HAL Mariner Status

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

2 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

THANKS EVERYONE - We booked the B2B and TA will contact Mariner society to just remind HAL that we will be 4 star right at the start of the 2nd voyage.  We also got the same room number.  Next, we've never bought insurance, but I am going to research the boards first to read about that and IF I have questions, I will post on a different thread.  

Good idea, As well tell the front desk manager.

[AKJonesy]

3 hours ago, Mary229 said:

Enjoy the free laundry!  

...and for us the 50% discount for upscale dining surcharge 

[crystalspin]

3 hours ago, AKJonesy said:

Next, we've never bought insurance, but I am going to research the boards first to read about that and IF I have questions, I will post on a different thread.  

Get right on the insurance research -- many third-party plans need to be bought in a short time after booking the cruise (to avoid people buying bc they've found out they have new conditions). 

[crystalspin]

Deleted accidental double post!

Edited June 21, 2023 by crystalspin

[AKJonesy]

3 hours ago, crystalspin said:

Get right on the insurance research -- many third-party plans need to be bought in a short time after booking the cruise (to avoid people buying bc they've found out they have new conditions). 

I'm planning on doing that.  I have to talk to my credit card people and see what they have as well.  My TA offers Allianz? and then HAL has theirs.  So, I have to read it all, then read the boards to find out what the real deal was when people made claims.  We had 4 medical emergencies on a trip last fall and I just started thinking about that, getting older, etc.  Don't think I want to take chances anymore even though I'm healthy.  

[Florida_gal_50]

39 minutes ago, AKJonesy said:

I'm planning on doing that.  I have to talk to my credit card people and see what they have as well.  My TA offers Allianz? and then HAL has theirs.  So, I have to read it all, then read the boards to find out what the real deal was when people made claims.  We had 4 medical emergencies on a trip last fall and I just started thinking about that, getting older, etc.  Don't think I want to take chances anymore even though I'm healthy.  

Just some info about Hal.  It’s not really medical insurance, only $10 k which is nothing.  What I like about Hal’s cancel for any reason, it’s just that. Just before everything hit the fan in 2020 I decided to cancel my cruise.  It was past final.  I had money back on my credit card no questions asked maybe 10 days later. You don’t have to buy it until one day before final payment.

[Mary229]

42 minutes ago, AKJonesy said:

I'm planning on doing that.  I have to talk to my credit card people and see what they have as well.  My TA offers Allianz? and then HAL has theirs.  So, I have to read it all, then read the boards to find out what the real deal was when people made claims.  We had 4 medical emergencies on a trip last fall and I just started thinking about that, getting older, etc.  Don't think I want to take chances anymore even though I'm healthy.  

Allianz has a good reputation.  What we do is use our Chase card insurance coupled with an annual medical policy from Geoblue.  It is surprisingly inexpensive and you can buy it at the very last minute. It also has good reviews.  I have never tried the HAL insurance but it does have the cancel for any reason feature.

[Mary229]

2 minutes ago, Florida_gal_50 said:

later. You don’t have to buy it until one day before final payment.

Interestingly if it is a non-refundable deposit you need to buy the day of the deposit.  I ran into this last year.  I paid a $1 deposit and decided to add my sister to the cruise.  She requires insurance and I was denied since I had already paid a non-refundable deposit. (As it turns out we chose another sailing)

[Florida_gal_50]

34 minutes ago, Mary229 said:

Interestingly if it is a non-refundable deposit you need to buy the day of the deposit.  I ran into this last year.  I paid a $1 deposit and decided to add my sister to the cruise.  She requires insurance and I was denied since I had already paid a non-refundable deposit. (As it turns out we chose another sailing)

Correct.  I always get refundable so that slips my mind.

[Haljo1935]

On 6/20/2023 at 1:29 PM, LAFFNVEGAS said:

In the past and this is not to say it is the same now but I have friends that were on Grand Voyage 92 days long. They were booked as one voyage. They were just 18 days from hitting 5 Star when they got on board. Mariner Society told them to let the Front Desk know when they knew they hit the 5 Star. That is exactly what they did and sure enough they honored it. 

Correct as OP said, the status change does get honored for Grand Voyages. So your friends experience was what we would expect to see.

@AKJonesy this happened to me twice; the most recent last month on Eurodam moving up to 4* 3 days into 7 day sailing. Based on HALs published policy, I didn't expect to see the change (or benefits) until some time after we returned and didn't ask about "expediting" it. We noticed we were not charged for laundry, which would come w/4* status, even though we were still onboard and still showed 3*.

Sidenote - Three weeks after the cruise ended, my profile still showed 3* but was immediately updated when I called the Mariner desk.

I would say, HAL is very good about providing besides in class Passenger Services in some areas and not in others, so expect to follow published policy and be pleasantly surprised when an exception occurs.

I absolutely would have booked as B2B since the cost was lower - why pay more for the same thing? Since your 2nd leg starts on day 1, I would go to Passenger Services and call Mariner desk just to proactively request the status update.

Sounds like a great itinerary  - safe travels, enjoy your cruise!

[cruiseguy56]

On 6/20/2023 at 5:53 PM, Mary229 said:

You receive one point for each sailing day.  Additionally you receive 1 point for every $300 spent above and beyond the fare except taxes, port fees, airfare and hotels and transfers booked pre or post cruise 

Unless you're in a suite, then you still get two days awarded for every day sailed, right?

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

On 6/21/2023 at 11:26 AM, AKJonesy said:

THANKS EVERYONE - We booked the B2B and TA will contact Mariner society to just remind HAL that we will be 4 star right at the start of the 2nd voyage.  We also got the same room number.  Next, we've never bought insurance, but I am going to research the boards first to read about that and IF I have questions, I will post on a different thread.  

Good idea as well tell the front des

[oakridger]

4 hours ago, cruiseguy56 said:

Unless you're in a suite, then you still get two days awarded for every day sailed, right?

 

Yes, unless the suite was booked as an upsell/upgrade from a non suite cabin.

Edited June 24, 2023 by oakridger