Rotterdam March 6-13, 2022 Cruise Cancelled

[Laminator]

6 minutes ago, boze9999 said:

In the past corporations would charter a cruise for their entity so you wouldn't see it advertised as a charter - just a private corporate charter. Not sure if that's the case or not ?

 

That I get...but from what I am reading above it would only possibly be a 3 day charter. 

[boze9999]

13 minutes ago, Laminator said:

That I get...but from what I am reading above it would only possibly be a 3 day charter. 

If it is a corporate charter, then some company paid a "boatload" of money to get it! I'm sure the truth will eventually surface.....we were booked on it, but had already cancelled before HAL cancelled it. 

[syesmar]

13 hours ago, Spire2000 said:

Just want to add that my parents booked on the Rotterdam from Jan through April. I just called them and they’re also cancelled. We suspect this is a charter.

Yikes! How is this handled? Leave for a few days and come back? I really feel for all affected by this, especially since there’s no explanation given.

[bobjoek]

On Dec 7 shortly after being notified that the March 6 cruise was cancelled, I booked another cruise with Holland America.  At the time I was informed that the final pricing would need to be calculated by HAL's accounting department, as our cancelled cruise had future cruise credits.  I assumed that this would be a simple affair.  As of today I have not received a confirmation from HAL.  I called HAL today and was informed that the confirmation with final pricing could take until January 4.  Our final payment date is December 27.  AAUGH!  This is the thanks I receive from HAL for booking another cruise, rather than taking a full refund!

 

[terrydtx]

19 hours ago, 12cruise2 said:

Terrydtx, which airfare do you purchase with HAL to assure you get a refund if the cruise is cancelled?  Right now I don't recall the two different names, but I think I remember one had to be paid for when booked and one had to be paid for with final payment, something like that.  Thank you for your response.

I always do not have to pay for the air with HAL FE until final payment for the cruise. Our Westerdam cruise for last September was canceled a month after final payment I got the air for our business class tickets refunded in full for $6600. My understanding is that any air booked with HAL FE is refunded if the cruise is canceled. This is also true with booking air with Celebrity as we had one of their cruises canceled after final payment.

 

We have already booked our business class tickets for next year's Oosterdam cruise, we are flying to Copenhagen for our Oceania cruise and then flying from Stockholm to Venice for the Oosterdam cruise and then home to Texas. The flight from Stockholm to Venice was booked on our own and not with HAL Our flights are booked through United, and we do not pay for them until final payment in May 2022.

Edited December 10, 2021 by terrydtx

[johnnyswitzerland]

Could the three days removed from the schedule be for some purpose other than a charter?  Some king of maintenance?  Maybe downtime to remove those slot machines from the Ocean Bar!?  😀

[ftwtong]

15 hours ago, Spire2000 said:

Sure there is. We're on it.

We are on it as well. I was about to purchase our airfare, but now I feel we might need to hold off. We made the final payment yesterday.  Please let me know if you hear anything.

[bobjoek]

I have received a confirmation from HAL about the cancelled March 6 cruise.  HAL is charging us $180 cancellation fee for a cruise they cancelled!  This is obviously a computer programming error that should be remedied by HAL.  Just another indication that they do not have their act together.  Anyone that had their March 6 cruise cancelled should check their confirmation from HAL.

 

Bob

 

[rothbury]

Charged us, too.  Called them and they act like they don't know what I'm talking about.  Also, we had booked a shore excursion in Key West for $160.  They refunded $30.  I'm not planning another HAL cruise until they admit their "mistake" and correct it.

[Boatdrill]

On 12/9/2021 at 4:11 AM, rothbury said:

My biggest complaint is all of the bonuses that we are losing.  This was a cruise booked from a cancelled cruise in 2020.  We have lost the bonus for our cancelled cruise.  Certainly, the Have It All promotion doesn't go into 2023 so there is a lot to lose.

HAL's new promotion - the "Free Upgrade Event"-  will begin December 14, 2021 and run through February 28, 2022 for select cruises departing Summer 2022 - Winter/Spring 2023.  The Have It All package, 50% reduced deposit, and a "free stateroom upgrade" are included.    The sailing list is extensive: Alaska, Hawaii, Mexico, Pacific Coast, Tahiti, Europe, Panama Canal, Canada/New England, Asia, Australia/New Zealand, Caribbean.    

I hope you can find another cruise, and regain what you've lost.   

Edited December 11, 2021 by Boatdrill

[jchristi]

Just cancelled ours after my cruise consultant couldn't be bothered to discuss other cruises with me. We booked on another cruise line for the same dates.

 

They did say that the email would show cancellation fees but they would not be charged. Will be keeping an eye on my credit card statement.

[Kristeng]

On 12/7/2021 at 3:36 PM, bobjoek said:

I have just received an email from Holland America stating that the March 6-13, 2022 cruise has been cancelled.  No reason given as why.  We have fully paid for this cruise.  A real bummer!

 

HAL suggested booking a 4 day cruise on the Rotterdam from March 6-10, going to Half Moon Cay and Bimini.  HAL has offered a very small $50 per person on board credit if we book the 4 day cruise.  If we don't book this cruise, HAL stated a full refund.  Of course, this is very inconvenient, as airfare and hotels have been paid.

 

Anyone else experienced this cancellation, or know the reason why?

 

Bob

 

Hi Bob,

 

We were also travelers that are experiencing the same issues from Holland America's decision to cancel this cruise and offer 4-days in the Bahamas as a substitute. for the 7 days.  I agree that a $50 per person on board credit is sort of well...insulting?  We also have non-refundable tickets on airlines. What we ended up doing was booking the same type of room..on the MSC Divina. It sails the same dates and goes to almost the same exact ports of call. The only difference is MSC will visit Cozumel instead of Key West. In the end I saved $350.  Good luck to you!

[Kristeng]

On 12/10/2021 at 12:51 PM, rothbury said:

Charged us, too.  Called them and they act like they don't know what I'm talking about.  Also, we had booked a shore excursion in Key West for $160.  They refunded $30.  I'm not planning another HAL cruise until they admit their "mistake" and correct it.

We ran into the same thing with 3 cancelled shore excursions Dec. 2021. We also, are seeking a new cruise line to love.

[doone]

You can’t escape these type of issues by changing cruise lines, happens on all of them.