Holland America never again

[tuolumne couple]

On 6/14/2022 at 7:18 PM, Brodysmum said:

My husband and I went on a 14 day back to back cruise. Everything was good until the first morning of our cruise.

https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/bedbugs/faqs.html

Um, I could be way off base, but this kind of reminds me of people who say they got sick the first day of the cruise and blame HAL. Please give HAL another chance. Do not base it on this one time. They try so hard. Everyone has a part in the play. Accountability goes a long way in this life. Just saying I am the first to say 'it was probably me..'

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 16, 2022 by tuolumne couple

[bluesplayer]

If OP stayed in a hotel the night before,  could be the bed bug bites occurred there.  As posted above often a delay in symptoms. Not a HA cheerleader..  just a registered nurse. 

[*Miss G*]

8 hours ago, kazu said:

I feel for your 3 operations but lots of us have been through lots over the last few months.  I am not going to compare tragedies or sufferings but simply say I am looking forward to my first cruise in over 3 years (thanks to Covid) in the Fall even though I am sailing solo having lost my husband.

 

I am so very sorry for your loss.  🙁 💐

[BobbiSox]

Bed bugs leave a very distinctive pattern when they bite. It's referred to as 'the lunchh line'. There are multiple bites in a row. Your 'bites' look like ringworm, and I am very familiar that that parasite. Because I am a really picky eater, I too don't like a lot of the food on HAL ships, but I can usually find something on the Lido, which has a wider selection and it doesn't take an hour. I started cruisin HAL in the 'glory days' when everything was near perfect and everyone was treated like royalty. I have been in every category of cabin and some of them smell better than others. When the smell is unbreable, I will always asked to be moved and that hasn't been a problem. Since dogs are allowed on board now, I guess we really need to protect ourselves from the parasites that the dogs bring onboard. I like dogs, but not in a hotel room or  a hotel, because I have severe allery to their saliva and dander, and both go undetectable until it's too late. I hope you try HAL again. You may like the newer ships, one of which is  Rotterdam. 

 

[kazu]

7 hours ago, julia said:

@kazu  You are SO correct...  the OP needs to move on from an unfortunate situation.  My condolences to you on the loss of your husband.

 

4 hours ago, *Miss G* said:

 

I am so very sorry for your loss.  🙁 💐

 

Thank you both ♥️ And apologies - I didn’t mean to derail the thread with my post 😬 

[cruising sister]

4 hours ago, BobbiSox said:

Bed bugs leave a very distinctive pattern when they bite. It's referred to as 'the lunchh line'. There are multiple bites in a row. Your 'bites' look like ringworm, and I am very familiar that that parasite. Because I am a really picky eater, I too don't like a lot of the food on HAL ships, but I can usually find something on the Lido, which has a wider selection and it doesn't take an hour. I started cruisin HAL in the 'glory days' when everything was near perfect and everyone was treated like royalty. I have been in every category of cabin and some of them smell better than others. When the smell is unbreable, I will always asked to be moved and that hasn't been a problem. Since dogs are allowed on board now, I guess we really need to protect ourselves from the parasites that the dogs bring onboard. I like dogs, but not in a hotel room or  a hotel, because I have severe allery to their saliva and dander, and both go undetectable until it's too late. I hope you try HAL again. You may like the newer ships, one of which is  Rotterdam. 

 

Ringworm?  Definitely not ringworm, there is a definite line to the pattern and appears to be the underside of the arm where it is warm. Bed bugs can look hive like when first bitten and then calm down. As a pediatrician I have seen lots of bug bites. Hotel if stayed pre cruise vs. cruise cabin is the question. Ringworm is a fungus not a parasite but dogs can bring fleas which can give similar looking bites. 

[Homosassa]

OP, I see that you cruised from Fort Lauderdale for your cruise.

 

May I ask when you arrived in Florida and what were your precruise activities?

 

We have numerous biting insects here in Florida such as mosquitos and noseeums.

 

Your bites look like noseeums bites and they can take over 24 hours to show up as red welts and pustules.

 

https://swatmosquitosystems.com/what-exactly-is-a-no-see-um/

[Caribbean Chris]

6 hours ago, BobbiSox said:

 I hope you try HAL again. You may like the newer ships, one of which is  Rotterdam. 

 

The OP was on Rotterdam.

[rubytue]

On 6/16/2022 at 12:42 AM, tuolumne couple said:

https://www.cdc.gov/parasites/bedbugs/faqs.html

Um, I could be way off base, but this kind of reminds me of people who say they got sick the first day of the cruise and blame HAL. Please give HAL another chance. Do not base it on this one time. They try so hard. Everyone has a part in the play. Accountability goes a long way in this life. Just saying I am the first to say 'it was probably me..'

 

 

 

 

 

 

And some of this can depends on the person. We stayed in a place with bedbugs on night, and it felt them all night - I tried rationalizing with myself that I was being paranoid. I scratched my legs raw in my “sleep” ( I wasn’t sleeping). And, this is gross, but there was half a dead bedbug stuck to my leg in dried blood in the morning. We left the next morning. Somehow, we did not bring them home. This was 20 years ago when they first started making their resurgence.

 

As for the OP, I can somewhat imagine how it went. Something (the bites?) soured the trip and it was hard to recover. Also, someone correct me if I am wrong, but “bronchitis” is not a contagious bug, it’s an inflammation/infection that develops after your have another infection as it stews in your lungs. You can get it after a cold, the flu, Covid, RSV, etc. But generally not in an of itself. Starve diagnosis on the first or second day of a cough. 

[donh1]

It does not surprise me that cruise ships have to deal with bedbugs.  The sheer number of people rotating thru those cabins who have stayed in hotels certainly increases the odds. Cruise ships have a distinct advantage over hotels in that their guests spend multiple nights so the problem is identified and corrected promptly.   It’s likely not something the cruise line likes to talk about but no doubt it is an ongoing issue that is dealt with in a prescribed manner.  

[judi666]

That seems like everything that could go wrong did. Sorry!  we did a 19 day HAL cruise in May.  It was the first time the Noordam had sailed with passengers in over 700 days.   It was pretty hit or miss. Our Sig Suite had about 1/4 inch of dust on all surfaces. Our travel companions the same, plus find unflushed feces in their bathroom! The stewards did a great job and all was ok by day 2. 
 

No bites, but I did have some lingering allergies, probably from the dust.

 

The staff seemed like they rounded up a bunch of guys off the street in Indonesia and gave them a 1/2 hour briefing on service.  
 

The dinner in Rudi’s was probably the worst meal of my life. ( we were compensated for the cost).

Canelletto was always good, but seldom open.

 

The Dining manager was a clueless jerk. There was no sommelier of anyone to ask about wine selections.

 

In the end we had a great time and  spent wonderful time with family members.  It was far from perfect, but we kind of knew that going in, considering Covid protocols etc.

 

I hope your next cruise will be a better experience.

 

 

 

 

[Florida_gal_50]

6 minutes ago, judi666 said:

That seems like everything that could go wrong did. Sorry!  we did a 19 day HAL cruise in May.  It was the first time the Noordam had sailed with passengers in over 700 days.   It was pretty hit or miss. Our Sig Suite had about 1/4 inch of dust on all surfaces. Our travel companions the same, plus find unflushed feces in their bathroom! The stewards did a great job and all was ok by day 2. 
 

No bites, but I did have some lingering allergies, probably from the dust.

 

The staff seemed like they rounded up a bunch of guys off the street in Indonesia and gave them a 1/2 hour briefing on service.  
 

The dinner in Rudi’s was probably the worst meal of my life. ( we were compensated for the cost).

Canelletto was always good, but seldom open.

 

The Dining manager was a clueless jerk. There was no sommelier of anyone to ask about wine selections.

 

In the end we had a great time and  spent wonderful time with family members.  It was far from perfect, but we kind of knew that going in, considering Covid protocols etc.

 

I hope your next cruise will be a better experience.

 

 

 

 

That is unreal.  There is no excuse for how you found your room.  You know passengers are coming it should be cleaned and the toilet flushed.

[morgan1611]

On 6/15/2022 at 5:53 PM, Florida_gal_50 said:

Not for me.  On the koningsdam in March the service was so bad in the pinnacle I refused to go back.  I friend that sailed for 6 weeks on the k had the same experience.  Her husband refused to go back.  I understand you aren’t talking about the k here but I’d almost always choice Canaletto and tamarind over the pinnacle even if it’s cheaper.

We were on Kdam last week, and service was ok in the Pinnacle.  However, that was the last night of our cruise and we had already tried Canaletto and Tamarind which had AMAZING service (and delicious food) and that made the ok service in Pinnacle look pretty crummy.

[Florida_gal_50]

7 minutes ago, morgan1611 said:

We were on Kdam last week, and service was ok in the Pinnacle.  However, that was the last night of our cruise and we had already tried Canaletto and Tamarind which had AMAZING service (and delicious food) and that made the ok service in Pinnacle look pretty crummy.

Thank you for the information.  For some reason I feel that restaurants like the stand alone sel de mer and pinnacle should have more polished service then the others.  It doesn’t seem like it lately for the pinnacle anyway.

[silversneakers]

11 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Thank you for the information.  For some reason I feel that restaurants like the stand alone sel de mer and pinnacle should have more polished service then the others.  It doesn’t seem like it lately for the pinnacle anyway.

All cruise lines (and airlines) are having huge staffing issues during this time so it may take a while to bring the industry back to higher standards. And, if you ask the staff, you will realize they are performing multiple tasks to try to fill the need.

[albingirl]

18 hours ago, judi666 said:

That seems like everything that could go wrong did. Sorry!  we did a 19 day HAL cruise in May.  It was the first time the Noordam had sailed with passengers in over 700 days.   It was pretty hit or miss. Our Sig Suite had about 1/4 inch of dust on all surfaces. Our travel companions the same, plus find unflushed feces in their bathroom! The stewards did a great job and all was ok by day 2. 
 

No bites, but I did have some lingering allergies, probably from the dust.

 

The staff seemed like they rounded up a bunch of guys off the street in Indonesia and gave them a 1/2 hour briefing on service.  
 

The dinner in Rudi’s was probably the worst meal of my life. ( we were compensated for the cost).

Canelletto was always good, but seldom open.

 

The Dining manager was a clueless jerk. There was no sommelier of anyone to ask about wine selections.

 

In the end we had a great time and  spent wonderful time with family members.  It was far from perfect, but we kind of knew that going in, considering Covid protocols etc.

 

I hope your next cruise will be a better experience.

 

 

 

 

Rounded up a bunch of guys  off the streets in Indonesia?  What a terrible comment.  Unflushed toilets?  Clueless jerks?  But you had a wonderful time.  I'm scratching my head on this post.

[Xenni]

20 minutes ago, albingirl said:

Rounded up a bunch of guys  off the streets in Indonesia?  What a terrible comment.  Unflushed toilets?  Clueless jerks?  But you had a wonderful time.  I'm scratching my head on this post.

I would say the comment about the staff is borderline racist. Some people just wants to complain just to complain .

[Florida_gal_50]

5 hours ago, silversneakers said:

All cruise lines (and airlines) are having huge staffing issues during this time so it may take a while to bring the industry back to higher standards. And, if you ask the staff, you will realize they are performing multiple tasks to try to fill the need.

Ok, dirty room and poop in the toilet may be ok to you.  That is not my standard.  I know people love to use the staffing issue or supply chain card.  Most of us still working are stretched to the limit.  I'm pretty sure my employer would not be happy with a lackluster job because I'm "busy".  I know a lot of people get free cruises so maybe that acceptable.  I pay thru the nose for mine.  If they don't have enough staff then limit bookings.  Easy peasy.

[albingirl]

14 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Ok, dirty room and poop in the toilet may be ok to you.  That is not my standard.  I know people love to use the staffing issue or supply chain card.  Most of us still working are stretched to the limit.  I'm pretty sure my employer would not be happy with a lackluster job because I'm "busy".  I know a lot of people get free cruises so maybe that acceptable.  I pay thru the nose for mine.  If they don't have enough staff then limit bookings.  Easy peasy.

Exactly.  We expect some luxury.  Otherwise, I'd stay home in my luxurious home. No brainer.

[vicd1969]

17 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

Thank you for the information.  For some reason I feel that restaurants like the stand alone sel de mer and pinnacle should have more polished service then the others.  It doesn’t seem like it lately for the pinnacle anyway.

That mirrored my experience on the Rotterdam comparing service in Club Orange vs Pinnacle - Pinnacle was just "nice" service-wise. They didn't do anything wrong, but Club Orange was far superior in terms of warmth and attention. I actually felt that the Canaletto staff and manager made a stronger effort than Pinnacle's.

[doone]

When HAL introduced the Pinnacle Grill many years ago it was excellent, unfortunately over the years its declined IMHO, and this was before covid…..I enjoy the Canaletto for a specialty restaurant more than the Pinnacle.  I haven’t tried Tammarind so can’t comment….

Edited July 7, 2022 by doone

[Mary229]

2 hours ago, doone said:

When HAL introduced the Pinnacle Grill many years ago it was excellent, unfortunately over the years its declined IMHO, and this was before covid…..I enjoy the Canaletto for a specialty restaurant more than the Pinnacle.  I haven’t tried Tammarind so can’t comment….

I think there are two contributing factors to the decline.   1.  It rolled out to all ships, newer ships were built with kitchen designs to specifically service the specialty restaurants.  Old ships don’t have the specialty kitchens.   2. And more importantly is HIA with every guest receiving a free meal.   Like helicopter money the free meals decrease the value of the restaurant and cutbacks will be made 

[Florida_gal_50]

5 hours ago, vicd1969 said:

That mirrored my experience on the Rotterdam comparing service in Club Orange vs Pinnacle - Pinnacle was just "nice" service-wise. They didn't do anything wrong, but Club Orange was far superior in terms of warmth and attention. I actually felt that the Canaletto staff and manager made a stronger effort than Pinnacle's.

I agree on both counts.  I had an excellent impression of staff in both places (club orange and Canaletto).  The ladies were especially lovely in Canaletto.

[Florida_gal_50]

1 hour ago, Mary229 said:

I think there are two contributing factors to the decline.   1.  It rolled out to all ships, newer ships were built with kitchen designs to specifically service the specialty restaurants.  Old ships don’t have the specialty kitchens.   2. And more importantly is HIA with every guest receiving a free meal.   Like helicopter money the free meals decrease the value of the restaurant and cutbacks will be made 

For me on the koningsdam it was more the service than the food.  The guy that was my waiter seemed like it was his first job ever working in the pinnacle.  Totally unprofessional. 

[Mary229]

9 hours ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

For me on the koningsdam it was more the service than the food.  The guy that was my waiter seemed like it was his first job ever working in the pinnacle.  Totally unprofessional. 

I am cutting the wait staff some slack right now.  That said I have , for years, expressed concern over the restaurant service levels as they continue the proliferation of specialty experiences without adding additional crew. On my last two cruises there does seem to be a trend towards lido dining leaving the dining room half full.  That is weird because I find the most decline in the lido - service and menu.