Laundry Service

[The O Mariners]

My wife and I are new to Holland American and aren't sure how to arrange laundry service on our upcoming transatlantic cruise. Is there a $99.00 per week ,per cabin option? We've usually cruise on Princess and used the self-service laundry. Thanks for your help.

[Haljo1935]

30 minutes ago, The O Mariners said:

My wife and I are new to Holland American and aren't sure how to arrange laundry service on our upcoming transatlantic cruise. Is there a $99.00 per week ,per cabin option? We've usually cruise on Princess and used the self-service laundry. Thanks for your help.

Welcome to HAL @The O Mariners! There is no self service laundry like you've used on Princess. There is laundry by the bag or unlimited for the length of your cruise. Depending on your itinerary, bag will be about $20-$30 ea for however much you can fit in. The price for unlimited laundry is under "packages" in your booking. For an 11 day non-European, it's $93.50. On a recent 7 day it was $59.50. There is also pressing service; it's included in laundry, so you only need to use it if you're not having items laundered. 

[The O Mariners]

2 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

Welcome to HAL @The O Mariners! There is no self service laundry like you've used on Princess. There is laundry by the bag or unlimited for the length of your cruise. Depending on your itinerary, bag will be about $20-$30 ea for however much you can fit in. The price for unlimited laundry is under "packages" in your booking. For an 11 day non-European, it's $93.50. On a recent 7 day it was $59.50. There is also pressing service; it's included in laundry, so you only need to use it if you're not having items laundered. 

 

2 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

Welcome to HAL @The O Mariners! There is no self service laundry like you've used on Princess. There is laundry by the bag or unlimited for the length of your cruise. Depending on your itinerary, bag will be about $20-$30 ea for however much you can fit in. The price for unlimited laundry is under "packages" in your booking. For an 11 day non-European, it's $93.50. On a recent 7 day it was $59.50. There is also pressing service; it's included in laundry, so you only need to use it if you're not having items laundered. 

 

[The O Mariners]

Thanks for the quick reply. The weekly package sounds perfect - I'm going to order today.

[Haljo1935]

1 hour ago, The O Mariners said:

Thanks for the quick reply. The weekly package sounds perfect - I'm going to order today.

The laundry team does an excellent job and take great pride in their work. A personal hand written note is included when the laundry is returned. They honor special requests - just write what you need done on the paper that goes in the bag. If you prefer cold wash for items, you can even request an extra bag and designate 1 as cold & the other warm.

If you have it out in the AM, it's likely to be returned same day even w/o requesting expedited service.

We always send out a final bag at end of cruise so we can take home clean clothes - makes unpacking so much more enjoyable - no laundry to do, just go from suitcase to closet. 😊

[The O Mariners]

Thanks for the note. We're looking forward to the laundry service. Self service on Princess can be a hassle and take way too much time. HAL's laundry service will be a nice luxury.

[Sea42]

3 hours ago, The O Mariners said:

Thanks for the quick reply. The weekly package sounds perfect - I'm going to order today.

If you have any onboard credit you can wait until you're onboard and use that to pay for it.

[Heartgrove]

Just a point to make. The last day to submit laundry is two days before disembarking. That way it will be returned on your last full day of the cruise, the day before disembarking.

[Haljo1935]

6 hours ago, Sea42 said:

If you have any onboard credit you can wait until you're onboard and use that to pay for it.

Hey @The O Mariners if you did already order w/cc payment and you have OBC you want to use, you can have that transferred once onboard and they'll refund.

May not apply; just wanted to mention.

[Cruise Suzy]

10 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

Hey @The O Mariners if you did already order w/cc payment and you have OBC you want to use, you can have that transferred once onboard and they'll refund.

 

No need to wait until onboard. If already booked, it can be cancelled online up to 3 days prior to cruise. Then just pay for unlimited laundry or by the bag once onboard. No need to stand in line to get it transferred to OBC.

[Haljo1935]

16 minutes ago, Cruise Suzy said:

 

No need to wait until onboard. If already booked, it can be cancelled online up to 3 days prior to cruise. Then just pay for unlimited laundry or by the bag once onboard. No need to stand in line to get it transferred to OBC.

So true, thanks for the reminder!

And unlike many things, no discount for pre-paying, so no penalty. 

Edited July 6, 2023 by Haljo1935

[js1357]

1 hour ago, Cruise Suzy said:

 

No need to wait until onboard. If already booked, it can be cancelled online up to 3 days prior to cruise. Then just pay for unlimited laundry or by the bag once onboard. No need to stand in line to get it transferred to OBC.

So there is no difference in unlimited price if bought before or during the cruise?

[kazu]

4 minutes ago, js1357 said:

So there is no difference in unlimited price if bought before or during the cruise?

 

No,  Not unless prices go up but they just did so I doubt it will happen again.

@The O Mariners HAL’s laundry service is VERY good - superior to many cruise lines.  Ask for things to be hung.  They will be pressed nicely and your delicates like socks, etc will come back in a wicker basket with tissue paper.

You can request cold water, delicate drying, etc.

 

Just write it in the comments on the sheet.  

 

They do a great job.  

[js1357]

37 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

No,  Not unless prices go up but they just did so I doubt it will happen again.

@The O Mariners HAL’s laundry service is VERY good - superior to many cruise lines.  Ask for things to be hung.  They will be pressed nicely and your delicates like socks, etc will come back in a wicker basket with tissue paper.

You can request cold water, delicate drying, etc.

 

Just write it in the comments on the sheet.  

 

They do a great job.  

Thanks.  Makes it much more appealing for a long cruise.

[ladyj1138]

We always get the laundry service. Helps us pack less.  Plus finding those little green tags inside each item of clothing for months afterwards always brings a smile to my face of good memories from the trip. 

[BetsyS.]

ladyj1138 - I agree about the tags. They remind me of happy memories from my last cruise. I think I will have to remove them, though, because I will be on another cruise 

in 2 weeks.

[horseymike]

That’s great Betsy 👍😀

[Haljo1935]

On 7/7/2023 at 5:10 PM, BetsyS. said:

ladyj1138 - I agree about the tags. They remind me of happy memories from my last cruise. I think I will have to remove them, though, because I will be on another cruise 

in 2 weeks.

This!!

From another thread, not my picture.

[Torquer]

Has anybody noticed it taking longer in getting laundry back than previously?  I know they promise 2-day return and that is precisely what we got for every one of our 11 bags of laundry we submitted on a recent 14-day cruise on Niuew Statendam.  Every bag took exactly two days.  On all our many prior HAL cruises I would say this is approximately what we used to get:  10% same day return, 70% one day, and 20% two days.  I guess our previous experience of the laundry teams over-achieving, disappointed us on our last cruise from just meeting what they promise.

[electro]

2 hours ago, Torquer said:

Has anybody noticed it taking longer in getting laundry back than previously?  I know they promise 2-day return and that is precisely what we got for every one of our 11 bags of laundry we submitted on a recent 14-day cruise on Niuew Statendam.  Every bag took exactly two days.  On all our many prior HAL cruises I would say this is approximately what we used to get:  10% same day return, 70% one day, and 20% two days.  I guess our previous experience of the laundry teams over-achieving, disappointed us on our last cruise from just meeting what they promise.

I had the laundry package on the NA in June and always got my laundry back the next day.

[BetsyS.]

Torquer - My stepfather and I were on the Niew Statendam last August. Our 

room steward said that it's better to send the laundry out during the day

because there were only 2% of room stewards on duty after 8PM. We had 

our laundry bags ready to go out  before we went to breakfast and we got it back 

the next day or sometimes by the time we got back from dinner the same day.

[Torquer]

2 minutes ago, BetsyS. said:

Torquer - My stepfather and I were on the Niew Statendam last August. Our 

room steward said that it's better to send the laundry out during the day

because there were only 2% of room stewards on duty after 8PM. We had 

our laundry bags ready to go out  before we went to breakfast and we got it back 

the next day or sometimes by the time we got back from dinner the same day.

On our June/July 2023 cruise on Nieuw Statendam we always had our bags of laundry ready in the morning when our stewards cleaned our room.  We never got them back that evening during turn-down service nor the next day.  It was always exactly two days later (and sometimes on the evening of the second day), which seemed a bit odd.  It was like they deliberately never over-achieved.  As recently as our February 2023 on Nordam, it was usual times:  mostly the next day and sometimes the same day.

[fsufancc]

I just bought the unlimited option for our sailing on the Rotterdam in Aug.  We are doing 7 nights on the ship, but 2 weeks total on land and at sea via a single carry-on bag each.  I was wondering about the turn-around, and from this thread, it appears that it will be 24-48 hours.  The option to get laundry done will help greatly with the packing.  

 

Is it safe to assume that we can fill bag(s) and turn them in on embarkation day?  We will have been several days on land between, London, Brussels and Amsterdam prior to embarkation.

[Sea42]

37 minutes ago, fsufancc said:

Is it safe to assume that we can fill bag(s) and turn them in on embarkation day? 

That's what we did. We turned the laundry in on the evening we embarked and it was back the next evening. Other times when we put it out in the morning it would be back the next evening. It generally took a day and a half for turn around. We sent something out every day.

[Haljo1935]

Yes, you absolutely can send laundry out embarkation day. I would send it out as early as possible. If your cabin steward is busy w/turnaround tasks so you don't see them, just call Guest Services and let them know you have a bag ready for pick up.

Tip: roll tightly and stack tightly  - you will fit an unbelievable amount of clothes into a single bag.