If you have sailed on Azamara...

[cruzemaven]

I've sailed on Oceania several times and enjoyed the experience. I'm trying to decide between Oceania and Azamara for a 2012 Asian cruise. I would appreciate any thoughts on the following:

 

I'm comparing almost identical itineraries for the Singapore to Hong Kong Cruise in 2012 on The Quest (14 nights on Feb. 1) and The Oceania Nautica (15 nights on Jan. 26). The penthouse cabin on Nautica without air is $8,824 and fare on The Quest is $5,799.00 in the Club Continent suite ( I think that's the same size as Oceania's penthouse). That's a big price difference even with The Quest being one day less...am I missing something else that would account for the difference? Thanks for any thoughts on this.

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[LHT28]

Could be the number of ports ...4 on Aza vs 7 on Oceania

You would overnight more often with Azamara

You travel more distances on O

 

I guess you have to decide what one is a better fit you you

[MightyQuinn]

Just make sure you're doing comps for the exact same suite on both ships. Azamara has 2 levels of Club Continent Suite (S1, S2) and Oceania has 3 levels of Penthouse (P1, P2, P3). Some of the price difference may be hiding between these levels.

 

Also compare variables such as actual ports, times in port, overnites, other inclusions. Sometimes the differences are hard to quantify & you'll need to decide what's of "value" to you in a cruise. Having sailed identical itineraries (TAs) on both Azamara & Oceania, we would try to make it work on Oceania.

[tanny18]

Also check and see if the air is included in one or both. Oceania always quotes with "air" and Azamara does not. Arlene

[JBVols]

We have been on both and there is no comparision. O is much better.

[wripro]

When was the last time you were on Azamara?

 

Also, include in your figures both tips and wine which are part of Azamara's fares. They're both good cruise lines.

[susiesan]

I've been on both, Oceania in 2006 and Azamara in 2008 and 2009. I rate them equal. Prior to their rebranding as AZ Club Cruises, AZ had O beat hands down on price. Now, there is no big price differential. I'm back to O for a Caribbean cruise Feb. 25 that has an almost identical itinerary as AZ, and ended up being less than the AZ cruise because of a cancellation of my original O cruise date and credit to rebook at another time. Plus, I did not want to overnight at St. Barts, which the AZ cruise did.

[8mma]

We've been on O in 2008, Az 2010 and O again in 2011.

 

Both are amazing and I too, would call them equal.

 

You can't go wrong no matter which one you decide on.

[KCNo]

Well, having been on two cruises on Azamara, the latest of which was January, 2010, Azamara Quest, Singapore to Hong Kong versus five cruises on Oceania, the latest of which was October, 2010, Venice to Athens, my thinking is there is ABSOLUTELY NO COMPARISON between the two. Oceania beats Azamara in absolutely every way, confirmed on 10//10/10 (that's freaky) when the Azamara Quest sailed down Venice's Grand Canal before my eyes as I sat in a cafe sipping espresso and I thought....wow.....how lucky am I to be boarding Ocenaia's Regatta in two days instead of being on the Quest.

[Paulchili]

when the Azamara Quest sailed down Venice's Grand Canal before my eyes as I sat in a cafe sipping espresso and I thought....wow.....how lucky am I to be boarding Ocenaia's Regatta in two days instead of being on the Quest.

 

Are you sure they were sailing down the Grand Canal?

I think the Vaporettos are the largest ships cruising the Grand Canal - no cruise ship can take that route because of the bridges over the canal. We sailed on the Quest from Venice to Rome this year and had a wonderful cruise in every way.

Back to the point. Having sailed on both, they are comparable IMO - some things are better on Oceania, others on Azamara. My slight preference is for Oceania, especially now with the Marina. But if the itinerary is comparable and Azamara is that much cheaper, I would not hesitate taking Azamara.

[3418ahl]

Unless you are comparing Oceania to Azamara AFTER April, 2010, you are comparing a line that no longer exists! I suggest you visit the Azamara board.

[dwelsh]

Unless you are comparing Oceania to Azamara AFTER April, 2010, you are comparing a line that no longer exists! I suggest you visit the Azamara board.

 

I did that and was pleasantly surprised to observe that "A" has much better communication between their CEO/President and the CC "A" board. Quite an eye opener.

 

Over the years I have seen posts by Frank Delrio(sp) but usually to answer some urgent matter which his staff have been unable to resolve.

 

I would love to see such a position of CC/"O" communicator.

[MightyQuinn]

Unless you are comparing Oceania to Azamara AFTER April, 2010, you are comparing a line that no longer exists!

Very true. I think the history goes like this: Azamara was initially created in May/07 as a subsidiary of Celebrity. In Dec/09 they rebranded under Royal Caribbean with the name Azamara Club Cruises & signaled upcoming changes to the product. In April/10 they rolled out a number of enhancements, including complimentary wines, free shuttles, prepaid gratuities and other inclusions.

 

We cruised on Azamara Journey in April/10 shortly after they transitioned to their semi-inclusive model as Azamara Club Cruises. At that time, they were no match for our similar cruise on Oceania Regatta barely 6 months prior. That is why we would choose Oceania over Azamara. But from reading the Azamara forum, it appears that they are making significant improvements & are now getting more things right. So maybe the gap is narrowing.

 

I recently read a travel blog that offered an interesting perspective on Azamara & Oceania. The writer opined that Azamara is busy redefining themselves, while Oceania simply focuses on refining itself. 'Nuff said.

[wripro]

Remember to compare O with Azamara Club, not Azamara.

[Senior Citizen]

Are you sure they were sailing down the Grand Canal?

I think the Vaporettos are the largest ships cruising the Grand Canal - no cruise ship can take that route because of the bridges over the canal. We sailed on the Quest from Venice to Rome this year and had a wonderful cruise in every way.

Back to the point. Having sailed on both, they are comparable IMO - some things are better on Oceania, others on Azamara. My slight preference is for Oceania, especially now with the Marina. But if the itinerary is comparable and Azamara is that much cheaper, I would not hesitate taking Azamara.

 

Actually, cruise ships go down the Giudecca Canal which I, too, mistakenly called the Grand Canal. After an Azamara cruise in September, we stayed at the Stucky Molina Hilton on Giudecca which overlooks the Giudecca Canal. We had a room facing the canal and we could watch the cruise ships go past. It was great because the canal is rather small and the cruise ships look like behemoths as they go by.

 

We have cruised with Oceania five times and LOVED each and every time. Our friends, who are Oceania aficionados as well, convinced us to join them on Azamara. I must say that the Azamara experience was excellent! We don't drink alcohol or very many soft drinks for that matter so Azamara's free-flowing policy didn't affect our decision. The cabins are lovely with their nice drapes, fresh flowers, fresh fruit bowls and mini-refrigerators stocked with your choice of soft drinks. The staff, from the cabin attendants to the master of the ship, are very friendly and visible. The master of the ship gave wonderfully detailed explanations when we were entering or preparing to leave a port---about who was on the bridge and "assisting" in honor of the staff member's birthday or a staff member's parents being onboard---and particularly about the machinations he had to go through to get the ship into or out of the port. He came to our cc meet and greet and talked to us for quite some time about the ship. There were so many reasons that Azamara was wonderful. What I missed, not being on Oceania, were the fresh berries every morning in the Terrace Cafe, the trivia games and the no-extra-charge specialty restaurants. Azamara charges $15 per person per visit for their specialty restaurants which isn't a deal breaker obviously since our group ate 8 out of 12 dinners in one or the other specialty restaurants.

 

All in all, if the itineraries were similar, I might go for Azamara over Oceania due to their pricing. A number of Oceania guests who we met on our Azamara cruise agreed. However, at this time, Oceania doesn't have to worry because Azamara doesn't do 20+ day itineraries with such diverse ports as Oceania does. Oceania has fabulous itineraries!

 

Oh, one thing---if you like to have your coffee cup constantly filled during breakfast in the Terrace Cafe, you might have to rethink Azamara. We found that there weren't enough staff up there to do this. However, we discovered their self-serve coffee/expresso/capucchino/latte machines and loved making our own coffee to our specifications.

 

All in all, the lines are becoming more and more comparable...

[LHT28]

However, we discovered their self-serve coffee/expresso/capucchino/latte machines and loved making our own coffee to our specifications.

 

How did you find the ones on Oceania ? Were they comparable?

 

We have only used them a couple of times & worked out to our tastes

 

Lyn

[3418ahl]

If you take into account that Azamara includes gratuities, and Oceania does not, one could eat in the specialty restaurant on Azamara every night for about $2 pp. AND you get to go as many times as you want!

[neepawa]

Oceania and/or our TA have covered the gratuities on all our cruises on the Regatta including the one in January 2011.

 

Don

[raffeer]

Our gratuities have also always been covered on our O cruises by our wonderful TA. That is simply not a factor I consider.

[tgg]

We've sailed on both Oceania and Azamara several times.

 

Because gratuities are included on Azamara, our wonderful travel agent includes a substantial OBC. This more than covers eating at the specialty restaurants as often as we'd like. On Oceania, we've had to almost plead for specialty restaurant reservations. On Azamara, this has never been a problem.

 

Fresh berries are always served in the MDR at breakfast on Azamara. It would be nice if they were at the buffet.

 

The Azamara staff and crew are the most gracious I've encountered.

 

Someone suggested on this thread that they missed Trivia on Azamara. I don't understand why. We've played Trivia on every Azamara cruise.

 

I would not hesitate to book another Azamara cruise.

[xplrcrzn]

Since April Azamara has brought over many experienced former Seabourn and Regent staff and officers and that, combined with the new management of the line, seems to have made a significant and very positive difference.

[LHT28]

Since April Azamara has brought over many experienced former Seabourn and Regent staff and officers and that, combined with the new management of the line, seems to have made a significant and very positive difference.

Their prices are now comparable to Oceania on some cruises so you have to compare specific Itineraries & what works for you

 

Lyn

[xplrcrzn]

Their prices are now comparable to Oceania on some cruises so you have to compare specific Itineraries & what works for you

 

Lyn

 

And whether free-flowing wine and other beverages will enhance your cruise experience.

[hondorner]

And whether free-flowing wine and other beverages will enhance your cruise experience.

I haven't checked Azamara lately, but it was my understanding that the "free flowing" wine consists of pours at lunch and dinner, and other adult beverages are not included. As far as other soft beverages like soda and bottled water, they are as free-flowing on Oceania as they are on Azamara, in fact, Oceania included them first. There isn't that much difference.

[MightyQuinn]

And whether free-flowing wine and other beverages will enhance your cruise experience.

Yes free-flowing wine would enhance my cruise experience, but not nearly as much as having good food & comfy beds. We enjoyed complimentary wine when we sailed Azamara in April/10, but we did not enjoy below-expectation food & lumpy beds. In reading the Azamara forum, it appears that food has improved & that's encouraging. But the bed situation is acknowledged & not yet fixed, at least on Journey. Here's what the Chief Blogging Officer for ACC reported earlier this month. So if you plan to sail Journey in early 2011, pick your stateroom wisely!

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showpost.php?p=27132565&postcount=21