JimandStan Posted November 13, 2011 #51 Share Posted November 13, 2011 We are booked on that Azamara cruise because of the ports of call in Sicily.The cruise was originally going to go to Libya but for obvious reasons had to change ports of calls so I dont think there will be another cruise so port intensive in Sicily.We are very interested in the amazing history of Sicily so this was a must cruise for us. We have sailed Nautica & Azamara Quest there are pros & cons for both and often it comes down to personal taste etc.Nautica is a nicer ship decor wise & has the great advantage of fabulous afternoon teas & no photographers, whilst Quest has a great coffee shop, better night time treats ,fruit in the cabin ,free wine at lunch & dinner & is very good value. I would say book the cruise. By all means book the cruise; but if you make that choice, please do so with an adult eye toward the current Italian financial situation. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20711FB345D1A7A93C4A9178AD95F468285F9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted November 19, 2011 #52 Share Posted November 19, 2011 By all means book the cruise; but if you make that choice, please do so with an adult eye toward the current Italian financial situation. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20711FB345D1A7A93C4A9178AD95F468285F9 :confused: Jim, if indeed one travelled this way, there would be many places in the Med where we would not be visiting! Certainly all of Greece would be my prime ports of hesitation for this reason way before that of the ports of Italy. And let us not forget Portugal as well. Then there are all of the ports where one would have safety concerns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted November 19, 2011 #53 Share Posted November 19, 2011 We are booked on that Azamara cruise because of the ports of call in Sicily.The cruise was originally going to go to Libya but for obvious reasons had to change ports of calls so I dont think there will be another cruise so port intensive in Sicily.We are very interested in the amazing history of Sicily so this was a must cruise for us. We have sailed Nautica & Azamara Quest there are pros & cons for both and often it comes down to personal taste etc.Nautica is a nicer ship decor wise & has the great advantage of fabulous afternoon teas & no photographers, whilst Quest has a great coffee shop, better night time treats ,fruit in the cabin ,free wine at lunch & dinner & is very good value. I would say book the cruise. Thanks so much for your insights. I also love this itinerary because I only have visited Taormina so far (twice) in Sicily and my history-loving spouse and I want to see a lot more of Sicily. And the opportunity to get to Paestum from Salerno is wonderful. I have not found any other itinerary for next October in the Med that is anywhere near as interesting. (How's the food compared with Nautica, a major interest of ours!:)) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
triplestar Posted November 20, 2011 #54 Share Posted November 20, 2011 The topic of food is quite tricky as so much depends on individual taste. We always have breakfast in the buffet and really one is spoilt for choice. Plenty & varied variety of fresh fruit, fruit salad , berry fruits & fruit in juices.Omelettes , pacakes & waffles made to order & never seemed to be a queue. Then all normal toasts, breads , cereals,jams spreads etc. Eggs bacon ,beans tomatoes & so on. We thought the buffet on the Azamara better than the Nautica for lunch, but the MDR on the Nautica better than Az for dinner. We didnt eat at poolside grill on either boat, neither did we dine in the Polo Grill on either ship, but enjoyed Aqualina on Quest. On both ships, there were nights when the menu choice was better than other nights,but again this is an individual thing.However for Dinner I would place Nautica first. We have also sailed HAL & their food is definitely a notch down from Oceania & Azamara. I hate cooking, so perhaps I am not the best judge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulchili Posted November 20, 2011 #55 Share Posted November 20, 2011 (How's the food compared with Nautica, a major interest of ours!:)) I believe the food (overall) is better on Oceania but not so much so as to make Azamara an unpleasant "food" experience. The itinerary (in your case) and perhaps some other experiences on Azamara (very approachable and helpful staff, included wine, etc) should make your journey a pleasant one, at least I hope so. I will forever remember one particular experience on Azamara. The captain lead a group of passengers on the climb up the demanding hill to the mountain top above Kotor; upon return of the group, there was champagne waiting for everyone for their effort - a very nice gesture all around. I just cannot imagine any Oceania captain doing this (on any of our 9 O cruises) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted November 20, 2011 #56 Share Posted November 20, 2011 I believe the food (overall) is better on Oceania but not so much so as to make Azamara an unpleasant "food" experience.The itinerary (in your case) and perhaps some other experiences on Azamara (very approachable and helpful staff, included wine, etc) should make your journey a pleasant one, at least I hope so. I will forever remember one particular experience on Azamara. The captain lead a group of passengers on the climb up the demanding hill to the mountain top above Kotor; upon return of the group, there was champagne waiting for everyone for their effort - a very nice gesture all around. I just cannot imagine any Oceania captain doing this (on any of our 9 O cruises) Thanks, Paul. The thoughtful responses to me on this thread (thanks to all of you, my cc friends: meow, loraine, Jim, triplestar and you, dear Paul) have shown me how much a creature of habit I have become since I started cruising in September 2008. Four cruises, one per year, so far in my life, and all on one cruise line. We are so interested in itinerary that I definitely need to branch out. I just pray for some decent weather because spouse definitely hates the rain days. Our last land trip to Italy was in October 2006 and the weather was glorious, so I will be optimistic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meow! Posted November 21, 2011 #57 Share Posted November 21, 2011 .. my cc friends: meow ..You are so gracious and most welcome .. meow! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted November 29, 2011 #58 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Well, after a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday which included some extra wetness in my eyes while watching my daughter try on her first wedding dress selection while future daughter-in-law snapped photos, today I booked the October Azamara Quest cruise which includes four stops in Sicilian ports, plus Valletta and Salerno (so we finally get to Paestum!). Time to start a roll call for it. I am sorry we had to cancel our September Regatta cruise (due to daughter's September wedding date), but hopefully will be back with Oceania in 2013. Thanks for all your advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulchili Posted November 29, 2011 #59 Share Posted November 29, 2011 CintiPam, Congratulations on your upcoming weddings - not much makes a parent happier than to attend a wedding of their children. Bon voyage - I hope you will enjoy your Azamara adventure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJH123 Posted November 29, 2011 #60 Share Posted November 29, 2011 Pam, Congratulations on your eventful year! How wonderful that your future daughter-in-law is helping to document all of your times together. It will be a year of treasured memories. We were also looking at a jazz itinerary (Norwegian ports) with Azamara, but decided on Spain, Portugal, Canary Island itinerary with Oceania--how's that for diversity? Be sure to keep us posted on the wedding plans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted December 5, 2011 #61 Share Posted December 5, 2011 Pam,Congratulations on your eventful year! How wonderful that your future daughter-in-law is helping to document all of your times together. It will be a year of treasured memories. We were also looking at a jazz itinerary (Norwegian ports) with Azamara, but decided on Spain, Portugal, Canary Island itinerary with Oceania--how's that for diversity? Be sure to keep us posted on the wedding plans. Thanks for your good wishes. Your itinerary sounds good; I have not yet visited Portugal. However, I still am afraid (for stomach reasons) of sailing on an actual ocean! BTW, what does "a jazz itinerary (Norwegian ports)" mean? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GJH123 Posted December 6, 2011 #62 Share Posted December 6, 2011 The cruise dates coincided with the Molde Jazz Festival and allowed passengers the option of spending two days at the Fest. I'm thinking that it may have also featured jazz performers for the onboard entertainment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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