We received our free sparkling wine at dinner on the first night rather than in our room. We have done CO on all three of our HAL cruises, and have added it for our two upcoming cruises, and we agree that it is totally worth it.
A little pro tip for those wanting to take full advantage of Club Orange - especially those booking far in advance. Get the cheapest room in a particular room category, purchase Club Orange and then get it upgraded to the most expensive room in that same category. I recently booked a balcony room with obstructed view, paid for Club Orange in advance, and I was able to select an aft facing balcony - which for this cruise was about $1100 more. The only risk you have is the Club Orange is non-refundable. So if you have to cancel the trip for some reason, you'll get a refund according the cruse contract, but not the Club Orange purchase. That's the trade-off. The closer to the cruise sailing date you get Club Orange, the fewer room upgrades will be available within a room category. The farther out, the more choices. In my case, it worked out quite well (as long as nothing prevents us from going on the cruise 10 months from now).
Thanks!!! Fantastic tip. I had not thought about that. Club orange is really not that expensive IMHO so good "risk". Thanks so much for posting, been trying to "decode" club orange so this helps. Bottom line, it's a good deal on a great cruise line!
I did the same thing! Purchased Club Orange and received the top level stateroom in my category for cheaper than I would have paid just for that stateroom!
I booked a 17-day cruise to/from Hawaii for January 2024. The Club Orange price is $15/day for cruises over 13+ days ($25/day for cruises 13 days or under). My travel agent used the Club Orange membership in getting me upgraded from a "VD" cabin to a "VA" cabin on Deck 6. I will be traveling solo, and was crushed by having to pay double for my Verandah stateroom -- so I was pleasantly surprised that I will only have to pay the $15/day Club Orange cost (and not arbitrarily double). Outside of that, I'm paying for two people at all of the "included" dining. I plan to eat a LOT of good food, and can't wait to be back on HAL.
Best benefit of Club Orange is selecting the lowest level balcony cabin, usually an obstructed view, then upgrade to the finest balcony cabin. I booked an obstructed view balcony, obtained Club Orange, and upgraded to an aft-facing cabin. Saved quite a bit of money
The complimentary stateroom upgrade is provided before sailing and should have been offered when you purchased the Club Orange add on. We are sailing in May on Konningsdam, and were upgraded from an obstructed balcony guarantee to a 'sunset' balcony. We were told we could choose ANY available room in the same category booked (in our case, balcony).
Yes; for example you can book an obstructed balcony (the lowest category balcony cabin) and upgrade for free to any other balcony cabin (including aft or spa) with Club Orange. Totally agree with you that the staff needs to be more educated and proactive about providing Club Orange benefits.
Thanks for taking the time to do this video. My husband and I recently booked a 14 days transatlantic on Nieuw Statendam in a Neptune suite which we're told has Club Orange access. It will be our first time sailing with Holland America and we're very excited to sail with a new cruise line.
So cool, let me know how it goes, we're doing Neptune Suite on Koningsdam later this year... and yes includes Club Orange (for the price... it better) lol.
When I called to purchase Club Orange, the HAL representative asked me if I wanted to upgrade. I am in a Veranda room and I am happy with the location and I was concerned about getting upgraded to a less desirable location. If I do it again, I will book a cheaper veranda room and say yes to the upgrade. I recommend you have the deck plan handy when you call to book Club Orange so that you can make a good choice for the upgrade. I chose Club Orange purely for the private dining room.
Yes, I personally think the "upgrade" is not worth it. We just did Cunard across the pod and our shipmates chose the "they pick the room" with the upgrade. They did not get a room until 10 days before sailing... so stressful, was the exact same one they would have gotten, nothing better, had they spend the $100 or so at the original booking. That said, yes, for the private dining room (on some ships) so very very worth it!!!!
Thanks for the comment, I think a good travel agent would know to push / check for the upgrade. I just mentioned in another comment,... but not in the Video, I found out about Club Orange after I already purchased the ticket through Costco.... huge savings but that's another video. HAL made me buy Club Orange thru Costco... it took about 1/2 hour, but Costco Travel Agent was able to place the order....HOWEVER, they obviously knew nothing about how it worked, or did I know to ask... etc. So, am I upset with Costco, HAL (again, love the line and crew, just wish Club Orange better explained and executed), or was it my fault or not pushing more?? Take care!!! G
Ditto - with Club Orange (and whatever other magic power travel agents wield), my travel agent got me bumped up from a "VD" Verandah to a "VA". This mostly gave me a quieter room, away from elevators, and closer towards the middle of Deck 6 of the Koningsdam.
Signed up for club Orange when we booked our room and the upgrade was given immediately once paid that price of the upgrade covered the cost of club orange so basically it was free!
I found that to get the room upgrade you do that at the time you book Clib Orange. You will be able to pick any better available stateroom in the category you picked (inside, Oceanview or verandah) . It doesn't work for suites. So if you pay for a basic verandah such as VH or VF you will be able to move up to any better available verandah room such as AS or spa verandah no upcharge beyond the club orange cost of roughly $25 a day. Same for moving up within inside rooms or within Oceanview. Don't get bogged down on missing small things like sparkling wine or a coffee chat.
Sounds smart, I did think I had a balcony mini suite (if there is such a thing)... but it did say you'd get something else if no upgrade available... but whatever. Think Club Orange is a little to "exclusive" that the crew / associates don't know the details. But, Still, great ship, great crew, and even with problems, worth money. Thanks so much for comments. I was excited to finally post something with detail about Club Orange, just could not find any info on TH-cam about it @bobfrees2290 , take care. 🛳🚢
We’ve booked our next two cruises with HAL and added CO to both. Price came out cheaper with club orange with the room upgrade than the original. We priced out the room we wanted and then asked our TA to try to get Club Orange. Both times the total cost was less money, please don’t advertise this so the benefit will be there for people who know how to use it.
Another update... We booked the same Ship , Koningsdam , for this summer 2023 Alaska, but chose a Neptune Suite (yes!) that includes Club Orange. Will anything have changed?? Hoping to see some of the great crew members back on that ship. Get ready for a Neptune suite and Club Orange update! 🙂
Neptune suites are awesome. If you can fit it in the budget, it’s well worth it. We have done 5 sailings with HAL in Neptune to include a 14 day sailing through the Panama Canal. Free laundry perk paid for itself. . Pinnacle Grill has great food. Safe sailings.
@@jhollie8196 Yeah, you're 100% correct! Laundry.?.. we normally just put our dirty laundry in a bag with a rope and drop it off the stern for a few minutes?! ;-)
Here is a tip but make sure you do this well advanced before your cruise where the cabins are not fully booked. If you booking a cabin that your not fully ok but, want it for the reason of a lower price for example Obstructed view cabin. After that then order for a club orange. Ask the person on the phone after you pay for it about the cabin upgrade, you will get a cabin that is higher within that class so you will get the none obstructed view. We did that today. We book the cruise through our travel agent because AAA offers great extras and such as always for our cruises. Then later on I called Holland and order the club orange and paid for that which was total of 350 for 2 people for a 7 day cruise. Then once that transaction was done. I then asked the lady about the upgrade. She put me on hold to see what was available. We had originally got a normal balcony. She came back and upgraded us to a spa Balcony cabin so not only we get the club orange perks but, also now spa access free with that. Do not try to wait until your cruise to get the cabin upgrade as you will be risking if the cabins that you would normally be upgraded to may not be available then.
Very good point... we're going on Cunard (also part of Carnival Cruise Company) and couple we are going with do not have an assigned room. I told them to get on the phone. I'm concerned because they let the cruise choose suite and because they are not pushing it they may get a bad video. :-( Good info
I hope you're right but am pretty sure the spa balcony cabins don't include complimentary access to the spa. We've book one as well for a future cruise and it's really just a prime location and yoga mat.
@@kuk1m0n5t3r Never said you get free access to the spa itself we are closer to the access and we get access to parts of the spa free while other parts are either discounted or just have to pay
Sailed on the Eurodam out of Fll and club orange worked great for that sailing. They had signs up for club orange and we where awarded most things promised.
It’s such a different experience on the Pinnacle ships which have a separate dining room for Club Orange. On all other ships, Club Orange is just a different menu in the main dining room (which is the same menu with an extra menu item). As far as embarkation goes, you are competing with all of the 4 & 5 star mariners who also get priority boarding. And on HAL ships, they have a huge population of 4/5 star guests. It’s almost like the trick is to NOT get in the priority boarding line😂😢
I totally agree! Yeah, the boarding line was just weird... next time might just wait until the very end (San Diego happens to be a cool port, you can just walk to tons of restaurants and shops, etc), but in places like the Port of LA... not so fun. VERY good point about Pinnacle ships and not having club orange dining room. Let me ask, I understand on other ships you get priority seating in the main dining room and have one friend who said his ship, the steak house (forgetting the name) acted as the "Club Orange" for breakfast and lunch? Thanks for the comment!
@@fatcatscooter2584 The Pinnacle Grill (their specialty steakhouse) is used for Breakfast and lunch for Club Orange. I'm embarrassed to say, we never took advantage of that because we'd made friends with crew in the Lido that knew what we liked, how we liked it and we'd have missed seeing them! I really think embarkation has a lot to do with the port, and less to do with the cruise line or the ship. We've had FABULOUS embarkations in San Diego (and lots of others!), terrible ones in Ft. Lauderdale, Sydney, St. Petersburg, Portland (UK), and Galveston, etc.I think a lot of it has to do with COVID, Brexit, workforce scarcity, and border force. But we have learned what a pain it is to stand in line for an hour or two with a heavy pack on our backs!
Thanks @paullywalnutz (Big sopranos fan btw)... always wear the adidas track suite first day of every cruise! Good info, sounds like you are supposed to get the upgrade right away but a few tricky bits..... I happen to purchase via Costco. I found out about Club Orange Later, called HAL and they said, no you have to book Club Orange via Costco, which took about 40 minutes but I did... I think the problem was Costco does not know about the upgrade and or I was in a balcony suite, and don't think any upgrades at that size room???!! but again, info is a little hidden. But sound like answer is...MAKE SURE YOU GET ROOM UPGRADE RIGHT WHEN YOU PAY FOR CLUB ORANGE!! Thanks a lot.
Re: Upgrades. When you add Club Orange talk to the rep right then. We upgraded from obstructed view to regular verandah at that time, way before boarding.
Yeah, lesson learned. I called back Costco like a month or two after we booked to ask if there was anything special I could add, and the agent I talked to happen to know about it and how to do it.... that was rare... most of the Costco reps are not well trained. So glad I even asked about it. I do that with all new cruise lines I go on. BTW, I like Club Orange so much... that when I took the Queen Mary 2 Cunard a few months ago, I realized how BAD QM2 was compaired to the HAL ships I've been on. HAL ships are hands down 2X better, and with Club Orange, they 2 are not even close for value and quality.
The club orange dining room has some nice extra perks. For example, breakfast has fresh squeezed orange juice complementary where in MDR it’s a extra cost item. I had tea with my meals, and club orange used a more expensive brand compared to MDR. I agree that you need to be a bit pushy on initial check in to use the club orange check in line, as the employees don’t know what that is. We were on Koningsdam in January, and have already booked our next cruise in November, same room (6123) and club orange for 10 days in mexico.
So cool to hear... yeah a little bit goes a long way. We're going on it again too in Aug, To Alaska, we upgraded this time to Neptune suite... can't believe how big it is. Thanks so much for posting!
We enjoyed our CO experience. As you noted, if for anything the dining was just about worth the upgrade. Our embarkation in SD was maddening. The pier staff were very disorganized. Fortunately for us, we overheard someone from the pier staff explaining to others that CO subscribers bypassed the lengthy lines. As you did, we still had to press the fact that we had priority benefits. I'll echo what you briefed on your content, not enough specific information guided us exactly what we got. it was very much trying to figure it out on our own. Thank you!
Thanks for your video. I sail out in 3 days from San Diego. This is the first time I’m hearing of Club Orange. I was trolling YT to see what night will the orange party takes place. Your detailed video was really helpful. Your voice is also soothing (ok weird right) LOL
LOL, thanks for the comment. If you can book Club Orange before you board, I'd do it IMHO. So, I agree, I had never heard about it and I did a lot of trolling myself. When I called HAL customer service after I booked with a question, I asked.."Hey, I want to make this a special trip, do you guys have a club class or any upgrades I can buy?" and the agent told me about Club Orange... she mentioned not many people ask about it. One thing I did not say in the video was, I actually purchased the tickets via Costco (I'm afraid to let the cat out of the bag), price was less than HALF of going to HAL direct plus, tons of perks, Costco gift cards when you return, wifi included, $200 in excursion $, great drink package, and did I mention less than half of HAL price??!! BUT... that meant I had to book Club Orange later with a second call to Costco (HAL would not add club orange after Costco purchase).... so is that why I did not get a room upgrade? Wish someone would have explained. Finally, I do have a soothing voice... I was recording and editing this at midnight and trying not to wake anyone in the house up LOL! Do write back about the trip! G
Cool cool! See, so much to learn. We go Alaska last summer, again on Koningdam and got a Neptune Suite.... It's almost 450 sq ft??!! Amazing... was not cheap but god bless Costco... they have great prices. Please let me know how it goes!
Upgrade is subjective. We were UPGRADED on our October 2023 Hawaiian cruise. We were moved from the middle of deck 4 to the front of deck 8 opposite the bridge entry door. Technically, based on the room classification this was an upgrade but would never have been our first or last pick.
100% right. DO NOT let the cruise line "upgrade you" it is totally subjective. Went on QM2 last month with friends (first time on a cruise) and they let Cunard "upgrade / pick the cabin". Luckly it worked out and they got the class same as us BUT... did not receive the room assignment until 48 hours before departure. Could have easily gotten a room under the dance floor or with lifeboat views. Newbie mistake lol
Do you have any idea of how many people are allowed to join Club Orange? Either as a number or a percentage of total passengers? The Koningdam maxes out at about 2700 passengers. The Club orange Dining Room looks fairly small. Maybe 60-70 people?? So maybe 2-3% of passengers can be in it?
I think there were several hundred people on the ship who were Club Orange. Anyone Neptune class and higher automatically get it, so a few hundred there. Then the people like me who asked about it, I'd add a few hundred..... 300-400? They can easily handle a few hundred people at dinner. A few times we did have to wait, but they just had us wait in the hall outside, never more than 10-15 minutes. Thanks
There are now 3 Pinnacle class ships. From oldest to newest Koningsdam (2016), Nieuw Statendam (2018), Rotterdam (2021). Older, smaller ships have Club orange as a separate area in the MDR. We always chose anytime Dining. It was never a problem walking in to the MDR between 6 and 7p and getting a seat immediately or wait 5 minutes. That all changed on the Koningsdam in October 2022. Standing lines around the block for anytime dining between 6 and 7p. So yes Club Orange is worth it on Pinnacle Class ships. Not so much on any smaller class ship. Only problem is there are no views of the Ocean in the Club orange dining space. Also there is a bit of a fish-bowl effect with hordes of people streaming by the whole time you are eating. They can peer in through the partially opaque windows. Just have to ignore them. Some appear to be starving to death standing in long lines outside those windows waiting for seats in the MDR. 🤣We were on a 28 day cruise in October 2022 on the Koningsdam. Ate in the MDR exactly twice. I won't stand in long lines like live stock waiting to be fed. We ate at the Tamarind the majority of the nights.
Yes, right on. Have the fun is eating in Club Orange on konignstam and watching the other wait on line ;-) ... Hey, it ain't free! On Princess they have the Club Class in a separate section of the main dining room (as you mentioned above) and we loved it. Dine anytime we wanted, same wait staff... just a different table each time. Going to be on Koningsdam later this year again.... this time with a 450sq ft Neptune suite that includes Club Orange, can't wait.... But next year doing Queen Mary II on Cunard Britannia Club Class so even more excited to see how that works out.
Complimentary room upgrade is a bit flim flam. If you are in a balcony room and a higher level balcony room is available (same class) they should offer you the upgrade. The problem being perhaps the better room is not on the floor or in the location you desire. And of course, you need to ask when you embark, and be insistent. Regarding priority embarking. Most of the help at the dock don't have a clue and most of the HAL employees are not aware either. If you have Club Orange,just insist that you have priority and move to the front of the line. If your room does not have the correctsized bath robe (or a correct sized plush robe) contact the concierge and tell them what you need. They should make it happen.
Thanks, well said!! Spot on. We are going to book koningsdam AGAIN, later this year so we know what to expect now. Yeah, the Room upgrade is newbie stuff, just pick the room you want, don't let them pick and never let them "upgrade"... too much risk. So funny, we just did Cunard NYC to South Hampton last month and same thing... at the port, the people in Brooklyn are no HAL employees so they TRIED to send us to the wrong line, not the Britanna Club class (which saved us about 30 minutes on line). You've got to pay attention and speak up for yourself. We actually have one person stand in line at the port and the other goes up to do "recon" as they ALWAYS have people who don't know what's what. Not bad people, it's just that the ships depart randomly so not well trained IMHO. Thanks.
We are leaven in two weeks for a cruise on the Koningsdam. We also bought the Club Orange. Now I'm really curious what our experience will be. I hope the staff learned from your questions. One thing I know already, we also didn't get any upgrade when we booked club Orange. We still in the same room as 6 months ago when we booked. Thank you for the video. I was looking for this for months.
@jurgenvanosch2040 thanks so much, this is exactly why I did this video. You're going to love it, honestly the Orange Club dining room on Koningsdam alone makes it worth while. Planning to book Koningsdam next year to Alaska.... are you sailing out of San Diego? I ask because there are two specific people in the club dining room, the Maître d' great guy, he'll know who Fat Cat Scooter Glen is lol, check back, I'll find his name, such bad memory :-), and Susie who checks everyone in at the Club Orange dining room on Koningsdam, she's super pretty and so nice, (they told me they'd be on the ship for a few more months). I had told the Maître d' I was making the video so he wrote down my channel name so he could check it out. Still no comment from anyone at HAL. I would call Holland America customer service and make a stink about it, maybe tell them about this video. Again, seems that they've not done a great job explaining everything to the employees. Excited to hear how your trip is!! Konishdam is fantastic!! And make sure you get a club orange Tote bag!!! G
@@fatcatscooter2584 So here is our experience with Club Orange. (We just came back yesterday) First, I need to say you are 100% right about the dining room of Club orange. The people and the food are of another level. I had several times a steak that was better than in the pinnacle grill and I'm not saying that the Pinnacle grill is bad. From the moment you walk into the door until you walk out the host, waiters, maître D (Aris) and the cook they all do everything they can to make this an unforgettable time. I made a joke one night about a meal that they eat in their homeland and the next day I found it on my plate. They found a cook on the ship they made it for me. The maître D did remember you but didn't check your video yet but when I told him about it, he said he will check it. As far as the other things that comes with Club Orange. I did sent HAL an email a week before our trip asking them the questions from the experience you had. The return email came 11 days into our 17-day cruise and stated that by now they "Trust that we enjoyed a wonderful cruise onboard of the Koningsdam". There was a special line for Club orange in San Diego for the boarding process but not really clear although the process was so fast that this line did not make a big difference. When we opened our room, we did find the tote bag ready for us to use and 2 voucher for 2 cocktails at any bar so we assumed it was the welcome drink. The special line for Club orange at the reception is a winner too. You bypass the long line if you need them. My wife did call HAL before our journey to ask about the upgrade to another room and they told us they gave us a discount on the room instead of an upgrade when we booked. Unfortunately, with their billing not that clear, and we had no energy to dig into it. Priority by the tendering was also nice. We never heard anything about a special back-stage tour or something similar. Would I do it again? Absolutely! (But if I have Club orange I will not book any specialty dinner anymore. This trip I eat at Pinnacle Grill, Tamarind and Rudi's Sel de Mer)
We have a suite which includes Club Orange. Glad to hear good things about the restaurant and crowdedness of main restaurant. We'll definitely enjoy eating in the CO.
John Maris, Fat Cat Scooter, et alia: the long queues to the Main Dining Room were most visible the first day of the cruise that I experienced. However, the rest of the cruise was much better. I should also emphasise that that applied only to those who chose My time/Any time dining; in that case, you can choose a different dining time every evening and have to take the risk that comes with choosing busy times. Observe and choose either before 6 p.m. or 7:30 p.m. onward, for instance. Moreover, there was a separate Main Dining Room for those with fixed-time dining and no queues.... Alternately, you always have the well organised buffet deck to enjoy rather than waiting a long while to eat in the M.D.R. any night that you see a long queue when you want to have your evening meal.
HAL Main Dining Rooms are gorgeous, and the food is superb. But when busy, it can be pretty rambunctious (loud). The weekly formal night can be especially wild with dancing waiters. I was thinking of bypassing formal night in the MDR in my next cruise. Then I stumbled on Club Orange before booking on the Koningsdam for 2024 -- this seems like a great way to enjoy wonderful food in a quieter setting. I'm a solo traveller, and am pretty introverted -- so Club Orange sounds like it was built for me!
Good to know.... seems San Diego port is a little hit or miss... bottom line, gonna get on the ship at some point. My wife just like to get every second of "free" we can lol
Excellent video! I was wondering about this and you are correct very little information on this. We like getting VIP and priority seating and other perks for various things and I was wondering if this was worth it. It sounds like it is I am surprised on how many things they didnt follow through with thats actually alot and I am like you I would have noticed it all. I like my extra perks and gifts. We are doing our first Alaska cruise on Holland America Koningsdam this summer thanks so much for all the info. New subscribers and supporters of your channel! Best wishes for a growing channel!
Sorry for the late reply... wow, we're going late Aug on Koningdam Alaska as well, not same trip you think? let me know. We intentionally picked this as we wanted to be on Koningdam again. How exciting!
With regards to the room upgrade. At 14:00 when you showed the Club Orange webpage, it says "* complimentary stateroom upgrade to the best available room within the meta category at the time of Club Orange purchase". When you purchased Club Orange upgrade, HAL should have upgraded the stateroom you booked to the highest in the class at that time. You don't get the upgrade after you board the ship.
@alankwok2210 thanks so much for the response (and watching my overly long video lol), thanks for telling me that... No one at HAL told me anything. As I mentioned in video, one of the Club Orange Guest Services ladies told me, "you get upgrade when you board ship if we have any"... which makes no sense.... she was the only person that blew me off when I asked something... should have called HAL before I left for San Diego, but don't know why I should do their work for them. Thanks again!!
@@fatcatscooter2584 I think that it also depends on which port you choose for your sailing. Holland America has excellent boarding experience from the long-test cruise-terminal that it uses in Fort Lauderdale, for instance. Even without Club Orange, everyone was assigned a time-slot for boarding, and the process was extremely smooth and quick.
Looks like they did not give you the correct Club Orange room service menu as for breakfast, CO normally includes complimentary freshly squeezed Orange Juice and Mimosas (your menu shows these as premium items with cost associated). Also, there are three ships with a dedicated CO Dining Room - Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam, & Rotterdam.
Yeah, remember you have to push... they just don't train the staff enough. Konisgsdam does a lot of trips from San Diego, easy for us... and we acutally have become freindly with a few of the crew so makes it more fun. Thanks again.
HAL is very late to the dance with Orange. They are also making the same mistakes that Celerity did with the Retreat and NCL did with the Haven. That mistake is to allow the marketing department to glance over the amenities but teach no one the ins and outs. It is a learning process over time to gain the "Secrets" of all of these programs. The first step is for some brave sole to take the time to make a video or write a detailed op-ed. You should be congratulated on your efforts. You took one for the team and the team appreciates it. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.
Thanks man!! Yeah, It was not my best work as I decided to make this halfway through our last trip. Funny you say that, no one from Holland America ever reached out to me. I told a few of the Club Orange People on Konigsdam I was making this video.... And going to be on the ship again later in the year... so for giggles if I see the same crew, going to ask their comments on the video. I'm an old marketing guy... these young bucks sometimes don't think everything through... and that Old Man Fat Cat Scooter might just make a video lol. Take care!
Thank you so much for you very detailed review of Club Orange. Based on your commentary, we purchased CO when booking our cruise for 2024 out of San Diego. The travel agent did all the negotiating and we were very pleased with the result. Went from an obstructed view balcony to a VQ balcony on the Panorama Deck. I noted one of the folks mentioned that there was a sign for Pinnacle, Neptune and CO in San Diego when embarking on the ship. Hope that is the case when we get on the Koningsdam.
Cool Please tell me how it goes. I have a feeling since I posted this HAL put up a sign for Club Orange Class (as a few people leaving from San Diego told me the same thing). But if not, just be a little push and follow the Neptune people, what have you go to loose. Enjoy.
Thanks for this video. Lots of good info. Like yourself, I have done a few cruises. The last couple on Princes (nov 2021/Oct 2022); Was looking at a Transatlantic on celebrity and just to compare, was looking at one on Holland America. Don't know so much about the Holland America cruises. As someone who has just gotten off one, would you recommend Holland America? Looks pretty nice tbh.
Thanks Ted, you sound like us, we've just done several Princess (Pre pandemic), but they canceled 2 times in '22 on us, and seemed they could care less. Holland America was for sure an upgrade. Much nicer ships, very well done. Food about the same, maybe a hair better. Crew was first class and if you like the royal treatment, at a great price , HAL is the way to go. Crazy because Carnival , HAL, Princess, Cunard... all owned by same company but all run differently. Yes, recommend, about to book an Alaskan or NorthEast cruise for later in the year with them. (Transatlantic, all my friends say Cunard...they are the only ones with a true Ocean Liner, make a big difference). Go Holland America, do Club Orange, well worth the money. (or Neptune suites include it). BTW, Gary B is great to watch, he runs the TH-cam page Tips for Travelers, he's one smart guy. Finally, book via Costco, Costco, Costco.... omg, price was so much better than booking direct AND, just got a $250 gift card in the mail...crazy! Thanks G
@@fatcatscooter2584 Thanks for the video. Just a Question or two. First, you said, near the end of this comment/reply, that Booking Holland America cruises through Costco was a great money saver. Right? Secondly, I'm debating doing Holland America with the Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package. We are in our 60's, I'm trying to balance out what is more important: Holland Pinnacle ships: Smaller ship with better food, service and good to great music & entertainment vs Royal Quantum+ ship: Bigger, more crowded ship with amazing big production shows, smaller venue entertainers and a few fun play spaces. It might depend on who is traveling with us. Holland America + Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package, that is my dilemma, any ideas?
We embarked in San Diego last November on our very first cruise. We bought Club Orange. There was a small sign directing Pinnacle Suite, Neptune Suite, and Club Orange. We got right on and went straight to our room. It’s worth it just for that.
Thanks @michaelcarnahan1630 That sounds correct, obviously this trip was. also out of San Diego in Dec '22, and were were in the terminal at least an hour and looked and looked and asked, was not sign at all... that would have helped, having the HAL staff at terminal knowing would have helped too. But I agree with you, that in itself worth it, and club orange for leaving the ship, even better. A few hiccups but totally worth the price!!
I'm debating doing Holland America with the Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package. We are in our 60's, I'm trying to balance out what is more important: Holland Pinnacle ships: Smaller ship with better food, service and good to great music & entertainment vs Royal Quantum+ ship: Bigger, more crowded ship with amazing big production shows, smaller venue entertainers and a few fun play spaces. It might depend on who is traveling with us. Holland America + Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package, that is my dilemma, any ideas anyone?
Hi, good question. Never done Royal Caribbean but that was our choice, this trip I videoed about or Royal Caribbean. Hands DOWN Holland America (BTW, we used to be big Princess Cruise people but they really went down hill with Customer Service). Holland America for the most part, nicer ships, more upscale, less kids (which is what we wanted) more grown up but lots to do. HAL has big production shows, amazing theaters, and the music walk is second to none. Food, especially speciality dining is out of this world. The ships were just clean and well behaved passengers (yeah, you have to think about that these days). HAL has artwork everywhere you look. Amazing room stewards. If you want loud, less upscale but less expensive, Royal Caribbean is probably a good choice. The biggest thing for me was when I looked at interior videos of RC ships vs HAL, they just seemed much dated. BTW, and a lot of people over look this, HAL, many of the ships, have actual promenades that go all the way around the ship, you don't have to go up and down stairs, thru hallways inside the ship, etc... as I understand it this is why the new Cunard Queen Mary is going to be the same as the Holland America Pinnacle Line of ships (I may be off on the ship class) . Best of luck!!! G
Couple things I found out since I recorded this... As I understand, no room upgrade above balcony suite.... and if in smaller room, be sure to ask right when you purchase club orange if you are upgraded or for them to check... supposed to get upgraded WHEN you pay for Club Orange. (I think.. but again... all a little bit of a mystery).
Just booked our next cruise yesterday and yes- you get your upgrade when you pay for Club Orange- which is when you pay your deposit. We're on the Nieuw Amsterdam and they do not have the separate dining room that the Koningsdam has as the NA is an older and smaller ship. This ship and its sister ship the Eurodam have a section of the Main Dining room allocated for the Club Orange passengers. Club Orange totally worth it if you have any mobility issues standing for long periods in line etc. We were just on the Koningsdam and wished we had done the Club Orange. Of note on the Koningsdam- have never seen so many plugs in a room or around the ship for charging devices- it was great.
@@darcyashley3889 Thanks so much!! Yes, I think just Konigsdam and one other have the separate club orange dining room, and all the other ships just have an "area" in the main dining room, which is ok (Princess did the same thing with us in "Club Class". ) I just hate standing in line LOL! And yes, one of the things we loved about HAL ships is they have plenty of plugs (and most of their ships are pretty new). Thanks again!
...and one other thing, I mentioned above, I was weird, I purchased trip via Costco (so had to buy Club Orange via Costco).... but because I found out about Club Orange just before we left... I purchased if (from Costco) a month or more after purchasing the cruise... so my experience may have been different then most regarding how we bought it. Take care.
Sitting in FLL, waiting to fly back after our Holland America Cruise. We experienced a very similar experience; we had a Vista Class Suite offer and the sales guy said he could guarantee our "exact" room desired if we upgraded to Club Orange. We read the mentioned PDF and decided to purchase the upgrade. At the Cruise Terminal, we found Priority Check-In was not the same as Priority Boarding. We bypassed a big line to Security but our Boarding Tag #25 was one of the last - disappointing. None of the "amenities" promised were produced without us asking /being mildly pushy. No bathrobes or tote until we asked. No sparkling drink until the Club Orange Dining Room provided this. We never got the invite to special events and the Tenders to Half Moon Cay had no visible Club Orange Priority. The Club Orange Dining was a 10 - just wish Holland America didn't break and/or exaggerate most of its Club Orange Promises. Thanks for the video, wish we had found it before we booked!!!
Thanks for posting Scott. Sorry to hear, yeah it was weird. They are doing themselves such a disservice. As mentioned in the video, only offer what you are going to deliver! But, HAL is great and the Club Orange Dining room (at least on the ships that have them) make it great. I still want my club orange Tote bag darn it all!!! lol. We just booked Alaska on Koningsdam for this summer (same ship again ... and one talking about in this video) and we'll see how it goes. Neptune suite this time... I"m assuming same things will be left out but, Club Orange is included with Netune so..there you go. ... I'll do a video on Neptune Suites this summer. How was your trip otherwise?
@@fatcatscooter2584 Looking forward to the Alaska video - we did that same Cruise on Koningsdam May 2022 - we almost did Neptune but cost of cruise was already "up there". Since Orange is "included" for you, I predict a better Orange Club outcome - tote included. BTW, Koningsdam crew for am Room Service several notches better than Neiuw Statendam service. Make sure you do White Pass Train; stunning!
@@scottsunderland1903 I try! Would you believe some lady posted another video saying how bad this was... and I thought people is my scooter club were crazy!! lol. All the best!
I have sailed on HAL 2x and never got Club Orange but from your experience it sounds like it is not really worth the money. For what you pay you could eat in the specialty restaurants multiple times and avoid the MDR at dinner. The other perks are either non existent or you had to beg to get them. that doesn't sound premium to me.
It's worth it... unless the $200 or so is too much for you. But your call. Just came back from 2nd cruise, same ship, lot of the same Club Orange people ... freaking fantastic. I'll post a video. Thanks.
Yeah, funny I just came back from Alaska / Vancouver on the exact same ship, but this time I think it's called Neptune class (Includes Club orange). You get "premier" boarding BUT very similar issue in Vancouver. The freakin employees at the dock are not HAL employees..... so they tried to force us to a huge packed room to wait for a few hours, as they were late getting ship boarded. I found a HAL employee in the great hall at the Vancouver dock and told them Neptune Class... they walked us pass everyone to a little area ...just a roped off area but only about 40 people there and seating (yes, some people had to stand), and they got us on first. But again, I had to make a fuss and find a crew member. LOL.
We received our free sparkling wine at dinner on the first night rather than in our room. We have done CO on all three of our HAL cruises, and have added it for our two upcoming cruises, and we agree that it is totally worth it.
Interesting to know! We are going in a few weeks again on Konningsdam so interested to see if any changes.. may do another video.
A little pro tip for those wanting to take full advantage of Club Orange - especially those booking far in advance. Get the cheapest room in a particular room category, purchase Club Orange and then get it upgraded to the most expensive room in that same category. I recently booked a balcony room with obstructed view, paid for Club Orange in advance, and I was able to select an aft facing balcony - which for this cruise was about $1100 more. The only risk you have is the Club Orange is non-refundable. So if you have to cancel the trip for some reason, you'll get a refund according the cruse contract, but not the Club Orange purchase. That's the trade-off. The closer to the cruise sailing date you get Club Orange, the fewer room upgrades will be available within a room category. The farther out, the more choices. In my case, it worked out quite well (as long as nothing prevents us from going on the cruise 10 months from now).
Thanks!!! Fantastic tip. I had not thought about that. Club orange is really not that expensive IMHO so good "risk". Thanks so much for posting, been trying to "decode" club orange so this helps. Bottom line, it's a good deal on a great cruise line!
I did the same thing! Purchased Club Orange and received the top level stateroom in my category for cheaper than I would have paid just for that stateroom!
I booked a 17-day cruise to/from Hawaii for January 2024. The Club Orange price is $15/day for cruises over 13+ days ($25/day for cruises 13 days or under). My travel agent used the Club Orange membership in getting me upgraded from a "VD" cabin to a "VA" cabin on Deck 6.
I will be traveling solo, and was crushed by having to pay double for my Verandah stateroom -- so I was pleasantly surprised that I will only have to pay the $15/day Club Orange cost (and not arbitrarily double). Outside of that, I'm paying for two people at all of the "included" dining. I plan to eat a LOT of good food, and can't wait to be back on HAL.
Best benefit of Club Orange is selecting the lowest level balcony cabin, usually an obstructed view, then upgrade to the finest balcony cabin. I booked an obstructed view balcony, obtained Club Orange, and upgraded to an aft-facing cabin. Saved quite a bit of money
Thanks, very good to know!
The complimentary stateroom upgrade is provided before sailing and should have been offered when you purchased the Club Orange add on. We are sailing in May on Konningsdam, and were upgraded from an obstructed balcony guarantee to a 'sunset' balcony. We were told we could choose ANY available room in the same category booked (in our case, balcony).
I got ya! Thanks
Yes; for example you can book an obstructed balcony (the lowest category balcony cabin) and upgrade for free to any other balcony cabin (including aft or spa) with Club Orange. Totally agree with you that the staff needs to be more educated and proactive about providing Club Orange benefits.
Thanks for taking the time to do this video. My husband and I recently booked a 14 days transatlantic on Nieuw Statendam in a Neptune suite which we're told has Club Orange access. It will be our first time sailing with Holland America and we're very excited to sail with a new cruise line.
So cool, let me know how it goes, we're doing Neptune Suite on Koningsdam later this year... and yes includes Club Orange (for the price... it better) lol.
When I called to purchase Club Orange, the HAL representative asked me if I wanted to upgrade. I am in a Veranda room and I am happy with the location and I was concerned about getting upgraded to a less desirable location. If I do it again, I will book a cheaper veranda room and say yes to the upgrade. I recommend you have the deck plan handy when you call to book Club Orange so that you can make a good choice for the upgrade. I chose Club Orange purely for the private dining room.
Yes, I personally think the "upgrade" is not worth it. We just did Cunard across the pod and our shipmates chose the "they pick the room" with the upgrade. They did not get a room until 10 days before sailing... so stressful, was the exact same one they would have gotten, nothing better, had they spend the $100 or so at the original booking. That said, yes, for the private dining room (on some ships) so very very worth it!!!!
we got an upgrade when we booked through our travel agent. Purchased Club Orange at the time of booking
Thanks for the comment, I think a good travel agent would know to push / check for the upgrade. I just mentioned in another comment,... but not in the Video, I found out about Club Orange after I already purchased the ticket through Costco.... huge savings but that's another video. HAL made me buy Club Orange thru Costco... it took about 1/2 hour, but Costco Travel Agent was able to place the order....HOWEVER, they obviously knew nothing about how it worked, or did I know to ask... etc. So, am I upset with Costco, HAL (again, love the line and crew, just wish Club Orange better explained and executed), or was it my fault or not pushing more?? Take care!!! G
Ditto - with Club Orange (and whatever other magic power travel agents wield), my travel agent got me bumped up from a "VD" Verandah to a "VA". This mostly gave me a quieter room, away from elevators, and closer towards the middle of Deck 6 of the Koningsdam.
Signed up for club Orange when we booked our room and the upgrade was given immediately once paid that price of the upgrade covered the cost of club orange so basically it was free!
Good deal!
I found that to get the room upgrade you do that at the time you book Clib Orange. You will be able to pick any better available stateroom in the category you picked (inside, Oceanview or verandah) . It doesn't work for suites. So if you pay for a basic verandah such as VH or VF you will be able to move up to any better available verandah room such as AS or spa verandah no upcharge beyond the club orange cost of roughly $25 a day. Same for moving up within inside rooms or within Oceanview. Don't get bogged down on missing small things like sparkling wine or a coffee chat.
Sounds smart, I did think I had a balcony mini suite (if there is such a thing)... but it did say you'd get something else if no upgrade available... but whatever. Think Club Orange is a little to "exclusive" that the crew / associates don't know the details. But, Still, great ship, great crew, and even with problems, worth money. Thanks so much for comments. I was excited to finally post something with detail about Club Orange, just could not find any info on TH-cam about it @bobfrees2290 , take care. 🛳🚢
We’ve booked our next two cruises with HAL and added CO to both. Price came out cheaper with club orange with the room upgrade than the original. We priced out the room we wanted and then asked our TA to try to get Club Orange. Both times the total cost was less money, please don’t advertise this so the benefit will be there for people who know how to use it.
Good for you. Worth every penny IMHO, just for the Club Orange Dining room that they have on a few of the HAL ships.
Another update... We booked the same Ship , Koningsdam , for this summer 2023 Alaska, but chose a Neptune Suite (yes!) that includes Club Orange. Will anything have changed?? Hoping to see some of the great crew members back on that ship. Get ready for a Neptune suite and Club Orange update! 🙂
Neptune suites are awesome. If you can fit it in the budget, it’s well worth it. We have done 5 sailings with HAL in Neptune to include a 14 day sailing through the Panama Canal. Free laundry perk paid for itself. . Pinnacle Grill has great food. Safe sailings.
@@jhollie8196 Yeah, you're 100% correct! Laundry.?.. we normally just put our dirty laundry in a bag with a rope and drop it off the stern for a few minutes?! ;-)
Thanks so much for this info! We are going on our first cruise with Holland in 2 weeks and this is very helpful. 🙂
Thanks so much, exactly why I made the video. You're going to love it, like to hear. Looking forward to taking HAL later in the year.
Here is a tip but make sure you do this well advanced before your cruise where the cabins are not fully booked. If you booking a cabin that your not fully ok but, want it for the reason of a lower price for example Obstructed view cabin. After that then order for a club orange. Ask the person on the phone after you pay for it about the cabin upgrade, you will get a cabin that is higher within that class so you will get the none obstructed view. We did that today.
We book the cruise through our travel agent because AAA offers great extras and such as always for our cruises. Then later on I called Holland and order the club orange and paid for that which was total of 350 for 2 people for a 7 day cruise.
Then once that transaction was done. I then asked the lady about the upgrade.
She put me on hold to see what was available. We had originally got a normal balcony. She came back and upgraded us to a spa Balcony cabin so not only we get the club orange perks but, also now spa access free with that. Do not try to wait until your cruise to get the cabin upgrade as you will be risking if the cabins that you would normally be upgraded to may not be available then.
Very good point... we're going on Cunard (also part of Carnival Cruise Company) and couple we are going with do not have an assigned room. I told them to get on the phone. I'm concerned because they let the cruise choose suite and because they are not pushing it they may get a bad video. :-( Good info
I hope you're right but am pretty sure the spa balcony cabins don't include complimentary access to the spa. We've book one as well for a future cruise and it's really just a prime location and yoga mat.
@@kuk1m0n5t3r Never said you get free access to the spa itself we are closer to the access and we get access to parts of the spa free while other parts are either discounted or just have to pay
Sailed on the Eurodam out of Fll and club orange worked great for that sailing. They had signs up for club orange and we where awarded most things promised.
It’s such a different experience on the Pinnacle ships which have a separate dining room for Club Orange. On all other ships, Club Orange is just a different menu in the main dining room (which is the same menu with an extra menu item). As far as embarkation goes, you are competing with all of the 4 & 5 star mariners who also get priority boarding. And on HAL ships, they have a huge population of 4/5 star guests. It’s almost like the trick is to NOT get in the priority boarding line😂😢
I totally agree! Yeah, the boarding line was just weird... next time might just wait until the very end (San Diego happens to be a cool port, you can just walk to tons of restaurants and shops, etc), but in places like the Port of LA... not so fun. VERY good point about Pinnacle ships and not having club orange dining room. Let me ask, I understand on other ships you get priority seating in the main dining room and have one friend who said his ship, the steak house (forgetting the name) acted as the "Club Orange" for breakfast and lunch? Thanks for the comment!
@@fatcatscooter2584 The Pinnacle Grill (their specialty steakhouse) is used for Breakfast and lunch for Club Orange. I'm embarrassed to say, we never took advantage of that because we'd made friends with crew in the Lido that knew what we liked, how we liked it and we'd have missed seeing them! I really think embarkation has a lot to do with the port, and less to do with the cruise line or the ship. We've had FABULOUS embarkations in San Diego (and lots of others!), terrible ones in Ft. Lauderdale, Sydney, St. Petersburg, Portland (UK), and Galveston, etc.I think a lot of it has to do with COVID, Brexit, workforce scarcity, and border force. But we have learned what a pain it is to stand in line for an hour or two with a heavy pack on our backs!
Just booked my Club Orange for a cruise in March on the Nieuw Statendam. Upgrade was given right away and was booked while I was on the phone.
Thanks @paullywalnutz (Big sopranos fan btw)... always wear the adidas track suite first day of every cruise! Good info, sounds like you are supposed to get the upgrade right away but a few tricky bits..... I happen to purchase via Costco. I found out about Club Orange Later, called HAL and they said, no you have to book Club Orange via Costco, which took about 40 minutes but I did... I think the problem was Costco does not know about the upgrade and or I was in a balcony suite, and don't think any upgrades at that size room???!! but again, info is a little hidden. But sound like answer is...MAKE SURE YOU GET ROOM UPGRADE RIGHT WHEN YOU PAY FOR CLUB ORANGE!! Thanks a lot.
Re: Upgrades. When you add Club Orange talk to the rep right then. We upgraded from obstructed view to regular verandah at that time, way before boarding.
Yeah, lesson learned. I called back Costco like a month or two after we booked to ask if there was anything special I could add, and the agent I talked to happen to know about it and how to do it.... that was rare... most of the Costco reps are not well trained. So glad I even asked about it. I do that with all new cruise lines I go on. BTW, I like Club Orange so much... that when I took the Queen Mary 2 Cunard a few months ago, I realized how BAD QM2 was compaired to the HAL ships I've been on. HAL ships are hands down 2X better, and with Club Orange, they 2 are not even close for value and quality.
Really appreciate the video! Very informative.
Glad you liked it Mary!
The club orange dining room has some nice extra perks. For example, breakfast has fresh squeezed orange juice complementary where in MDR it’s a extra cost item. I had tea with my meals, and club orange used a more expensive brand compared to MDR. I agree that you need to be a bit pushy on initial check in to use the club orange check in line, as the employees don’t know what that is.
We were on Koningsdam in January, and have already booked our next cruise in November, same room (6123) and club orange for 10 days in mexico.
So cool to hear... yeah a little bit goes a long way. We're going on it again too in Aug, To Alaska, we upgraded this time to Neptune suite... can't believe how big it is. Thanks so much for posting!
We enjoyed our CO experience. As you noted, if for anything the dining was just about worth the upgrade. Our embarkation in SD was maddening. The pier staff were very disorganized. Fortunately for us, we overheard someone from the pier staff explaining to others that CO subscribers bypassed the lengthy lines. As you did, we still had to press the fact that we had priority benefits. I'll echo what you briefed on your content, not enough specific information guided us exactly what we got. it was very much trying to figure it out on our own. Thank you!
Yeah! We're changing history!! ;-)
If we do Club Orange, I will print out the pdf and bring it with me.😮
Thanks for your video. I sail out in 3 days from San Diego. This is the first time I’m hearing of Club Orange. I was trolling YT to see what night will the orange party takes place. Your detailed video was really helpful. Your voice is also soothing (ok weird right) LOL
LOL, thanks for the comment. If you can book Club Orange before you board, I'd do it IMHO. So, I agree, I had never heard about it and I did a lot of trolling myself. When I called HAL customer service after I booked with a question, I asked.."Hey, I want to make this a special trip, do you guys have a club class or any upgrades I can buy?" and the agent told me about Club Orange... she mentioned not many people ask about it. One thing I did not say in the video was, I actually purchased the tickets via Costco (I'm afraid to let the cat out of the bag), price was less than HALF of going to HAL direct plus, tons of perks, Costco gift cards when you return, wifi included, $200 in excursion $, great drink package, and did I mention less than half of HAL price??!! BUT... that meant I had to book Club Orange later with a second call to Costco (HAL would not add club orange after Costco purchase).... so is that why I did not get a room upgrade? Wish someone would have explained. Finally, I do have a soothing voice... I was recording and editing this at midnight and trying not to wake anyone in the house up LOL! Do write back about the trip! G
Sailing soon have a neptune suite
You can also have full menu served
In your room
Cool cool! See, so much to learn. We go Alaska last summer, again on Koningdam and got a Neptune Suite.... It's almost 450 sq ft??!! Amazing... was not cheap but god bless Costco... they have great prices. Please let me know how it goes!
Upgrade is subjective. We were UPGRADED on our October 2023 Hawaiian cruise. We were moved from the middle of deck 4 to the front of deck 8 opposite the bridge entry door. Technically, based on the room classification this was an upgrade but would never have been our first or last pick.
100% right. DO NOT let the cruise line "upgrade you" it is totally subjective. Went on QM2 last month with friends (first time on a cruise) and they let Cunard "upgrade / pick the cabin". Luckly it worked out and they got the class same as us BUT... did not receive the room assignment until 48 hours before departure. Could have easily gotten a room under the dance floor or with lifeboat views. Newbie mistake lol
Do you have any idea of how many people are allowed to join Club Orange? Either as a number or a percentage of total passengers? The Koningdam maxes out at about 2700 passengers. The Club orange Dining Room looks fairly small. Maybe 60-70 people?? So maybe 2-3% of passengers can be in it?
I think there were several hundred people on the ship who were Club Orange. Anyone Neptune class and higher automatically get it, so a few hundred there. Then the people like me who asked about it, I'd add a few hundred..... 300-400? They can easily handle a few hundred people at dinner. A few times we did have to wait, but they just had us wait in the hall outside, never more than 10-15 minutes. Thanks
There are now 3 Pinnacle class ships. From oldest to newest Koningsdam (2016), Nieuw Statendam (2018), Rotterdam (2021). Older, smaller ships have Club orange as a separate area in the MDR. We always chose anytime Dining. It was never a problem walking in to the MDR between 6 and 7p and getting a seat immediately or wait 5 minutes. That all changed on the Koningsdam in October 2022. Standing lines around the block for anytime dining between 6 and 7p. So yes Club Orange is worth it on Pinnacle Class ships. Not so much on any smaller class ship. Only problem is there are no views of the Ocean in the Club orange dining space. Also there is a bit of a fish-bowl effect with hordes of people streaming by the whole time you are eating. They can peer in through the partially opaque windows. Just have to ignore them. Some appear to be starving to death standing in long lines outside those windows waiting for seats in the MDR. 🤣We were on a 28 day cruise in October 2022 on the Koningsdam. Ate in the MDR exactly twice. I won't stand in long lines like live stock waiting to be fed. We ate at the Tamarind the majority of the nights.
Yes, right on. Have the fun is eating in Club Orange on konignstam and watching the other wait on line ;-) ... Hey, it ain't free! On Princess they have the Club Class in a separate section of the main dining room (as you mentioned above) and we loved it. Dine anytime we wanted, same wait staff... just a different table each time. Going to be on Koningsdam later this year again.... this time with a 450sq ft Neptune suite that includes Club Orange, can't wait.... But next year doing Queen Mary II on Cunard Britannia Club Class so even more excited to see how that works out.
Complimentary room upgrade is a bit flim flam. If you are in a balcony room and a higher level balcony room is available (same class) they should offer you the upgrade. The problem being perhaps the better room is not on the floor or in the location you desire. And of course, you need to ask when you embark, and be insistent.
Regarding priority embarking. Most of the help at the dock don't have a clue and most of the HAL employees are not aware either. If you have Club Orange,just insist that you have priority and move to the front of the line.
If your room does not have the correctsized bath robe (or a correct sized plush robe) contact the concierge and tell them what you need. They should make it happen.
Thanks, well said!! Spot on. We are going to book koningsdam AGAIN, later this year so we know what to expect now. Yeah, the Room upgrade is newbie stuff, just pick the room you want, don't let them pick and never let them "upgrade"... too much risk. So funny, we just did Cunard NYC to South Hampton last month and same thing... at the port, the people in Brooklyn are no HAL employees so they TRIED to send us to the wrong line, not the Britanna Club class (which saved us about 30 minutes on line). You've got to pay attention and speak up for yourself. We actually have one person stand in line at the port and the other goes up to do "recon" as they ALWAYS have people who don't know what's what. Not bad people, it's just that the ships depart randomly so not well trained IMHO. Thanks.
We are leaven in two weeks for a cruise on the Koningsdam. We also bought the Club Orange. Now I'm really curious what our experience will be. I hope the staff learned from your questions. One thing I know already, we also didn't get any upgrade when we booked club Orange. We still in the same room as 6 months ago when we booked. Thank you for the video. I was looking for this for months.
@jurgenvanosch2040 thanks so much, this is exactly why I did this video. You're going to love it, honestly the Orange Club dining room on Koningsdam alone makes it worth while. Planning to book Koningsdam next year to Alaska.... are you sailing out of San Diego? I ask because there are two specific people in the club dining room, the Maître d' great guy, he'll know who Fat Cat Scooter Glen is lol, check back, I'll find his name, such bad memory :-), and Susie who checks everyone in at the Club Orange dining room on Koningsdam, she's super pretty and so nice, (they told me they'd be on the ship for a few more months). I had told the Maître d' I was making the video so he wrote down my channel name so he could check it out. Still no comment from anyone at HAL. I would call Holland America customer service and make a stink about it, maybe tell them about this video. Again, seems that they've not done a great job explaining everything to the employees. Excited to hear how your trip is!! Konishdam is fantastic!! And make sure you get a club orange Tote bag!!! G
@@fatcatscooter2584 So here is our experience with Club Orange. (We just came back yesterday)
First, I need to say you are 100% right about the dining room of Club orange. The people and the food are of another level. I had several times a steak that was better than in the pinnacle grill and I'm not saying that the Pinnacle grill is bad.
From the moment you walk into the door until you walk out the host, waiters, maître D (Aris) and the cook they all do everything they can to make this an unforgettable time.
I made a joke one night about a meal that they eat in their homeland and the next day I found it on my plate. They found a cook on the ship they made it for me.
The maître D did remember you but didn't check your video yet but when I told him about it, he said he will check it.
As far as the other things that comes with Club Orange. I did sent HAL an email a week before our trip asking them the questions from the experience you had.
The return email came 11 days into our 17-day cruise and stated that by now they "Trust that we enjoyed a wonderful cruise onboard of the Koningsdam".
There was a special line for Club orange in San Diego for the boarding process but not really clear although the process was so fast that this line did not make a big difference.
When we opened our room, we did find the tote bag ready for us to use and 2 voucher for 2 cocktails at any bar so we assumed it was the welcome drink.
The special line for Club orange at the reception is a winner too. You bypass the long line if you need them.
My wife did call HAL before our journey to ask about the upgrade to another room and they told us they gave us a discount on the room instead of an upgrade when we booked. Unfortunately, with their billing not that clear, and we had no energy to dig into it.
Priority by the tendering was also nice.
We never heard anything about a special back-stage tour or something similar.
Would I do it again? Absolutely! (But if I have Club orange I will not book any specialty dinner anymore. This trip I eat at Pinnacle Grill, Tamarind and Rudi's Sel de Mer)
We have a suite which includes Club Orange. Glad to hear good things about the restaurant and crowdedness of main restaurant. We'll definitely enjoy eating in the CO.
Enjoy!😁
John Maris, Fat Cat Scooter, et alia: the long queues to the Main Dining Room were most visible the first day of the cruise that I experienced. However, the rest of the cruise was much better. I should also emphasise that that applied only to those who chose My time/Any time dining; in that case, you can choose a different dining time every evening and have to take the risk that comes with choosing busy times. Observe and choose either before 6 p.m. or 7:30 p.m. onward, for instance. Moreover, there was a separate Main Dining Room for those with fixed-time dining and no queues.... Alternately, you always have the well organised buffet deck to enjoy rather than waiting a long while to eat in the M.D.R. any night that you see a long queue when you want to have your evening meal.
@@brentshuffler1234 Thank you
HAL Main Dining Rooms are gorgeous, and the food is superb. But when busy, it can be pretty rambunctious (loud). The weekly formal night can be especially wild with dancing waiters. I was thinking of bypassing formal night in the MDR in my next cruise. Then I stumbled on Club Orange before booking on the Koningsdam for 2024 -- this seems like a great way to enjoy wonderful food in a quieter setting. I'm a solo traveller, and am pretty introverted -- so Club Orange sounds like it was built for me!
We were in transit at San Diego, they had given us a letter, but we were made to go through security anyway.
Good to know.... seems San Diego port is a little hit or miss... bottom line, gonna get on the ship at some point. My wife just like to get every second of "free" we can lol
Totally worth it.
Excellent video! I was wondering about this and you are correct very little information on this. We like getting VIP and priority seating and other perks for various things and I was wondering if this was worth it. It sounds like it is I am surprised on how many things they didnt follow through with thats actually alot and I am like you I would have noticed it all. I like my extra perks and gifts. We are doing our first Alaska cruise on Holland America Koningsdam this summer thanks so much for all the info. New subscribers and supporters of your channel! Best wishes for a growing channel!
Sorry for the late reply... wow, we're going late Aug on Koningdam Alaska as well, not same trip you think? let me know. We intentionally picked this as we wanted to be on Koningdam again. How exciting!
@@fatcatscooter2584 Dang July but maybe we can leave messages or send a shout out I see that a lot!! We are so excited! Stay in touch!
With regards to the room upgrade. At 14:00 when you showed the Club Orange webpage, it says "* complimentary stateroom upgrade to the best available room within the meta category at the time of Club Orange purchase". When you purchased Club Orange upgrade, HAL should have upgraded the stateroom you booked to the highest in the class at that time. You don't get the upgrade after you board the ship.
@alankwok2210 thanks so much for the response (and watching my overly long video lol), thanks for telling me that... No one at HAL told me anything. As I mentioned in video, one of the Club Orange Guest Services ladies told me, "you get upgrade when you board ship if we have any"... which makes no sense.... she was the only person that blew me off when I asked something... should have called HAL before I left for San Diego, but don't know why I should do their work for them. Thanks again!!
@@fatcatscooter2584 I think that it also depends on which port you choose for your sailing. Holland America has excellent boarding experience from the long-test cruise-terminal that it uses in Fort Lauderdale, for instance. Even without Club Orange, everyone was assigned a time-slot for boarding, and the process was extremely smooth and quick.
Looks like they did not give you the correct Club Orange room service menu as for breakfast, CO normally includes complimentary freshly squeezed Orange Juice and Mimosas (your menu shows these as premium items with cost associated). Also, there are three ships with a dedicated CO Dining Room - Koningsdam, Nieuw Statendam, & Rotterdam.
Yeah, remember you have to push... they just don't train the staff enough. Konisgsdam does a lot of trips from San Diego, easy for us... and we acutally have become freindly with a few of the crew so makes it more fun. Thanks again.
HAL is very late to the dance with Orange. They are also making the same mistakes that Celerity did with the Retreat and NCL did with the Haven. That mistake is to allow the marketing department to glance over the amenities but teach no one the ins and outs. It is a learning process over time to gain the "Secrets" of all of these programs. The first step is for some brave sole to take the time to make a video or write a detailed op-ed. You should be congratulated on your efforts. You took one for the team and the team appreciates it. Cruise well and enjoy every moment.
Thanks man!! Yeah, It was not my best work as I decided to make this halfway through our last trip. Funny you say that, no one from Holland America ever reached out to me. I told a few of the Club Orange People on Konigsdam I was making this video.... And going to be on the ship again later in the year... so for giggles if I see the same crew, going to ask their comments on the video. I'm an old marketing guy... these young bucks sometimes don't think everything through... and that Old Man Fat Cat Scooter might just make a video lol. Take care!
Thank you so much for you very detailed review of Club Orange. Based on your commentary, we purchased CO when booking our cruise for 2024 out of San Diego. The travel agent did all the negotiating and we were very pleased with the result. Went from an obstructed view balcony to a VQ balcony on the Panorama Deck. I noted one of the folks mentioned that there was a sign for Pinnacle, Neptune and CO in San Diego when embarking on the ship. Hope that is the case when we get on the Koningsdam.
Cool Please tell me how it goes. I have a feeling since I posted this HAL put up a sign for Club Orange Class (as a few people leaving from San Diego told me the same thing). But if not, just be a little push and follow the Neptune people, what have you go to loose. Enjoy.
Thanks for this video. Lots of good info. Like yourself, I have done a few cruises. The last couple on Princes (nov 2021/Oct 2022); Was looking at a Transatlantic on celebrity and just to compare, was looking at one on Holland America. Don't know so much about the Holland America cruises. As someone who has just gotten off one, would you recommend Holland America? Looks pretty nice tbh.
Thanks Ted, you sound like us, we've just done several Princess (Pre pandemic), but they canceled 2 times in '22 on us, and seemed they could care less. Holland America was for sure an upgrade. Much nicer ships, very well done. Food about the same, maybe a hair better. Crew was first class and if you like the royal treatment, at a great price , HAL is the way to go. Crazy because Carnival , HAL, Princess, Cunard... all owned by same company but all run differently. Yes, recommend, about to book an Alaskan or NorthEast cruise for later in the year with them. (Transatlantic, all my friends say Cunard...they are the only ones with a true Ocean Liner, make a big difference). Go Holland America, do Club Orange, well worth the money. (or Neptune suites include it). BTW, Gary B is great to watch, he runs the TH-cam page Tips for Travelers, he's one smart guy. Finally, book via Costco, Costco, Costco.... omg, price was so much better than booking direct AND, just got a $250 gift card in the mail...crazy! Thanks G
@@fatcatscooter2584 Thanks for the video. Just a Question or two. First, you said, near the end of this comment/reply, that Booking Holland America cruises through Costco was a great money saver. Right?
Secondly, I'm debating doing Holland America with the Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package. We are in our 60's, I'm trying to balance out what is more important: Holland Pinnacle ships: Smaller ship with better food, service and good to great music & entertainment vs Royal Quantum+ ship: Bigger, more crowded ship with amazing big production shows, smaller venue entertainers and a few fun play spaces. It might depend on who is traveling with us. Holland America + Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package, that is my dilemma, any ideas?
We embarked in San Diego last November on our very first cruise. We bought Club Orange. There was a small sign directing Pinnacle Suite, Neptune Suite, and Club Orange. We got right on and went straight to our room. It’s worth it just for that.
Thanks @michaelcarnahan1630 That sounds correct, obviously this trip was. also out of San Diego in Dec '22, and were were in the terminal at least an hour and looked and looked and asked, was not sign at all... that would have helped, having the HAL staff at terminal knowing would have helped too. But I agree with you, that in itself worth it, and club orange for leaving the ship, even better. A few hiccups but totally worth the price!!
We cruised out of San Diego in mid-January. Awful experience at the terminal, but great cruise otherwise.
I'm debating doing Holland America with the Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package. We are in our 60's, I'm trying to balance out what is more important: Holland Pinnacle ships: Smaller ship with better food, service and good to great music & entertainment vs Royal Quantum+ ship: Bigger, more crowded ship with amazing big production shows, smaller venue entertainers and a few fun play spaces. It might depend on who is traveling with us. Holland America + Club Orange or Royal Caribbean + unlimited Dining Package, that is my dilemma, any ideas anyone?
Hi, good question. Never done Royal Caribbean but that was our choice, this trip I videoed about or Royal Caribbean. Hands DOWN Holland America (BTW, we used to be big Princess Cruise people but they really went down hill with Customer Service). Holland America for the most part, nicer ships, more upscale, less kids (which is what we wanted) more grown up but lots to do. HAL has big production shows, amazing theaters, and the music walk is second to none. Food, especially speciality dining is out of this world. The ships were just clean and well behaved passengers (yeah, you have to think about that these days). HAL has artwork everywhere you look. Amazing room stewards. If you want loud, less upscale but less expensive, Royal Caribbean is probably a good choice. The biggest thing for me was when I looked at interior videos of RC ships vs HAL, they just seemed much dated. BTW, and a lot of people over look this, HAL, many of the ships, have actual promenades that go all the way around the ship, you don't have to go up and down stairs, thru hallways inside the ship, etc... as I understand it this is why the new Cunard Queen Mary is going to be the same as the Holland America Pinnacle Line of ships (I may be off on the ship class) . Best of luck!!! G
@@fatcatscooter2584 thank you for your video and your response to my question
We did not have club orange but we did have robes in the room. Excellent, thank you! Please let us know if you are contacted :)
Never heard from anyone but will post if I do. How was the trip?
Couple things I found out since I recorded this... As I understand, no room upgrade above balcony suite.... and if in smaller room, be sure to ask right when you purchase club orange if you are upgraded or for them to check... supposed to get upgraded WHEN you pay for Club Orange. (I think.. but again... all a little bit of a mystery).
Just booked our next cruise yesterday and yes- you get your upgrade when you pay for Club Orange- which is when you pay your deposit. We're on the Nieuw Amsterdam and they do not have the separate dining room that the Koningsdam has as the NA is an older and smaller ship. This ship and its sister ship the Eurodam have a section of the Main Dining room allocated for the Club Orange passengers. Club Orange totally worth it if you have any mobility issues standing for long periods in line etc. We were just on the Koningsdam and wished we had done the Club Orange. Of note on the Koningsdam- have never seen so many plugs in a room or around the ship for charging devices- it was great.
@@darcyashley3889 Thanks so much!! Yes, I think just Konigsdam and one other have the separate club orange dining room, and all the other ships just have an "area" in the main dining room, which is ok (Princess did the same thing with us in "Club Class". ) I just hate standing in line LOL! And yes, one of the things we loved about HAL ships is they have plenty of plugs (and most of their ships are pretty new). Thanks again!
...and one other thing, I mentioned above, I was weird, I purchased trip via Costco (so had to buy Club Orange via Costco).... but because I found out about Club Orange just before we left... I purchased if (from Costco) a month or more after purchasing the cruise... so my experience may have been different then most regarding how we bought it. Take care.
Trying Club Orange in May. Hope they are implementing it a bit better. You get robes in room anyway.
@@maryholland702 Let me know
Neptune Suite Review coming in Sept... FYI, Very Easy Make Up by Christina Marie!!! Get ready pal!
Sitting in FLL, waiting to fly back after our Holland America Cruise. We experienced a very similar experience; we had a Vista Class Suite offer and the sales guy said he could guarantee our "exact" room desired if we upgraded to Club Orange. We read the mentioned PDF and decided to purchase the upgrade.
At the Cruise Terminal, we found Priority Check-In was not the same as Priority Boarding. We bypassed a big line to Security but our Boarding Tag #25 was one of the last - disappointing. None of the "amenities" promised were produced without us asking /being mildly pushy. No bathrobes or tote until we asked. No sparkling drink until the Club Orange Dining Room provided this. We never got the invite to special events and the Tenders to Half Moon Cay had no visible Club Orange Priority. The Club Orange Dining was a 10 - just wish Holland America didn't break and/or exaggerate most of its Club Orange Promises. Thanks for the video, wish we had found it before we booked!!!
Thanks for posting Scott. Sorry to hear, yeah it was weird. They are doing themselves such a disservice. As mentioned in the video, only offer what you are going to deliver! But, HAL is great and the Club Orange Dining room (at least on the ships that have them) make it great. I still want my club orange Tote bag darn it all!!! lol. We just booked Alaska on Koningsdam for this summer (same ship again ... and one talking about in this video) and we'll see how it goes. Neptune suite this time... I"m assuming same things will be left out but, Club Orange is included with Netune so..there you go. ... I'll do a video on Neptune Suites this summer. How was your trip otherwise?
@@fatcatscooter2584 Looking forward to the Alaska video - we did that same Cruise on Koningsdam May 2022 - we almost did Neptune but cost of cruise was already "up there". Since Orange is "included" for you, I predict a better Orange Club outcome - tote included. BTW, Koningsdam crew for am Room Service several notches better than Neiuw Statendam service. Make sure you do White Pass Train; stunning!
Wow, I just finished reading the rest of the posts - one of the most useful threads for HAL cruising we have ever seen - thanks again!
@@scottsunderland1903 I try! Would you believe some lady posted another video saying how bad this was... and I thought people is my scooter club were crazy!! lol. All the best!
I have sailed on HAL 2x and never got Club Orange but from your experience it sounds like it is not really worth the money. For what you pay you could eat in the specialty restaurants multiple times and avoid the MDR at dinner. The other perks are either non existent or you had to beg to get them. that doesn't sound premium to me.
It's worth it... unless the $200 or so is too much for you. But your call. Just came back from 2nd cruise, same ship, lot of the same Club Orange people ... freaking fantastic. I'll post a video. Thanks.
Did you ask for a manager? Find someone that knows what is going on!
No, in the end they treated us really well and it was a great cruise. I don't think I'll ever like the departure port experience... so strange lol.
The boarding - nixes it.
Yeah, funny I just came back from Alaska / Vancouver on the exact same ship, but this time I think it's called Neptune class (Includes Club orange). You get "premier" boarding BUT very similar issue in Vancouver. The freakin employees at the dock are not HAL employees..... so they tried to force us to a huge packed room to wait for a few hours, as they were late getting ship boarded. I found a HAL employee in the great hall at the Vancouver dock and told them Neptune Class... they walked us pass everyone to a little area ...just a roped off area but only about 40 people there and seating (yes, some people had to stand), and they got us on first. But again, I had to make a fuss and find a crew member. LOL.