Sail Standby for $49 a day- new program

[ChinaShrek]

On 1/25/2024 at 7:57 AM, Real NHDOC said:

It seems like a bean counter at HAL figured out that the people who buy the cancel for any reason insurance exposed them to higher last minute vacancies than perhaps they had expected and decided they needed to come up with a plan to squeeze people into those cabins which had been previously sold but were left unsold at the last minute. It’s really the best explanation for why they may not know until sailing time whether a standby passenger will get a cabin or not. It’s a way for them to have a last chance to sell a cabin that might otherwise go empty (albeit having already generated substantial revenue through the CFAR insurance fees and 10% penalty). 

They could also go up on the price for CFAR insurance or increase the penalty.

[HappyInVan]

58 minutes ago, ChinaShrek said:

If I lived in Fort Lauderdale, had nothing going on, and could get on a Holland America cruise for $49/day, I would jump at the chance. I live in Maine. If they offered me a cruise out of Boston in August (when I am on summer vacation) for $49/day, I'd go in a heartbeat. Not only is that dirt cheap but it could be a fun adventure. Plenty of people do not want to plan their lives months or years in advance. 

 

Actually, the regular prices for MSC and RCI inside cabins must be close to $49pp. You wouldn't have to live near FLL or wait for August! Indeed, you would have more fun and adventure! Wheez!!! 😃

[cruisemom42]

11 minutes ago, HappyInVan said:

Actually, the regular prices for MSC and RCI inside cabins must be close to $49pp.

 

Not if you cruise solo.

[ChinaShrek]

3 hours ago, HappyInVan said:

 

Actually, the regular prices for MSC and RCI inside cabins must be close to $49pp. You wouldn't have to live near FLL or wait for August! Indeed, you would have more fun and adventure! Wheez!!! 😃

I just checked Royal for August and the cheapest rate $1100 plus taxes for an interior. Again, $350 for a solo is a steal. I can't even eat out around here for 7 days for under $350. The HAL standby program is a decent option for poor but flexible people.

[*Miss G*]

23 minutes ago, ChinaShrek said:

a decent option for poor but flexible people.

 

One might argue that if you’re “poor”, it’s really not an option at all.  😉

 

Perhaps… “thrifty”.

Or “prudent”.

[Iamthesea]

On 1/25/2024 at 10:42 AM, *Miss G* said:

 

I forgot about the Hare Krishnas!!  🤣🤣🤣

In the Atlanta airport in 1979,  DH and I were on our way to St. Thomas for our honeymoon.  At 22 years of age, I was quite naïve.  Although I had flown before, I was a youngster and had been led around by my parents.   My husband is a fast walker, and I had trouble keeping up with him while looking at all the different passengers.  I was soon approached by two VERY nice people that wanted to give me a flower. 😘  Not realizing that DH had gone on ahead of me, I got caught up with these nice people, who were then handing me pamphlets and asking for donations.  When I looked around for DH, he was no where to be found.  I kept walking in the same direction that we had been.  I finally spotted him looking red faced and panicky.  He had back tracked to find me.   Thought he had lost his bride!!! 😁 

Edited January 26 by Iamthesea

[FlaMariner]

 

1 hour ago, ChinaShrek said:

The HAL standby program is a decent option for poor but flexible people.

 

For myself, I prefer the pronouns "cheapskate" or "tightwad" or "scrooge" instead of poor.....But I'm ok with whatever label you wish to call me if I can jump on a ship for $49 a day!

[*Miss G*]

17 minutes ago, Iamthesea said:

In the Atlanta airport in 1979,  DH and I were on our way to St. Thomas for our honeymoon.  At 22 years of age, I was quite naïve.  Although I had flown before, I was a youngster and had been led around by my parents.   My husband is a fast walker, and I had trouble keeping up with him while looking at all the different passengers.  I was soon approached by two VERY nice people that wanted to give me a flower. 😘  Not realizing that DH had gone on ahead of me, I got caught up with these nice people, who were then handing me pamphlets and asking for donations.  When I looked around for DH, he was no where to be found.  I kept walking in the same direction that we had been.  I finally spotted him looking red faced and panicky.  He had back tracked to find me.   Thought he had lost his bride!!! 😁 

 

My first encounter with them, I was 13.  They had started chatting and I thought they were really nice.  My Mum caught up to me and intervened just as they were offering me “a brownie”.  That happened to be the same day I learned about drugs.  😳  

I steered clear of them after that.  😂

[cruisemom42]

33 minutes ago, FlaMariner said:

 

 

For myself, I prefer the pronouns "cheapskate" or "tightwad" or "scrooge" instead of poor.....But I'm ok with whatever label you wish to call me if I can jump on a ship for $49 a day!

 

"Nomad", "adventurer", and "vagabond" have a nice ring.

 

[sunviking90]

For sure this seems like a good option for solo cruisers who can cruise at the drop of a hat. For us though, standby would be out of Vancouver and I already see pricing almost as low or lower than that (lower for a 7 day Zaandam Alaska yvr-yvr loop) on my HAL “private fare” emails. Princess and Celebrity are almost as low. Plus we’d be able to use our ccl and aarp OBC for HAL. If we ended up in a balcony, THEN it would be a good deal, but since that’s not promised, I’ll pass.

[ChinaShrek]

On 1/26/2024 at 3:28 PM, *Miss G* said:

 

One might argue that if you’re “poor”, it’s really not an option at all.  😉

 

Perhaps… “thrifty”.

Or “prudent”.

Yeah, you're right. I'm not really poor if I can go on a cruise.

[HappyInVan]

On 1/26/2024 at 11:59 AM, ChinaShrek said:

I just checked Royal for August and the cheapest rate $1100 plus taxes for an interior. Again, $350 for a solo is a steal. I can't even eat out around here for 7 days for under $350. 

 

OMG! Never thought I see the day when Carnival etc can charge more than HAL!

 

IMO, HAL management needs to get on the ball.

 

Not a surprise that people are perceiving that HAL is a boring version of Carnival, rather than a upmarket alternative to Carnival.

 

[bundtkate]

On 1/25/2024 at 8:37 PM, *Miss G* said:

From the Know Before You Go, it’s 90 minutes for the info and 60 minutes to submit.

Ah, interesting. We're on RCI in about a week and their website says check-in closes 48 hours ahead so I assumed that was to leave time to submit, but looks like they still allow you to check in on the app until 8am day of sailing so probably not. Would have been nice if 48 hours were the minimum, but looks like I may need to wait until HAL puts a ship in Galveston to take advantage of something like this.

[Haljo1935]

11 minutes ago, bundtkate said:

...I may need to wait until HAL puts a ship in Galveston...

Good luck to all of us on that happening 🙄 I would L🧡VE HAL to sail from Galveston. Where's the petition? I'll sign NOW 😉

[bundtkate]

2 minutes ago, Haljo1935 said:

Where's the petition? I'll sign NOW

Me too! I'm just a 4 hour drive from Galveston, but we always cruise out of other ports because the itineraries out of Galveston are just too tired. HAL could fill a real niche sailing out of Galveston on some longer itineraries calling on more interesting ports. I'd certainly fly to Miami a lot less if they did!

[SoloYolo]

On 11/23/2023 at 2:37 PM, 3rdGenCunarder said:

 

I doubt they will let people book excursions or specialty restaurants until they clear the waitlist. HAL says people are notified "approximately 7 days" before sailing, but how much leeway is there in "approximately?"

 

[SoloYolo]

Yes, that’s what I’ve been trying to figure out. I am on standby and it is exactly one week away so I’m curious what approximately is supposed to mean. By the time you get accepted there probably isn’t a chance to schedule anything. I thought I would try it, but I think it’s just a money grab . I’ll be curious to see how long it takes to get my refund if I’m not put on the ship.

[SoloYolo]

On 11/24/2023 at 3:05 PM, FlaMariner said:

 

Found it! Looks like you get "approximately 7 days" notice.  Not bad...was thinking "stand by" meant like 24 hours.  That's generous for "stand by", IMO. 

 

guest will only be cleared for standby to cruise when/if the guest receives official confirmation from HAL approximately 7 days before Cruise’s departure. 

 

 

 

[SoloYolo]

Yes, it says approximately seven days. And I am sitting here on that seven days away from sale date and no information via email so I am going to call them tomorrow (Monday) and check the status. It is my first time trying this 

[SoloYolo]

On 1/4/2024 at 5:40 PM, Raybit said:

Thanks - on the phone with them now.  Seems like they really misrepresented how they were using the Standby Program.

Oh my , now I am worried! I am also going to call in the morning, but how can approximately go from one seven day notice to up to embarkation? That’s crazy how would they expect somebody to be able to run to the port the day of embarkation? It’s almost like they want to force you to cancel and lose your money.

[publicpersona]

12 minutes ago, SoloYolo said:

Yes, it says approximately seven days.

 

I think you need to read the whole thread. As one who has been through this, I can tell you that the seven days was a complete misrepresentation. They expect you to show up at the terminal if not otherwise notified, per the conversation I had with someone to whom my query for status within 46 hours was escalated.

[Raybit]

As PublicPersona indicated, the timeline is NOT as stated on the Holland America standby webpage, but rather seems to be more like ~ 48 hours.  This was the case for our January 6th sailing as indicated in this thread.

 

I suspect (hope?) that this program is an attempt to fill cabins in such a manner as to avoid having to "oversell" and turn people away at the port as some other lines are doing...businessinsider.com/what-happens-when-a-cruise-is-overbooked-2023-12

 

If Holland America can update its Terms and Conditions, both on the website and with their agents, to reflect the actual expectation vice the misleading "approximately seven days" this may be a good alternative for those who can meet its conditions.  Signed up for a Standby on March 23rd and expecting to know if we cleared the list ~24 hours prior, hopefully more like 48 but as noted in the thread the actual timing remains suspect.  Good luck!

[CruiseDuckDuo]

We successfully sailed standby earlier this month on Nieuw Statendam, however we didn't receive confirmation until 8pm Friday (1/5) night for a 3pm Sunday (1/7) departure. 

 

Also be aware that on the standby program, you're INELIGIBLE for ANY onboard credit offers.  We were denied stockholders, military, first responder and AARP OBC.  In my opinion, the uncertainty, the extreme last minute rush, the loss of onboard credits, and the lack of information from Holland just makes this a NO GO for us in the future.

[Chicanocruiser]

Based on my review of this thread, everyone on this thread who purchased a Standby Program booking was notified no later than 24 hours before departure that they were going to board the ship or get a refund. Does this seem accurate? 
 

 

[janetjulie]

6 hours ago, CruiseDuckDuo said:

We successfully sailed standby earlier this month on Nieuw Statendam, however we didn't receive confirmation until 8pm Friday (1/5) night for a 3pm Sunday (1/7) departure. 

 

Also be aware that on the standby program, you're INELIGIBLE for ANY onboard credit offers.  We were denied stockholders, military, first responder and AARP OBC.  In my opinion, the uncertainty, the extreme last minute rush, the loss of onboard credits, and the lack of information from Holland just makes this a NO GO for us in the future.

What cabin category did you get?

 

Edited January 29 by janetjulie