mare s.

Anyone know if there are taxis (or other easy public transport) from Kirkwall port to Skara Brae? We have a walking tour of the city in the morning but have a long day in port and were hoping to go to Skara Brae in the afternoon.

Underwhelmed by the "big" reveal. A couple of new ports in the Caribbean and one in Japan? Plus the Caribbean cruises are in October....good luck with hurricane season! I am excited about the Canada cruises (and have already booked) for Fall 2025, but the rest seem meh. But I will wait and watch. (and see what the service, food, etc. are like on our upcoming Azamara cruise in June)

Well, I goofed. We disembark at Alexandra Quay, not Dun Laoghaire. We arrive on a Monday, July 1. From what I've read, this terminal is not restricted and we can walk right off. We are flying to Heathrow and connecting there to the U.S. so I don't think we go through pre-clearance.

any idea of the cost and availability of a taxi from the cruise ship terminal to the airport? We debark at 7:30 am and need to go straight to the airport for a 10:50 flight. TIY

We had maybe a 20 minute wait once on the Koningsdam and one morning decided to go to the MDR because we were very hungry lol. But there is a nice seating area outside and you can grab a drink and look at people or the ocean and the very nice hostess (at least on Koningsdam last cruise) came to get us when a table was available. By the end of the cruise we figured out when the best time was to appear for dinner.

We normally choose 7 and have been quite satisfied. One year we were upgraded to an accessible CC on 6 and loved it (the extra space especially in the bathroom was appreciated as I had a broken ankle and was in a full boot at the time). Our upcoming cruise we purposely decided on a CC on 8, just to pamper ourselves with the extra room and specialties but tried to choose a cabin that was not directly under the pool deck area. We are early risers and ours is a very port intensive cruise, so I am hoping there won't be too much noise. (Plus we got a very good price from our TA) But the following cruise we are back to our usual V2 aft on 7. Personally, I don't think Veranda Plus is worth the extra cost.

We did a Japan intensive in 2019. Absolutely wonderful cruise (and our last Azamara until this coming June, because of the pandemic) So I cannot speak for current Azamara (it was before the sale of Azamara). We also stopped in Russia, which isn't an option now. However, we thoroughly enjoyed the cruise, which started in Anchorage. The port times in Japan were generous and that is something we always look at when choosing a cruise. We've been on Oceania too and one cruise was good and one horrible (surprisingly bad food and questionable changes to our itinerary) but not to Japan.

Well, I just booked excursions (including the Azamazing Evening) directly with Azamara by phone since the workaround didn't seem to work for me. I went ahead and "booked" on line but instead of going to "payment" I saved the info and called Azamara. I got through instantly and the very nice operator asked for my booking #, pulled up the reservations I had made and confirmed them and applied our OBC. Easy peasy. I will wait a few days and then go back on line and make sure the reservations still appear, but it seemed to work. I just don't understand why Azamara's website is so difficult. I booked excursions on a recent HAL cruise on line using OBC and it was so very easy. This will be our first Azamara cruise since 2019 (right before the Covid pandemic) and I am hoping the on board experience is as wonderful as it used to be.

we didn't get one on our Jan 2024 Koningsdam cruise...we did get two small regular HAL bags.

We had the earliest embarkation time (10:20) on our cruise in January and we were Club Orange. We saw the sign and also saw a sign for 10:20 so we weren't sure what line to get into. And when we asked personnel milling around, they didn't seem to know either. Somebody finally told us to get out of the 10:20 line and into the Club Orange line which we did. At 10:20 we were ushered into the holding area...a very quick and easy check in and then we were directed to seats. We sat there until after 11 as more and more people entered. There was a lot of noise and people moving around and we could barely hear the loudspeakers and the personnel directing everyone seemed to be lost. It was not chaotic but very uncomfortable. Once Club Orange was called we had an easy walk to the gangway and onto the ship and our cabin was ready shortly after noon. I don't understand why we could not get right on the ship at 10:30...if the ship wasn't ready to receive us, they shouldn't have given such early embarkation times. I would have much rather sat up on the pool deck for 40 minutes than in a crowded, noisy hangar like building. The other negative thing I have to say about our cruise (which was otherwise excellent) is HAL's procedure to have your room cards in an envelope on your cabin door. I suppose it does save a bit of time at check in, but an elderly friend, who was on the cruise with us entered the wrong room by mistake! He didn't look carefully at the name on the card and just went in and made himself comfortable. Imagine the surprise when the real occupants walked in!

I rather liked the duo on Koningsdam at the beginning of January, although their patter was forced at times. But we really enjoyed the Rolling Stones band...made it a point to get there early for seats because by the time they started their sets, it was standing room only. Even saw a couple of the ship's officers bopping along. I would love it if some classical music returned...just for a nice change. I also enjoyed a bit of playing in the casino (their machines did seem a bit "looser" than on other cruise lines) but, boy oh boy, you needed to get there early on sea days to find a seat! Wasn't bothered too much by the smoke, but don't understand why people are allowed to smoke in there at all.

will have to start a roll call....glad you are joining us!

couldn't resist and just booked Canada/New England intensive for September 2025! A long wait, for sure, but we've booked far in advance on other cruises.

From what I've seen here, the only options for embarkation lunch are the Lido Buffet and, for limited hours, the MDR. Is Club Orange open for lunch on embarkation day or are any of the other venues? If it is just the two options I know about, what time does the Lido open?

Why, why, why??? It used to be so simple to book a shore excursion on line and charge it to OBC. At least I have a few months to get used to this new wrinkle and make sure all my OBC (I have quite a bit from my TA as well as promotional OBC from Azamara) is accounted for correctly.

We were in Panama City a few years ago on an Azamara cruise. A wonderful city with lots to do and friendly people. I'd be happy not to be in Ecuador right now (or several other places I can think of!)

I am soooo confused. Because of early booking terms and special promo, we got OBC from Azamara. In addition, our TA gave us a hefty amount of OBC. The OBC from Azamara shows on our reservation summary (in addition to the other promo perks) but the OBC from our TA does not. From what I am reading here, we may or may not see the TA OBC and it may or may not show up before we depart. And we may or may not be able to get the TA to call Azamara and get the credit listed so we can use it in advance of boarding for shore excursions. (but I also read that TA OBC cannot be used until we are actually on board!) I guess I should be grateful that the web site shows our correct loyalty level, but I am an early planner and would like to lock in our shore excursions in advance. Can anyone provide real clarity on this or am I doomed to confusion?

For those who have been on Scotland intensive cruises, did Azamara provide shuttles to city centers? If so, in which ports? TIA mare

Much livelier on Azamara. I would rate their food better than Oceania (although the nightime lamb chops and shrimp and lobster on Oceania are terrific.) The included wine and cocktails on Azamara are nice. Our last two cruises were on Oceania (the downside of Azamara that they seem to be based in Europe now with little available on the West Coast of North America) were mediocre at best.

Well, I never thought I'd be jumping in to a conversation regarding shower curtains, but I just returned from a short cruise on Oceania Regatta (probably my last cruise on that line....I've had two cruises with them and have been underimpressed) However, even in their tiny bathrooms (and they seemed smaller than those on Azamara (if that is even possible) they managed to install a quite modern looking glass door on the shower...one that pivoted in and out. So it can be done. BTW, after dipping our toes in the cruising waters with Oceania and returning home Covid free, we decided our next cruise will be overseas and will be on Azamara Onward. Now, if we could just persuade Azamara to add freshly grilled lobster tails and lamb chops to their nightly grill options.....the only part of the Oceania cruise I really enjoyed.

Just got back from an Oceania cruise (meh) because Azamara seems to be based in Europe and we weren’t quite ready for the long flights. But the 2024 itineraries included one that is a Scotland intensive and goes to ports we haven’t visited before. So we are going to book. Prices have certainly increased but then prices for everything have increased. Let’s hope the universe will let us do this trip!

In pre-Covid times we enjoyed having dinner with shared tables. But there were a couple of duds...in one instance (not Oceania or Azamara, our other favorite line) a couple of the people at the table got down on their knees and began praying loudly before the meal! A bit awkward for the rest of us. On another occasion, the couple with whom we were seated did not converse at all...just looked at their cell phones the entire meal.

I don't need to see play by play either. I am assuming (and I hope I'm not making an "ass" of myself) that no news is good news and that there have not been any more mass Covid breakouts on recent cruises and that food and service have been good.