CRUISERTN

Bonnie - I agree with you about the negative posts, and also about Tony!!

We have never had the opportunity to cruise with Russ (have heard only good things about him), but have cruised with Tony and Eric and love both of them- both are such wonderful and amazing people as well as entertainers, and we have felt both are fantastic and Azamara should be proud to have them - we have also been fortunate to have had Christine onboard with Tony a few times, and she is also wonderful and an extra special treat to have her perform.

We look forward to cruising with Tony again in a few weeks -and we are hoping Christine is with him once again!!

Bonnie - thanks so much. I did see the other thread that you mentioned and will check that one for your answer. As another person posted, we, too, booked this cruise a very long time ago and are wondering what happened to the excursions that were available months ago but are not showing up at all now.

Thanks again for looking into this matter for us. Very much appreciated.

Peter and Janet - I have asked Bonnie about this also. We are on your sailing on the Quest on May 1 and while we are not opposed to private tours, we have a lot of onboard credit also and, therefore, wanted to use it for ships tours. Hopefully Bonnie will be able to find something out for us.

Bonnie - I have found this thread, and, thanks again for looking into this matter for us.

Bonnie - I noticed several months ago that the Land Discoveries for the Quest sailing on May 1, 2016 had quite a few choices for the ports in Israel and several in Jordan in addition to Petra such as Wadi Rum, etc. I noticed the other day that there are not any excursions posted for Israel except for one and only Petra for Jordan. Is there any way to find out when the excursion options will be updated or why the others that were listed several months ago have all been removed? Any info will be most appreciated.

I forgot to mention that the couple who arrived with the email from their physician did not have any problem. I, personally, would not count on something like that, especially when everything we were told and read stated it required a signature from a physician on the physician's letterhead, as well as a reason for the waiver. The confusion for us was the format in which they wanted the waiver. We brought several letters with original signatures in case they needed to be kept by authorities along the way, but no one kept anything.

My husband got the Yellow Fever waiver for travel to Tanzania (from Kenya), and it was confusing as to what they would accept. Some said it had to be on a waiver form, others said a letter from a physician, etc. We contacted the tour company direct that was handling the specific tour in Tanzania and was told all he needed was a letter on his physician's letterhead and signed by the physician - not a stamp or signature stamp, but an original signature, and an explanation as to why he could not take the vaccine. It was sufficient for him, and it really does seem to depend on the mood of the people at the entry point. One couple on our tour arrived with a copy of an email sent to them by their physician merely stating they could not receive the vaccine, without any explanation, and both were under 60 years of age. Some require the travel physician's signature and stamp on the Yellow card, along with a note saying "see attached waiver", and the person's physician's letter is attached. We tried calling the local tour company who booked the tour for us, the CDC, embassies and consulates, and got different answers from all of them. We decided the people with the firsthand knowledge would be those in country contracted by our tour company who are actually running the tours since they are with the tourists and know what is needed at the particular border, and once we contacted them and got their response, we did what they requested and did not have any problems.

We did a safari in Kenya and Tanzania this summer and used Travisa visa services for our visas. Used them previously for India and China and were pleased each time. Very professional and prompt, and worth paying the extra money for their services rather than trying to do it yourself, in my opinion. It took a little longer for them to get visas for two countries, but we still had everything back within two weeks of sending it in. You can find their website and it may seem a little confusing at first, but it is not too bad to use once you figure it out. If you have questions, call them and they are always very helpful.

I have been to all of those mentioned, but would prefer Tokyo (Yokohama) or Hong Kong -

So glad everyone voiced their opinions and glad we were heard! At least we have the "old" Internet and laundry back. Thanks to everyone who listened and did the right thing!

I agree with Tonyd that Azamara's days are numbered.....so unfortunate.

We tried Oceania and enjoyed the service, food, and very unique itinerary, but the atmosphere was much more stuffy than Azamara, and no visibility of senior staff and no "warm and fuzzy feelings" that make Azamara so special. We actually found the food and service to be superior to our most recent Azamara cruise a few months ago. We thought we had found "our" line with Azamara and now we are not so sure and thought we would look again at Oceania, only for them to recently announce they have been bought by NCL....talk about a shock...sort of like Kia buying Rolls Royce:eek: It certainly looks like RCL could care less about the two Azamara ships and is only concerned about their 6,000 passenger floating cities and building them larger and larger. No, thank you.....so sad to think, but maybe NCL will end up with the two Azamara ships also.... :eek:

I agree with the others - make the Azamazing evenings go away and give us back the harpist, the laundry and the internet. Nothing was broke, so why did you have to "fix" things?

I received the email from Nicole. Seemed like a generic lip service email, but I did click on the "contact" button and sent an email. Wonder if I will ever get a reply.

Another vote for Eden Rock! Very easy access and not too far of a walk from the tender pier.

Sorry, I meant Barbados instead of St. Lucia. Would recommend seeing the turtles if you have a chance. Beautiful creatures!!

You can snorkel from shore in Dominica at Champagne Reef...there is not a beach but a boardwalk where you walk down to a rocky area and have to walk over some rocks to enter. They call it champagne reef because of the bubbles in the water from a volcanic area and you feel like you are swimming in a bubbling aquarium. You can even feel warmer water in some parts than in others. Highly recommended for a unique experience. Most cruises offer an excursion there where you snorkel from the boat and won't have to walk over all of the rocks. You can also go there on your own, but if you do you should negotiate a price for the taxi driver to stay there and wait on you and not pay until you get back to the ship, because it is in an area off the beaten path as far as having lots of taxis there.

Agree with the previous post about St. Lucia also. If you have a chance to go to the Baths in BVI, that is also nice but many times the current is too strong.

Agree with the others about not feeding the reef fish. Forget snorkeling in San Juan. St. John is great, but if you are pressed for time you have to take a taxi to the ferry, wait for the ferry, take the ferry over, then a taxi from there to snorkel and then the same thing coming back. If you go to St. John, Trunk Bay or Honeymoon Beach is good. The best in St. Thomas is Coki and easy access and lots of fish near the rocks on the side closest to Coral World. Grand Turk is good, too, but snorkeling there is off of the boat as opposed to the beach at Coki or the places mentioned in St. John.

I totally agree with Little Britain and the other posts on the previous page.

We don't want to accumulate points that will probably take 300 two week cruises in a suite to earn a free one week cruise - we want the perks for each cruise and want the internet and laundry. Bad enough we noticed more of a Royal Caribbean mass market feel to the line after our cruise a few months ago as compared to previous ones, and did not like the art auctions and more photographers and taking away the harpist. Prices keep going up and perks are going away. This, unfortunately, is causing us to look elsewhere.

Please, Azamara, give the loyal guests our laundry and internet back!!

Once again, another "little thing" taken away...just like the harpist...slowly but surely taking the little extras away that made Azamara special, and now taking away the free laundry and internet minutes. We were last onboard 4 months ago and a year prior to that, and noticed quite a difference that seemed to be making the brand look more like a mass market line...more photographers in your face, more promoting bingo, art auctions....it is beginning to look more and more like RCI bean counters have taken over....next thing we know, they will announce that Azamara has been sold to NCL, just like they recently did with Oceania and Regent....so very sad:(

Azamara's new "buy one get one 1/2 off" is also a joke because all they did was raise their original rates. When we were onboard last time, it was the first time we did not do a future cruise credit while onboard...we saw the beginning of what looked like major changes that were not going to be for the good and decided to wait awhile and see what happens. The "About Rose issue" to me seems all about money - especially since the higher ups have offered no explanation other than to say it is now gone.

For TLCOhio - we are doing the Solstice from Sydney to Auckland in January 2015 and I am hoping you can answer a question about the Bay of Islands. I understand that it is a tender port, and was wondering if the ship's tenders drop you at Paihia or Russell? We were wanting to do an afternoon private tour leaving from Paihia and not sure we would have enough time to get back to the ship before it sailed. I know those booked on the ship's tours will get the first tenders, but was wondering if those with Elite past passenger status also get priority tenders whether they are booked on the ship's tours or not. Any info on Bay of Islands and suggestions for tours for this port and any others would be much appreciated. Thanks in advance!!

Agree with the previous post about the snorkeling in Grand Turk. I have found the best snorkeling from the beach in St. Thomas at Coki beach. You can take a taxi from the ship to Coki for $10 or $12 per person each way (can't remember the exact price but the taxi rates are fixed and posted), and they have snorkel gear for rent there as well as drinks and beach chair rental. We bring our own gear. Best snorkeling is to the right as you enter - by the rocks- and very easy with shallow water. We always go in the morning and leave in early afternoon to get back to the ship area for afternoon shopping. It is also a good idea to get back early since afternoon traffic can get very heavy and this way you won't stress about getting back to the ship on time. We will be going to St. Thomas again next month and will be heading to Coki once again.

Everything is now posted on Azamara's website for both the Journey and Quest. I must say I am very disappointed since there is nothing that really jumps out and grabs me - looks like the same old stuff with the exception of Australia/New Zealand - was disappointed in the 2015 sailings and was hoping that 2016 would look better, but that did not happen.:(:(:(:(:(

My vote is for Princess or Celebrity.

I think Kellie Poodle needs to stick with Celebrity and RCI....don't think I need to say anything more.

If food is a priority, I would consider Azamara and Oceania. I think Oceania has the edge over Azamara as far as food, but the total warm and fuzzy feeling and being treated more like family is felt more on Azamara. I would not consider a mass market line if you are wanting an emphasis on food, unless you plan on dining in specialty restaurants every night.

Johannes, Heike and Eric - the dream team!! We sailed with this team last year and they are wonderful!! Great that Eric and his identical twin brother Johannes will be together!!:p:p We are looking forward to sailing with this wonderful team again in a few weeks.