Holland America Line Cruise Refund Policies
Cruising situations that require refunds are usually not fun. Knowing when and how much you are owed helps make it less painful.
Under their Cruise with Confidence program, on cruises booked by May 31, 2021 for sailings through October 31, 2021, Holland America Line is offering future cruise credits for any non-refundable portion of your fare for all cancellations made up to 30 days before sailing.
Standard refund policies due to guest cancellations are based on length of cruise and the time remaining before sailing.
The Refund
COVID-19 specific refunds: Holland America has not finalized its COVID-specific policies, but Item 4 of the cruise contract includes a provision for a refund if a passenger is denied booking or passage for any number of reasons, including those that are health related.
Pricing guarantees: The Holland America cruise contract does not specify any option for a refund due to price drops after booking, in fact, Section Six of the contract states that passengers are not entitled to any refunds not provided for in that section.
When you cancel the cruise: Most cruises cancelled 91 days or longer prior to sailing are eligible for full refunds. Exceptions are Grand World and Grand Voyages, which require a 121-day cancellation notice for full refund and cruises 6 nights or shorter, which must be cancelled at least 76 days prior to sailing for a full refund. There may also be short-term non-refundable special rates, for which these policies do not apply.
Taxes, fees, and port charges are refundable on all cancellations other than early departures and no-shows.
When Holland America cancels the cruise: Holland America is rebooking all cancelled 2021 reservations to the equivalent cruise in 2022. Guests are provided a preference form to accept or decline the rebooking and request either 110 percent of the fare paid in future cruise credits or request a full refund.
On cruises cancelled or shortened due to mechanical issues prior to or during sailing, passengers should expect full or partial refunds.
Important Dates
Final payment dates coincide with the end of the penalty-free cancellation period: 76 days prior to departure for short cruises of 6 nights or less, 91 days before sailing on cruises 7 nights or longer, except Grand World Cruises and Grand Voyages, which must be paid 121 days prior to departure.
If you must cancel the cruise: Through summer 2021, on cruises of 7 nights or longer (with the previously mentioned exceptions) you forfeit only your deposit between days 90 and 64. Between days 63 and 43 your refund will be 50 percent of the fare. Between days 42 and 22 prior to sailing, you lose 75 percent and inside 21 days from sailing, your fare is non-refundable.
Beginning in fall of 2021, 7 night or longer cruises will have a shorter deposit forfeit date range of 90-76 days. A 50 percent refund is available between days 75 and 61. Your refund is reduced to 25 percent between days 60 and 31 prior to sailing, and all cancellations inside 30 days will be non-refundable.
Shorter cruises (6 nights or shorter) have narrower refund windows. You forfeit your deposit on cancellations made between 75 and 57 days before departure, 50 percent of the fare between days 56 and 29, 75 percent of the fare between days 28 and 16 and the full fare within 15 days of departure.
Grand World and Grand Voyages are considerably stricter on refund dates. The deposit is lost from 120 to 91 days before departure, 60 percent of the fare is forfeited between 90 and 76 days prior to sailing, and the full fare is non-refundable beyond 75 days before departure.
If Holland America must cancel the cruise: Guests are provided notice of the cancellation and given a specific date by which they must choose their refund or rebooking option.
Future Cruise Credit
Future cruise credits issued by Holland America appear on the My Profile page once you are logged into HollandAmerica.com. The site will also show book by and use by dates of expiration. Most FCCs issued due to the suspension of sailing are valid on bookings made by December 31, 2021 on sailings through December 31, 2022. They may be combined or divided as desired.
Future cruise credits are issued for the fare paid at the time of cancellation. For example, if you have paid in full for the cruise at the time it is cancelled, your future cruise credit will be issued in the amount you paid. If you have only paid a deposit, the future cruise credit would be for that amount, not the full fare of the cruise.
The Fine Print
When either you or the cruise line cancel a cruise, any additional travel plans made through a third party must be cancelled independently. Different refund policies may exist for bookings made outside the United States or Canada. Refer to your specific cruise contract, provided at the time of booking.
More information
Standard cancellation policies are found in the cruise contract. Cruises altered or cancelled by Holland America can be found on the impacted cruise page. If you need assistance by phone, customer service can be reached at (877)932-4259. There is also a contact form for email inquiries, an option to have someone call you to avoid long hold times, and an online chat feature located at the top of the main webpage.
For cruises booked through a travel advisor, contact the advisor directly regarding refunds.