terry&mike

An update, and progress has been made. I've been dealing with an air issue for a client since early April, for an August departure. As of today, it appears that the air is back on the reservation, as well as the correct OBC, and the money owed is correct. Money the client had paid for the air in April when they paid their balance due, that Azamara inexplicably refunded in mid-May, was re-charged to the client again this morning. After much patience and communication, it appears this reservation has been properly sorted out. Further, I have received written confirmation in the past week of the proper amounts of OBC on other bookings. I am now working to have corrections made to a booking sailing in November (balance due is in July). The balance due is incorrect due to a payment for Shore Excursions made on a credit card in February, and the booking shows an Enjoyment Package ($999) as Add Ons, rather than the purchased Indulgence Package ($1499), also purchased in February. Other than that, there are some issues with loyalty numbers not being correct, and loyalty points/status not being correct. I have been told this will be resolved on all bookings by end of June. I won't say it has been easy, and that it has not consumed an amazing amount of time, but I will say that I have had success in correcting errors, and things are moving in a forward direction.

As an update, I have been working with an Executive Account Rep to get this air issue sorted out. I feel I am making progress, but still have some way to go. In regards to the client refund, rep states they show that no money has been refunded to client, so they will need to look further into it. A couple of days later, account shows client now has a balance due, but it is not the correct amount (that was refunded). The booking no longer says Cruise Only, and instead says departure city Venice, this should be New Orleans, but it is Venice on the return, so I feel progress is being made. I don’t blame clients and other posters on this board for being disappointed and frustrated in not being able to use OBC to book excursions. The research and planning of a trip are part of the joy and anticipation of the trip. The vacation itself is so much more than the several days a person is actually away and traveling, it is the experience from the excitement of booking the trip initially through to the memories after one has returned home. Having a part of this taken away does dampen the experience, and it makes me feel bad for those who are unable to study and book excursions as they’d like to. I also agree that the prices should not increase while guests are unable to book. In a normal environment, where guests can choose to book or wait, I’m okay with prices fluctuating to any amount that the cruise line wants, but in this setting it seems to be not pro-customer service leaning. I also don’t believe that telling someone to ‘calm down’ has ever resulted in any human ever actually calming down, and usually quite the opposite.

I would definitely get a new one with correct information. We were in Vietnam in January this year, had 2 single entry eVisas each due to our itinerary, and the guards are very diligent in studying the information. We were in Vietnam in January 2020 as well, and I remember someone on our trip having a visa issue that they settled by paying ‘coffee money’ (bribe in local lingo) to the border agent, so I think it could be done but I don’t think I’d risk it.

If you happen to be on the September 3-10, 2023 sailing of Onward, I posted a pdf of shore excursions for that sailing on the Roll Call. I was able to obtain this document last Thursday from an Azamara rep. Some of the prices have increased since before the data migration.

Have sailed both, and for us there is no comparison. The experience on Cunard, from service, to food, to decor, to fellow passengers is far preferred. We last sailed NCL in March/April of this year, and chose it for the itinerary, which was amazing. Everything other than the itinerary was either good to below average, with most all meals being "good" to some being very disapointing, and 2 being excellent (12 day cruise). We last sailed Cunard in August of last year, and our experience was that everything was between very good and excellent, with a couple of things being merely good. I would take an inside cabin on a Cunard ship over a Haven suite on an NCL ship any day, but I do give preference to great itineraries, so that is a factor. We are very happy in Brittania class on Cunard, but Grills is a whole other level, worth it if you can swing it, but certainly not necessary for us in any way.

We've been to the Harpa Concert Hall, and it is a beautifully designed building, situated on a lovely harbor. I understand your disappointment.

They don't depart until August, so I have a bit of time to get this sorted, but there is no way in any universe that I am going to leave their air to be sorted until they are within 30 days of departure.

I'm thinking that the air has not been actually cancelled, but it could end up that way if I don't get this sorted out soon. The client added air on the reservation back in January, for himself at $889.54, and his wife at $1224.65 (they have different air itineraries due to work commitments after the cruise). This equals a total of $2114.19. A few weeks after the data migration, I was able to post their final payment online, and the total showing due was correct. I was aware their OBC was incorrect, but had submitted forms to get this corrected. After I posted the payment, I electronically requested updated confirmations (both Agent and Guest) showing the booking to be paid in full, which was sent to me via email. Immediately, I noticed at the top that the booking stated "Cruise Only" at the Departure City area of the invoice. In looking at the money breakdown area, there was now a line item showing $2114.19 under the husband's name, and then nothing under the wife's name. The commission was also showing $0, rather than the proper amount. I have been chasing a correction in this ever since. In the past week, the booking has changed to have a line item of $33.00 appear under the wife's name, while $2114.19 remained under the husband's name. Then a line item of -$2114.19 was deducted from the booking, and the booking was showing an overpayment. Now the line item under the husband's name is $2097.69, and the line item under the wife's name is $16.50, but the line item of -$2114.19 has been removed, and the booking is showing an amount due of $2114.19, although it still states Cruise Only. The commission has been replaced. When I pull up the air on the airline websites using the Record Locators, I can see their air is still booked, but not paid for yet, so I'm hoping I can get the internal accounting sorted out and the air does not get cancelled. This booking also had a $450 OBC on it ($300 husband, $150 wife), which went to $0. My first submission got it "corrected" to $300, my second submission got it "corrected" to $400, but as of today, it is now back to $0. This is just one booking that I am dealing with errors on. Every booking I have has at least one error. I feel like daily I am slogging through an exercise in patience.

I just received a text from a client that said "I just got a $2000 credit from Azamara, what's that about?" I asked if the amount he received was for $2114.19, and he said yes. Ugg. Unfortunately, this is the amount of the Air on his reservation. There has been an error regarding the air on his reservation since the migration, which I've been trying to get corrected before the client noticed. I was finally able to communicate with someone at Azamara mid-week last week and was told that they would address the issue and get the air issue corrected. Now the client has been refunded the money he paid for air, the air is still not corrected on the booking, Azamara will have to charge his cc again for the funds, and the client is left wondering what the heck is going on. He's cruised before but not with Azamara, and I was already giving him reassurances that the missing OBC on his booking would be re-instated, not to worry. Now this mess.

I assure you that even though some travel agencies are accepting Azamara bookings (and some are not), there is much chatter in the community about "recommending" to these clients other lines such as Oceania and Viking Ocean until the problems get sorted out. It's just become too time consuming and frustrating to provide accurate information, make bookings, or service bookings at the current time.

When this email arrived, I had just finished discussing the "Azamara Issue" with someone, and I had made the statement, "At this time, they need to rely on Public Relations 101, which is Apology, Accountability, Promise. Along the lines of, 'We are sorry for the frustration this has caused, we underestimated the challenges migrating to the new system would create, and we are working diligently to correct the problems'." From the email wording, sounds like they have someone trying to steer the PR ship with a bit more thought.

I received an email from Azamara late yesterday, it was a bit of a mixed bag, but I'm happy that I was contacted. I'm not sure if it was in response to my posts on their Facebook page where they asked me to DM them, or to one of my forms, or to my emails, so can't be of help there except to say try all the avenues. The email stated that they had tried to call me earlier that day (although I didn't have a missed call), and would try to make contact again on Monday. An issue in one of my bookings was briefly addressed, but the information was incorrect. They attached a pdf of the full list of Shore Excursions for a sailing where I have 3 cabins booked. It's 29 pages with details and prices, for the sailing September 3-10, 2023, on the Onward. I may try to post it over on the Roll Call for that sailing, in case people are interested in making plans. Something to note, is that the pricing for some of the excursions has increased. For example, Capri & Positano On Your Own was priced at $169 pp before the migration, and one of the cabins has this excursion booked at $338 total. This excursion is now priced at $199 pp, or $398 total for 2. Doesn't matter too much for some who have huge OBC's that they are just trying to burn up, but makes a big difference for those paying actual money. I am hopeful that I may be making some progress and headway. I'll know more on Monday when/if we are able to make contact.

This sounds like some positive movement. Here's hoping....

Yes.

We stay in the Trastevere neighborhood in Rome, and always select a well rated Airbnb.

I am a travel agent, and can attest to this. Thus far, my posts on this board have only been in reference to the issues I have been experiencing on my 2 personal bookings. I have been hesitant to speak on the further issues I am having with client bookings. This view is changing with my growing frustration in getting these bookings corrected, including an error with air in a booking beyond final payment. My access, communication, and ability to get errors corrected has become a time consuming and frustrating burden. This is also becoming a negative reflection on me as a travel professional, as 2 bookings are clients who have not sailed previously with Azamara that I recommended the experience to, and they are beginning to doubt the product. What a mess.

Same. I posted on their FB, I got a response asking me to DM details, I did so last week. No response.

I am having this same experience (among several other issues). New Loyalty numbers with 0 points were assigned to my husband and I, and show on our bookings. I have filled out the form, provided our old Loyalty numbers, and points, along with our booking numbers, and asked to have them reinstated and attached to our bookings. I received my second response this morning saying exactly what your response says. And in looking at my bookings, nothing has changed, still new Loyalty numbers, 0 points.

We were moving from a Princess ship to Queen Mary 2 in Southampton a few months ago, which meant we disembarked Princess by 9am and could not board QM2 for several more hours. We were able to check our luggage in with people waiting outside the terminal building, and then wander around a bit in Southampton. If the weather is bad, there is a large mall nearby worth spending some time in.

Thank you.

My concern is also growing. I am trying to remain hopeful and positive, but have had no movement or response in correcting my bookings.

Thank you! That is great news. Will work perfect with our flight at 11:15am down to Bari, Italy.

Not yet, but I think the sailings are just starting in the Med, so hopefully some folks will report in.

Agree, no truth in it for me. No loyalty points still. Although my 2 cruises are showing, I am missing $1000 OBC on one cruise, and on the second one I am missing the Indulgence Package I purchased, and although my Shore Excursions are there (that I used the OBC from the Indulgence Package to book) it is showing that I owe money towards these excursions. Very frustrating. I have a balance due next week, and I'd really like my issues to be sorted out before I pay this.

You may want to wait until the website changeover is sorted out to purchase this package. I purchased the Indulgence Package in late February for a Amazon & Brazil cruise we are taking in the Fall, for $1499 (total, for our cabin; not per person). After purchasing the package, I used the $700 Shore Excursion OBC to book several shore excursions for hubby and me. The package no longer shows on my booking, and although my reserved shore excursions are on my booking, it shows that I owe money towards them. As that cruise is still a good bit out, I'm hoping it will get sorted. Currently, I'm more concerned about the issues with my upcoming Mediterranean cruise.....