Day 85 Mar 30th At Sea
There is a coffee chat this morning with Cul’ Africa, but we were busy in our cabin getting ready for our overland Safari trip tomorrow, so we missed it.
Linus Project
Judy went down to observe the recognition ceremony of the Linus group. This is the group that knits or crochets blankets for Holland America’s charity. Orlando Ashford stopped by about 10:30 this morning to pose for a picture with all the participants and say a few words. There were over 80 blankets on display representing most of what the participants completed so far this cruise. We heard that the program coordinator, Melvena, was on her last world cruise and that Holland America was looking for another coordinator for next year.
Linus Projects on display
Orlando posed with one of the Linus Project volunteers
Orlando’s Town Hall
The big event of the day was the town hall meeting with Orlando Ashford, President of Holland America line, along with Gerald Bernhoft, Director of the Mariner Society. The program was scheduled to start at 2:30 PM, but I knew if I wanted a front row in the balcony, so I could take pictures easier, I would have to get there an hour early. I arrived at 1:30 PM and the doors to the Queens Lounge opened a few minutes later. I was probably the 20th person in line. There were plenty of seats available and I was easily able to get my front row seat in the balcony. After the initial rush of people, who wanted to get there early, the room filled gradually over the next hour. Even when the program was about to start there were still a few seats available up in the back.
The Queens lounge was almost standing room only
Henk, the hotel director, waiting for the town hall to start
Orlando opened the town hall welcoming everybody and then introducing his boss, Arnold Donald, the CEO of Carnival Corporation, Capt Mercer, and finally his wife, Samantha.
Speaking casually and without any notes, Orlando discussed many of the company initiatives and included a few personal anecdotes along the way. Early in the presentation he showed a commercial for Holland America that ran during the Olympics. He asked if any of us had seen the commercial. (HERE is a link to the commercial) The crowd groaned that we didn’t get to see the Olympics because the ships TV satellite system wasn’t able to get the signal as we were in the wrong location on the globe and couldn’t “see” the satellite that was carrying that programing. This was a complaint from many passengers during the Olympics, so it was a little funny that Orlando would ask that question before showing the commercial. Here is a link to the video commercial that he showed.
He continued talking about new developments in the food program explaining how they recently relaunched the Culinary council, which consists of 7 chefs from around the world, who meet from time to time to provide high level guidance for what food is served across the fleet. Following this discussion, he showed video clips of the latest council member, Ethan Stowell before introducing HAL wine curator, James Suckling.
Moving on to entertainment, he discussed the initiative with BBC and their latest offering Planet Earth II.
Other highlights included:
Initiative to bring on more local products that will enhance port visits. For example, when a ship will visit Cuba you can expect to see the ships stocking more items from Cuba.
Fuji Film is now a partner and they will be installing photo labs that will allow you to easily transfer pictures from your phone, or other device, to have them printed on canvas, mugs or other objects.
A major focus going forward is to enhance the way guests experience ports. He discussed 6 different themes which they will be rolling out on the Maasdam soon, then followed by other ships.
The six themes are:
• Photography
• Active Exploration
• History and Perspective
• Food, Wine and Spirits
• Nature and Science
• Arts and Culture
The objective is to find ways to make visiting the same port interesting the 3rd or 4th time (or more) you visit.
He showed the 2018/2019 schedule for the Maasdam, which includes visits to many smaller ports not normally on many cruise line itineraries, HERE you will find a link to the HAL webpage that shows the various itineraries available on the Maasdam. The Maasdam will also sail with Zodiac boats to use for various excursions.
The Oprah Partnership is in the second year and will continue. Orlando recently hosted Oprah on an Alaska Cruise.
He showed the below video about the Nieuw Statendam.
He discussed how the Amsterdam Wet Dock last year was not originally scheduled, but was added on after his visit to the ship in 2017 and heard many complaints from passengers about the condition of the ship. This was followed by a slide showing the various changes planned for the May 2018 drydock.
He concluded by showing a map of the 2020 World Cruise routing which will include Antarctica and Africa.
Questions and Answers
After a few minutes, Gerald Bernhoff, Oralano, Capt Mercer and Henk assembled on the stage to field questions from the audience.
Gerald, Capt Mercer, Orlando and Henk answering questions
A few highlights:
HAL does not currently plan to build any ships with a passenger capacity of less than 2,500. The economics don’t support smaller ships with the current fare structure. He said that If you want Seabourn size ships, you will have to pay Seabourn prices. They won’t build ships any larger than about 3000, since larger ships are unable to go to the smaller ports that HAL guests enjoy.
Nothing on the horizon about crossover loyalty programs amongst the various Carnival Corp lines. None of the lines can agree on what perks should be offered. Orlando said the HAL perks for 4 and 5 Stars are more costly than other lines at the same level. Gerald chimed in and said that while complicated, they are looking at ways to make this happen, but nothing on the horizon.
Improving Internet speed and quality remains a major focus. A challenge for HAL is since their ships travel outside the busy areas, there is less satellite coverage than you will find in the Caribbean.
The crowd chuckled and groaned when a guest said she was missing Mariner points from a cruise she took in 1956! – Yes 62 years ago – and that the front desk was unable to add the 16 days she said she was due. Gerald said he would discuss this issue with her afterwards.
The Guest speaker program will continue but they are reviewing the speakers to ensure they maintain high quality and a consistent standard.
Why can’t we get ESPN in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean? ESPN is not carried by satellites is those parts of the world since ESPN caters to a North American audience.
A guest commented that she would like to see more parties like the recent SailAway party held at the Lido pool. Orlando commented that for every guest who wants more parties there is another guest who doesn’t want any parties. They are always trying to find the best balance but remain sensitive to guest feedback on this issue. Fill out your surveys!
They are committed to bringing the BB King Blues Club performers to all ships, but need to find ways to do that since many ships don’t have a dedicated BB King lounge.
A guest commented that unless the TV’s on decks 1,2 and 3 were upgraded he would be cancelling the 2019 cruise. They are not sure of the schedule of TV upgrades on those decks.
Orlando Ashford fielding a question
Why are we docking in locations so far from the action? Shuttle buses are a pain and eat into valuable shore time? Planning port locations is complex and while money is a factor, it is not the only factor and HAL is always working to provide the best guest experience.
What is the future of the library? There will always be a library for the foreseeable future.
Another guest complained about the dock locations in Singapore and Hong Kong. Capt Mercer replied that the Amsterdam was confirmed in the more preferable Harbour City location in Singapore for the next 3 port visits. There is a chance they will be able to get the closer Hong Kong location, but getting out of White Bay in Sydney will be almost impossible. The closer berth is reserved for larger ships and those on turnaround as opposed to port visits.
Here is a video of the presentation boiled down to about 10 minutes.
Amanda
Amanda, the assistant cruise director, joined us for dinner this evening. We had a great time and she was a wonderful guest. We love her energy and enthusiasm. She alternates hosting evening trivia at 5 PM in the Piano Bar.
Amanda joined Table 303
Cul’ Africa
Tonight’s entertainer was an encore performance from Cul’ Africa. Since we needed to finish packing before our overland adventure tomorrow, we missed the show and went straight to our cabin after dinner.