mchell810

Sounds wonderful. Where are you headed?

Glad you gave feedback on that tender situation. I can't believe no one from the ship thought: "This is dangerous we should do something." In any case, seems like you had a lovely day in Loretto and Carol's lunch tacos looked great!

It's sad to know the food/service has been a bit of a disappointment, but very glad you seem to be enjoying yourself anyway.

I'm so glad I had lunch before catching up .... Your lunch in PV looks tasty! 😋

Finally all caught up! I see I am first to get the song reference: Pass the Dutchie... Yikes! 37 minutes for Carol's morning latte! Enjoying your GSJ as always. Happy New Year to you and Carol.

I was on Pursuit in November, Windows buffet was a real buffet every night. As noted by @uktog in another thread there are differences in how things are done in each ship now. Also, some "covid protocols" seem to be removed from each ship at different times.

Heading over... your reviews are always a good read. Happy New Year 🥂

I am not on your cruise (unfortunately 😔); however, I agree anticipation is definitely a huge part of the joy of travel. Planning trips has kept me sane in the last 18 months. I look forward to posts from your magnificent journey. 😀

@Buckeye94 I am thinking of doing this trip for 2024 or 2-25 so really looking forward to your posts; especially as I will likely be solo. Enjoy!

Also, you should try the South America page to gather info from anyone with Buenos Aires experience, not just Azamara passengers. You can find that by going to the boards.cruisecritic.com page and then scrolling down to Port of Call (you will have passed the links for Roll Calls along the way).

Other than the menus for specialties there's no way to access the everyday menus before you cruise. When we made reservations for Prime C and Aqualina there was a list showing each night's theme in Windows buffet. We used that as a guide (didn't want to miss Indian night) and made our plans based on that.

Could be the rules have changes; could be the individual doesn't drink (for personal and/or religious reasons) and finds it easier to say "I can't" than get into details.

I was on Pursuit in November and we had 3 small bottles -- Bacardi, Smirnoff and Bombay Sapphire. We were able to switch out the items we didn't want for more of what we did (ex. gin for rum).

I was in Lisbon a few weeks ago and stayed at the Avenida Palace Hotel (it gets a lot of recommendations on this board). We arrived at 9:30am and our room was ready -- an unexpected treat. The hotel is lovely, and the location perfect for walking around, DIY exploration and restaurants. In my experience getting a taxi from the airport is very easy and same for the cruise port. We paid 20 euro to the airport and just 10 from the port (always rounding up from what the meter read to give a tip).

From the Silversea website https://www.silversea.com/travel-informations/general-information.html

I have seen the same reports; my personal experience with SS leaves me no worries. Can something happen? Yes, but there are few complaints about the actual onboard experience (except the Wind & I am not traveling on that ship.) I know I won't need to bring wine onboard and there is no pretense of a tote bag.

Azamara does advertise things as included which they are not providing, not just tote bags. They sell ultimate drink packages showing included items and then afterwards passengers find out many of the items are not actually onboard. I agree with you, Azamara is not providing the experience I expect based on what they have advertised as included; thus, I have 65 days of cruising booked for 2023 -- every single day is on Silversea.

As I read this, and different threads, where people mention bringing their own tote bag, tonic, and wine, I can't help but wonder at what point to you say Azamara is not providing what you've paid for? Sure a tote bag is easy to tuck into your suitcase; however, drinks not so much. I know some people believe l it's no be deal to bring these things for yourself. For me, I feel it undermines the feel of a vacation; I don't want to spend time in port looking for wine (and lugging it back to the ship). If I choose, and pay for, an all inclusive experience I expect to get it.

I have recommended SDT several times on these board and have had mostly positive experiences with them; nevertheless, I feel I need to post about the mixed service I received last month especially bc when I gave this feedback SDT offered me a discount on a future tour and asked me directly not to post my experience on social media. That act seemed like a red flag to me: I can't help but wonder how many other less-than-stellar reviews have been suppressed in this manner. Overall we were happy with our tours; however, there were some hiccups. For our Barcelona City tour the driver guide was knowledgeable and friendly. I was disappointed in that he didn't bring us directly to the entrance for Sagrada Familia -- as had been promised. As a result, we had to find the right line on our own through the crowds. We had planned another tour with SDT to Monserrat, but we never met the numbers for a small group. The SDT rep offered us a private tour (for twice the price) which we turned down. Then, just 2 days later he suddenly said he had another couple interested so the small group tour was back on, so I cancelled the booking I had made with the cruise line. Just one week later -- 2 days before our tour -- the rep emailed to say the other couple dropped out and he could only do the tour as a private tour at that higher price. Yes, it's possible the other couple dropped out, but it all felt too coincidental to me. I refused the private tour (again) and luckily was able to book the tour with the cruise line as soon as we boarded. Finally, we had a private tour from Seville to Cordoba. For this, we had excellent service from SDT. The driver waited patiently when our ship was late in docking; his car was immaculate and the ride to/from Cordoba was very smooth. Once in Cordoba the guide was very pleasant and knowledgeable. He made a point of ensuring we visited all the things I had mentioned when organizing the tour. This day was everything we wanted; SDT delivered beautifully. Bottom line: I still recommend SDT, but I would NOT say they are flawless. When setting up tours for this trip I only looked at SDT, next time I am in Spain I am likely to explore what other companies have to offer as well.

I got off the Pursuit 11/30; this is the Aqualina Menu

If you don’t mind I have a question about wine service in LaDame: is the included wine service the same as other venues where one is offered a red or white (and ofc can request something else); or, is there an attempt to pair included wines with each course? I see on the menu some items have wines paired for an additional charge, I’m not asking about that, just trying to get a sense of the process. TIA

You may want to read the thread below from 2019. I keep it bookmarked just in case I get to do this cruise— I lost the opportunity in the Covid cancellations. Do keep an eye on the prices as I was able to catch a sale and booked a reduced price for that 2020 trip.

I just finished reading @mahdnc review & was sad to know I wouldn’t have a review on this board to follow. And then BOOM. I saw your thread. 💃💃 I’m looking forward to following along. Enjoy your cruise !

I really enjoyed your trip report & the photos. Thank you. Safe journey home.

May I ask were you offered the 4 small bottles or was it one large? Were you offered a choice in the liquor? TIA