crazyman3

14 hours ago, digital_curator said:

I also found (and please don't anyone start a debate on X's clothing suggestions) that people tend to dress up more for holiday cruises, especially the formal nights (Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve) when there were a lot more gowns and tuxes that I am used to seeing on Caribbean itineraries. 

Yes, I'd forgotten that! There were a lot more DJs and posh frocks around ----- never on the same person though! 

On 11/24/2018 at 4:05 PM, Straughn said:

This has been a great read. I board Silhouette next Friday for nine nights.

 

Looking forward to cruising with Sue Denning. Thanks for the info on John Bressler. I have seen two of the three production shows on various ships. We saw Life and thought it was a total waste of good talent. Pearl isn’t much better. As much as I enjoy the production shows (theatre major in me), these are two I won’t waste my time on again. I will give Cosmopolitan a chance. We had a broadway review, done by the singers and dancers, one day. I thought it was the best showdown that cruise. It was billed as them performing  songs which had significance to them. Whether that was true or not, it was very entertaining.

 

Interestingly, a lot of your comments about the specialty restaurants mirrored my experience last March. Mirano was excellent,  but it is important to know that the service is measured. For some folks, that can be an issue. The only thing consistent about Tuscan is the its inconsistency. I am perplexed how it can be so good one evening and so bad another night on the exact same cruise. I had my first Lawn Club experience last March and will definitely be dining there again. 

 

Oh, and my chocolate chip cookie in the Lawn Club was definitely served in a skillet.

Now I'm puzzled! I always think of a skillet being used to cook things ... Is this a different sort of skillet? Other Brits and any people of the world, do you have things served in skillets? Is it just an American thing? 

At last we're down from 4 suitcases to 3! We're on the 'Road to Carry-on'  ---- but we may run our of years before we reach our destination! 

Great to read these reviews! Such positive feedback! Thank you all.

We were on the Connie for Christmas 2016. Many of the public areas were decorated. A reasonable festive feel ----it must be difficult to make the ship Christmas-y when there are many people of other/no faith on board.

The choir sang well and Father Christmas made some appearances ----loved him descending on a rope from the dizzy heights onto the stage in the evening show! 

The sad part, for us, was the Christmas Dinner. We had told our Norwegian friends about it and asked for it to be served from the MDR to us in Luminae. It was awful! School dinners ----and as a retired teacher I've many of those! 

I was surprised that Christmas food wasn't offered on the Luminae menu ---it can't have taken them by surprise! 'Now what's happening on 25th December... no... I can't think of anything special... let's use Menu 4 then!'

On 11/20/2018 at 9:16 AM, excitedofharpenden said:

Do what?

 

Phil

Exactly!

17 hours ago, dabear said:

 

 

No it's Michael and DW would be shocked if I went by Sue!

 

Didn't J.Cash perform a song 'A Boy named Sue'?

You can walk off at any time (notify GR first) but you may get drenched!

16 hours ago, k0k0 said:

This thread is brilliant - really helpful for Azamara newbies like me!

I just returned from my first Azamara cruise (on Journey) - loved every moment of it - and would like to add some more tips:

 

- There is a smoking corner on deck 9 on the starboard side of the pool bar. If smoke bothers you, choose a sun-lounger away from this.

- Do not leave books / sunglasses / hats on sun-loungers while you wander off for lunch etc.  You do not need to "reserve" sunbeds as there are more than enough to go around.  The staff constantly collect up any belongings left lying around and replace used towels with fresh ones.

- If you want peace and quiet try the sun-loungers on Deck 5 and Deck 11 (the busiest area is by the pool on Deck 9).

- If its really hot, the swinging nest seats on Deck 11 catch a good breeze, and are a great place to read a book.

- There are free daily Yoga / Pilates / Spinning classes in the gym and organised power-walks on Deck 10. It all helps combat all that food and drink!

- If you are meeting friends for dinner, arrange to meet in the Living Room and enjoy a pre-dinner glass of wine and tapas.

- There are a wide variety of board games and packs of cards available in a cupboard in the card room, Deck 10. Help yourself and have some fun.

- You can request a particular waiter in Discoveries if you have a favorite.

- After the Azamazing Evening, we returned to the ship at 10.30pm to a "light snack" which, it seems, is Azamara speak for a huge buffet! So don't worry if you miss dinner beforehand. You certainly wont starve!

- At Discoveries ask to join a larger table, you will meet some fabulous people.

- At Discoveries some of the larger tables (for 4-6) are at the back, right above the propellers. If you don't enjoy the vibrations ask to sit elsewhere.

- Don't eat too much dinner on the evening of the chocolate buffet - you will need some "stomach capacity" to really enjoy it!

- Go to the Living Room for an after dinner Appletini (delicious included cocktail) and listen to some music. The DJ was very amenable to requests.

- The included coffee at Mosaic is much better quality than the Nespresso (premium).

Loved your feedback!

Have you booked another Az cruise yet?

16 hours ago, k0k0 said:

 

 

3 hours ago, hrhdhd said:

 

We just got off the Equinox, were in a suite, and got two letters (I am Elite, DH is [only ] Select). 

 

We also received numerous voice mails from the Captain's Club Hostess to remind us about events.

 

Wow! We've never had voice mails from the CCH!

Well. we know our place... I'll need to improve my dishwashing technique for the cruise next August!

27 minutes ago, Luvcrusn said:

….and sitting at the Sunset sipping a chilled glass of Chablis in the late afternoon as the sun is just starting to set and watching the wake.

That's the wake of the ship powering through the waves ----nothing to do with burials at sea! Hope not!

Book and enjoy your first Celebrity cruise!

Have fun seeking your favourite locations and entertainment.

We love the Ensemble Lounge and the music that goes with it ----but that's us! Each to his/her own!

Try Murano as a speciality restaurant for an evening. An amazing experience!

41 minutes ago, hrhdhd said:

 

You will have a letter in your stateroom on the first day that describes all the Elite benefits.

Thank you for your royal reply.

We have not had a letter ---perhaps because we are Elite in a Suite... Don't know.

Yes, we can always have breakfast in Luminae and 'free' drinks in Michael's Club... but sometimes it is interesting to try something else e.g. Elite + breakfast or Elite Cocktails...

Alcohol on Celebrity has quite a mark-up. 

You really would do better taking two bottles of your choice on board with you. As I understand it, you may drink it in your room but if you consume it in a public area (bar, restaurant, library etc) you will be asked to pay corkage.

I would suggest that you do not upgrade your package yet ---- see what you think of the wines that come with your package and then decide.

Celebrity does not use wine saving systems such as vacu-vin so glasses of wine may not be up to scratch because the bottle has been opened too long. Of course, the bar staff will replace any over-aired wine.

We'd love to cruise to Antarctica -----but the deal would need to be landings and luxury! Any ideas?

Thanks for the information about OVC' themed evenings ----we had no idea this was going on! Mind you we were never told about Elite breakfast and  cocktail hour... perhaps the staff imagine that we'd not be interested.

We'll try some of these out next August on our Ireland & Iceland cruise.

4 minutes ago, mickey89 said:

 

 The chance of a rough crossing which ever route is too great. I can remember the Biscay when I was a lot younger and said never again.  Those that have experienced real rough seas would definitely think twice, TA are cheap for reason.

 

Thanks for the advice, Mickey89.

I've been around Cape Horn once ---a millpond!

Bay of Biscay: three crossings with to of them very calm. However, on the last occasion we hit bad weather, to say the least. Our ship missed out Coruna. We escorted a RCL ship across part of the Bay and into St Peter Port : all her forward windows were blown out!

The Atlantic Crossing... we'll give a go!

No, sorry. However you may have a Black Friday offer available to you! Check the Celebrity site or contact your TA.

By the way, you are so lucky in Oslo: you have the best sculpture park in the world!

I've never tried a TA but my DW is keen to do one in a few years. This thread has been extremely interesting. Sadly, it has made me think that we'll sail on the OM2 when we do take a TA.

What I haven't picked up from this thread is the itinery. Please fill me in.

Question: why do non-US citizens get such a bad deal at US immigration? We're on a cruise! Even the Russian immigration gates are faster and an occasional smile offered!

Enjoy the cruise, Lois ----and let us all know how it went. Will you be doing a daily blog? Maybe you won't have time...

Stephen

11 hours ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

The Drawing Room is a library and reading room on Deck 10. It’s close to the two speciality restaurants.

There are a number of bars you can use pre dinner. If you are eating in Discoveries (the main dining room) then the best bar (in our opinion) is the Discoveries bar which is just before the entrance to Discoveries. If you are dining in the buffet, then the sunset bar( behind Windows buffet on the back of the ship) is lovely. Many people like to have a drink in Spirits bar (Deck 5 amidships) before dinner when eating at Discoveries, whereas the Living Room is handy for a drink before dinner in Windows buffet. One of the beauties of Azamara ships is that they are small so everything is fairly close together. 

The speciality restaurants have their own bars, the one in Prime C is especially nice. You don’t have to be eating there to use them.

Not sure what you mean by ‘Azamara Special Night’. If you mean the Azamazing Evening, you should be able to see it in your Voyage Planner. You can access this through the bottom blue menu at the bottom of Azamara’s webpage. The Azamazing Evening is one of the Excursions - it’s the one with a $0 cost!   If your cruise is not for a while, it might not have been planned yet, so may not be visible yet. Also they don't have one on transatlantic cruises or those of less than a week.

if you mean the ‘White Night’ ( on Deck BBQ Party) you won’t know what night that will be until you get aboard.

Have you looked at the sticky thread ‘Tips for Azamara Newbies’ - lots of helpful information there.

We loved this room on two of the other 'R' ships, namely Pacific Princess and Royal Princess. The decor was so inspiring.

Enjoy! 

1 minute ago, CHEZMARYLOU said:

Tuscan is Italian food. Murano's is continental.

Yes, you are quite correct! Thanks! My brain was in overdrive thinking about wonderful, wonderful Murano!

1 minute ago, Lois R said:

What are the AZ evenings? I am sailing in April out of NYC for 11 nights.  Is this special entertainment?

There is a thread at the start of this part of the Cruise Critic site and it is entitled 'Azamara Newbies' ----all is revealed on there!

A quick answer though, Az Evenings are held once on most Azamara cruises. They are often ashore. They often involve the performing arts. They are free and for all passengers.

Hope this helps! 

Wow! Amazing! I am shocked (not really!) that our beloved government should do this!

We haven't had an email about BF. Perhaps it's because we haven't been on oour first Az cruise (2020) yet...