Exchange rate makes European cruising the best value

Holland America, looking to promote its European itineraries, made a great point to us recently: the weak dollar means that buying a Mediterranean cruise in dollars can save those from the US a bundle versus paying Euros for a land vacation.

One US dollar buys you only .76 Euros at the moment, which isn't too far off from a historical low. So if you pay for hotels, meals, and tours in Euros, you'd be pulling a lot more greenbacks out of your bank account than you used to.

On the other hand, with a cruise vacation, all your major expenses are paid in dollars, in advance, giving you the full value of your hard-earned bucks.

Of course, a cruise has always been the best way to see Europe and the Baltic, since so many of the most spectacular cities put down their roots as sea ports, so are accessible by cruise ship. Consider just a few of the amazing places you can experience:

• Venice, Italy
• Florence, Italy
• Barcelona, Spain
• Stockholm, Sweden
• Tallinn, Estonia
• St. Petersburg, Russia
• Santorini, Greek Isle
• Athens, Greece
• Palma de Mallorca, Spanish Isle
  

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Holland America pricing error won't be honored

In a move that surprised us, Holland America bought itself an ocean of negative publicity by refusing to honor a Noordam balcony stateroom $849 per person cruise fare that it says was a data-entry mistake. The correct fare should have been $550 higher, and the cruise line is insisting that paid-and-confirmed passengers either send the additional money, or cancel with a full refund. Holland did offer a slender olive branch in the form of a $100 onboard credit for those who decided to go ahead and travel.

One big reason for our surprise is that our experiences dealing with Holland America correcting problems of all kinds, including price discrepancies, have been entirely positive. In fact we would single them out as one of the cruise lines most dependable about "doing the right thing."

Whether Holland was within its legal rights is not the issue, as even without going to look we're sure they have fine print, someplace, permitting such "error corrections." Our question is whether Holland's move made sense.

Other travel companies have reaped a windfall of positive publicity for honoring fares that were clearly erroneous, such as US Airways' buck-or-less roundtrips. We wouldn't have faulted US Airways for cancelling those bookings, since the customer must have known when they purchased their ticket that the price was a mistake.

And that's why we disagree in this case with Holland's decision. An $849 cruise fare for a balcony stateroom on an 11-night trip, working out to $77 per person, per night, doesn't sound crazy. It seems like an unusually good, but within-the-realm-of-possibility, price. Those passengers who paid for this trip, and got their confirmations, were likely truly dismayed when Holland came around looking for another $550 per person.

Nonetheless, our years of positive experience with Holland America have us hoping that this move was either an aberration, or that there was more to Holland's side of this story than meets the eye.

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Signature of Excellence upgrades completed by Holland America

Holland America Line, known for its gracious mid-size liners, has completed its "Signature of Excellence" upgrade initiative. The new features include even more luxurious accommodations, new destinations, additional dining experiences, and even higher levels of service. New facilities on the Holland America fleet include:

Culinary Arts Center – sponsored by Food & Wine Magazine, this kitchen theater hosts cooking demonstrations, guest lecturers, book signings, and wine and food tastings.

Explorations Café – sponsored by the New York Times Company, this "café" is a combination Internet center, library, and coffee shop. The library boasts 27,000 new titles and the computer equipment is the latest available. Of course, there are a few copies of the Times around, also.

Pinnacle Grill Restaurant – an intimate, reservations-only dining room, with fine china, silver, and crystal; many tables for two; table-side service; and excellent Pacific Northwest cuisine. Meals here carry a surcharge (currently $30 per person for dinner and $15 for lunch), but I heartily recommend it. I've dined here on two HAL ships and enjoyed the experience both times. The Pinnacle Grill is also a nice escape from the more boisterous public rooms.

Holland America Line operates 13 ships that sail throughout the globe. The line is particularly noted for its Alaska and Caribbean sailings.

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Cell phones come aboard Holland America in record time

Holland America is zooming from supporting cell phones on just one ship today, the Volendam, to their entire fleet, in less than 6 months. Amazing! Passengers' personal cell phones and PDAs that use GSM-compatible networks like Cingular and T-Mobile will work when the ships are at sea.

We hear some intense feelings from cruisers about cell phones at sea. The anti-phone camp naturally doesn't want to be disturbed by ringing cell phones and others' loud conversations. That's a Luddite attitude, according to the pro-phone camp, who figures cell phones have become ubiquitous and it's only a matter of time until they work everywhere.

Around here, our feeling is that we want the lifeline of knowing that since our phone did not ring, therefore no catastrophes unfolded back at home or the office. Peace of mind, like a grown-up pacifier.

Holland America's new cell phone service uses technology from a company called SeaMobile, a division of the Maritime Telecommunications Network company that already provides onboard Internet access. International roaming charges will apply to all shipboard cell phone calls or messages and guests will be billed via their shipboard account, probably in the ballpark of $1 to $2 per minute... so dial carefully! Holland America's announcement comes one week after sister company Carnival announced a similar plan for their ships.

Seattle-based Holland America has a fleet of thirteen medium-sized passenger cruise ships, which sail to the Caribbean, Mexico, Europe, Alaska, and around-the-world.

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Cook up a storm in Holland America culinary arts centers!

Holland America Line, whose medium-sized cruise liners are equipped with shiny new culinary arts centers, announced their 2007 culinary cruise line-up last week. The schedule includes more that 40 chefs, wine experts, and cookbook authors.

Among them are Andrew Carmellini of New York's hip restaurant A Voce, who was recently named "Best New Chef" by Food and Wine Magazine; Andrea Immer Robinson, Master Sommelier, one of just 14 women in the world who have earned this distinction; Holly Turner, winemaker for Three Rivers Winery in Walla Walla Washington; and Michael Symon, executive chef of Lola Restaurant in Cleveland and Parea in New York City.

Activities on the culinary cruises include cooking demonstrations, wine and food tastings, lectures, book signings, and complimentary recipe cards and tasting notes that you can take home with you.

Holland America's culinary arts centers include large theater-style demonstration kitchen and plasma video screens so that you won't miss a single detail. You can even watch from your stateroom!

Cruise itineraries range from October to May and include cruises to Europe, New England, China, the Caribbean, South America, Mexico, and Australia. For more information on Holland America's culinary cruises, contact the SureCruise.com cruise experts today.

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Alaska cruise passenger accuses Holland America of fraud

In a two-part civil suit, filed in US District Court in Seattle, Ohioan J.B Miller accuses Holland America Line of fraud and asks for class-action status. Mr. Miller has two beefs: first, that he overpaid for a shore excursion during his July 2006 Oosterdam cruise to Alaska, and second, that a government fine collected by the cruise line wasn't passed along to the government.

The shore excursion in question was a $219 fishing trip Mr. Miller purchased. This portion of his lawsuit centers around a generally ignored Alaska statute that has required a cruise line to disclose any fee it may receive from a business it is promoting. Mr. Miller says that he never was informed of HAL's markup on the fishing charter and that he would have saved considerable money if he had booked the tour directly.

We're struggling with this. On the one hand, if the law was on the books, it should be followed. On the other hand, of course the cruise line adds a markup, as does any retailer selling anything. In addition, the cruise lines add value by vetting and monitoring their shore excursion vendors for quality and safety, and monitoring for any tardy return to the ship... so you don't miss the boat because your excursion motor coach got a flat.

The second part of the suit involves the so-called "Jones Act," the US law that forbids foreign-flagged cruise vessels (as most are) from transporting people between US ports without an intermediate stop at a foreign port. Violation results in a $300 per person fine.

After missing the Seattle embarkation because of a delayed flight, Mr. Miller and his family of four skipped over the foreign Canadian port call and joined the ship in Juneau, making them liable for this fine. His claim is that the government, as a matter of practice, seldom asseses these fines and the cruises lines don't pay them in reality. But, Holland America rebuts that penalty issuance can take many months and that it was too soon to tell if the cruise line would be fined for Miller's passage. A Seattle Customs spokesman confirmed this statement.

We're curious about this one, and although Mr. Miller's claim may amount to nothing in the end, it might be interesting for his attorneys to be able to dig into the truth of the matter through the discovery process and settle the matter once and for all.

Holland America Line, one of the largest cruise operators in Alaska, operates a number of cruises and cruise tours in the state from May to September each year. A spokesperson for the line denied all charges and called the lawsuit frivolous.

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Swimming with stingrays: is it safe to go in the water?

Since "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin died tragically from a stingray barb while filming a documentary in Australia, many are wondering whether popular swim-with-the-stingray attractions such as Stingray City in Grand Cayman are safe.

In a word, "yes," according to the cruise lines that sail to the Caribbean and various tour operators that run trips to so-called Stingray City. "(Irwin's death) is one of the rarest occurrences you can possibly believe," Pat Kenney, diver manager for Red Sail Sports told CNN. "They're very docile creatures."

Statements released by cruise lines that operate in the Caribbean concur. "I think everyone understands that this is a rare circumstance," Royal Caribbean's Lyan Sierra-Caro told Cruisecritic.com. Similar sentiments were expressed by Carnival, Disney, and Holland America.

Experts seem to concur that the circumstances around Steve Irwin's incident, where he and his cameraman had unwittingly surprised and boxed in a "wild" stingray, are totally different than the nearly-tame stingray feeding enjoyed by tourists.

Stingray City, which opened in the mid-1970s, gives visitors a chance to walk amidst and feed stingrays attracted by the years of free food. The attraction greets an average of 600 visitors a day, none of whom have ever suffered "any serious injuries," according to Mark Button, an operator for Moby Dick Tours which has been escorting visitors to the site for over 20 years. The rays at Stingray City are free to come and go... and they choose to come since they've been hand-fed for so many years.

Stingray City is one of the most popular attractions for cruise visitors to Grand Cayman, and most cruise lines calling at Grand Cayman, including Carnival and Royal Caribbean, offer excursions to the site.

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Cruise Europe with Holland on five ships in 2007

Big plans are afoot for Holland America 2007 Europe cruises, committing five ships to a nine-month season from March through November. This increases the number of sailings by one third over 2006, with 46 different itineraries calling at 136 ports of call, of which 13 are new stops for Holland.

Cruising is, by far, the best way to experience what Europe has to offer. You can visit many of the most spectacular cities by cruise ship, cruising from Venice to Barcelona, since major cities hisotircally grew up around ports during the ocean-trading heyday.

"Our guests look forward to more time in port including late departures and overnights, fascinating excursions and the 'best overall cruise value' according to the World Ocean & Cruise Liner Society," added Richard Meadows, Holland's senior vice president of marketing and sales.

Cruise to the Baltic and European Atlantic regions, or sail to the Mediterranean, on Holland America in 2007 starting at $1,478 per person as of today.

The five ships are: 1,848-passenger Westerdam, 1,316-passenger Rotterdam, 1,258-passenger Veendam and Maasdam, and the more intimate 793-passenger Prinsendam designed for longer cruises. All ships are top-rated for "best overall service" by Porthole magazine's Readers' Choice Awards and have earned the International Five Star Diamond Award from the American Academy of Hospitality Sciences.

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Holland America adds air fuel surcharge for European itineraries

Holland America notified us today that an air-fuel surcharge of $75 per person will be added for all those buying their airfare from the line to get to their European cruise.

This applies even to existing bookings where a deposit has been paid. Travelers can avoid the surcharge, however, by paying for their cruise in full by March 15.

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New class of Holland America ships named after Signature of Excellence

Holland America's Signature of Excellence program, launched in 2004 to introduce a broad variety of upgrades across the fleet, inspires the moniker for the line's new class of ships. One 2,044-passenger Signature Class newbuild will be delivered in 2008, with an option for a second in 2010, and will increase Holland America's passenger capacity by over 20%.

Have you ever wondered how much pocket change you'd need to buy a factory-fresh cruise liner with that new-ship smell? Well, the answer in this case is $450 million each. The upcoming ships aren't yet named, and will be built at our personal favorite shipyard, Fincantieri in Italy.

Naturally, the ships will include all of the Signature of Excellence premium amenities that have been introduced on Holland's current ships: Euro-top beds, deluxe waffle cloth robes, Egyptian cotton towels, flat panel TVs, DVD players, massage shower heads, professional hair dryers, fresh flowers and complimentary fruit baskets.

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Holland America offers VIP King Tutankhamen tickets in Ft. Lauderdale

Guests arriving in Ft. Lauderdale on or before April 23, 2006, aboard a Holland America vessel, can purchase VIP tickets to the King Tutankhamen exhibit at the Museum of Art Fort Lauderdale. These $75 tickets permit front-of-line privileges plus an audio tour narrated by famed Egyptian actor Omar Sharif.

Holland America provides these tickets as the "official cruise line" of the King Tutankhamen and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs exhibit. Fort Lauderdale is the only southeast location in the U.S. to host the King Tutankhamen exhibit, creating a rare opportunity to combine it with a cruise.

This exhibit marks King Tut's first visit to the U.S. in 26 years, and includes never-before-displayed artifacts from Egypt's Valley of the Kings.

Click here to see qualifying Holland America cruises.

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Carnival joins the battle of the bedding

Have you noticed the ongoing battle among hotels over who offers the most luxurious sleep experience? You've got catchy names like Sheraton's Sweet Sleeper bed, the Westin Heavenly Bed, Embassy Suites' Suite Dreams bed...you get the idea. Now the cruise lines have come onboard this trend, and we're all for it.

Carnival today announced a fleet-wide upgrade to be complete by year end, with the not-so-catchy but descriptive name "Carnival Comfort Bed Sleep System." The European-made beds offer eight-inch spring mattresses with hypoallergenic duvet. Sheets, pillow cases and duvet covers, says Carnival, are made of an "ultra-fine, ring-spun, satin-striped cotton blend." We personally believe cotton should never be blended with anything in a high-quality linen, but then again we're linen snobs. New pillows are said to give the feeling of down while remaining non-allergenic. Suite passengers score a pillow menu adding options for fluffy goose down, or firm latex.

Previous cruise line entrants to the battle of the bedding include Oceania Cruises, which since their inception has touted their Tranquility Bedding featuring 350-thread-count cotton linens and goose-down pillows. And Holland America's recent Signature of Excellent upgrades included self-described "premium plush Euro-top mattresses and highest-quality cotton bed linens."

Sweet dreams!

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Holland America Westerdam: Photo Gallery Now Up

For those of you who like to inspect every nook and cranny of a new cruise ship, we've posted our latest ship photo gallery, of Holland America's new Westerdam, sister ship to Oosterdam, Zuiderdam, and Noordam. Click any image in the gallery to enlarge.

Holland America Westerdam Photo Gallery
Westerdam Cruise Calendar

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Time for families to come aboard!

So many families with kids are missing the boat because they don't know cruising has grown into a one-of-a-kind vacation choice for families, and for extended family reunions.

The cruise industry has made tremendous strides in catering to kids, embracing the truth in: "if the kids ain't happy then ain't nobody happy." Onboard large, modern ships you'll find separate facilities for toddlers, young kids, juniors, and teens. Each is fully supervised by qualified staff. And the cost for your kids to participate in most programs? Nothing! There's no other vacation in the same league.

For example, while mom and dad enjoy a romantic gourmet experience alone, junior might be digging in to a spaghetti dinner with all his new friends. Some lines offer late-night kids' programs so mom and dad can enjoy dinner, a show, and some time in the casino. And there are plenty of activities the whole family can enjoy together that are so engaging that even the most jaded teenager won't be rolling their eyes. Think parasailing, rock climbing, America's Cup yacht racing...

And we're not just talking Disney Cruises here either (although if you're a Disneyphile then they're a great choice). Take Holland America, which ten years ago catered exclusively to the retired set. Their new ships have outstanding kids' facilities, and Holland's gorgeous Half Moon Cay private island recently upgraded with kid-friendly activities like a mini water park, horseback riding, and swimming with stingrays.

Photo Gallery of Holland's Private Island Half Moon Cay
Milford (MA) Daily News: Ships not kidding around about catering to youths

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Holland America launches Culinary Arts Program

Holland America today introduced an initial crop of chefs who will be sailing as part of the line's culinary arts program. Guests are promised significant interaction with the chefs, ranging from hands-on experimentation to book signings.

Some notables mentioned in the press release include Michelle Bernstein, co-host of The Food Network's Melting Pot, and Neal Gallagher from Oceana (the restaurant, not the cruise line), winner of Food & Wine Magazine's Best New Chef award.

As a part of its Signature of Excellence program launched last year, Holland America is in the process of equipping all of its ships with Culinary Arts Theaters. Already installed onboard half the fleet's ships, the remainder of theaters will be completed throughout 2005-2006. Holland's classroom-style theaters contrast with the demonstration kitchen onboard Cunard's Queen Mary 2, which is restaurant style.

Signature of Excellence also includes goodies like upgraded beds and linens, enhanced stateroom amenities, the Pinnacle Grill extra-cost fine dining venue, and expanded youth facilities.

Holland America Line Introduces The Culinary Arts Center, Presented By Food & Wine Magazine

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