Four21eyes

Sigh. I feel very unmoored. I have called both my TA and Azamara. Two weeks ago, the cruise we were to have joined out of Southampton to NYC was cancelled. Yesterday, I committed to a land tour in Ireland, to replace the second cruise and redid our airfare to reflect a multi-city trip. We both feel Azamara is doing damage to the brand by not sharing their plans with us. We almost feel they are holding out for something. Several plausible scenarios for that. I understand these are all first world problems but several thousand of us are impacted by their laissez-faire attitude. Safety of passengers is the first priority of the captains aboard Azamara. We have the utmost respect for them. I feel very uncomfortable and untethered by this whole thing.

We just returned two days ago from a cruise on Onward. This was our fifth Azamara cruise. Two pre-Covid and three post. Cabin choice - The large suites are fore and aft. If the seas are rough… The suites are mid-ship and lovely. We had a stall shower which was very roomy compared with balcony bathrooms. Balcony is also about thirty per cent larger. We have been in one of the owners suites. It was very large. Food- The main dining room - Discoveries- seems to be struggling to resume its’ pre-Covid rigor. Food lukewarm and the delivery times could be up to 45 minutes. Windows (buffet) and the two specialty restaurants were much better. Wine and liquor choices continue to be what they were pre-Covid. You can BYOB on Azamara. Choices - The staff is helpful and friendly. We asked a lot of people what they thought. Many people were trying to use future cruise credits and there were many first time Azamara cruisers. Most people said Viking. Hands down. Second was Oceania for the food and service which they said was a notch above. However, their crew was standoffish. Third was Celebrity and then Azamara. Some people loved the experience and others said, for the money, one and done. There are pros and cons to each. Azamara has a laundry facility which is included. Many lines do not. They could take the entertainment up several notches. There was a lack of communication on this particular cruise. Lots to consider. Things have changed post Covid. Hopefully, Azamara will get back to what it used to be.

For some reason, Azamara does not have good tech support when it comes to WIFI. As we will be near shore, we are planning to rent a hot spot. When we cruised in Japan, we did and it was seamless. Don’t buy the WIFI package on board. It is a waste of money and very frustrating.

My husband also has been collecting for decades. We have found that staff tries to up sell you in the specialty restaurants. And it is swill. I also rarely drink anything alcoholic. We will be in Dublin for almost a week before we board. I have been researching wine shops and plan to BYOB.