New Email HAL Survey

[ger_77]

Did all of you that got the survey sail recently? Or is it pretty much a random sampling of Mariners?

 

Our last cruise was in February of this year; it would be interesting to find out when the rest of you were last on a HAL ship.

 

Re: the cost of sheets - I figured this question was to see if they should start selling sheets in the onboard shops.

 

I did think the question about how much you would spend on a nice dinner was in reference to the cost of the "alternative" restaurants onboard. I checked off the least amount! :D

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

Gerry

[prescottbob]

Ahoy!

 

For those not receiving the recent survey a short, well written note to corporate in Seattle never hurts. Making it a certified letter for a few bucks will get some attention. Usually the reply is 'boilerplate' but at least you gave it a go. I never get responses using the HAL website.The address is as follows:

 

Stein Kruse, President and CEO

Holland America Line

300 Elliot Aveneue West

Seattle, WA 98119

 

And here's a recent PR letter and picture of Stein:

 

 

12 Juni 07

Letter From Stein Kruse

 

Dear Colleagues:

 

I want to share some very exciting news. Carnival Corporation & plc today announced that it has exercised its option for a second Signature Class vessel for our company. Scheduled for delivery in fall 2010 as the sister to the Eurodam, the new 86,000 ton ship will be built by Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri at its Marghera shipyard at an estimated all-in cost of 425 million Euros. This further demonstrates the commitment to the Holland America Line brand and will continue to provide further opportunities for our employees and our guests. The currently unnamed ship will carry 2,100 guests. We have also slightly increased the capacity of the ms Eurodam to 2,100 guests. Together with the Eurodam, these two ships represent a 23 percent increase in our capacity from today. These ships are consistent with our business strategy as the premium cruise leader and allow us to strengthen our position in the cruise industry and capitalize on the increasing affluence of the baby boomer generation. Together with the ms Eurodam, due in June 2008, the new ship will embody the many on-board amenities that Holland America Line first introduced to cruising as part of our very successful Signature of Excellence initiative.

 

The two ships will maintain our brand's commitment to mid-sized vessels, larger staterooms, and richly appointed dining areas, lounges and other public rooms. This will allow us to continue our premium leadership position and achieve a greater share of the growing cruise market.

 

Both ships will include a topside 144-seat specialty restaurant, a diversity of live music and entertainment facilities, outside-view glass elevators at mid-ship, and an expanded Greenhouse Spa and Salon with thermal suites and hydro-pool.

 

Of the 1,050 staterooms, 85 percent will offer an ocean view and 67 percent will feature private verandahs. All staterooms will offer plush Mariner's Dream beds, flat panel TVs and DVD players.

 

The Signature Class will feature such popular Holland America Line facilities as the Crow's Nest Lounge, Explorations Café, Pinnacle Grill and the innovative Culinary Arts Center presented by Food & Wine Magazine, offering cooking demonstrations and classes in state-of-the-art show kitchens.

 

Please join me as we further our mission - through excellence, we provide once-in-a-lifetime experiences, every time - with our new Signature Class ships.

 

Stein Kruse

 

 

Bon Voyage and Good Health!

Bob:)

[Two if by Sea]

So, there's no way to get a web link to this survey?

[RuthC]

Our last cruise was in February of this year; it would be interesting to find out when the rest of you were last on a HAL ship.

My last cruise ended three weeks ago today; it was for 18 days. The last one before that was 11 days in January. I have two more booked at 20 days each.

 

I didn't get a survey. :(

[tomc]

Mine thanks me for my recent (mid-April) cruise, but makes no reference to my upcoming (late-January) cruise.

 

It does say not to forward it, as it is specifically for me; that is, I assume it is for people who have sailed in the near past. They are probably looking for fresh experiences.

 

As to who gets it, naturally there will be a random sampling and possibly it includes a few newbies, some mid-range and some "never a ship leaves but I'm on it." You can't ask everybody, so don't feel slighted.

[arzz]

Our last HAL cruise was Jan/Feb Prinsendam. We received a survey -- it thanked us for our recent cruise! Our next HAL cruise booked is about a year away (but it is for 65 days)..... No way to determine how they determined their sample -- the greatest strengths of reliable survey are to:

 

1 - have someone who knows how to write surveys prepare the instrument -- I assume that was done here as the questions were not expressed with the same bias that I have seen on some of HAL's past surveys and they were definitely not phrased just to advertise coming itineraries -- none of that on this one -- and, of course, there were the real out of place questions like the ones on "preferring to be in control" and wanting to be the "center of attention" -- those scream psychologist/survey preparation

 

2 - the other trick to a useful survey is in how the sampling is done -- how many are chosen, are they totally random or has there been an effort to query a pre-determined number of respondents in each of several special interest sub-groups (e.g. senior citizens, retired folks, very frequent cruisers, those who only take Caribbean or Alaskan cruises, groups that vary by age, income and part of the world that they call home, etc) -- if these choices are made well then the reliability of the answers collected can go way up and they can also be divided into the special interest groups -- it is possible that this survey was designed to do just that

[JYGresham]

I got the survey today but the link didn't work.

I did too--sent back message that link didn't work but don't know if that will do any good.

[RuthC]

As to who gets it, naturally there will be a random sampling and possibly it includes a few newbies, some mid-range and some "never a ship leaves but I'm on it." You can't ask everybody, so don't feel slighted.

But I wanna feel slighted (she pounds fists and kicks legs while screaming)! I want to sulk and pout and hold my breath until I turn blue.

Waaaaaaa! I want a survey!

[hammybee]

Last cruise was in May. I got the survey. The link did not work. I have about 100 days on HAL, +/- in inside, outside, veranda and suites. I am consistently inconsistent, like HAL.

[rkacruiser]

I last sailed in April, did receive the survey, but like some others, the link did not work nor did the link to a different source to search for the survey work. The message was that "the page was unavailable". I saved it and will try later. I wonder if I ought to contact Customer Service on Tuesday if I can't access the survey.

[NoNoNanette]

I just completed the survey. :)

 

I was truly impressed with the format, and delighted to give HAL my feedback.

 

Something tells me that the times they are a'changing! (Which tickles me) ;)

[rkacruiser]

I finally got to the survey and found it to be most interesting with lots of opportunity to voice opinions. I got the feeling that Seattle really does care what we Mariners think!

[HeatherInFlorida]

No survey here either, Ruth ... :(

 

Our last cruise on Prinsendam was December '06 and we have one booked, but all I receive is a heck of a lot of ads. Got the new Mariner right on time!

 

Maybe they already know my opinion ;) ...

[RevNeal]

I got the survey ... and Christopher got his but hasn't taken it yet.

Based on the questions, I would say that it's geared for people who have cruised in 2007. Where Ruth's is is another question. If christopher doesn't want to answer his, maybe I'll have him send it to you and YOU can answer it.

 

Oh, and for those having trouble with the hotlink in their e-mail, copy/paste it to your browser and try that. It's what I had to do.

 

Note to those who were jeering at us a few weeks back for asserting that, because none of us had received a survey indicated that one hadn't been done of the Mariner base, THIS should prove our point. A number of us got the survey, and reported it here. Had one been done earlier, such WOULD have been reported by SOMEBODY on this board.

[kryos]

Hi,

 

Received mine to day. The question about the cost of bed sheets was different.

Maybe HAL is thinking of marketing a line of HAL bedding and want to know how much you would spend for bedding? LOL ... I honestly had no idea. I haven't bought bedding in ages.

 

Blue skies ...

 

--rita

[kryos]

[quote name='revneal']Note to those who were jeering at us a few weeks back for asserting that, because none of us had received a survey indicated that one hadn't been done of the Mariner base, THIS should prove our point. A number of us got the survey, and reported it here. Had one been done earlier, such WOULD have been reported by SOMEBODY on this board.[/QUOTE]
Good point.

I for one was only too happy to invest the time to answer this survey. I think the questions are very well thought out and show that HAL is truly trying to get a reading on its Mariners' opinions. Maybe this survey will tell them some things that maybe will change the course of some of their upcoming plans. At least I hope so.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[jhannah]

[quote name='kryos']Maybe HAL is thinking of marketing a line of HAL bedding and want to know how much you would spend for bedding?[/quote] They already do.
[URL]http://www.shophollandamerica.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=category_detail&category_id_int=12079[/URL]

[kryos]

[quote name='RuthC'][FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=royalblue]My last cruise ended three weeks ago today; it was for 18 days. The last one before that was 11 days in January. I have two more booked at 20 days each. [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=3][COLOR=#4169e1]I didn't get a survey. :( [/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/QUOTE]
Your's will probably come later. We sailed in April and I think three of us on that cruise got the survey. They are probably sending these out in groups ... based upon when in this past year you sailed.

Blue skies ...

--rita

[kryos]

[quote name='jhannah']They already do.
[URL]http://www.shophollandamerica.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=category_detail&category_id_int=12079[/URL][/QUOTE]
Oops! Didn't realize they already sold that sort of thing.

LOL ... as you can probably tell, I'm not much of a shopper. :)

Blue skies ...

--rita

[RuthC]

[quote name='revneal']I got the survey ... and Christopher got his but hasn't taken it yet.
Based on the questions, I would say that it's geared for people who have cruised in 2007. Where Ruth's is is another question. If christopher doesn't want to answer his, maybe I'll have him send it to you and YOU can answer it.[/quote]
[FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=5][COLOR=royalblue]K! :D [SIZE=3]I'll be happy to "help him out" by doing it for him. I love that it has room for free-form text. I have a [/SIZE][SIZE=5]lot[/SIZE][SIZE=3] to say. ;) [/SIZE][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[prescottbob]

Ahoy!

I didn't realize HAL was marketing bed linens and such (what is Dillards, Penny's and Walmart to do?). What next? Perhaps 'formal' server and kitchen uniforms (with the HAL logo) available to the the public and, maybe, those Pima cotten bath matts that absorbs bath and shower water so well?

As Louie Armstrong sang so well: "It's a Wonderful World..."

Bon Voyage and Good Health!
Bob:)

P.S. When does HAL plan to open their 'Bed and Bath Shops' on-board? Inguiring minds would like to know.

[bepsf]

[FONT="Garamond"][SIZE="4"]I didn't get mine [I](I wonder if it landed in the junkmail bin? Not about to look [I]there[/I]...)[/I]

...tho I have plenty to say - including about the pillows that I bought from the shophal.com store that [I]aren't anything[/I] like what I remember having onboard.
***Sigh***[/SIZE][/FONT]

[HeatherInFlorida]

[quote name='RuthC'][FONT=Comic Sans MS][SIZE=5][COLOR=royalblue]..............[SIZE=3] I have a [/SIZE][SIZE=5]lot[/SIZE][SIZE=3] to say. ;) [/SIZE][/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT][/quote]

Ruth ............. :D

[bepsf]

[quote name='HeatherInFlorida']Ruth ............. :D[/QUOTE]

[FONT="Garamond"][SIZE="4"]Heather--

When Ruth gets going, it's best just to stand back and enjoy the show.
;) [/SIZE][/FONT]

[jhannah]

[quote name='bepsf'][SIZE=4][FONT=Garamond]When Ruth gets going, it's best just to stand back and enjoy the show.[/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE=4][FONT=Garamond];) [/FONT][/SIZE][/quote] Where do I get tickets? :D

Oh, wait ... I have one for next July!