Is HAL eliminating breakfast at the Pinnacle Grill ?

[scubacruiserx2]

9 hours ago, madera1 said:

In July Inwas in a Neptune suite on the Oosterdam and we could either have breakfast in the Pinnacle grill, Club Orange in MDR or just have room service, Lido.  We actually utilized all options over the course of our week.

 

We had very slow service in the Pinnacle grill for breakfast and there was only one other table occupied at the time, thus we never returned. As far as seating in the MDR, we were all but once given window tables.

 

Thanks maderia 1 . Sorry about the slow service . We did have that on our cruise in June with one server The others were very good to excellent . We do enjoy a quite , leisurely breakfast even if we are the only ones  there . Our concern is that if people stop going to the Pinnacle it will only validate a decision to close the Pinnacle . If it used more often , like exercise, it will produce the desired effect of keeping that option open . Is it possible that the other NS people did't know that the Pinnacle was open ?  We we were on the Nieuw Statendam in March we could't get a Neptune Suite so we got an aft cabin next to the corner suite and tried Club Orange . We talked with our neighbor while going to dinner in CO and they said that they must eat breakfast in CO because they didn't have it in the Pinnacle .

[scubacruiserx2]

12 hours ago, Gsel said:

If true it will mean the end of HAL for us.  "The last straw!"

 I am sure they won't miss us, but there are cruise lines out there that still want our business enough to keep the service the matters. 

 

NO!!  Pinnacle Grill breakfast is our favorite Neptune perk.  We will be 4 star after next Spring’s cruise on Zaandam, so as Candaianbear, we might move back down on the food chain.  Too bad.  Taking away a popular benefit shouldn’t be taken lightly, or without consulting their most loyal customers.

 

We agree Pinnacle Grille breakfast is one our favorite perks from the Neptune Suites . We spent 46 days in Neptune Suites so far this year and now we're planning our next cruise . We were thinking a 26 night TA and Norway in a NS on the Rotterdam . But in light of the demise of the Pinnacle Grille , we are also looking at the Regal Princess 26 night TA and Ireland in a corner aft suite .

[Hope to sail soon]

Another couple who hate to lose breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill.  It's one of my favorite perks.  (We're five star, so we've had the free laundry for quite some time.)  Since the breakfast menu in the Pinnacle Grill is the same as the MDR, the ambiance and service are why we choose to eat in the PG rather than the MDR.  I feel that having breakfast in the MDR (even in a separate area) is a downgrade to the Neptune Suite experience.

 

This year we will be spending 49 days in Neptune Suites.  Our first cruise was on the Maasdam.  The service in the PG was excellent.  Coffee and juice were served as soon as we were seated--no need to order.  The waiters knew what we wanted after two days.

 

Our second cruise will be on the Rotterdam.  In fact, we will be sailing on her during the change to CO.  Will we have breakfast in the PG for the first part, and then have to switch to the MDR for the rest of the cruise?  

 

Scubacruiserx2--We sailed in an aft suite on the Crown Princess.  Breakfast is served in Sabatini's and has a separate menu from the MDR.  On the Crown, Sabatini's was located on an upper deck aft--great view!  I know that it can be in a different location on other ships.  Club Class Dining had not yet been implemented on the Crown on our cruise.

 

While we have enjoyed HAL's great itineraries, there are plenty of other ships in the sea.  We've sailed on six other lines, and perhaps it's time to give our $ to those which will give us what WE want.

 

 

[IslandThyme]

I'll be getting off Maasdam on 10/17, which is the day CO is slated to begin. I guess we'll be the last group to have PG breakfast - which I think is a great pity. It's such a peaceful way to start the day.

[rdwinelvr]

We sailed in a Neptune Suite on the Nieuw Statendam in May and the Pinnacle Grill was not available for breakfast.  That said, the Club Orange food and service was exception on all but one occasion.  We have enjoyed the quiet and ambiance of the PG breakfast, but the food seemed just like the MDR (fine, but nothing special, often lukewarm or cold).  In Club Orange it was fresh, hot and exactly as ordered.

 

I'm curious to see how it will be when we sail on the Westerdam in November when Club Orange is in the MDR.

[scubacruiserx2]

1 hour ago, Hope to sail soon said:

Another couple who hate to lose breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill.  It's one of my favorite perks.  (We're five star, so we've had the free laundry for quite some time.)  Since the breakfast menu in the Pinnacle Grill is the same as the MDR, the ambiance and service are why we choose to eat in the PG rather than the MDR.  I feel that having breakfast in the MDR (even in a separate area) is a downgrade to the Neptune Suite experience.

 

This year we will be spending 49 days in Neptune Suites.  Our first cruise was on the Maasdam.  The service in the PG was excellent.  Coffee and juice were served as soon as we were seated--no need to order.  The waiters knew what we wanted after two days.

 

Our second cruise will be on the Rotterdam.  In fact, we will be sailing on her during the change to CO.  Will we have breakfast in the PG for the first part, and then have to switch to the MDR for the rest of the cruise?  

 

Scubacruiserx2--We sailed in an aft suite on the Crown Princess.  Breakfast is served in Sabatini's and has a separate menu from the MDR.  On the Crown, Sabatini's was located on an upper deck aft--great view!  I know that it can be in a different location on other ships.  Club Class Dining had not yet been implemented on the Crown on our cruise.

 

While we have enjoyed HAL's great itineraries, there are plenty of other ships in the sea.  We've sailed on six other lines, and perhaps it's time to give our $ to those which will give us what WE want.

 

 

 

Wow , that sounds like it will be an interesting cruise during the change over . Here's hoping that you will have the option of the Pinnacle or CO . It seems to us like HAL would do better and make more money by offering more options rather then less . Pinnacle or CO for Neptune and Pinnacle suites and CO for others willing to pay the price .

 

All 53 days of our cruises this year have been HAL while all of our TA cruises have been Celebrity . Our Last cruise before this year was a Princess and we've have several on the Regal and 5 or 6 on the Caribbean Princess so we're comfortable moving over to people who want to work with us .

[scubacruiserx2]

2 hours ago, IslandThyme said:

I'll be getting off Maasdam on 10/17, which is the day CO is slated to begin. I guess we'll be the last group to have PG breakfast - which I think is a great pity. It's such a peaceful way to start the day.

 

Well said , we couldn't agree more . It almost feels like losing a friend . But we hope that you have a great cruise and maybe HAL will continue offering this venue for those like us willing to pay for it .

[mrspeck]

We just stepped off the Oosterdam this past Sunday, August 4th.  We never eat breakfast outside of our cabin so can’t speak to pinnacle breakfast, but regarding club orange in the dining room —  We had open seating as we rarely use the main dining room, we did however on our two gala nights.  I didn’t get the feeling that there was a club orange section.  It appeared to just be priority seating.  We were seated immediately both times while there was a fairly lengthy line otherwise.  One time we were seated on level two and the next time on level three.

[scubacruiserx2]

1 hour ago, rdwinelvr said:

We sailed in a Neptune Suite on the Nieuw Statendam in May and the Pinnacle Grill was not available for breakfast.  That said, the Club Orange food and service was exception on all but one occasion.  We have enjoyed the quiet and ambiance of the PG breakfast, but the food seemed just like the MDR (fine, but nothing special, often lukewarm or cold).  In Club Orange it was fresh, hot and exactly as ordered.

 

I'm curious to see how it will be when we sail on the Westerdam in November when Club Orange is in the MDR.

 

The Neptune Suites were not available when we booked a unplanned cruise on the Neiuw Statendam for our 41st anniversary in March  . We tried Club Orange at $ 100 a day extra . It was our worse experience in 40 cruises . The food , seating and lack of service was so bad that we didn't go back after the first night . Some people may enjoy dining at a loud diner with this decor and with people walking by  .

 

 

 

We prefer a sunrise and quite or watching the ocean go by .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Copper10-8]

29 minutes ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

The Neptune Suites were not available when we booked a unplanned cruise on the Neiuw Statendam for our 41st anniversary in March  . We tried Club Orange at $ 100 a day extra . It was our worse experience in 40 cruises . The food , seating and lack of service was so bad that we didn't go back after the first night . Some people may enjoy dining at a loud diner with this decor and with people walking by  .

We prefer a sunrise and quite or watching the ocean go by .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had the exact opposite experience on K-dam in March after first being not happy that they were switching us to CO withour our knowledge. Funny how that works

[tv24]

12 hours ago, Copper10-8 said:

 

Here you go:

 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/news/2018-press-releases/news-20181112-ClubOrangeCon18.html  

 

And the CO opening and cost schedule (per person) around the fleet:

 

Koningsdam Live $35.00 
Nieuw Statendam Live $35.00 
Eurodam 6/22/19 $25.00 
Oosterdam 6/23/19 $25.00 
Zaandam 7/6/19 $25.00 
Westerdam 8/11/19 $25.00 
Amsterdam 8/12/19 $25.00 
Volendam 8/14/19 $25.00 
Nieuw Amsterdam 9/7/19 $25.00 
Noordam 9/15/19 $25.00 
Veendam 9/21/19 $25.00 
Zuiderdam 9/27/19 $25.00 
Rotterdam 10/5/19 $25.00 
Maasdam 10/17/19 $25.00 

 

Thanks for the info and link.  We will probably experience Club Orange on our next HAL cruise.

 

[cruisin'mama]

We will be on the Westerdam Sept 1st.  I was looking forward to breakfast in the PG so we'll see how it goes.....

[Krazy Kruizers]

58 minutes ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

 

The Neptune Suites were not available when we booked a unplanned cruise on the Neiuw Statendam for our 41st anniversary in March  . We tried Club Orange at $ 100 a day extra . It was our worse experience in 40 cruises . The food , seating and lack of service was so bad that we didn't go back after the first night . Some people may enjoy dining at a loud diner with this decor and with people walking by  .

 

 

 

We prefer a sunrise and quite or watching the ocean go by .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I don't care for the chairs or the looks of the Club Orange on the Nieuw Statendam.

 

Thanks for sharing your pictures.

 

The Pinnacle looks so lovely.

[twentyknots]

21 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

With the possibility of Club Orange on all of HAL ships this year , does this mean that they are eliminating breakfast at the Pinnacle Grill ?

They already have on Koningsdam and Nieuw Statendam, but at least they have dedicated, converted spaces.  Some like it, some don't.  The remaining fleet was scheduled to begin conversion in July-December, 2019 I understand.  However, just allocating some dedicated space in the MDR and calling it Club Orange might be worthwhile for some who are willing to pay extra for this MDR space and a few other perks, but the PG breakfast is a BIG reason we book NS.  We'll be sailing in a NS on the Zuiderdam in December right after dry dock.    If they've actually converted some space like the 'K' and 'NA' , we'll keep an open mind, but if it's just the MDR and no PG breakfast we'll be very disappointed.   We too are looking at a 26 day TA on the Zuiderdam for April 2020.  We may have to reconsider.

[crusinbanjo]

18 hours ago, Live4cruises said:

NO!!  Pinnacle Grill breakfast is our favorite Neptune perk.  We will be 4 star after next Spring’s cruise on Zaandam, so as Candaianbear, we might move back down on the food chain.  Too bad.  Taking away a popular benefit shouldn’t be taken lightly, or without consulting their most loyal customers.

 That is one of our favorite perks as well.  Mrs Banjo and I book Neptune suites whenever they are available because we want the perks, if they take them away, there will be less reason to spend the extra money.

[aledomom]

So if you go to CO and don't care for it can you just request to be seated in the MDR?  We have reserved Main Dining each evening.

[rdwinelvr]

1 hour ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

The Neptune Suites were not available when we booked a unplanned cruise on the Neiuw Statendam for our 41st anniversary in March  . We tried Club Orange at $ 100 a day extra . It was our worse experience in 40 cruises . The food , seating and lack of service was so bad that we didn't go back after the first night . Some people may enjoy dining at a loud diner with this decor and with people walking by  .

To each their own.  We enjoyed it, but certainly not enough to pay $100 upcharge.

[3rdGenCunarder]

1 hour ago, aledomom said:

So if you go to CO and don't care for it can you just request to be seated in the MDR?  We have reserved Main Dining each evening.

 

I was in a NS in January on the K, and they were willing to change my dining to my original request in the MDR, which was fixed dining, large table. I still went to CO for breakfast. I don't care for the CO space and missed the quiet ambiance of the Pinnacle Grill, but the food quality made up for it. Breakfast cooked to order, right there. So I had the best of both options. I hope they will continue to allow NS passengers to have their choice.

 

If you want to eat at the same time each night, you can make a reservation in CO. 

 

My next cruise is on Zuiderdam, in a NS. However they set up the CO in the MDR, I don't think the food will be as good/fresh as it was in CO on the K.

 

[aledomom]

@3rdGenCunarder thanks for your reply.  I saw the photos of the space on the Nieuw Statendam and it looks great for a breakfast location but not sure that I would feel the need to "dress" for dinner in that space.  We will give it a try the first evening and see what we think.  If we are disappointed by the setting we will ask if we can have a table in the MDR each evening.  

 

Your response does lead me to another question...you said we could make reservations in CO is it not a set dining time like the MDR?  We just upgraded to a Neptune Suite so all this CO stuff is new to us today.

[scubacruiserx2]

Is the Pinnacle breakfast still available for Neptune suite guests after Club Orange has come on board  ?

[kazu]

3 minutes ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

Is the Pinnacle breakfast still available for Neptune suite guests after Club Orange has come on board  ?

 

No one really knows.  I doubt if HAL does either.  

 

Those that have reported that they had PG breakfast were on ships that had not gone through full conversion IIRC.

 

I’ll wait until our ship is converted and see what I can find out and hopefully, people will report here.

 

No PG breakfast doesn’t leave a lot of amenities for us.  I may very well downgrade to the engine room 😅😉.  

 

And what worries me, is that we know things can vary from ship to ship so what happens on x dam ship might be different on another.

[ottahand7]

We have loved the Pinnacle breakfasts and on 3 cruises in NS we had great service in the PG and usually fairly busy each day.  I love the quiet and more attentive service for breakfast in the PG.  We also have loved the window seating or next row with breakfast in the PG.  We are on the Zuiderdam in December so will see how it works out in CO.  If it is quiet and window tables we will be happy.   One problem we have in the PG at breakfast was champagne and Bloody Mary's with our beverage package were rather slow to arrive.  Perhaps with the group they will be quicker.  They had taken away the pastry service too in lieu of a plate of pastries of their choice.  Maybe we will have an offering again.  Reserving judgement until December.  Thanks for preparing us though, this site is such a wealth of information for us to be prepared for our trip!  

[scubacruiserx2]

39 minutes ago, ottahand7 said:

We have loved the Pinnacle breakfasts and on 3 cruises in NS we had great service in the PG and usually fairly busy each day.  I love the quiet and more attentive service for breakfast in the PG.  We also have loved the window seating or next row with breakfast in the PG.  We are on the Zuiderdam in December so will see how it works out in CO.  If it is quiet and window tables we will be happy.   One problem we have in the PG at breakfast was champagne and Bloody Mary's with our beverage package were rather slow to arrive.  Perhaps with the group they will be quicker.  They had taken away the pastry service too in lieu of a plate of pastries of their choice.  Maybe we will have an offering again.  Reserving judgement until December.  Thanks for preparing us though, this site is such a wealth of information for us to be prepared for our trip!  

 

We went to Antarctica last December on the Zaandam and it was a great trip . A couple of photos of the PG 

 

 

 

We hope that you can have breakfast there , good food , good service and quite with a lot of room .

[twodjs]

 

2 hours ago, scubacruiserx2 said:

Is the Pinnacle breakfast still available for Neptune suite guests after Club Orange has come on board  ?

No. The changeover means no more Pinnacle Grill breakfasts for Neptune Suites. I've been upset by these downgrades since last October when they were first announced. The only positive is when you have a separate venue on the two new ships - otherwise it's just a "special" area of the MDR. Quiet - with lots of space - and window seats for all!  That is NOT going to happen in the MDR. I have expressed my displeasure with the CO program before.  

[boze9999]

10 hours ago, mrspeck said:

We just stepped off the Oosterdam this past Sunday, August 4th.  We never eat breakfast outside of our cabin so can’t speak to pinnacle breakfast, but regarding club orange in the dining room —  We had open seating as we rarely use the main dining room, we did however on our two gala nights.  I didn’t get the feeling that there was a club orange section.  It appeared to just be priority seating.  We were seated immediately both times while there was a fairly lengthy line otherwise.  One time we were seated on level two and the next time on level three.

That certainly is not CO / Neptune with a quiet and private dining room. Certainly not worthy of extra spending for a Neptune or $100 a day CO experience IMO!