blingbling

On 7/23/2022 at 9:00 AM, mdunne48 said:

Well the NAWC held a full meeting at 8:30 this morning. Surprisingly it was not well attended but the conditions were not that bad on deck 12. While walking, I was thinking about tonight’s entertainment, The Mersey Beatles, and a song popped into my head, “Here comes the SUN”. It tried mightily to break through the fog. Try, try, try as it did, today the fog won…..we will have low temperatures in the 30’s tonight. Would not be surprised to see some snow showers. 

Mid-segment report card:

 

Foghorn — A+ (Right on-time every minute)
Entertainment — A+
Food — a 2 (too much, too good, too often)

Suite — A+
Staff — A++
 

About the only negative comment that we have concerns the in-room movies available.  Definitely not first run or even third run. This might have to do with post COVID issues with the movie industry releases. 

Foghorn: required by international rules of the road....from my Coastie DH.

On 5/20/2020 at 2:06 PM, stickey_mouse said:

I posed this question in the Northern Europe Ports forum, but thought I would see if the trusted HAL patrons had any input.

 

I am currently considering the following 9-night Norway itinerary and was wondering how this fare compares to other Norwegian fjord itineraries. I understand that a journey to the Arctic Circle is ideal, but I don't think we have the time to devote to that cruise at this point (perhaps in the future, though!). Are there any duds or winners among the ports?

 

Amsterdam

Flam

Sognefjord

Bergen

Molde

Geiranger

Geirangerfjord

Stavanger

Kristiansand

Oslo

Copenhagen 

 

I was immediately attracted to the itinerary because of the different start and end cities. I know Amsterdam is wonderful but don’t know much about Copenhagen or the ports in between. 
 

Is this itinerary a 'winner'? Thanks in advance for your input!

So sad this cruise was cancelled in order to accomodate more 7 day cruises and integrate the new Rotterdam guests.

Just off Oasis yesterday, Shampoo/Conditioner dispenser on wall in shower (did not use as I brought my own), small round soap bars replenished by cabin steward as used.

Can anyone tell me if inside cabins on the Oasis have soap, shampoo, and conditioner provided? Thanks in advance.

A good decor always adds so much pleasure for me personally and I too had hesitations about what the ship must look like now that they are scheduled for the renovation. Just returned from the Journey and rest assured it is quite a beautiful ship and still in very great shape. Nowhere was anything threadbare, broken, or torn.

I'm excited about the new prestigious up-scale decor as it appears very sophisticated. But I'd love to buy a couple of the elegant Discoveries Lounge sconces from whoever is dismantling the ship come January.

As for food portions, there was ample to eat and never a hesitancy to serve more or seconds when requested by my friends who had some definite favorites. In fact, I saw Executive Chef Fabio take over the risotta prep on Italian night at Windows Cafe and add MORE lobster and more lemon zest to suit his taste. No scrimping there!

There still remains about 650 guests to a crew of almost 400. As for activities, there were sometimes two different activities going on at once, so you had to choose what to do.

No need to second-guess your booking decision!

Enjoy.

We have booked to cruise with AZ on Quest on 01-05-2015 . The following day I discovered that both ships are going in for refit before our cruise removing many aspects on Quest , the dark wood etc, for a similar X look. For those who have cruised with AZ before does the dark wood and existing features add to the ambiance and character of the ship or does it make it tired and old in today's cruise market. We are just wondering if we have made the right choice?

We have recently cruised with X and we did notice that portion changes had been made to the menu and there were less staff and thus less onboard activities. Has this filtered down to AZ at this time or is it scheduled for next year?

 

 

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Just returned from a wonderful 9 days aboard the Journey. As to giving porters a tip, our bags came off of our private transfer (3 couples) and were wisked away so fast at Piraeus/Athens port, that there wasn't a moment to even consider tipping. We were on the ship minutes after arrival...what a great stream-lined system to breeze thru.

I brought along about 25 single dollar bills to use for breakfast room service tips and any other extraordinary service. Like someone else said above, given the cost of the cruise, this wasn't a significant amount of money. Almost every morning we had room service at the first delivery span from 6:30-7am (and especially nice to receive the phone call moments before that breakfast was on its way). It was always prompt and I gave a $1 tip each time. It was met by a surprised look, one waiter even going to so far as to say it wasn't required. I had to chase 2 of the waiters to the door to give them the tip before they exited. They were always grateful and every day it was a different waiter. I also tipped a few times during beverage service at the pool deck, Windows cafe, and Mosaic Cafe. I don't think it bought me better service, but it did give me a lot of grateful smiles.

Happy Birthday! Looking forward to meeting you on Sunday!

Karen & Grant

Hi Everyone,

 

I hope you will join me in wishing Azamara Journey Hotel Director, Heike Berdos a very happy 21st Birthday :).

 

I've had the pleasure of knowing Heike for many years, dating back to her days at Celebrity. She's one of the nicest & finest people I've ever met. I always marvel at how much she cares about doing everything possible to make your cruise a great one. She's an incredible asset to the Azamara team.

 

We look forward to seeing Heike again, on a future Azamara Cruise. Enjoy your special day Heike !

It's AzAmazing! The Sunset Bar stays! Looking forward to being at it on the Journey in 2 weeks.

That is just great news to read. Thank you all at Azamara for listening to us!

 

Phil

Thanks Bonnie to alerting us of the new photos. The static photo that reads "Club Continent" suite may be wrong, but go down the page to scroll thru all the photos and you see it. The new staterooms are breathtaking. I luv them!

Of course, they are still renderings, as the ships are sailing! Nice to see the link of a test cabin on the Quest for the new look....go to Post #103 and #104 and see the "sample" cabin done in the new materials & furnishings.

Thank you for the preview.

Karen

Love bubbly too.. if enough Prosecco or sparkling wine lovers spoke, they surely will listen to the trends their guests prefer! Bonnie chief blogger can you help?

The lack of a sparkling wine has been discussed here ad nauseum. It is ABSURD that Azamara does not include ANY sparking wine on their inclusive list, and in my opinion is a real negative of the brand (not enough to make me skip an Azarmara trip, because yes, I can afford to buy real champagne on the ship), but nonetheless, a short sighted oversight by whoever puts their wine list together. I mean, come one, how much sparking wine can one drink anyway (and they can likely buy a Prosecco or Cava at a better price point than the inclusive wines).

 

John R.

Good review and follow-up comments. Knowing the Azamara ships are undergoing extensive refurbishments early in 2016 prepares me for the fact that staterooms won't be quite luxurious....I do love the photos of the new look!

I appreciate the tip about asking for the previous night's wine at MDR, if the current one is not to one's liking. And good info about the hard sell on liquor....knowing this info will not make me shy about telling the bartender that the regular brands are absolutely fine for me thru-out the voyage. If the staff is really as good as they say about remembering each person, then I expect I will only need to say this once.

Looking forward to my own Azamara experience!

Thank you so much for the main dining room menu posting. Anticipating great food!

Karen

Was looking for information on purchasing tickets to "The Open" in 2016 and perhaps feedback from 2015 and 2014 attendees.

Saw the question about golf cruises so answering what I do know: Azamara works with Perry Golf for golfing holidays to well-known courses. Great Britain and Australia come to mind. Also sister company Celebrity is visiting The Open this year as well, but a different itinerary than Azamara.

Karen

Delighted to see your comments on your visit aboard Journey with following comments from the Pres/CEO and Captain. Impressive indeed to know they are so responsive and connected to their guests.

I'm looking forward to my first Journey 20 Sept 2015 in Greece & Turkey.

Will continue to read, research, and anticipate this Azamara sailing!

Karen

Hi Everyone,

 

As promised, here's my Journey ship report :

 

I had an absolutely wonderful day onboard Azamara Journey. To say it was fantastic, would be an understatement. Everyone made me feel especially welcome ! Azamara's President & CEO, Larry Pimentel was incredibly gracious, and offered a walking tour of the ship, which was delightful.

 

We enjoyed an outstanding lunch at Aqualina, joined by Larry, Captain Johannes, Hotel Director Heike, VP of Marketing Ellen, and... a special Mystery Guest, who I hope to share more about tomorrow. I especially enjoyed the Ahi Tuna appetizer, the Veal medallion entree, and a Flourless Chocolate cake - which was to die for !

 

As mentioned previously, it's been 4 years since I last sailed on Journey, and didn't know exactly what to expect. I've noticed a very few reports on this forum, claiming Journey looked "tired". Well... I didn't see it that way at all. As a matter of fact, I thought the ship looked absolutely beautiful, classy, and in tip top shape. The Officers and Crew were all smiles, and seemed very happy - eager to please the newly arriving guests for Journey's Transatlantic sailing.

 

After today's incredible experience, I can't wait to sail on Azamara again. Wish I were sailing on Journey today, but sadly - no. Hopefully, we'll sail with Azamara again, when Journey returns to Miami later this year, or early 2016. I'm thinking it would be perfect to sail on January 27th, 2016, as Journey has an 11 night Miami sailing, immediately after her Drydock. I'm circling the date :)

 

My sincere thanks to Larry Pimentel, Johannes, Heike, Ellen, Cruise Director Tony, and the entire Journey team. It was a truly perfect day, and another very special highlight of my treasured cruise ship memories.

 

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask !

Stop on over at the Silversea website and you will see the new itinerary which avoids West Africa. I also posted on another SS message to be sure everyone who hasn't yet heard from their travel agent gets the news.

http://www.silversea.com/worldcruise2015/itinerary/

In case you haven't heard....I'm sure you will soon!

The World Cruise itinerary changes are now posted on Silversea's website.

6 port days in Africa are now changed to 7 new port days, including an extra day in Cape Town.

http://www.silversea.com/worldcruise2015/itinerary/

Didn't see a roll call for 5 January 2015 on the Whisper, so posting here.

Many thanks to both YoungDubFan and Whitemocha for sharing your experiences. Helps with our 7 Oct planning and expectations for Visionary.

Karen

I join the other CC members in giving OUTSTANDING praise for your detailed review of your Basel to Amsterdam cruise. Like you, I enjoy the process of planning and feel knowing what to expect enhances my experience. I started following CC River Cruise tips last summer for our trip 7 OCT on the new Visionary. And we have 12 other cabins of friends from across the U.S. joining us on this trip who enjoy the fact I do a lot of the fact-finding for them! You can be sure I will be sharing your review with them.

I had tears of joy while reading your review. Can hardly wait.

Many thanks for sharing!

Karen