Thoughts on a 1 day cruise?

[LMaxwell]

How much?

[jtl513]

How much?

As low as $69 for an Inside on Oosterdam up to $399 for a Neptune on Eurodam.

https://www.hollandamerica.com/cruise-search?durations=0_5&skip=0

On a warm summer evening it would be nice to sit out by the aft pool with some wine, watching the islands glide by. :)

[LMaxwell]

As low as $69 for an Inside on Oosterdam up to $399 for a Neptune on Eurodam.

https://www.hollandamerica.com/cruise-search?durations=0_5&skip=0

On a warm summer evening it would be nice to sit out by the aft pool with some wine, watching the islands glide by. :)

 

With tax and gratuity the cheapest inside ends up being somewhere around $270.

[jtl513]

With tax and gratuity the cheapest inside ends up being somewhere around $270.

How do you figure that? 2 x (69 +13.50) = $165. Taxes and fees would have to be 63% to get to $270. Are you adding in the return trip costs or something else?

[*Miss G*]

I'd do it. Live in the moment!

[LMaxwell]

How do you figure that? 2 x (69 +13.50) = $165. Taxes and fees would have to be 63% to get to $270. Are you adding in the return trip costs or something else?

Taxes are $50 per person.

 

Total is $265

[CoffeHound]

My sister and I have been on a few short cruises including a one day on HAL and a one day on Princess. We took both because they were between Vancouver and Seattle and either at the beginning of or end of another longer cruise. It is cheaper for us to fly to/from Seattle than Vancouver and I'm not too fond of the bus trip between the two cities so it was worth it to me.

 

However, I will say that in the case of the one day cruise on HAL we boarded at the very end of what had been sold as a very long cruise through the Panama Canal and us "Short timers" were filling the cabins of those who got off in Vancouver instead of staying on for Seattle or LA disembarkation. We both noticed a very large difference in service on that cruise.

 

We felt essentially invisible to the staff. It was obvious that the staff was serving all of the people who had been on the ship for the past three weeks, and ignoring the new passengers unless there was no one else to serve. We sat at explorers lounge trying to get drinks for over 30 minutes but none of the waiters could "see" us until another couple who had been onboard for the whole cruise sat with us. In less than a minute we magically had a waiter at the table, and in the couple of minutes it took him to get back with the drinks we had 3 other waiters ask us if we needed anything.

 

We had the same experience with the cabin steward who never came to greet us. We tracked him down not once but twice to say there were no towels in the cabin. He promised both times he would bring some, but we finally just had to go get some ourselves from a random cart we found in the hallway after dinner because we never did get turn down or towels from him.

 

We may have just gotten a bad steward, but I really go the feeling that the staff didn't care about pleasing us because we were only worth 1 day of tips so they just decided to ignore the small percentage of passengers that just got on and concentrate on the people who had been on longer.

 

I get the economics of the situation, and really, I can't blame them because in their position I wouldn't want to give bad service on the last day to someone who could remove three weeks worth of tips, but after the great service we have had in the past, it was a little disappointing.

 

I think I would still do a 1 day again if it meant skipping the bus, but now I know that it really isn't going to be the same experience as 1 day out of a longer cruise.

[sail7seas]

Wow, that is , truly based. Which ship? how long ago?

 

In all the years and a great many HAL cruises with HAl, I have never seen a towel or cab in steward servi ce cart . HAl does not use them and maybe that was juts another 'anomalay on a one day cruise ?

[OCruisers]

If we happened to live very near the port, we'd certainly consider doing a 1 Day cruise. :D

[Krazy Kruizers]

Wow, that is , truly based. Which ship? how long ago?

 

In all the years and a great many HAL cruises with HAl, I have never seen a towel or cab in steward servi ce cart . HAl does not use them and maybe that was juts another 'anomalay on a one day cruise ?

 

For several years when we started to cruise HAL, there were carts used by the cabin stewards.

Made it hard to get by them sometimes.

[jtl513]

Taxes are $50 per person.

 

Total is $265

UGH! :eek:

[TiogaCruiser]

On day cruise: sort of like ordering dinner at a nice restaurant and leaving after the appetizer, no?

 

Maybe a 3 day cruise...... but I'm not interested in any of the lines that do those from SoCal

[CoffeHound]

Wow, that is , truly based. Which ship? how long ago?

 

In all the years and a great many HAL cruises with HAl, I have never seen a towel or cab in steward servi ce cart . HAl does not use them and maybe that was juts another 'anomalay on a one day cruise ?

 

It was Osterdam a couple of years back. There was nothing normal about that cruise. You can't pick a cabin on the one day cruises so guarantee only and the passenger services desk was about 50 people deep all afternoon complaining about the cabin they had been assigned and trying to get upgraded to a suite for free. We had been assigned a cabin right by there so we had occasion to walk by several times. Not the way I would spend my 1 day cruise but to each his own.

[YoHoHo]

We've taken a one day cruise out of Vancouver to Seattle. The "overhead" is of course high; taxi / transit the port and back; boarding; disembarkation; taxes and fees. A previous poster pointed out the fees and taxes are high as a percentage but considering the two most expensive days of the trip are the only days it is understandable.

 

Embarkation and the slow US immigration getting on board and then some sort of customs check at disembarkation. Didn't seem to be immigration though I assume it was customs due to the fact that goods are sold on board including quite expensive duty-free. It's not that we were in a hurry but the shuffle-stop-shuffle of that line in Seattle first thing in the morning was not the way I expected to start the day.

 

We had a very attentive cabin steward. He was cheerful, made a point of greeting us at arrival, during that first evening, and at disembarkation. He was not standing there with a handout but only a cheerful smile. On the other hand are travelling companions who were just down the passageway from us in a much larger fancier veranda cabin never saw their attendant (I did twice in the hallway and she was extremely disorganized) and had poor service.

 

Bottom line is same one day cruise but to very different experiences with the cabin attendant so I do try to avoid generalizations.

 

The rhythm of the cruise of course was different but I found the staff to be accommodating and not treating us poorly for being on for only one night. Enjoyed dinner, evening shows a few beverages and dancing plus a walk around a new-to-us ship to explore. Lots to enjoy

 

We tied it into a nice weekend in Seattle, saw some sites, nice dinners out, enjoyed the theatre and took the scenic train back to Vancouver. The enjoyable cruise was part of a great long weekend.

 

Would I do it again? Maybe but only if once again tying it into a longer visit. Our travelling companions said they would not unless it was for perhaps at least three days mostly due to all that overhead.

[sail7seas]

For several years when we started to cruise HAL, there were carts used by the cabin stewards.

Made it hard to get by them sometimes.

 

 

Funny but going back to , on Noordam III, (1992) I never saw a hot el style housekeeping servic e c art used by cabin stewards. on HAL ship Must have been impossible for someone in a wheelchair to pass by as well as pesons just trying to walk by.

[Lizzie68]

We were on a repositioning cruise in April and service carts were in use. Pushing DH in the wheelchair meant we had to reroute to get around them. They have also been on our other cruises on HAL.

To the topic - I personally don't think a 1 day cruise is worth the embarkation hassle.

 

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[lyannea]

I live in Seattle and have done both the Seattle-Vancouver in the Fall and Vancouver-Seattle in the Spring and considered both to be "fun" weekends.

 

Re-cap of Fall Seattle to Vancouver

In taking the city bus to the pier and walking a few blocks, the check-in was quick.

I noticed several larger groups on the ship and spoke to 2 different groups who did this cruise yearly, as the beginning of a family reunion weekend.

 

I paid $96, which included taxes/fees for a balcony as a solo.

I'm a daily lurker on cruiseplumdotcom for my cruise fix and buy my trip from the big box store, for a $25 OBC which takes care of the tip and a drink.

 

It was a gorgeous day in Vancouver upon debarkation, and spent it as a tourist, outdoors, and, in the late afternoon, took the "Bolt Bus" back to Seattle for $21.

 

Re-cap of the Spring Vancouver-Seattle

"Bolt Bus" to Vancouver from Seattle for $21 at an ungodly hour of the morning. There's also an awesome Amtrak ride for more money, but I was a bit nervous in getting to Vancouver after 12PM

 

 

The Eurodam was on it's way to Seattle for the Alaska cruise season and I met many HAL employees who had never been to Alaska and it was a new venture for them.

They were excited but, very busy.

Anyone who cruises a lot knows that the busiest day for crew members is when people are leaving the ship and getting ready for the next set of pax.

 

I found the ship to be "colder" in and outdoors than the 1-day fall cruise and in

no way can one sit out at night without a coat, scarf and hat, and, during the day with a light jacket or sweater .

People were literally running outdoors to take pictures and then going back indoors at night

And, yes, there were kids in the pool !

I found it interesting that it seemed to be lighter longer during this "cold" weather cruise, than the fall "perfect weather" cruise, where it seemed to get darker earlier.

The spring cruise was $149 for an obstructed view with the $25 OBC, taxes/fees included

During debarkation, there were quite a few very tired pax at a tail end of a 30+ days, lugging lots of suitcases.

 

Both cruises were very laid back after the muster drill, and no complaints about the food or service.

 

If interested in reading what it's like to be on a one day and don't mind jumping to a princess ship, look up CanadianBurger- he has done more than one review with pics of a one day cruise.

 

Lyannea