The questions just keep on coming

[skrufy]

I feel like I’m planning for our first cruise which we took 20 years ago. So many questions keep popping up in my mind. My question is two fold. Part one, where do you get your cabin key card? And part two, what time are the cabins ready? We are platinum on Carnival and everything is so easy, from dropping luggage off in the cabin before they are ready and at the same time get your sail and sign card from the mail box to taking care of the muster drill right away.

Edited July 16, 2023 by skrufy
Typing correction

[kazu]

5 minutes ago, skrufy said:

I feel like I’m planning for our first cruise which we took 20 years ago. So many questions keep popping up in my mind. My question is two fold. Part one, where do you get your cabin key card?

 

Your key card will be in an envelope in your cabin’s mail box.

 

 

5 minutes ago, skrufy said:

And part two, what time are the cabins ready?

 

Cabins are usually ready around 11:30 AM.  There are some exceptions if deep cleaning, etc is required but even then it’s usually by noon or 12:30 pm.

 

 

5 minutes ago, skrufy said:

We are platinum on Carnival and everything is so easy, from dropping luggage off in the cabin before they are ready and at the same time get your sail and sign card from the mail box to taking care of the muster drill right away.

 

It’s pretty much the same on HAL.  Very easy to do.  Drop off your carry on, watch your tv for the lifeboat info and go to get your key card scanned for muster and you’re done 🙂 

[FlaMariner]

6 minutes ago, skrufy said:

Part one, where do you get your cabin key card? And part two, what time are the cabins ready?

 

Based on our last couple of HAL cruises all since the unpleasantness.....

 

Our stateroom key cards were waiting for us at our stateroom (in the mail slot by the door) and our stateroom was ready for us when we boarded.

 

Enjoy Holland America Line........

[Gigi1977]

Since restart, cards have been in mail box next to room door.  Precovid they gave them to us in the terminal.  
 

Preshut down, our room were ready when we boarded at 11:30ish.   Now I’ve notice ready about 1:30ish- but able to drop off carry on luggage in room.   

[Banditswife]

skrufy: we must be similar in our cruise history.  We, too are Platinum on Carnival, but have discovered we like Holland a bit better now that we are older.  Since the restart, we have sailed HAL quite a bit, with a couple of Carnival cruises thrown in there.  It seems HAL cabin stewards have the cabins ready earlier than CCL for cruisers with less status according to mariner stars.  We have been able to grab our key cards & drop off carry ons as soon as we are boarded.  The muster drill is very similar to CCL's, room keys are in basically the same place as CCL's.  I think you will find everything just as easy as CCL.  

Positives we like about HAL over CCL:

Lido buffet- in most areas of the buffet, the crew serve you, rather than having multiple hands helping themselves-more sanitary.  And while CCL's evening buffet leaves a bit to be desired, HAL's evening buffet has more choices & better service than CCL.

Public restrooms- there are actual dry wash cloths to dry your hands after washing & a receptacle to toss them into.  This IMO is better than the blow dryers you find on CCL.

There are a few things that we feel CCL does better than HAL, but for the most part HAL meets or goes above our expectations.  I hope you enjoy your HAL cruise as much as we do.

[SusieKIslandGirl]

We’ve found that crew are not available at muster stations to scan our cards until about 2:30.

[Haljo1935]

Agree with @SusieKIslandGirlthat crew may not be available at muster stations to scan cards until later. If you go as soon as you drop your bag, there may not be anyone there to scan your card.

We pick up keys from our "mailbox," drop our bags, turn tv on to muster, go eat lunch, then go to muster station to get card scanned.

[Sea42]

2 hours ago, SusieKIslandGirl said:

We’ve found that crew are not available at muster stations to scan our cards until about 2:30.

 

19 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

Agree with @SusieKIslandGirlthat crew may not be available at muster stations to scan cards until later. If you go as soon as you drop your bag, there may not be anyone there to scan your card.

We pick up keys from our "mailbox," drop our bags, turn tv on to muster, go eat lunch, then go to muster station to get card scanned.

On NS in May we were given a time frame of when to go scan our cards. I seem to remember that there was a note in the cabin.

[Dancing Shoes]

We sailed our first pinnacle class ship on HAL recently.  No one told us that you need to leave a key card in the slot for your cabin lights to work and stay on.  Had to call guest services.  LOL

[POA1]

12 minutes ago, Dancing Shoes said:

We sailed our first pinnacle class ship on HAL recently.  No one told us that you need to leave a key card in the slot for your cabin lights to work and stay on.  Had to call guest services.  LOL

This is why I keep some old hotel keys in my travel wallet. I try to use ones from nicer properties. This tricks our room steward into thinking that we are a better class of people. I don't have any scientific data, but I think a Four Seasons or Ritz Carlton key keeping my lights on reflects better on me than a Hampton Inn card. 🤔

[Haljo1935]

1 hour ago, POA1 said:

This is why I keep some old hotel keys in my travel wallet. I try to use ones from nicer properties. This tricks our room steward into thinking that we are a better class of people. I don't have any scientific data, but I think a Four Seasons or Ritz Carlton key keeping my lights on reflects better on me than a Hampton Inn card. 🤔

Well I think it would be appropriate to use Motel 6, that way you can channel your inner Tom Bodett cuz you know he'll leave the light on for you!!

Too easy...lol

[Sea42]

9 hours ago, Dancing Shoes said:

We sailed our first pinnacle class ship on HAL recently.  No one told us that you need to leave a key card in the slot for your cabin lights to work and stay on.  Had to call guest services.  LOL

We did the same thing, years ago, when we were in a hotel that required it. I had never heard of such a thing!

I do like it though. I'm awful about losing my key cards whether on land or at sea. I usually just toss it on a table or wherever. With the slot now I know where that #*#! card is!

[alwaysfrantic]

18 hours ago, Gigi1977 said:

Since restart, cards have been in mail box next to room door.  Precovid they gave them to us in the terminal.  
 

Preshut down, our room were ready when we boarded at 11:30ish.   Now I’ve notice ready about 1:30ish- but able to drop off carry on luggage in room.   

I havealways received in the terminal.  Do they no longer have a photo that shows up on their scanner?

[FlaMariner]

4 minutes ago, alwaysfrantic said:

I havealways received in the terminal.  Do they no longer have a photo that shows up on their scanner?

 

The boarding pass is scanned when you enter the ship.

[alwaysfrantic]

1 minute ago, FlaMariner said:

 

The boarding pass is scanned when you enter the ship.

But in the past they took a photo and when the card was scanned they saw the picture to match it to the face entering the ship.  Is the photo not done now?

Edited July 17, 2023 by alwaysfrantic

[FlaMariner]

Not sure about pics but this is what I recall and others who follow this more specifically can chime in.

 

At embarkation, after security screening, your passport is scanned with face recognition.....at the ship entrance, the boarding pass is scanned......at your room, your stateroom key is waiting.  

 

When you use the stateroom key to enter/exit the ship, your photo and other details do show up on the security person's computer......as I have seen my smiling face.

 

[kazu]

15 minutes ago, alwaysfrantic said:

But in the past they took a photo and when the card was scanned they saw the picture to match it to the face entering the ship.  Is the photo not done now?

 

Photos are still done.  You upload yours onto the navigator and if it’s not clear / good enough, they take another one.  

 

 

[skrufy]

Great stuff guys, thanks to all who have answered.

[Crew News]

HAL has added photo recognition with the initial photo taken as the last step in the check-in process.  Scanning your stateroom card is now a backup to facial recognition.  You now just step up to the facial recognition tablet when entering or leaving the ship but if you are not recognized or the system is down, your stateroom card will be scanned.

 

Facial recognition takes the Security person out of verifying your picture.  It seemed much faster to me......when it was working.

Edited July 17, 2023 by Crew News

[FlaMariner]

2 hours ago, Crew News said:

You now just step up to the facial recognition tablet when entering or leaving the ship

 

We did not do this when onboard the Oosterdam in March/April but that's good news if that has now been rolled out.....We still had our keycard "dinged" by the security person at the gangway area. 

[Crew News]

1 minute ago, FlaMariner said:

 

We did not do this when onboard the Oosterdam in March/April but that's good news if that has now been rolled out.....We still had our keycard "dinged" by the security person at the gangway area. 

They tried this on the Rotterdam in December with little success.  By May on the Nieuw Amsterdam, it was going strong (with a few glitches).  The facial recognition tablet spotted and gave me a big green checkmark even before I got directly in front of the tablet.

 

Not having to stop for a ding and face check by Security made quite a difference in getting off the ship.  Not having the usual number of passengers searching for their room cards to be scanned at the early ports, leaving the ship went much quicker.  When the facial recognition was not working, lots of people had to dig for their room cards which backed up the lines.

[RuthC]

6 hours ago, kazu said:

 

Photos are still done.  You upload yours onto the navigator and if it’s not clear / good enough, they take another one.  

 

 

If you don't do it at all, they will take it anyway. No need to go to the trouble unless you want to. 

[Haljo1935]

April in Seattle for Eurodam, we did not have a security picture taken at all. I had done mine in the app, but DH had not - neither of us had a picture taken.

Security podium scanned our passports and asked us to "remove your glasses and step up to line" then the screen displayed a big green checkmark and we continued on. That's where the facial recognition program "links up" to your passport photo and the "real" you. If all 3 align, you're good to go. If not and you fail the facial recognition screening, they'll just take your picture then you're good to go. Took no time.

When I saw my picture pop up on the screen when they scanned it at the gang way (getting back on from excursion, for example) it was my passport photo that appeared.

[SusieKIslandGirl]

It's also happened that they've used a photo already in the system if you had cruised within 2 or 3 years. My DH could tell by how his beard was shaped.

[Kate45]

We won't be using the Nav App at all. I've been told it's not absolutely necessary and pics will get taken at the terminal. Hope this is indeed true.