Dear Travel Partner,
As I shared with you yesterday, due to unpredictable circumstances evolving from the global spread of COVID-19, and in an abundance of caution, Holland America Line has made the difficult decision to voluntarily pause global operations of its 14 cruise ships for 30 days, starting March 14, 2020, impacting sailings scheduled to depart through April 14, 2020.
The impact of this decision will have far-reaching effects, to your clients, your business, and our industry. For any of your clients who has a booking and expected to sail with us before April 15, 2020 we apologize and sincerely share in their disappointment. At the same time, we know that you both support our strong commitment to the health and safety of our guests, our crew, and the communities that we visit.
For more information on Holland America Line’s voluntary 30-day pause, please visit our News page.
For your clients who have sailings that have been cancelled, we are hoping you will help guide them through the generous compensation options we’ve made available. We also ask for your patience and understanding as our call volume will be at unprecedented levels.
For clients who have bookings through April 14, we are pleased to offer two options: a generous future cruise credit (with additional compensation for selecting this option), or a refund to their original form of payment. For our valued Travel Advisor partners, please know we will protect your commission on all of your bookings that have been cancelled during this time. We believe this compensation model shows our deep support for the critical role you have played in our success.
While the ultimate decision is up to you and your clients, we hope they strongly consider choosing Option #1, transferring the money they have paid and accepting the future cruise credit. This represents a much higher value and maximum benefit for your clients. The future cruise credit can be used on any voyage through December 31, 2021.
We recognize that for some people, choosing the future cruise credit may not be financially possible. That is why we are presenting two options and we will have an electronic form available here where guests who are booked in this specific time period can request a cash refund.
Here are the two forms of compensation we are offering your clients:
Option #1 — We hope your clients will give us the chance to welcome them on board a future cruise. If they defer their refund they will receive a future cruise credit for 125% of the base cruise fare paid plus an onboard credit of US$250, which can be applied toward any future cruise through December 31, 2021. Non-cruise fare purchases through Holland America Line will be refunded via the method of payment used to purchase the services. The terms and conditions of the Future Cruise Credit appear below.
Option #2 — If they do not choose the 125% future cruise credit plus US$250 onboard credit, a 100% refund of all monies paid will be reimbursed to the original form of payment. This includes Holland America Line’s Flight Ease air, Cancellation Protection Plan, Holland America Line pre- or post-cruise hotel packages or transfers, prepaid shore excursions and amenities purchased through Holland America Line, and taxes, fees, and port expenses back to the original form of payment.
To verify which option each guest wishes to choose, and to automate the process as much as possible to avoid long hold times, we have developed an easy-to-use online form. We will be sending this out to each guest booked on any of the impacted sailings but we encourage you to connect with your clients if you’d like to offer your support in completing this on their behalf. To advise us of their compensation choice, visit https://book2.hollandamerica.com/cp/ between March 15 and April 1, 2020. Guests who do not select an option prior to April 1, 2020 will be automatically refunded.
We recognize this cancellation may cause your clients to incur other unexpected expenses. Reimbursement of reasonable non-refundable expenses will be considered on a case-by-case basis. A Change Fee Reimbursement Form is available at http://bit.ly/HAL_CHGFEE; please complete this form and submit it, along with any relevant receipts and documentation, for review by our corporate office. If your client purchased a Cancellation Protection Plan or independent vacation travel insurance, please submit the claim through your client’s carrier before submitting a reimbursement request.
Should you have any questions, please contact us at the appropriate office:
Seattle Office (USD/CAD currency):
Contact us at 1-800-577-1729 or 206-626-7385. We are available Monday – Friday, 7:00am – 5:00pm PT.
Rotterdam Office (EUR currency):
Contact us at 00800 1873 1873. We are available Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 6:00pm.
For Netherlands contact us at 0800 724 5425. We are available Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 6:00pm.
Southampton Office (GBP currency):
Contact us at 0344 338 8605. We are available Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 6:00pm.
Sydney Office (AUD currency):
Contact us at 1300 987 321. We are available Monday – Friday, 8:30am – 7:00pm.
We have received an outpouring of support in the wake of this temporary suspension and many have asked what they can do to help. This has meant a lot to all of us at Holland America Line and the answer is simple, book your clients on a cruise. There is nothing that will be more important to a quick recovery for the cruise industry than consumer confidence. There are many great offers available right now with very flexible cancellation terms close in. It's actually a very good time right now to book your clients on a cruise for later in 2020 or 2021.
Again, we extend our deepest apologies for this cancellation. Please know that we share in your clients’ disappointment and deeply appreciate their patience and understanding of these circumstances.
We appreciate your loyalty and look forward to our continued partnership.
Orlando Ashford
President, Holland America Line
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