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Originally posted by Dolphins:
Why discount a loyal mature following to become a clone of all the other cruise lines? There is a huge baby boomer generation reaching retirement age who will be seeking a more restrained cruising environment.

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HAL does need to change to appeal to that particular generation you speak of. Regardless of whether they are reaching retirment age and may want to move beyond Carnival, they still don't want "their father's HAL", which is why a lot of them seem to prefer Celebrity.

Personally I think the HAL brand image has become a bit fragmented of late - they seem to want to be too many things in one. Brands have to evolve. HAL is not the same thing that they were in 1873 and I imagine most of their current "mature" customers are quite glad of that.

The "Tradition of Excellence" brand is 20 years old this year... It could at least use a refreshing.

We got the tickets for our first HAL cruise a few weeks ago and they look a little dated and mismatched. Different color schemes, typefaces, etc. all over the place. It's time for something a little more cohesive.

And what about slogans - the "Traditon of Excellence" slogan has slowly disappeared since the mid 1990s and is not often found very many places. It was semi-replaced by the silly "It's time" of that era and then about two or three years ago they had "Oceans Apart" which I rather like but which disappeared too. Now there really is none. Their TV ads, print ads, brochures, etc. do not seem to be conveying much of an image. With the exception of the core loyal HAL clientele, the brand seems to be fading rapidly into oblivion.

I doubt that HAL will abandon their history, their signature logo, etc. The HAL logo dates back to 1938 and it would be foolish for them to dump it. HAL's history and tradition is a great asset and shouldn't only appeal to their "mature" audience. But I am not surprised that they're making a few changes. The reality is, they're going to have to start attracting younger people sooner or later. Their "mature" audience is quite literally shrinking, and the newly "maturing" baby boomers do not necessarily have the exact same taste as HAL's previous core audience - literally, their parents. Some tweaking is obviously in order here.

I think that this new "brand image" will probably turn out to be less radical and less displeasing to the HAL loyals than everyone predicts. HAL has been "isolating their customers" for decades now, yet they've never actually isolated their customers. I doubt that a new web site and a freshened "look" for printed materials etc. is going to send the loyal mature following away in droves. I doubt that HAL will suddenly go with the "Las Vegas" image of Carnival, the "it's not a cruise" image of RCCL, or the NCL "Freestyle" image.

This is pretty much old news. HAL has slowly been morphing their image in an attempt to re-brand for several years now; just as Cadillac has over the past few years.

Mark Kammerman has made great progress in the short period he has been at teh marketing reins slowly imparting a more contemporary, slightly more "experiential" feel that should appeal to the younger set. This all goes hand in hand with the introduction of Zuider, Ooster and Wester-dams.

And yes, HAL is slowly gaining a lot of recognition among family, they hosted two RSVP cruises and I hear that RSVP wants to do more than two next year and that Atlantis has found the Vista Class quite appealing. Who says bigger isn't better!

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We got the tickets for our first HAL cruise a few weeks ago and they look a little dated and mismatched. Different color schemes, typefaces, etc. all over the place. It's time for something a little more cohesive.

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What the devil are you talking about? There is absolutely nothing wrong with the tickets. I got mine a few weeks ago and they are certainly a lot better than what HAL used to send us back in the '80's and early 90's. What different colours, schemes and typefaces? I don't see any different colours. Some typeface is in bold, sure, but what do you mean by schemes? And really what difference does it make about the tickets - are you going to keep them in a scrapbook after your cruise?

For your information HAL only started using this form of tickets in the last couple of years, so how could they be outdated?

Cruiseny,

What is your problem with the tickets? Out dated, Mismatched? Your statement is ridiculous.
As Sympatico said "Who else sends them in nice leather folders?

As a Graphics Artist, I find nothing wrong with the HAL tickets. They have several nice watermarks behind the text, the font is concise and easy to read, and the color scheme is very aesthetic and soothing.

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Originally posted by gizmo:
I agree with If it isn't Broken, Don't Fix It. Look at the number of repeat cruisers.

As Sympatico said "Who else sends them in nice leather folders?

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The tickets themselves are actually very nice. I am more referring to things like the shore excursion books, which do not match the "know before you go" book, which do not match the brochures, and so on and so forth.

That all documents, packaging etc. are not colour co-ordinated is of no importance and should in no way detract from the experience. For the record, I've no complaints about it.

Perhaps in addition to you own, you will share with us the reactions and observations of your parents.

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Originally posted by cruiseny:
Tickets...

The tickets themselves are actually very nice. I am more referring to things like the shore excursion books, which do not match the "know before you go" book, which do not match the brochures, and so on and so forth...

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What do you mean by "do not match"? Each of the documents in the package - "shore excursion" and "know before you go booklet" - are designed for a different purpose.

I think it would be more confusing for the traveler if they all looked the same. Do you want the imigration forms and customs declarations to match as well?

In general, I think HAL's packaging is very consistent with the overall product they are marketing and the expectation of their clients.

Take a look at Royal Caribbean's - everything matches. Mind you, I think a lot of their stuff is not well-designed at all, but it matches .

Anyhow this is obviously not a big issue and just an informal observation... It is hardly a priority of mine when going on a cruise. Just because I mention something doesn't mean I think it's an earth-shattering issue.

Thanks to everyone for your wishes for a good vacation... I really can't wait! I will be taking lots of photos and posting a detailed review, something I am rather new at, but I will try . At any rate I am sure we will have a great time and it will be interesting to see what HAL is like, and especially this particular ship which has caused so much heated discussion.

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Originally posted by cruiseny:
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So far we have no complaints with HAL, and it was very nice of them to grant us Mariner status because of my father having crossed to Europe with them in 1966 when he was younger than I am! That was a surprise but they acted as though it was quite routine (maybe it is).

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Originally posted by Green:
The bottom line is you know nothing of HAL and are therefore not in a position to comment.

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Originally posted by Fairsky:
...My guess is that HAL will push their Caribbean and Alaskan products to the younger people- while their more exotic itineraries and globe-trotting ships like Prinsendam and Rotterdam will draw the old faithful...

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