Back from the Quest: July 29 - August 5

We just returned from a seven-night cruise on the Quest. It was our 7th Azamara cruise, and we had a wonderful time...as usual.:) There were more children and young adults than on our previous Azamara cruises, perhaps due to the itinerary and summer season. We don't use the pool area, so this didn't affect us. The kids I saw in the dining areas were well-behaved.

The Officers:

Captain Jose, Hotel Director Philip, Cruise Director Russ, Chef Fabio

I had never sailed with Captain Jose before. He has a great personality! We already knew we enjoyed sailing with Philip, Russ, and Fabio.

Our Itinerary:

Saturday, July 29: Barcelona Depart at 6:00 pm

Sunday, July 30: Ibiza 8:00 am to early next morning

Monday, July 31: Ibiza Depart at 6:00 am

Monday, July 31: Palma De Mallorca 1:00 pm to 11:00 pm (Azamazing Evening)

Tuesday, August 1: Mahon, Menorca 8:00 am to 6:00 pm

Wednesday, August 2: Bonifacio, Corsica 1:00 am to 7:00 pm

Thursday, August 3: Portoferraio, Elba 8:00am to 10:30 pm (White Night)

Friday, August 4: Florence/Pisa (Livorno) 8:00 am -7:00 pm

Saturday, August 5: Rome (Civitavecchia)

Our Weather:

I will be concise here: VERY-HOT-EVERY-DAY!:cool:

Check-in:

As usual, registration was quick and easy. We arrived at the port at 1:15 pm and were in Windows Café about 20 minutes later. A breeze!

Our Stateroom:

4054 Oceanview. This was our first oceanview stateroom on Azamara. We have stayed in veranda staterooms (4 times) and inside staterooms (twice). Of course, I would prefer a veranda every cruise, but I don’t mind budgeting to save money for next year’s cruise! Anyway, we already had a realistic expectation about the stateroom and shower size. We were very pleased with the room. 4054 was stable (not rocky). It was close to Guest Relations but it wasn’t noisy. It was very convenient to the Mosaic Café; it was also easy for getting on and off the ship each day. On the flip side, we generally dined on deck 9, so we were navigating the stairs/elevators for meals. The ship isn’t that big, however, so nothing is too far away. I would be happy to stay in that room on another cruise.

Our room attendants were Mario and Satej, and they took great care of our room. Mario greeted us as soon as were settling into our room to unpack our suitcases. He gave us an overview of the room and its features. We asked for cans of club soda for our refrigerator, and we received them quickly. He replenished them later in the week without prompting. We had no issues with our room during our cruise. (We didn’t get room service or have special requests besides the club soda.)

Cruise Critic Social:

We were a small group of only 14 cruisers, but there was still a large officer presence at the social, including Cruise Director (Russ), Hotel Manager (Philip), and LCV and Cruise Sales Manager (Amanda), Concierge (Yasemin?), and Food and Beverage Manager (Thomas). It was held in the deck 10 drawing room, partitioned off so it was cozy and more conducive to chatting for a small group. They officers gave us plenty of time and attention and did not make us feel rushed.

Dining:

We enjoy the quality and variety of the food on Azamara, and this cruise was no exception. We ate most meals on deck 9, at either Windows or the Patio, because we like the casual ambience of the buffets and sitting outside. When tables weren’t available on the Windows’ deck, we ate inside. One day, it was just too hot to eat outside anyway.

The service was quick and friendly, with the exception of a couple of mornings when it was very busy at breakfast and we did have to wait for coffee. There were just too many people for the amount of waitstaff…no problem, we were on vacation!

We had the following meals in Discoveries: jazz brunch, officers’ barbecue, and departure morning breakfast.

I have a dietary restriction, and the Food and Beverage managers were great working with me.

My husband, for his part, said the food was very good and even better than last time. He thought the dishes that were supposed to be spicy were actually spicy for a change.

Entertainment:

We are not big partiers, so Azamara's low-key evenings generally work for us. Most evenings, we primarily enjoyed chatting with other cruisers and/or listening to pianist Max DiFaz. We met several friendly people, including some whose names I recognized from Cruise Critic. :)

We did attend the following shows:

• Rikki Jay, comedian
  
• Danzare, with Quest Singers and Dancers
  
• Amanda Poulson, singer (my favorite show - Broadway hits, and what a voice!)
  
• Papa T, guitarist, singer in The Living Room
  
• Stage Door To Dreams, with the Quest Singers and Dancers and CD Russ
  

Other Activities:

• The Living Room, dancing and watching (not singing!) karaoke. I must say that it was much livelier than our previous Azamara cruises.
  
• White Night: very hot but very fun...a full dance floor!
  
• Le Club Voyage Cocktail Party
  
• Azamazing Evening: We had the Azamazing Evening in Palma de Mallorca at the beautiful La Seu Cathedral. The evening consisted of folkloric dances outside the church, a short organ concert, a choral concert, and a short guided tour of the cathedral. It was very hot in the church, but the transportation logistics were well-handled.
  

Complimentary shuttle bus/tourist information availability for each port:

• Ibiza shuttle bus, tourist information table onboard
  
• Palma de Mallorca: shuttle bus, information table onboard
  
• Mahon: docked right in town, information onboard
  
• Bonifacio: tender into town, information onboard
  
• Portoferraio: docked right in town, information onboard
  
• Livorno: tourist info onboard
  

Azamara Shore Excursions:

We signed up for only one Azamara excursion this cruise: “Independent Exploration in Florence”: Explore the Tuscan capital according to your own interests and at your own pace, with a pocket-sized smart device as your companion guide. (9.5 hours)

Azamara actually offered quite a few interesting shore excursions from Livorno, but we wanted to spend time in Florence. We had been to Florence previously on an Azamara cruise, so we felt comfortable navigating it on our own once we got there. I had researched DIY transportation, but it just seemed to make more sense to take the ship’s shore excursion bus. In my opinion, it was an excellent value.

Trudy, our guide, was great. While we were riding into Florence, she gave us local information, efficient walking routes, tips on not getting overcharged for ice cream and coffee, and bathroom locations. She was well-informed and very funny. She was as good or better than most of the guides I’ve had on such tours.

By the way, the tour description included: "This independent tour includes a stop at a fine leather factory.” I balked a bit when I saw that was part of the trip, but it really gave us all an opportunity to use the WC before entering Florence. It was fine, and there was no sales pressure or demonstration. (Fortunately, the shoes my husband was admiring didn't come in his size...)

Everybody in the group made it back to our meeting place on time. (Wonderful!) And we made it back to the ship right around the all aboard time.

Some things we didn’t attend this cruise but were offered:

• Destination/enrichment lectures
  
• Captain’s Welcome Toast (We were exhausted from our flight. I had mentioned earlier we weren't big partiers!)
  
• Movies Under the Stars
  
• Trivia (We had fun joining trivia on our previous cruises, but we were onshore during trivia sessions on this cruise.)
  

Laundry: Our LCV status allowed us one bag of free laundry,and we took advantage of this.

We are looking forward to cruising with Azamara next year. We just haven't decided which itinerary yet...

Thanks for your great review, as we look forward to out two trips with her next year, and glad you thought the food was great and the list of entertainers look fun.

Wendy and David

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We visit some of those ports next spring.

Really appreciate the useful details you have provided.

Very helpful. But we will wish for cooler weather!

Amanda must if left the JR and joined the Quest somewhere between July 19th and when you got on Quest. Singing are following the officers on changing ships.

Great review, appreciate the varied info. Glad you survived the heat.

Karyn

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Thank you for the review, newcruisermom. It's really well written and easy to follow...yours could be a template!

Here's the link for posting CC reviews on the Azamara Quest:

https://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/getreviews.cfm?action=ship&ShipID=409

We were also on Quest, and yes it was hot, hot, hot....but blue skies and calm seas all the way , what's not to like. The ship was in great condition and agree the food was excellent, particularly the Indian buffet.

Apparently over 700 guests on the ship, and the busiest we have ever experienced, with 150 Mexican travellers and many children and crew families, so not the usual cross section. Just as well the weather was good!!

Having been on Journey in revitalised balcony cabins, this was our first experience of the "new" Club Continent suites and we were very impressed. Curtains, wallcoverings, soft furnishings and large bright illuminated vanity mirror made the space light and roomy, and the new walk in shower was great. No more climbing into the bath for a shower and a cricked neck.

One slight minus mark was when we tried to change a restaurant booking into Aqualina and despite being in a CC cabin were told that the restaurant was fully booked all evening, undeterred we managed to reserve a table with the assistance of one of the managers and when we attended we found that there was an empty table and three tables with crew dining. Not great Azamara.

A subject of conversation with our cabin neighbours was what were the additional benefits of booking a CC cabin against a balcony, and the conclusion was not much other than the additional space. Perhaps a suggestion going forward to provide additional rewards for the considerable cost increase to a CC would be to include a premium beverage package as a "perk" for suite guests. Worth a thought Azamara.

All in all Azamara service delivered again with a smile from a great crew, as we have come to expect.

Thanks for your comments, everyone! Bonnie, I will post a regular review using the link you mentioned. Alfredo1, we liked the Indian buffet too. I am glad you got to enjoy the cruise as well; I like your comments and helpful suggestions. I did notice it felt extra busy at breakfast in Windows some mornings.

As for the intense heat...it is better than rain! When we returned to the ship each day, we appreciated the ice water and cold towels. Examples of the extra touches that make Azamara special.

When we returned to the ship each day, we appreciated the ice water and cold towels. Examples of the extra touches that make Azamara special.

Celebrity do this too!

We were also on Quest, and yes it was hot, hot, hot....but blue skies and calm seas all the way , what's not to like. The ship was in great condition and agree the food was excellent, particularly the Indian buffet.

Apparently over 700 guests on the ship, and the busiest we have ever experienced, with 150 Mexican travellers and many children and crew families, so not the usual cross section. Just as well the weather was good!!

Having been on Journey in revitalised balcony cabins, this was our first experience of the "new" Club Continent suites and we were very impressed. Curtains, wallcoverings, soft furnishings and large bright illuminated vanity mirror made the space light and roomy, and the new walk in shower was great. No more climbing into the bath for a shower and a cricked neck.

One slight minus mark was when we tried to change a restaurant booking into Aqualina and despite being in a CC cabin were told that the restaurant was fully booked all evening, undeterred we managed to reserve a table with the assistance of one of the managers and when we attended we found that there was an empty table and three tables with crew dining. Not great Azamara.

A subject of conversation with our cabin neighbours was what were the additional benefits of booking a CC cabin against a balcony, and the conclusion was not much other than the additional space. Perhaps a suggestion going forward to provide additional rewards for the considerable cost increase to a CC would be to include a premium beverage package as a "perk" for suite guests. Worth a thought Azamara.

All in all Azamara service delivered again with a smile from a great crew, as we have come to expect.

We too were in a Club Continent Suite this cruise and loved the extra space but would not pay some of the eye watering prices quoted by Azamara for this grade of cabin in 2018/19.

We spent a considerable time organising our bookings in Aqualina and Prime C on embarkation day only to find that they invariably got the times wrong often by two hours when the reminder card was delivered to our stateroom. We were not impressed. However, when we pointed this out they were accommodating and we found the wait staff in both restaurants delightful and helpful, particularly Ferdinand and Rameses.

Newcruisermom, it was great to meet you and your husband and like you and Alfredo we enjoyed a lovely cruise even though we found the heat a little overwhelming at times.

It was fabulous to cruise with Russ as our CD again. His engagement with guests and energy levels are quite extraordinary.

Newcruisermom,

Thank you for your review. We are sailing on the Spain cruise next September. I'm curious what you did in Ibiza and what you thought of it as it was an overnight stay? Ours will be overnight as well. All I know about it so far is that it is know for its nightlife as a major party town. Like you we are not major partiers. So will be doing a great deal of research when we get closer to the cruise to see what there is to do. Great to hear from someone with first hand experience.

Thanks

Brian

I was also on this cruise and agree with newcruisermom's comments. Overall we had a great time onboard but the weather was so hot that it did affect our port activities. There were two days when I didn't leave the ship at all as the temperature was hitting 40 degrees plus. In Ibiza we got the port shuttle to what looked like a bit of a seedy area, heard a returning passenger saying a lot of the shops were closed as it was Sunday and decided to stay on the shuttle and go straight back to the welcome air con of the ship. Sometimes it was even too hot to sit out on our balcony.

Of course, we are British and not used to much summer heat 😄 but even the locals were finding it overpowering.

Nevertheless it was a very enjoyable cruise and the always fabulous crew were outstanding. Great food and entertainment with one of the best White Nights ever, thanks to the incredible Russ and a very talented cast of singers and dancers.

Looking forward to Journey in October. :D

Celebrity do this too!

Thanks for the clarification. Yes, I'm sure other lines do this also. I guess the oppressive heat made me extra excited each time I was welcomed with cold water! :')

Newcruisermom,

Thank you for your review. We are sailing on the Spain cruise next September. I'm curious what you did in Ibiza and what you thought of it as it was an overnight stay? Ours will be overnight as well. All I know about it so far is that it is know for its nightlife as a major party town. Like you we are not major partiers. So will be doing a great deal of research when we get closer to the cruise to see what there is to do. Great to hear from someone with first hand experience.

 

Thanks

Brian

Hi Brian,

Good question. I love to research ports; this cruise itinerary had fewer "blockbuster" attractions than most of our previous cruises. I must admit, it was tricky to find attractions for some islands. I looked and looked. We spent more time exploring the port towns than seeing big attractions this time--with the exception of Livorno/Florence and Rome (where we stayed overnight before flying back to the United States.)

For Ibiza, we walked around the old town (Dalt Vila). That involved a lot of uphill climbing. We also went to a small museum called the Necropolis of Puig des Molins. My husband and I like history, and we tend to spend our shore time "looking at old stuff", rather than shopping, fine dining, or viewing natural scenic attractions. We often grab a quick lunch or stop at a cafe for a glass of wine or beer.

I have the printed schedule of the complimentary Azamara shuttle in front of me right now. It says the shuttle started running at 9:00 a.m. The last pick up from town is listed as 8:30 p.m. (20:30) We did not spend the evening in the town; we had dinner/show on the ship. I hate to keep bringing up the hot temperatures that week, but we were tuckered out after doing all that climbing in the heat earlier in the day. I'm not sure if we would have called a taxi to go into town if it had been a cooler day. I would be curious to know if others went into town and had dinner/nightlife. As I mentioned, there were more young adults (as well as children) than I've seen on our other 6 Azamara cruises. It would be interesting to know if people stayed onshore late to enjoy Ibiza's nightlife.

During the week, there were some shore excursions offered to visit caves/grottoes, as well as wine tastings. They sounded interesting. I heard from some people that the grotto excursion in Bonifacio was good. In retrospect, perhaps we should have taken a couple more shore excursions to add variety to the week. We were still happy with climbing towers and the like. We were that silly couple walking the Stairs of Aragon in Bonifacio, the Fortress in Portoferraio, etc. My husband's pedometer registered 31,743 on our day in Rome.

If you have specific questions, please let me know. We spent more time on the ship this time than we had on previous cruises. Our last two (Australia/New Zealand and Baltic) had a lot of formal (and pricey) excursions and major sites. This one was more about relaxation.

Best,

Mary

A subject of conversation with our cabin neighbours was what were the additional benefits of booking a CC cabin against a balcony, and the conclusion was not much other than the additional space.

A CC suite is 50% larger than a veranda. That in itself justifies a 50% higher fare. Else turn two CC suites back into three verandas and increase revenue.

As a summer resident of Ibiza I should just like to add a few points.

It is very unusual for an Azamara ship to dock in the Cruise Terminal at Botafoc, in fact it is the only time I have noticed it there. All other times it docks right in the centre of the old town as it did last Friday. This means that there is no need for a shuttle. They always have very good tourist information on board with an excellent DIY walking map of the old town. A visit to D'Alt Vila and the cathedral is really worthwhile ; I would avoid midday though as it is too hot. A walk during the evening, when it comes to life, is an alternative to staying on board after dinner. The little boutiques are open until late and there are many small restaurants and bars where you can have a leisurely drink and watch the world go by. An evening stroll around the port area is also interesting where the most expensive and luxurious yachts in the world dock.

With regards to the weather, it was unbearable. All time records have been reached this month. However, it wasn't the temperature but the humidity that caused the problem. We awoke to soaking wet lawns and terraces as though it had rained; everyone complained at the lack of energy and feeling of apathy. Hopefully, we shall not have another two weeks like it. Temperatures and humidity levels have returned to normal and we now have cool nights again that require at least a sheet to cover you in bed.

Finally, September is a wonderful time to come, the weather is great and there are far fewer tourists. If you have any further questions, please ask.

Jenni

As a summer resident of Ibiza I should just like to add a few points.

 

It is very unusual for an Azamara ship to dock in the Cruise Terminal at Botafoc, in fact it is the only time I have noticed it there. All other times it docks right in the centre of the old town as it did last Friday. This means that there is no need for a shuttle. They always have very good tourist information on board with an excellent DIY walking map of the old town. A visit to D'Alt Vila and the cathedral is really worthwhile ; I would avoid midday though as it is too hot. A walk during the evening, when it comes to life, is an alternative to staying on board after dinner. The little boutiques are open until late and there are many small restaurants and bars where you can have a leisurely drink and watch the world go by. An evening stroll around the port area is also interesting where the most expensive and luxurious yachts in the world dock.

 

With regards to the weather, it was unbearable. All time records have been reached this month. However, it wasn't the temperature but the humidity that caused the problem. We awoke to soaking wet lawns and terraces as though it had rained; everyone complained at the lack of energy and feeling of apathy. Hopefully, we shall not have another two weeks like it. Temperatures and humidity levels have returned to normal and we now have cool nights again that require at least a sheet to cover you in bed.

 

Finally, September is a wonderful time to come, the weather is great and there are far fewer tourists. If you have any further questions, please ask.

 

Jenni

I was very pleased to read your post Jenni as I was very puzzled when we arrived in Ibiza Town having been there with Azamara previously. I didn't recognise anything - we had not disembarked through a terminal building and had never required a shuttle bus to get into town. It was a pity we had not berthed in the same location. I remember walking off the ship and an easy stroll into a pleasant town. Maybe next time........

Thank you for the great responses on Ibiza. Hopefully we will dock right at the old town. We aren't nightlife people but we will really enjoy getting off the ship after dinner and walking the town and going to shops and absorbing the ambience of the town. Still a little over a year away but as fast as time flies by it will be here before we know it. Thanks again to you both.