which HAL should NOT be blamed. One cruise I was walking to my cabin and I noticed "invitations" outside some doors. you know the kind that are folded and "sealed" with a blue sticky circle. I noticed a person well ahead of me stop, pull one out of the plastic holder, and peak at the inside of the invitation. He put it back, walked a few more doors to the cabin across from mine and took the invitation out of the holder and walk off with it. (Not his cabin!). Outside my cabin I found a similar invitation - to one of the more exclusive events (not the mass brunch). Later that day I knocked on my neighbors door and asked if they had gotten an invitation to the event - and in a subtle way were they eligible. Answers - no and yes. I told them what I had witnessed. They later told me that they had checked at the desk and yes indeed they had been invited - and got a new invitation. After that I learned to ALWAYS check if I did not receive an invitation to something I should have been!

[Lizzie68]

I just don't understand the need to feel slighted throughout the cruise over something that could have so easily been corrected with a few brief words - and then wait to come on here to slag off HAL in general. A lot of hurt feelings by Sail and her companion could have been eliminated had they dealt with it at the time and not stewed on it until posting here.

[sail7seas]

I just don't understand the need to feel slighted throughout the cruise over something that could have so easily been corrected with a few brief words - and then wait to come on here to slag off HAL in general. A lot of hurt feelings by Sail and her companion could have been eliminated had they dealt with it at the time and not stewed on it until posting here.

 

 

With respect,,,,,,,, you don't have to understand and I don't have to explain my choices. I stated them clearly, ealier in this thread. No one but me needs to understand and I don't wish to post my reasons. here. :D I have met very few from rom this forum in person and no one has 'walked in my shoes for my 70+ years. . I would not expect any could or would understand my feelings or reasons for them. nor would be interested. But thanks for the effort. ;) We are all the product oftfhe history of our individual lives I would not expect to understand any strangers feelings or reason for choices they make.

Edited July 28, 2017 by sail7seas

[Copper10-8]

..................... I noticed a person well ahead of me stop, pull one out of the plastic holder, and peak at the inside of the invitation. He put it back, walked a few more doors to the cabin across from mine and took the invitation out of the holder and walk off with it. (Not his cabin!). ..................

 

Yes, that happens, and not just with invitations to events! Why? Only the individual(s) who do this, know(s)

[cruisemom42]

I confess I am not "up to speed" on what one's Mariner status entitled one to receive onboard, so I have nothing to add regarding the eligibility of your travel companion for any events.

 

However, I do feel that the whole reason why politeness and good manners exist is to put people at ease in any situation. If something is being overlooked that would put another guest at ease or potentially help them avoid embarrassment, I was taught that it is entirely proper to politely and unobtrusively do something to correct the problem. This should have the happy result of helping the host (in this case HAL) rectify a mistake before it is too late and ensuring that you and your friend could both enjoy the appropriate events.

 

It is no different to the situation of noticing something amiss during dinner in the MDR and alerting someone to the situation so that it can be corrected. This seems to be universally preferred to waiting until it is too late and then complaining after the fact.

[Lizzie68]

With respect,,,,,,,, you don't have to understand and I don't have to explain my choices. I stated them clearly, ealier in this thread. No one but me needs to understand and I don't wish to post my reasons. here. :D

You asked for opinions....

 

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[kazu]

<snip>

 

BUT - there is a possible other explanation for your friend not getting an invitation on her own to the Brunch for which HAL should NOT be blamed. One cruise I was walking to my cabin and I noticed "invitations" outside some doors. you know the kind that are folded and "sealed" with a blue sticky circle. I noticed a person well ahead of me stop, pull one out of the plastic holder, and peak at the inside of the invitation. He put it back, walked a few more doors to the cabin across from mine and took the invitation out of the holder and walk off with it. (Not his cabin!). Outside my cabin I found a similar invitation - to one of the more exclusive events (not the mass brunch). Later that day I knocked on my neighbors door and asked if they had gotten an invitation to the event - and in a subtle way were they eligible. Answers - no and yes. I told them what I had witnessed. They later told me that they had checked at the desk and yes indeed they had been invited - and got a new invitation. After that I learned to ALWAYS check if I did not receive an invitation to something I should have been!

 

exactly. this really does happen. Here's an example:

 

Years ago, one of our roll call members did not receive their meet and greet invite. I know it was put there as I delivered them personally. Fortunately, they remembered and came anyways.

 

And then, a stranger came in, not on the roll call and proudly showed their invite that I had made personally. there was no question how they got that invite. ;)

 

Needless to say, we still welcomed them told them about CC and the roll call and once they realized that no free drinks were involved and it wasn't a "HAL freebie" they slipped out.

[Vict0riann]

Haha! That's funny, Jacqui.:)

 

I think we now live in the age of the "squeaky wheel syndrome". And a lot of the manners that we took for granted in the past have disappeared. We've had our feelings hurt a few times, too, by not getting invitations to events we would have like to have attended, and in fact, felt we were entitled to!

 

We thought we might be getting medallions on our last cruise. We had three ceremonies over the 37 days, we went to two. No luck. When we got back I decided to ask the Mariner Society, so I emailed, and the response was that yes, we should have received them, would we like them to be mailed? I said no, we wanted to get them at a ceremony - we'll see what happens on the next cruise. I don't plan to ask at the Front Office ahead of time, either!;p

[kazu]

Haha! That's funny, Jacqui.:)

 

I think we now live in the age of the "squeaky wheel syndrome". And a lot of the manners that we took for granted in the past have disappeared. We've had our feelings hurt a few times, too, by not getting invitations to events we would have like to have attended, and in fact, felt we were entitled to!

 

We thought we might be getting medallions on our last cruise. We had three ceremonies over the 37 days, we went to two. No luck. When we got back I decided to ask the Mariner Society, so I emailed, and the response was that yes, we should have received them, would we like them to be mailed? I said no, we wanted to get them at a ceremony - we'll see what happens on the next cruise. I don't plan to ask at the Front Office ahead of time, either!;p

 

Maybe we will get our medallions together on the Prinsendam. I'll ask. LOL.

 

But they called me last time and the cruise next to make sure I had them. ;)

[Johaz]

Maybe we will get our medallions together on the Prinsendam. I'll ask. LOL.

 

 

 

But they called me last time and the cruise next to make sure I had them. ;)

 

 

 

This is just my personal opinion, and don't want to upset anyone, but I'm surprised people really care so much about this stuff.

 

 

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[whogo]

How would you feel as a five star mariner if someone else had brought a 3 or 4 star mariner who wasn't even in the same cabin to a five star mariner event? Wouldn't that kind of cheapen the experience for all the five star mariners?

[wander]

To set the stage for this reply - I am a 5 star Mariner who has cruised as a solo for about 30% of my days, cruised with my husband about 50% of my days and the rest with friends as cabin mates. For many of my cruises there has also been one or more cruisers another cabins who are linked for dinner purposes.

 

Now, I am not shy about asking if things do not go as I would like or expect in terms of event invitations (and other things). I also try to NEVER complain IF I did not first try to rectify the issue with the appropriate staff. In this regard, over time on HAL (and Princess) I have learned that:

 

When my husband and I share the cabin - whether or not he receives an invitation (he recently made 4 Star) he has always been automatically welcome to attend when only I get an invitation. I have always gotten the same answer if my cabin mate friend was not eligible for the same event. She could come with me as my cabin mate, no questions asked.

 

In terms of bringing another passenger along (even one linked for dinner purposes) since I was a solo in the cabin - no, not OK. Thinking about it - what if I was linked with two person cabin and I was a solo. Should they both be able to attend? What about the two times I was a solo and linked for dinner with 7 others for a long cruise? (Actually in those cases they were invited to attend because of their own status.)

 

Now I understand that Sail has been on more cruise days that I have and seems to have been more involved in the HAL culture that I am, but I do think that they should be given the opportunity to either rectify or clarify what seemed to be a serious oversight to Sail and many responders. Just my Thoughts.

[cbr663]

This is just my personal opinion, and don't want to upset anyone, but I'm surprised people really care so much about this stuff.

 

 

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You're surprised that people care about the service, or lack there of, that they receive on a cruise?

 

Many posters have commented that this could have been remedied on board. We don't know that for sure. I will always remember one HAL cruise in which every day something went wrong and every time we went to the Concierge to have the issues corrected, things just got worse.

 

Some people just don't like dealing with issues. Some people, like myself, don't want to deal with them. I am on vacation with a company who has a long history of providing cruises - a company that should have figured it out by now. We all have different expectations and different reasons for why, how and when we will respond. And while many of you believe that the OP should have spoken up so that HAL can correct the issue, I believe that HAL should have ensured that the issue did not occur at all.

 

Criticizing the customer for not speaking up when the company has provided poor service releases the company of all accountability and makes the customer responsible for the customer service that they received. This is not excellent customer service by any definition.

[wander]

car663-

Did you read about my experience and Copper10-8's confirmation of this occurring. If no one asks, how many people are sitting in their cabins and "stewing" unnecessarily & thinking badly of their treatment by HAL (and then advertising it online) when in fact HAL have had nothing to do about the lack of an invitation. They may well have tried - are we all so "entitled" that we expect to have "mind readers" flawlessly organizing social events for us?

[sail7seas]

You asked for opinions....

 

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YES, I did and I have said t hank you a number of times Apparently in your reading, you did not notice I wrote thank, you, again and again. :)That is the best I can do and will have to suffice/ or not . But no free cruises ............. b eing offered

Edited July 28, 2017 by sail7seas

[kazu]

You asked for opinions....

 

Sent from my SM-J320W8 using Forums mobile app

 

YES, I did and I have said t hank you a number of times Apparently in your reading, you did not notice I wrote thank, you, again and again. :)That is the best I can do and will have to suffice/ or not . But no free cruises ............. b eing offered

 

I saw nothing in Lizzie's post about a free cruise.

 

I would certainly hope that one was not expected just because one chose not to attend a mariner event. If I misread your post (and I hope I did) then please disregard. I am having a harder time deciphering them at times ;)

[Gloworm2]

It's not distasteful to politely ask for something. And now you are disappointed. The ask may very have yielded a satisfactory outcome.

 

 

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[iancal]

My view of a travel companion is someone who travels in the same stateroom.

 

When we travel with friends are we have the ability to enter airport lounges or hotel exec. lounges we certainly do not expect that this will extend to our travel companions.

 

Nothing wrong with asking...the worst they will say is no and you are no further ahead.

 

But no, I do not think that HAL was being unreasonable.

[Jade13]

 

I can see why cruise lines are cutting back on some of the perks if people are assuming that others should attend events on board that they don't qualify for. (Just like the free internet on Princess became a limited number of free minutes per cruise for those who earned the perk because people were abusing it by allowing others to log in to their accounts.)

 

 

You need to re-read the posts from the beginning. The person in question DID qualify to go to the mariner event but never received an invitation.

 

 

 

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[Hlitner]

I can certainly see the OP's point. A quick private word the Concierge should have rectified the situation, Its really strange she was not invited to the Mariners Lunch...and one would guess there was some kind of screw up with the onboard records. All that being said, they have to darn near beg me to go to any Mariners Brunch (we have managed to miss most of them). As to Medallion Ceremony we are one of those folks who have no interest...even if we are getting a Medallion. Yes, we did go for our last Medallion...but it was out of respect to a staff member who twisted our arms (there were only a few folks getting Medallions and they wanted a few to show up).

 

Regarding the Mariners Lunch, our problem is that its often too early for our taste and we have found the menu/food to be underwhelming. We are usually on longer cruises when a large majority of the ship goes to those luncheons...and we discovered that was the best time to have lunch in the Lido....which is not too crowded :). We understand that all the Mariners stuff is important to some cruisers.....but for us...its all a pain in the behind...except for the nice discounts.

 

Hank

[whogo]

You need to re-read the posts from the beginning. The person in question DID qualify to go to the mariner event but never received an invitation.

 

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Did I misunderstand? The way I read it (all the typos confuse me), I thought the girlfriend did not qualify for the Medallion ceremony or the cocktail party ("HAL could spare an exra glass of wine"), but the OP thought she should have been invited anyway, you know, because of all those years sailing and all.

[Toofarfromthesea]

I think OP lost sympathy when she characterized this as a big mistake for which she suffered. Also mixing in 2 separate issues, the Medallion event and the Mariner event.

 

There was no reason for the friend to be invited to the Medallion event on her own merits. And it really is up to the friend to pursue or not pursue a remedy for the missing invitation to the Mariner event.

 

And not asking for a mistake to be corrected, (because it is rude, embarrassing, and crass to ask to have a mistakecorrected?!?!) and then going public, complaining about the mistake, smacks a little of gotcha. Particularly when a quiet word would have likely resulted with the friend being invited to both events.

 

I hope this didn't ruin their cruise.