Laganlady02

13 hours ago, takemewithyou said:

I have to admit….a lot of my posts have been negative lately!  I have been pretty upset with the CEO and her lack of communication.

I was just looking at another social media website.  It showed pictures from a recent cruise (to Greece, I think) with blocks of local honey being featured at a brunch onboard.  These are the things that make Azamara so special!  No other cruise line does this, that I have been on anyway, other than Azamara.  My DH and I were just talking about this the other night.  These are things that drew us to Azamara in the first place!  I fear that Azamara may be getting away from this but seeing these posts makes me have faith again that these core values that made Azamara what it is are still in effect……at least amongst the Captain and some of the Hotel Managers!  
 

We have all heard of Captain Johannes stopping on Norway cruises to pick up local strawberries, or in other places local pastries being brought onboard.  On one of our cruises we picked up local fish in Kotor to be grilled and served later that evening.   We watched the boat load them onboard from our veranda.  We didn’t have any local food brought onboard our Ireland cruise on Pursuit in June but we did have a local group brought onboard in Dublin to entertain us and another special thing was a slow sail by the Cliffs of Moher that was announced ahead of time by the Captain so that everyone could be prepared to see it.  
 

So I am reminded that these are things that Azamara does so well and I wanted to acknowledge that!   😀

Last month on Onward in Greece they trialled a Destination Day (held in Corfu). This involved a Greek themed buffet served on deck one evening along with local entertainment that was brought onboard. The array of food and drink (kumquats galore) was spectacular and it was a terrific evening. Even the decorations on each table were tasteful and subtle.

I understand this was a trial for the World Cruise, and the intention with the Destination days is to do this on some of the segments.

Also in Prime C and Aqualina the specials (starters and mains) were themed. The different crockery used and the plating elevated each dish. Every dish I tried was new and every one was terrific. I hope this is something that will be implemented across all four ship's.

As an aside, I volunteer at the venue which hosted your Azamazing Evening,I do hope you enjoyed it.

3 hours ago, Grandma Cruising said:

Anyone got any idea who will be on the Journey at the end of November?

That is 3 months away!

3 minutes ago, uktog said:

Yes two bookings onboard I have the paperwork issued on booking that outlines the one free move terms 

Wow that is very disappointing. I can understand your frustration.

26 minutes ago, uktog said:

Glad it’s worked for you. Shows they can get it right! 
 

Maybe we should have persisted. We just wanted to lift and shift which we believed we were eligible to do. Our agent tried we tried all communication remains unanswered today. We past the deadline for making the transaction so we’ve lost two deposits and our free nights. Leaves a horrid taste in our mouths. Our door remains open if they ever wake up 😀

Was this an onboard booking (allowing one change) or an open passage booking which does not allow changes once a sailing has been selected?

I ask because I inquired about the open passage last week and was told (via Miami) it was no longer offered. Booking a specific cruise offers the best flexibility.

Surely lift and shift hasn't been available for a long time.

10 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

We have been in 2 CW suites on Azamara:  6088 on Quest and 7114 on Journey.  Both had a separate tub and shower, and between the two parts of the bathroom we had plenty of storage [each of us took one sink as 'mine'].  Since we never put any water in the tub, that served as extra storage.  And just outside the larger part of the bathroom is so much storage that we never filled all the drawers and shelves, so back-up toiletries could go there too.  [Not to mention all the storage in the living room, which we never used at all.]  It's really hard to imagine anyone short of Jennifer Aniston [with her $8,000 a month beauty routine] not having enough storage or space in the CW bathrooms. 

 

The bathrooms in the CW suites on Journey and Quest are really not comparable with those on Pursuit and the three with walk in showers on Onward. 

Information from Onward last week was that going forward sailings are approx 500 to 550 during September, rising to over 600 during October and over 600 after the crossing.

I was surprised that on checking suite availability for next year my options were very limited. This was across quest, pursuit and onward.

I was told that there are many, many new guests on sailings this year and that a very large proportion of them make a future booking onboard. Of course, these new guests cannot make comparisons with the Azamara of the past but they must be satisfied enough to make another booking.

15 hours ago, hamrag said:

Even as one of the older demographic, I absolutely get it.....you, and we, will cease to be their demographic possibly sooner than we would hope so they need to develop the brand to encourage younger cruisers. That's not to say I think what they propose is the way to attract such, far from it!

 

We don't like it any more than most, but this is 'the circle' of life and all of us have an expiry date!

It is also important to remember they now have 4 ships to fill,so of course the product will change.

3 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

In all the time I've been reading the Azamara forum here, the number of people who actually got a worthwhile benefit from their free loyalty nights has been very small.  Basically it only works if you have earned 6 or more free nights, and even then you may have to take an itinerary that you wouldn't have chosen otherwise.  [We didn't even qualify when we reached Discoverer Plus, because although >50% of our 750 qualifying points had come from Azamara, the majority of nights and cruises were on Celebrity.]  I'm not counting on being able to use the 3 nights if we ever reach 1,500 points. IMHO this should be the first part of the loyalty program that Azamara rethinks.  Either make it work for most people who qualify, or drop it. 

It does.work using 3 nights on a 7 night cruise. I have used this twice, basically halving the price of the cruise. It works best for suite categories which have less promotions applied. I have been told by loyalty manager onboard onward that the free nights will continue. There are no plans to change this.

On 7/10/2023 at 11:43 AM, voddy said:

does anyone know what the senior officers schedule is for Onward on 14 October 2023?

No one here knows what the shedules for any of the ships will be in October.

4 hours ago, uktog said:

It is an extremely pleasant dinner served in the library on ships that have them or on Onward I believe at the back of a speciality restaurant   It is a set degustation menu with a choice between two mains in which the chef shows off their talents, and the sommelier pairs appropriate wines with it. It is almost always hosted by Captain and other senior officers are present It’s a delightful evening.

Onward hosted its first Best of the Best dinner on the March 25th sailing. It was a set menu, including the main course, however the guests were asked beforehand if there were any dietary requirements. It was a wonderful evening, held privately at the back of Prime C.

Could this be cruises on the new quarterly savings due for release tomorrow?

On 6/25/2023 at 2:47 PM, excitedofharpenden said:

I have to say I don't really understand this. Good for them getting this deal, but it has always been that your free nights are based upon your most frequently booked cabin averaged out. It's not something that I would be banking on as happening. 
 

I wish they'd adopt some consistency otherwise true loyalty becomes meaningless. 

 

Phil 

In general, your understanding of the free nights scheme is correct. The example I referred to was an onboard booking using the the most frequently booked cabin category and sent to Miami for approval. The next day, the future cruise person contacted the guests to say that Miami had suggested that for X pounds more they could have a club world suite.

This was not a trivial amount, but when averaged over the seven nights it allowed them an enhanced experience they could not otherwise afford under normal pricing.

This really only works using 6 free nights on a 7 night cruise, or using 10 free nights on a 11 or 12 night cruise, otherwise the price is prohibitive.

Indeed, a platinum member who posts here used their 10 free nights on a 12 night cruise in a club world suite. They do not normally book this suite category, so the example I described is not unique.

I agree it is not something that can be relied upon ,as there are a very limited set of circumstances when it would be financially viable.

.

.

On 6/24/2023 at 8:58 AM, Scots Caz said:

mine was similar situation...6 free nights for 7 night cruise and plenty suites available but was told I could not have one as the majority of my trips had been veranda so could only book veranda...and since they were sold out I needed to move 'down' not 'up'....inconsistent.

If this happens to you again, I would ask them to price a move up category for you. However, the supplement may be more than you wish to pay (in addition to the full rate for any remaining nights).

4 hours ago, Mackdogmolly said:

Wow, that was some lucky passenger!

The price is adjusted accordingly in relation to your normal cabin category. I am aware of someone using 6 free nights on a 7 night cruise. Their usual cabin category was veranda or below but the difference in paying full rate for one night (adjusted accordingly, I.e more) meant it was a terrific deal for them to book an available owners suite. 

It depends very much on  cabin availability, the number of free nights used and the length of the cruise.

4 hours ago, takemewithyou said:

From the Ireland intensive cruise……wanted to report that the second day in Dublin, before we left port, we had an Irish group brought onboard to perform traditional Irish songs and one gal did some Irish dance.

 

I was so happy to see Azamara still keeping to their destination focus.  The cabaret was packed the last two evenings for shows.

 

Today we will visit Warrenpoint in Northern Ireland.

Tomorrow Belfast and we will have our Azamazing evening. 

Can l ask where in Belfast your evening event is being held?

5 hours ago, takemewithyou said:

From the Ireland intensive cruise……wanted to report that the second day in Dublin, before we left port, we had an Irish group brought onboard to perform traditional Irish songs and one gal did some Irish dance.

 

I was so happy to see Azamara still keeping to their destination focus.  The cabaret was packed the last two evenings for shows.

 

Today we will visit Warrenpoint in Northern Ireland.

Tomorrow Belfast and we will have our Azamazing evening. 

Can I ask where in Belfast your evening event is being held ?

19 hours ago, scottie99 said:

On Onward just now.  Ship is in excellent condition.

 

Our cabin, CC suite 8020 is in great condition, obviously refitted.

 

Steward and butler, faultless.

 

Cruise Director is not De Gray chap as we expected but a Scots guy, Martin ( I think, not exactly sure) . He is ok, not memorable.

 

Enjoying cruise very much.

How was embarkation in Gran Canaria? 

What time did it start and did you have a separate group for suite guests?

Thank you for any information you can provide.

1 hour ago, uktog said:

Lucky you. Atlas Bar had v poor service and was serving cheap nasty sparkling white wine whilst there were superior products on offer even in the pool bar. It was shocking staff claimed they weren’t allowed to serve us the champagne but could send us a bottle to our room so we could drink it there - clumsy and rather crass attempt to recover service. We went for another approach DH walked to the pool bar and carried two glasses back. 

I had a cocktail created especially for me, it was such a special touch. The Atlas Bar is definitely my favourite.

3 minutes ago, asnaleah said:

I do wonder why the list isn’t updated regularly. Do they just not want us to know?

They may have limited supplies so any list quickly becomes redundant.

22 hours ago, Riocca said:

I found this on Azamara.co.uk the t&c’s say booking has to be between 1st January and 31st March 2023.

https://www.azamara.co.uk/find-a-journey#promo=12983&sort=date-asc

Thanks. I hadn't thought of doing this using quarterly savings as the filter.

14 minutes ago, Ayden said:

Just reading your question regarding Quarterly Savings here in Canada.

I went onto Azamara site and inserted quarterly savings into question bar and the entire list becomes available for sailings January through March 31st, 2023.

Try it this way and good luck.

I tried this, but the search results on UK site still lists savings for voyages booked by 31 December 2022.

1 hour ago, Marmaduke said:

Have Azamara discontinued the 10% quarterly saving for past passengers?  I have just looked on the UK website and there is a long list of cruises which qualify, but they had to be booked by 31 December 2022.  I can't find any cruises which qualify if booked now in this quarter.

This question has been asked on another thread, What happens after 1 February? There have been no responses so I assume all will be revealed on 1 February.

33 minutes ago, marinaro44 said:

It's also on Onward and Quest.  Haven't been on Pursuit lately.

It is also on Pursuit, has been since Pursuit first sailed.

15 hours ago, JM0115 said:

Do they tell you when you inquire about the beverage package on board what is available and what is not available, or do you just have to hope?

Speak to the bar manager before you buy the ultimate package or any of the experienced bar tenders. They will know what and how much they have on board. Please note that neither the bar manager nor any of the someliers have any authority to buy stocks in any of the ports visited.

You don't just have to hope, but if wines and champagne are important to you then you may have to make other arrangements.

6 hours ago, terry&mike said:

On a booking made on Tuesday (while not onboard a ship), a 10% loyalty discount was applied to the booking.

Can I ask if you are a Discoverer Platinum member, or if perhaps you are referring to the 10% Quarterly Savings discount which is available to all Azamara Circle members (booked onboard or not).

18 hours ago, lisiamc said:

Although I will say that they serve nice variations of the included drinks in the Atlas bar. I like champagne, G&T, Bourbon, or Canadian Whisky. I can’t drink the fancy signature cocktails, but they will pour me a lovely Hendricks and tonic.

Yes the drinks in the Ultimate package.