Community Appreciation Discount

[laura1960]

Has anyone successfully applied a military/first responder/healthcare worker/educator OBC AFTER their cruise was booked? And does it matter if you didn't book directly through HAL? I just found out about this, and have already applied and been accepted as a healthcare worker.  Website says new bookings only,  but I've heard people say they received the $100 OBC post-booking.

[ski ww]

I found out about the benefit after reading about it here on CC. I applied for it by filling out the form & sending it to HAL and got it, after we had booked a cruise. 

[wandrr]

Yes, we received the credit after booking, and we had booked through a travel agent. The process was absolutely painless and quite fast. I suggest you just apply - the worst that can happen is that they say no!

 

Note that there is some question about "Out-of-USA" passengers, but that might not arise in your case. It looks like sometimes we "evil furriners" get it, and sometimes we do not.

Edited October 3, 2022 by wandrr
Added out of USA sentences.

[richwmn]

I had it added after booking to two cruises, and declined on one.

One important thing - this is for 'Select' cruises not all. You can search for cruises that qualify.

 

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/deals/military-healthcare-firstresponder-appreciation/cruise-deals.html

 

Main offer page:

https://www.hollandamerica.com/en_US/deals/community-appreciation-cruise-offers.html

 

 

Edited October 3, 2022 by richwmn

[0106]

I have filled out the form to verify my status.  Is there an additional form that needs to be filled out to receive the OBC?  If so, where do I find it?  Thank you

[510picker]

My wife is a nurse and we have a November cruise alreayd booked that is on the list. I filled out the "Healthcare Verification" information. What else needs to be done to get it applied to an existing booking?

[richwmn]

16 minutes ago, 0106 said:

I have filled out the form to verify my status.  Is there an additional form that needs to be filled out to receive the OBC?  If so, where do I find it?  Thank you

Looks like the form has changed. The one I filled out (and probably most of the others) had a space for the booking number. It appears that the new form just verifies status for future bookings. I would call my TA / PCC / Main HAL number to see if the credit can be added to your existing bookings.

[510picker]

My I emailed my PCC this morning and they replied this is only for new bookings and could not apply it to my existing booking even though it is on the list. Didn't hurt to ask, I suppose. 

[PROCRUISE]

Previously applied and was notified that the OBC would be applied to my December 2022 and February 2023 cruises.

[oaktreerb]

This is a new promo.  Not the same as the previous Military OBC promo that could be added to existing cruises.

[AryMay]

I see that this promo is for educators too...both active and retired.

 

 

I am a retired teacher but when I filled out the form to verify my status I get a message saying that more information is needed. The information they are requesting needs to show that I am currently employed (which I'm not.) 

 

 

We have two cruises booked in early 2023 and it would be nice to get the credits applied to these cruises, but doubt it is going to happen if 1) the offer is only for new bookings and 2) there doesn't seem a way to get status verification if I am retired.

 

Have any other retired teachers been able to get verified for this offer?

 

 

 

[pirate cruiser]

Thank you for the link-I emailed our PCC as soon as we were approved and she immediately added the OBC to our 2 booked cruises-she did say that the 100 is one per booking however.

[laura1960]

17 hours ago, wandrr said:

Yes, we received the credit after boo

 

17 hours ago, wandrr said:

 

Note that there is some question about "Out-of-USA" passengers, but that might not arise in your case. It looks like sometimes we "evil furriners" get it, and sometimes we do not.

Hell, it was a global pandemic.  Discounts should apply to ALL military, health care, first responders, and teachers, wherever you call home!

[laura1960]

Update: called my TA from AARP, and she said it's been added. I also got confirmation from SHEER ID that I am officially classified as a healthcare worker. I plan to take my confirmation email and xray license just in case!

[chicopaige]

As a retired educator I was able to get verified by submitting an online copy of my paycheck from the website of my retirement site

[AryMay]

35 minutes ago, chicopaige said:

As a retired educator I was able to get verified by submitting an online copy of my paycheck from the website of my retirement site

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

I just uploaded an online copy of my pay information as well but got the following reply:

 

 

The online document shows it is coming from the teacher retirement association and doesn't have any reference to the school where I taught. I have emailed SheerID and am waiting for a response.

 

To make things even more complicated, the public school where I taught is now closed (which was why I retired.) 

 

I called my PCC yesterday and he is trying to figure things out as well...

 

Fingers crossed I can get this done...

 

[chicopaige]

Sorry to hear that.  I am surprised because mine identified my State (California) not my school or district. 

Maybe if you resubmit it it will go through (kind of like when you call Princess and agent says one thing and when you call again another agent you get another answer.)

I hope you are able to get this resolved.

[0106]

SheerID sent me a verification.

 

Since I already have 3 cruises booked that qualify, I contacted my PCC.

 

She said, “I do not see that ship board credit is built yet.”🤨

[ChuckL]

On 10/3/2022 at 12:48 AM, laura1960 said:

Has anyone successfully applied a military/first responder/healthcare worker/educator OBC AFTER their cruise was booked? And does it matter if you didn't book directly through HAL? I just found out about this, and have already applied and been accepted as a healthcare worker.  Website says new bookings only,  but I've heard people say they received the $100 OBC post-booking.

I received my verification for a retired faculty/staff member at a University today. I originally booked my July, 2003 cruise with HAL, but had it transferred to a travel agent. I will contact them tomorrow to see if they can get it applied, since the verification seemed to indicate there was a one day waiting period before it could be used. My cruise is on the eligibility list, so I will let you know what happens for me. 

 

 

[Dunmore2]

Did anyone from Canada get the form to work? 

[dfish]

On 10/3/2022 at 2:51 PM, AryMay said:

I see that this promo is for educators too...both active and retired.

 

 

I am a retired teacher but when I filled out the form to verify my status I get a message saying that more information is needed. The information they are requesting needs to show that I am currently employed (which I'm not.) 

 

 

We have two cruises booked in early 2023 and it would be nice to get the credits applied to these cruises, but doubt it is going to happen if 1) the offer is only for new bookings and 2) there doesn't seem a way to get status verification if I am retired.

 

Have any other retired teachers been able to get verified for this offer?

 

 

 

That is the same issue I have.

 

[ChuckL]

I am a retired University staff member, and I was verified yesterday by sending a couple of dated screen shots that showed my name as well as other information about me (e.g. my University directory entry showing me as retired, as well as a Benefits page showing my retiree plans. In addition, we were able to keep our University email accounts after retiring, so the correspondence I had regarding getting verified was done using my xxx@university.edu account. 

15 minutes ago, dfish said:

That is the same issue I have.

 

 

[AryMay]

On 10/4/2022 at 10:04 AM, AryMay said:

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

I just uploaded an online copy of my pay information as well but got the following reply:

 

 

The online document shows it is coming from the teacher retirement association and doesn't have any reference to the school where I taught. I have emailed SheerID and am waiting for a response.

 

To make things even more complicated, the public school where I taught is now closed (which was why I retired.) 

 

I called my PCC yesterday and he is trying to figure things out as well...

 

Fingers crossed I can get this done...

 

 

A happy ending for me...

 

I emailed SheerID support and received the following response today:

 

Based on the notes left by our reviewers, the reason why the requests didn't go through was because there has been a mismatch of organization name on the document sent and on the verification form. No worries, this has been corrected already. That said, our records now show that your request was approved today, no further verification is needed.

 

I also talked to my PCC who has now added the credit to our two upcoming cruises. 🙂 I wish I would have asked if the OBC will be added automatically if I book any other future cruises. 

[iflyrc5]

On 10/3/2022 at 2:51 PM, AryMay said:

I see that this promo is for educators too...both active and retired.

 

 

I am a retired teacher but when I filled out the form to verify my status I get a message saying that more information is needed. The information they are requesting needs to show that I am currently employed (which I'm not.) 

 

 

We have two cruises booked in early 2023 and it would be nice to get the credits applied to these cruises, but doubt it is going to happen if 1) the offer is only for new bookings and 2) there doesn't seem a way to get status verification if I am retired.

 

Have any other retired teachers been able to get verified for this offer?

 

 

 

Our TA was able to get the educator benefit added for us.  My wife is a retired teacher.

[fieldsofclover]

Thanks for the free money, friends! 💸

 

Another thing I wouldn't have known about without you all.