Fixing the Oosterdam

[sail7seas]

Grandama Bev......

 

My sincerest best wishes the firefighters are able to get control of that horrible fire and save all the homes. It is such a horror to think of possibly losing your home. I send my most profound good wishes that your home remains unscathed.

 

Good luck, Bev.

Have a great cruise. You certainly have a wonderful attitude. Please let us know you and your home stay safe.

[fcorey]

Hmmm, perhaps the personnel at customer service should read this board as well so as to understand the "mixed messages" and "mis-communication" that I have received regarding those of us who sailed on the October 7th Oosterdam cruise (which was a blast despite the fact that we missed a friend and family reunion in Puerto Vallarta). Does ANYONE have any idea when we will be issued the 25% discounts that were promised in the letter? I called and was given the run-around. One woman was very rude and said only my travel agent would be able to find out - that "she wasn't allowed" to give out any information!

 

We are scheduled to cruise in February and that discount will come in very handy. I love H.A. and all the great crew on board, but the staff who man the lines could use some lessons in tact.

 

O.K. done bitching now. If anyone knows, please reply.

 

Thanks and have a great weekend.

 

lovedogs, the 25% credit is on your mariner account. You can call HAL mariner program nad get your mariner number. They find the lowest fare with your agent and tell them that you have the credit. They will need your mariner number.

[sail7seas]

Frank.....that is so helpful. It would never have occured to me a credit off a future cruise would be reflected on Mariner's account. I would have expected to receive a letter of some sort....even an e-mail that would confirm we were entitled to a credit off a future cruise.

 

Thanks for that info.

 

[bepsf]

Back to the issue of propellers...

...a little history might be of some use:

 

HAL started sailing steamships across the Atlantic in the 1870's - ships that had a single engine and a single propeller...

 

The first ship w/ two propellers was Rotterdam(III) built in 1897.

 

HAL never lost a ship due to the single propeller falling off or the single engine burning out.

 

If HAL ships could cross the stormy atlantic with single propellers for 25-some-odd years before the turn of the century, Oosterdam can certainly cruise the coast of Mexico on a single azipod this fall in perfect safety...

[grandma bev]

Grandama Bev......

 

My sincerest best wishes the firefighters are able to get control of that horrible fire and save all the homes. It is such a horror to think of possibly losing your home. I send my most profound good wishes that your home remains unscathed.

 

Good luck, Bev.

Have a great cruise. You certainly have a wonderful attitude. Please let us know you and your home stay safe.

 

At 6:15 a.m. conditions are better (diminished winds) and fire crews made a successful stand 5 miles away on Hwy 79, where they hope to stop the fire in its tracks. Now if the winds don't change direction........... Getting ready to leave for the port about 9 a.m.

Thanks, everyone, for your good wishes.

Peace, love, and music,

Bev and Dale

[LAFFNVEGAS]

Bev, have a wonderful cruise on the Oosterdam. I know you will so enjoy everything.:)

[RevNeal]

Back to the issue of propellers...

...a little history might be of some use:

 

HAL started sailing steamships across the Atlantic in the 1870's - ships that had a single engine and a single propeller...

 

The first ship w/ two propellers was Rotterdam(III) built in 1897.

 

HAL never lost a ship due to the single propeller falling off or the single engine burning out.

 

If HAL ships could cross the stormy atlantic with single propellers for 25-some-odd years before the turn of the century, Oosterdam can certainly cruise the coast of Mexico on a single azipod this fall in perfect safety...

 

Brian ... don't forget that those early single-screw ships (like the Rotterdam I) also had sails. :)

[azsunshine]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the fun barbeques and parties that were held on board. That ship was 'swinging'.

 

Or that is was a fabulous day in Puerta Val....... supposedly a bright, gorgeous day that surely had to have been enjoyed by the pax.

 

Or the party they held because of the missed port/hurricane....free drinks.

Why do we only hear the down 'stuff'? I don't understand why people don't tell us about the fun, extra things HAL does that they really don't have to do.

 

 

But. when discussing the dining option on HAL....

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=8141814

[lovedogs]

lovedogs, the 25% credit is on your mariner account. You can call HAL mariner program nad get your mariner number. They find the lowest fare with your agent and tell them that you have the credit. They will need your mariner number.

 

Thank you so much Frank & Michelle! It would certainly have been nice to receive a letter from HA, but you seem to be more "in the know" anyway. I really appreciate your reply and will forward it to my travel agent.

 

Lindsay

[fcorey]

Frank.....that is so helpful. It would never have occured to me a credit off a future cruise would be reflected on Mariner's account. I would have expected to receive a letter of some sort....even an e-mail that would confirm we were entitled to a credit off a future cruise.

 

Thanks for that info.

 

 

Sail, its only been a couple of weeks since we disembarked so we may still get a letter. However shipboard staff, and mr. Deering relayed the information about it being associated to one's mariner number.

[AZjohn]

Hi,

I was wandering if any of the pax that just disembarked from the Oosterdam has any updates on the azipod?

Thanks,

John

[Missabby]

Check here:

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=435169

[Redheart]

I was one of the crafters on board and made a couple of short posts from there. The only port I really cared about was PV, and I was able to go to my Dolphin Encounter. :) The Hurricane Party was 45 mins long-I was in a class. While anchored in PV, during dinner, they were doing something with the engines. If it were a car, I would have said they were revving, with lots of water spurting out the back and lots of vibration. (Our table was at the very back, by the window, more toward the starboard side.) We arrived in Cabo about 2-3 hours later than scheduled, and left PV around 7pm, also earlier than scheduled, because of having one engine and going about 18 knots. The Captain's letter pointed out that a lot of ships only have one engine. He sounded so professional and reassuring that I completely trusted him to keep us out of harm's way.

You may also be interested to learn that flat screen TV/DVDs were installed during the trip, at least on Deck 5. We could have had ours earlier, but they arrived to install while 3 women were preparing for Formal Night!:eek:

[Tinknock50]

I was one of the crafters on board and made a couple of short posts from there. The only port I really cared about was PV, and I was able to go to my Dolphin Encounter. :) The Hurricane Party was 45 mins long-I was in a class. While anchored in PV, during dinner, they were doing something with the engines. If it were a car, I would have said they were revving, with lots of water spurting out the back and lots of vibration. (Our table was at the very back, by the window, more toward the starboard side.) We arrived in Cabo about 2-3 hours later than scheduled, and left PV around 7pm, also earlier than scheduled, because of having one engine and going about 18 knots. The Captain's letter pointed out that a lot of ships only have one engine. He sounded so professional and reassuring that I completely trusted him to keep us out of harm's way.

You may also be interested to learn that flat screen TV/DVDs were installed during the trip, at least on Deck 5. We could have had ours earlier, but they arrived to install while 3 women were preparing for Formal Night!:eek:

 

Thanks for checking in. I wonder if HAL willl send out e-mails to people who will be cruising soon on the revised port schedule. I have gotten them before from TAs even with the slightest change in schedule. Will be interesting to see if HAL does that this time.

[Copper10-8]

Relax folks and consider this: the engineers are still working on the problem. Believe me, HAL does not want to put Oosterdam in dry-dock and cancel a cruise unless there absolutely is no other way to take care of this azipod problem.

The agents in Seattle obviously don't have up-to-date info and/or are reading from prepared statements. I agree, they should not be putting out bunk info that the pod problem has been fixed because it has not. Saying it has only adds to the anxiety some folks are having. Along the same lines, at this time and until that decison is made, HAL is not going to tell anyone who is on a future Oosterdam cruise that their cruise is going to be cancelled. They just don't know that at this time! It is very possible that the pod issue can still be fixed while Oosterdam is doing her seven-day cruises up and down the Mexican coast. Those cruises are continuing as we speak with time adjustments being the only noticeable difference.

If it does turn out that a future cruise needs to be cancelled, hey I feel for you, but sometimes ship happens. I'm booked for a Dec 30 cruise on Oosterdam. Would I be happy if that cruise were cancelled? Heck no, but I would understand that things that break need to be fixed. And I'm sure there would be (there's that word again) "compensation"

[duck tune]

I wonder if HAL willl send out e-mails to people who will be cruising soon on the revised port schedule. I have gotten them before from TAs even with the slightest change in schedule. Will be interesting to see if HAL does that this time.

 

Good question! I would hope that we would be informed about the status of the ship and port schedule. Sometimes I wonder if I am worrying too much about something I cannot control. However it bothers me that those of us on the CC HAL board are aware of the problem that happened with the Azipod but a majority of the cruisers that are boarding the ship are not aware of the problem until they find a letter in the cabin. It bothers me that a cruise line that I really enjoy and have had such respect for has not chosen to address this issue with soon to be passengers.

 

If I didn't know about the problem on the Oosterdam, I might assume it was a recent development, however if I found out that the problem occurred well before my cruise and I had not been notified, I don't think I would be a happy cruiser. I would probably chose not to travel again with the cruiseline that did that to me because I wouldn't trust them to be honest. $25 in OBC may be an acceptable compensation but what about the family who is planning to attend a wedding in a PV or Mazatlan and they miss it because the port time is shortened or absent?

 

I would hope that those of us who have not yet received our documents would have a note included about port changes and the azipod if that is still a concern. People book cruises expecting that the ship will be operating at 100% unless there are weather related issues. It seems only fair that cruisers should be informed of a potentially long term problem - however minor it may seem to some - and then be allowed to make a decision as to whether or not to take the cruise or cancel and rebook on another ship or at a later date. IMO advance notice of the status of a problem that would impact my cruise seems to be only fair and would considerate of the cruise passengers.

[lfh22]

We were on this cruise also. I was upset about the one Azipod not working and not being told about it until receiving a letter after boarding. I would never board a two engine airplane with one engine out, especially going into an area expected to experience a hurricane. Imagine floating in a hurricane with no power if the second Azipod had failed. Also, on Deck 3 and on one of the TV channels in the suite (Verandah Deluxe) the navigation information was never displayed. I complained once, but no display. I enjoy following the ship's route and found the lack of information disappointing. In addition, several of the recliner chairs in the Crow's Nest did not work. With all of these malfunctions, I wonder about the overall maintenance and safety of the ship. I found the food, especially seafood, not very good compared to two previous voyages on Holland America (Zuiderdam to Alaska and Westerdam to the Carribean). Overall, I found our two previous cruises much better than this one, and will probably not cruise on Holland America again. I should add the Neptune Lounge Hostesses and our suite attendant were excellent, as were the servers. Finally, I thought that the credits of $25 plus port tax were miserly. I understand and accept missing one port because of the hurricane threat, but the two stops were both shorter than advertised, and I thought we deserved a larger credit.