Platinum on Princess sails with HAL, bad first impression

[OlsSalt]

9 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

....... Although, kind and concerned, this officer implied that I should relax, I'm on vacation. So don't fall for the promotional schpiels about great service, relax, and settle for whatever you get.

 

I would be interested in hearing both sides of this reported conversation and its context, before concluding what the staffer "implied". 

[satxdiver]

Seems as though the OP ruffled a few feathers but I am sure they will recover.  We were on the Veendam last decade when they had the trays and cafeteria line in the buffet.  Sounds as though they have given that up.  It felt like I was back in the college dorm cafeteria.  Our complaint about HAL was that we were 25 years younger than the average pax and we were in our 50's.  After dinner most seemed to go to bed or retreat to their staterooms as it was a ghost town in the entertainment areas on that one cruise.   Now that we are older maybe it is time to try HAL again.  

[Cruiserkenn]

 

12 hours ago, Pam in CA said:

I’m Elite on Princess and a 3-star Mariner on HAL. With over fifty cruises, two of my three best cruises were on HAL. As I either don’t or rarely drink, I’ve never had the corkage problem you experienced. 

 

There are a number of things I really like about HAL that Princess doesn’t do. Most cabins, including oceanview, have a larger bathroom and many have a tub. Most also have a couch. Anyone can ask to have the dining room menu delivered to your cabin and you can order off of it as room service. No extra charge. I’ve found their educational lecturers excellent. On one cruise, we had the curator for the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum. I love that type of thing. 

 

As a Princess cruiser, you’re automatically a Mariner and are invited to the past passenger lunch which is excellent. 

 

HAL ships are generally smaller so it’s often a better port experience. Their itineraries are often better than Princess. 

 

I wouldnt hesitate to sail on HAL again. I’d love to try their teppan restaurant. 

Thanks, Pam.   I remember that you have a more positive take about HAL.  Thanks for sharing.

Edited January 29, 2019 by Cruiserkenn

[CineGraphic]

6 hours ago, idiebabe said:

They have the plates on a “hot” plate which as you must have noticed have a metal cover over the plates which keeps the food hot.  If you haven’t experienced, still don’t get how you can fairly comment!  So now really wondering if your hotcakes were served cold!

I know restaurant equipment,  there were no warmers. Only simply bar carts with trays and plates with lids. I'm only reporting about my experiences and what I saw. I have no reason to lie about having to send back cold hotcakes, but please, believe what you wish.

[CineGraphic]

4 hours ago, OlsSalt said:

 

I would be interested in hearing both sides of this reported conversation and its context, before concluding what the staffer "implied". 

He more than implied, those were his words, "HAL is looking to replace the old guard".

[Cruiserkenn]

8 hours ago, Shmoo here said:

While I haven't seen the Pinnacle Grill on the Nieuw Statendam, I've been in a couple of others.  They weren't dark and nondescript.

Veendam

Zuiderdam

 

Thanks for the great pictures!  Looks fab!

[Cruiserkenn]

12 hours ago, neverbeenhere said:

We've had nice cruises on Holland. (not my photo)

Thanks!  As they say, a picture tells a thousand words😋

[CineGraphic]

2 hours ago, Cruiserkenn said:

Thanks!  As they say, a picture tells a thousand words😋

It was much darker at night, let’s compare apples to apples.

[idiebabe]

5 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

I know restaurant equipment,  there were no warmers. Only simply bar carts with trays and plates with lids. I'm only reporting about my experiences and what I saw. I have no reason to lie about having to send back cold hotcakes, but please, believe what you wish.

 

If you know Restaurant Equipment, then you should know that the Metal Covers actually sits over the Warming Plates.  This was also confirmed by another Poster who replied to you in your review on HAL's thread.  I believe your answer was that you didn't know that or good to know!

 

Maybe you should take Ole Salt's advice and not bring into a Review things you know nothing about!

[CineGraphic]

6 minutes ago, idiebabe said:

 

If you know Restaurant Equipment, then you should know that the Metal Covers actually sits over the Warming Plates.  This was also confirmed by another Poster who replied to you in your review on HAL's thread.  I believe your answer was that you didn't know that or good to know!

 

Maybe you should take Ole Salt's advice and not bring into a Review things you know nothing about!

Wow, I’ll have to take pictures of everything on my next cruise just to satisfy the naysayers. None of this takes away from the facts that drinks were inconsistent and service was subpar.

[Diver2014]

Just to compare.....we've been on many HAL ships and love them.  We had issues on one sailing on the Zuiderdam but they were beyond HAL's control.  Two things we love about HAL ships....the Lido and Crows Nest!  (and I love having a bathtub in our balcony stateroom!).  

[satxdiver]

1 hour ago, idiebabe said:

 

If you know Restaurant Equipment, then you should know that the Metal Covers actually sits over the Warming Plates.  This was also confirmed by another Poster who replied to you in your review on HAL's thread.  I believe your answer was that you didn't know that or good to know!

 

Maybe you should take Ole Salt's advice and not bring into a Review things you know nothing about!

 

If the carts have warming plates then they have to have a power source since open flames are not allowed on a ship.  Just saying as an engineer.

[idiebabe]

6 minutes ago, satxdiver said:

 

If the carts have warming plates then they have to have a power source since open flames are not allowed on a ship.  Just saying as an engineer.

 

The Serving Carts don't have Warming Plates themselves.  There is a Warming/Hot Plate that the dish is put on and then it's covered with the Metal Lid.  It keeps the food hot.  

 

Hope that helps to give a picture of what we're discussing.

[Cruiserkenn]

4 hours ago, CineGraphic said:

It was much darker at night, let’s compare apples to apples.

OK, but the pictures above look really really nice😌😊☺️

[cruisemom42]

1 hour ago, CineGraphic said:

Wow, I’ll have to take pictures of everything on my next cruise just to satisfy the naysayers. None of this takes away from the facts that drinks were inconsistent and service was subpar.

 

As I responded on the HAL forum, you cruised on a ship that has barely been in service for a month. These kinds of kinks are very, very common and I have in the past experienced them on NEW Princess ships as well. Speed of service in the MDR particularly seems to take a while to smooth out. When you think about the amount of coordination and the distance food must cover from galley to table, it is a quite amazing feat that they do as well as they do on a regular basis.

 

Also -- I'm not a mad tropical drink afficionado, but I've never heard of a Goombay Smash either. In fairness I consulted Google and looked at 5 different sites featuring Caribbean cocktails. None of them had this drink listed either. Perhaps it is not as "common" as you think?

[Ombud]

20 hours ago, RDC1 said:

Elite on Princess, tried HAL last year for the second time, the first time was 10 years ago.  Enjoyed the recent cruise so now have 51 days booked on HAL this year (compared with 50 on Princess) and if that goes as good as the one last year, will book 72 next year on HAL.  

As an Elite on Princess, which Mariner status did you get on 1st cruise?

[Shmoo here]

28 minutes ago, Ombud said:

As an Elite on Princess, which Mariner status did you get on 1st cruise?

You don't get any Mariner status, but you are afforded 1 star Mariner perks.

[RDC1]

45 minutes ago, Ombud said:

As an Elite on Princess, which Mariner status did you get on 1st cruise?

 I haven't been following my status on HAL since I only had the 7 day cruise 10 years ago and the 16 day crews I did a few months ago. According to the web site you are a single star after your first cruise, 2 star after 30 cruise credits, 3 star after 75, 4 star after 200, and 5 star after 500.  

[CineGraphic]

1 hour ago, cruisemom42 said:

-- I'm not a mad tropical drink afficionado, but I've never heard of a Goombay Smash either. In fairness I consulted Google and looked at 5 different sites featuring Caribbean cocktails. None of them had this drink listed either. Perhaps it is not as "common" as you think?

https://somethingnewfordinner.com/recipe/goombay-smash/

If you have ever spent anytime in the Bahamas, you have run into a Goombay Smash or two, the ubiquitous cocktail of the islands. There is not a bar or restaurant in the Bahamas that doesn't offer a Goombay Smash on its menu. Invented in the 1960's by Emily Cooper of Miss Emily's Blue Bee Bar in Green Turtle Cay, the original recipe is top secret. They premix large jugs of Goombay Smashes each day before the bar opens to keep the recipe secret and to make it easy to pour large numbers of cocktails quickly. You can also purchase take-away half gallon jugs of premixed Goombay Smashes to enjoy at your leisure.

Edited January 29, 2019 by CineGraphic

[cruisemom42]

32 minutes ago, CineGraphic said:

https://somethingnewfordinner.com/recipe/goombay-smash/

If you have ever spent anytime in the Bahamas, you have run into a Goombay Smash or two, the ubiquitous cocktail of the islands. There is not a bar or restaurant in the Bahamas that doesn't offer a Goombay Smash on its menu. Invented in the 1960's by Emily Cooper of Miss Emily's Blue Bee Bar in Green Turtle Cay, the original recipe is top secret. They premix large jugs of Goombay Smashes each day before the bar opens to keep the recipe secret and to make it easy to pour large numbers of cocktails quickly. You can also purchase take-away half gallon jugs of premixed Goombay Smashes to enjoy at your leisure.

 

What can I say? Perhaps they are popular in the Bahamas but not necessarily on board ships. 

 

I've been cruising in the Caribbean for more than 40 years. All I can say is that I've truthfully never heard of them. Perhaps the bartenders are relatively new to cruising in that region and aren't familiar with them either. Guess I'm just saying that on a new ship it may be worth going in with an attitude that you might encounter a few hiccups.

 

Edited to add:  Just wanted to add that I'm far from a HAL cheerleader. I completely agree that asking to have your wine decanted should have been no problem. But -- at risk of beating a dead horse -- if you want to experience the best service on a new ship, give it some time for 'shakedown'  and book it after 6-8 months.

Edited January 29, 2019 by cruisemom42

[sailmeaway]

18 hours ago, Coral said:

I was not and I know of others who were not invited either.

You need to have at least one sailing with HAL to be invited to the Mariner's lunch.  We were invited twice on a b2b in November on the Koningsdam and it was the same awful menu both times.

 

[hbrote]

On 1/28/2019 at 2:20 PM, CineGraphic said:

  We walked off the ship and both said how we couldn't wait to be back on board with Princess.

 

 

The exact statement made by my wife as we departed the Osterdam last year.  We agree with your review completely.

[chefchick]

Clearly the OP didn’t enjoy many aspects of his HAL Cruise and prefers Princess.  This forum is called Cruise “Critic” for a reason....but I certainly hope no one would take one’s person bad experience as a critique of any entire cruise line without giving it try themselves....I am always shocked when I hear someone say they are now considering not sailing xyz because of this one bad review (or even a few bad reviews)...especially of a new vessel.

 

Again, it’s only one person’s opinion....take it for what it is.

[RDC1]

5 hours ago, satxdiver said:

 

If the carts have warming plates then they have to have a power source since open flames are not allowed on a ship.  Just saying as an engineer.

I have seen warming plates used in hotels that are stone, heated in ovens, and used to keep food warm during delivery using their thermal mass.  Just saying not all ways of keeping food warm have to have a power source.

[RDC1]

49 minutes ago, chefchick said:

Clearly the OP didn’t enjoy many aspects of his HAL Cruise and prefers Princess.  This forum is called Cruise “Critic” for a reason....but I certainly hope no one would take one’s person bad experience as a critique of any entire cruise line without giving it try themselves....I am always shocked when I hear someone say they are now considering not sailing xyz because of this one bad review (or even a few bad reviews)...especially of a new vessel.

 

Again, it’s only one person’s opinion....take it for what it is.

During the last year I have sail on HAL, Princess, Celebrity, Royal Caribbean.  On any of those cruises I could have selected a couple of items and used them for the basis of a cruise line gives bad impression type article, just as I could have taken a few things from each for an cruise line excels type article. Guess it just depends upon ones person view about which type gets written.  All of them have strong  and weak points. One advantage of having several with different focus, but still largely the same, to choose between.