Last sailed HAL in 2002. Are the "little extras" still there?

[Ladyarli]

We sailed on the Zaandam to Alaska in 2002. We are sailing on the Maasdam in June on the Canada/New England itinerary. The last time we sailed HAL, I made a list of all of the little extra things they did, that the other cruise lines we had sailed on up to that time didn't. I've been trying to find out if these have changed or are still the same:

1. We were escorted to our cabin by one of the crew (an officer, I think.)

2. They had hot and cold hors d'oeuvres in all of the lounges before dinner.

3. Someone with a xylaphone would "call" us to dinner.

4. The buffet on the lido deck was not self-serve. The staff was there to put the items on your plates.

5. Five kinds of ice cream on the buffet, with "make your own sundae" ingredients - even Creme de Menthe at no additional cost!

6. Yummy baked goods at the coffee bar. Not the greatest coffee, but free, unless you wanted booze in it.

7. Bags of popcorn outside the movie theater just before the movie.

8. Beautiful artwork all over the ship - that I know they still have.

9. No annoying announcements every 5 minutes about bingo, etc, etc. They assume that you are smart enough to read the daily program.

10. In Glacier Bay, they went around the decks outside with a trolley of pea soup, and another with hot chocolate.

11. When it was our turn to tender, it was a chilly day. They had a crew member standing on the tender dock to offer HAL passengers a cup of Hot Chocolate while we waited for the tender.

You get the idea. I want to know the differences between HAL and the other lines.

Thank you in advance for any comments you care to share.

[sail7seas]

We sailed on the Zaandam to Alaska in 2002. We are sailing on the Maasdam in June on the Canada/New England itinerary. The last time we sailed HAL, I made a list of all of the little extra things they did, that the other cruise lines we had sailed on up to that time didn't. I've been trying to find out if these have changed or are still the same:

1. We were escorted to our cabin by one of the crew (an officer, I think.)

2. They had hot and cold hors d'oeuvres in all of the lounges before dinner.

3. Someone with a xylaphone would "call" us to dinner.

4. The buffet on the lido deck was not self-serve. The staff was there to put the items on your plates.

5. Five kinds of ice cream on the buffet, with "make your own sundae" ingredients - even Creme de Menthe at no additional cost!

6. Yummy baked goods at the coffee bar. Not the greatest coffee, but free, unless you wanted booze in it.

7. Bags of popcorn outside the movie theater just before the movie.

8. Beautiful artwork all over the ship - that I know they still have.

9. No annoying announcements every 5 minutes about bingo, etc, etc. They assume that you are smart enough to read the daily program.

10. In Glacier Bay, they went around the decks outside with a trolley of pea soup, and another with hot chocolate.

11. When it was our turn to tender, it was a chilly day. They had a crew member standing on the tender dock to offer HAL passengers a cup of Hot Chocolate while we waited for the tender.

You get the idea. I want to know the differences between HAL and the other lines.

Thank you in advance for any comments you care to share.

 

It was white gloved stewards who escorted us to our ca bins but that is no longer done. Almost no annoying announcements still buis f a NOT annoying voice from he bridge Captains's announcement around noon.... I like those announementws from the Cqptqinbm b ut am happy there are no bingo announcements. Still hot pea soup and hot chocoate on deck in Alaska. You reference Java Cafe which is no longer, bu tthere is now Explorations cafe. There are still cloth hand towels in public restrooms. Yes, the ships still have beautiful art throughout . The doorman (Yum, yum man) still chimes us to dinner on some of the ships, some of the time. It is a bit inconsistent.

Edited November 14, 2017 by sail7seas

[Crew News]

We sailed on the Zaandam to Alaska in 2002. We are sailing on the Maasdam in June on the Canada/New England itinerary. The last time we sailed HAL, I made a list of all of the little extra things they did, that the other cruise lines we had sailed on up to that time didn't. I've been trying to find out if these have changed or are still the same:

1. We were escorted to our cabin by one of the crew (an officer, I think.) Only for Pinnacle Suites now,

2. They had hot and cold hors d'oeuvres in all of the lounges before dinner. Still do.

3. Someone with a xylaphone would "call" us to dinner. Still do.

4. The buffet on the lido deck was not self-serve. The staff was there to put the items on your plates. Appetizers and dessert plates are self selection now.

5. Five kinds of ice cream on the buffet, with "make your own sundae" ingredients - even Creme de Menthe at no additional cost! No more Creme de Menthe but now sprinkles.

6. Yummy baked goods at the coffee bar. Not the greatest coffee, but free, unless you wanted booze in it. Pastries and sandwiches are free but there is a cost for coffee now.

7. Bags of popcorn outside the movie theater just before the movie. Popcorn is now inside the theater.

8. Beautiful artwork all over the ship - that I know they still have. Still have the art.

9. No annoying announcements every 5 minutes about bingo, etc, etc. They assume that you are smart enough to read the daily program. There are two regularly-scheduled announcements each day of the daily activities.

10. In Glacier Bay, they went around the decks outside with a trolley of pea soup, and another with hot chocolate. No more hot chocolate but pea soup on some decks.

11. When it was our turn to tender, it was a chilly day. They had a crew member standing on the tender dock to offer HAL passengers a cup of Hot Chocolate while we waited for the tender. No hot chocolate now.

You get the idea. I want to know the differences between HAL and the other lines.

Thank you in advance for any comments you care to share.

 

Bolding is my answers.

[Maya_C]

Any fresh flower arrangements? On my one and only HAL cruise so far, Alaska in 2007, I loved the stunning fresh flowers in various places around the ship. I hope to see floral arrangements on an upcoming HAL cruise in May.

[Krazy Kruizers]

We sailed on the Zaandam to Alaska in 2002. We are sailing on the Maasdam in June on the Canada/New England itinerary. The last time we sailed HAL, I made a list of all of the little extra things they did, that the other cruise lines we had sailed on up to that time didn't. I've been trying to find out if these have changed or are still the same:

1. We were escorted to our cabin by one of the crew (an officer, I think.) You get on an elevator that heads to the Lido -- no escort to your cabin. Those of us who stay in the Pinnacle Suite are met on our deck at the elevator by one of the concierges.

2. They had hot and cold hors d'oeuvres in all of the lounges before dinner. Sometimes we got hot appetizers during Happy Hour (4 - 5) and sometimes later.

3. Someone with a xylaphone would "call" us to dinner. Not on all ships.

4. The buffet on the lido deck was not self-serve. The staff was there to put the items on your plates. Appetizers and desserts you get yourself as well as the pre-made sandwiches at lunch time.

5. Five kinds of ice cream on the buffet, with "make your own sundae" ingredients - even Creme de Menthe at no additional cost! Some days we only had a choice of 3 ice creams. No liquors anymore.

6. Yummy baked goods at the coffee bar. Not the greatest coffee, but free, unless you wanted booze in it. The only free coffee is in the Lido and in the main dining room during meals. The Explorations Cafe on ships that still have this venue charge for the various coffees and teas and there are a few pastries.

7. Bags of popcorn outside the movie theater just before the movie. A few bags of popcorn on a table inside the theater.

8. Beautiful artwork all over the ship - that I know they still have. Still there.

9. No annoying announcements every 5 minutes about bingo, etc, etc. They assume that you are smart enough to read the daily program. Announcements at 10 AM and about 3:30 - 4 PM -- varies by ship.

10. In Glacier Bay, they went around the decks outside with a trolley of pea soup, and another with hot chocolate. No hot chocolate but the pea soup is out on the decks and in the Crow's Nest.

11. When it was our turn to tender, it was a chilly day. They had a crew member standing on the tender dock to offer HAL passengers a cup of Hot Chocolate while we waited for the tender. Haven't seen that in many, many years.

You get the idea. I want to know the differences between HAL and the other lines.

Thank you in advance for any comments you care to share.

 

Since you will be on a Canada/New England cruise, you won't see the pea soup except maybe on the dinner menu.

HAL has changed the chocolates that are put on the pillows at night.

[knittinggirl]

Recently off Noordam. Still beautiful flowers. But they disappeared near the end of our 22 day transpacific, and reappeared a few days into the new cruise.

 

Vegetable carvers produced some really great jack-o-lanterns for Halloween.

[navybankerteacher]

A number of the little touches are gone - but there remains enough that sets HAL apart from the other mass market lines to retain my interest.

 

To put it painfully bluntly: they have not dumbed themselves down to the level of others — but they surely seem to be working on it.

 

While I of course prefer low fares, I would happily pay a few hundred more to get more what used to be standard.