takemewithyou

I am seeing some crazy prices on excursions for 12/2024 cruise.

Like Catamaran trip that costs $5000 pp!

And accessible tours that cost $900 pp! 
I keep checking back, but the prices have not been corrected……

11 minutes ago, KevintheIrishDJ said:

Didn't happen the first 2 cruises on the Onward.

That doesn’t make it right.  The corkage fee on Azamara is very reasonable.  When I bring bottles onboard and take them to a public spot on ship, I expect to pay corkage! 

4 hours ago, laurieb said:

I was thinking maybe I should pack one just to be safe.  I've often used one as my personal item for my flights

We have one from the early days….2008 or 2009 and it is beautiful, sturdy and large and we love it.  DH always uses that as his personal item! 😀

I read 2025

2 hours ago, N 2 Sun said:

I just returned from two Azamara cruises (Quest Lisbon to Barcelona & Pursuit Rome to Venice). I really enjoyed the sheets on our beds and the pillows. Does anyone know the brand of each and if they can be purchased by the general public?  Now that I am back home, I miss many things from those wonderful cruises….the bedding is definitely one that I hope to replicate at home. 
 

Thank you. 

They used to come from Standard Textile, but that was a long time ago.

You should call Azamara and ask or have your travel agent check with them.

Standard Textile is nice…..I have ordered things from them because I liked the Azamara linens.

Well, it’s way too soon to know who the officers will be for our Christmas and New Year cruise on Journey, but crossing our fingers that it will not be the experience that some of you had this last January! 

Thanks for all your reports.

28 minutes ago, laurieb said:

If you have a B2B cruise, be aware that if you adjust one of the cruises, new promotion case in point, you will lose any benefits you had on both legs, even if no new promotion was added to the other leg.  Not a happy camper right now.

Are you referring to Pick Your Perk promotion on offer right now?  The T &C says it is combinable with B2B sailings.  Do you lose B2B OBC or other perks such as Experience More package? 

Our only cruise in a PH, we had the butler bring specialty coffee and a pastry from Baristas almost every morning, he transported bottles of wine a couple of times to specialty restaurants for us, we had dinner from a specialty restaurant served once in the cabin (not course by course….he was too busy) and only one or two times we had canapés delivered, and he also delivered all our laundry to us.  
 

What else could we have asked for beyond all this?  I felt like it was quite a bit, but again, it was our first PH.

2 minutes ago, radiationman said:

Does Celebrity Status apply to Azamara?

It no longer does….unless, you have cruised once before with Azamara.

7 minutes ago, uktog said:

Sadly no. Manoj seems to be the lead sommelier just now

I think he is still around.  Our paths don’t seem to cross!  I think he was possibly on Pursuit for awhile, but not last June when I was there.

Thanks for your response.

@uktog Have you run into Sheldon the Sommelier? 
I have not seen him since 2017 on Journey to NZ.  
I had heard he was still Azamara…….have you run across him on Journey?

@lolawpb Those pictures are very helpful.  Thanks so much!

2 hours ago, lolawpb said:

On the Vista, some of the penthouses also have extended balconies which we found to be very nice. We had a dining table and two loungers out there. I'm not sure what the regular balconies have. The bathroom is quite large and the shower very spacious so that's a plus along with the closet space. The entire suite is one of the largest and nicest entry-level suites that we have enjoyed on any ship. For us this is the most important as I am claustrophobic and wouldn't sleep well in a small cabin. We have always had a butler on our cruises and sometimes we use them a lot and sometimes not as much. This last trip was pretty simple so we didn't require much but our butler tried to do things for us anyway such as leaving snacks in the room and checking in frequently to see if he could be helpful to us. The big bonus was that I had no trouble getting reservations of my choice for the specialty restaurants. My friend is cruising in concierge soon and said she was not able to get the times she wanted so that might be a factor if those reservations are important to you.

Do you have any pictures of the PH extended balcony or does anyone have any links for pictures?  Thanks.

38 minutes ago, corinna121 said:

Wow, that does sound really special. We celebrated my January 2024 birthday on board Scarlet Lady. I was impressed that when I got on and off at the port or scanned my card anywhere I was wished a Happy Birthday by a crew member, but no cake, coupons, decorations or special dining venue. Looks like we will really enjoy Azamara. I checked the proper box and the cake and decorations will be a surprise for my husband because although he knows about the cruise, I am the planner in the family!!

It was fun to come back to the cabin and find the Happy Birthday banner and balloons!   

15 minutes ago, LewiLewi said:

My son and DIL are thinking of joining me on a fall cruise on Journey. There is availability of an aft facing balcony cabin on deck 6. Question: Is it a noisy cabin; a lot of vibration, engine noise, etc.? All day at sea or only when ship is coming into or leaving a port?

I stayed in one of those cabins quite a few years ago on deck 6.  It would be what is now labeled a P1.  They cost more $$ now because they are popular and they were relabeled and come with some extra perks such as one night sprecialty restaurant dining, some liquor in the cabin, etc.

The views from the aft are great. it is a solid balcony…not see through.  There is vibration when underway (if going at say 17 or 18 knots),and  in high seas.  There is some engine noise when docking and leaving port.  It was not bothersome to us, but it might be for some.

35 minutes ago, Mackdogmolly said:

How do you even ask for that?

I don’t know!  I would need the cruise line or my travel agent to be providing guidance.  If I were going on a world cruise, I would need a checklist of items to be aware of! 

Appreciate your thoughts on this @ECCruise.

Re sun deck:  I do think some different furniture would be nice.  That area does feel as though it hasn’t been touch or updated in years.  I do not want to see cabanas that you pay for, however! 

16 minutes ago, corinna121 said:

We will be cruising on Azamara Journey Sept 21,2024. This will be my husband's birthday cruise. When looking at shore excursions etc. I found the Addon section which allows me to choose which day to celebrate his birthday. Questions: what will they do to celebrate his birthday? Is there an added charge for this? This is our first Azamara Cruise but we have been on many different lines. I did find the tips for Azamara newbies Excel spreadsheet to very helpful. https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15Deg-GaeZYLml8NN3PVwoh_jUkQ8QmYUe1wxnVAlODE/edit#gid=0.  Any tips are very much appreciated. TIA

They bring a small cake for dessert wherever you are dining and your cabin attendant may put up a few decorations in your cabin.  No cost.

I don’t usually need a lot of hand holding for planning cruises, BUT I would need some help planning for such an extensive cruise as a world cruise and I admit the last thing I would probably think of is how many blank pages are in my passport book! 

47 minutes ago, Mercruiser said:

I have a different viewpoint. I prefer Caribbean cruises that depart from San Juan. I like starting the cruise in the reliably warm part of the Caribbean. I also prefer to NOT have the 2 sea days at the start & end of the cruise going from/to Florida. I like sea days between port stops, not before/after all the port stops.

Glad they work for you.  Azamara is promoting this in the same way you mention…..no sea days and more time in the Caribbean.  

I don’t care for these Caribbean itineraries that begin or end in San Juan PR or Barbados.  It’s great for Azamara and the bottom line…..saves fuel costs for the 2 days on either end back and forth to Miami, but for the guests, it is extra time and money on our end to get to those beginning ports and get hotels……unless you live in Florida, I guess.  The only RT Miami cruises are on Onward.

28 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I don't know if this is part of the 'big' announcement, but as of 11 pm Eastern there are now 24 cruises for Jan – June 2026 on the Azamara website.  [Onward, Pursuit and Quest only; no Journey cruises]

Yes, wonder what that means for the future of Journey?

2 minutes ago, royallondon said:

Regent is due to get the first new build in 2026 and so if my total speculation is anywhere near the mark, I am more thinking the acquisition of a Regent Ship, Mariner, Voyager.  

That could be, I suppose.

Just now, royallondon said:

 

It doesn’t of course have to be an R class ship.

It only makes sense that Oceania would be off loading R class ships, doesn’t it?  I don’t think they have any plans to get rid of Riviera and Marina!