Journey's August 9, 2012 Itinerary Update

[RZ06]

I also feel that that explanation not really explains or compensate the change.

I' really considering to change to another cruise, may be to celebrity. That would be 1st cruise with Azamara, but for such high rate I expected to have the value that we pay for.

[captfred]

Has anyone noticed the excursion for the early morning tour of the Guggenheim for $115.00. Ridiculous. We were all ready to book this cruise, but because of the itinerary fiasco we are not. Azamara surely missed the boat on this one.

[RZ06]

Has anyone noticed the excursion for the early morning tour of the Guggenheim for $115.00. Ridiculous. We were all ready to book this cruise, but because of the itinerary fiasco we are not. Azamara surely missed the boat on this one.

 

WOW, and $115 is already 50% off from the regular price. Is that a joke?

[kit23]

I also suggested omitting Bordeaux and leaving the rest of the cruise intact. Perhaps you could find a port near Normandy and really make this cruise terrific. Karen

[EastSideGuy]

If the rationale for the high price of the Guggenheim tour ($115 at 50% off) is that the museum will be open exclusively for us, then I would think that Azamara may want to eat some of the cost of this to make up for this schedule change - obviously there are still a lot of unhappy people on here.

 

Also, someone else liked the idea of the bus transfer from San Sebastian to Bilbao (just over one hour). Why not offer this as an option (especially complimentary) for those who do not want to sail, so they can increase time in Bilbao? We are planning to do this regardless. This might also go a long way toward smoothing over some ruffled feathers, and getting passengers back on track about cruise anticipation.

[Bill Leiber]

Hello everyone -

 

I've been reading your new comments and suggestions over the last few days. Once I've reviewed them internally, I will let you know the final outcome.

 

Please stand-by and thank you for your continued patience.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[Ithikan]

Bill,

Regarding the extended tour time in Pasajes and in light of the fact that it's 4 miles from San Sebastian, will free shuttles be provided?

 

I am also wondering about your mention of an overland experience for a select few. The new, $115 early AM visit to the Guggenheim is up and open for bookings, but not this. Will this shore excursion be cancelled if there are an insufficient number of the select?

 

Thank you for your time and attention,

 

Teri

[Fairfield Nana]

Hang in there Bill--you're doing a fine job!:)

[Louise P]

Our group would like the overland excursion to the Guggenheim, but not at 7:30 AM.

EestSideGuy, are you forming a group? If so we would like to join you. We are 10.

[piscean]

Bill

The problem with the revised itinerary being Bordeax and its tides another option could be,as suggested, dropping Bordeaux and maybe visiting La Rochelle or even St Nazaire at the head of the Loire Valley.

La Rochelle is a beautiful medieval town and although the Bordeaux wine tours are distant(100 miles) there are tours of Cognac and the island of Isle De Re is only 30 minutes away.

Then the following ports could revert to the original timetable?

Carol

[Ithikan]

Bill

The problem with the revised itinerary being Bordeax and its tides another option could be,as suggested, dropping Bordeaux and maybe visiting La Rochelle or even St Nazaire at the head of the Loire Valley.

La Rochelle is a beautiful medieval town and although the Bordeaux wine tours are distant(100 miles) there are tours of Cognac and the island of Isle De Re is only 30 minutes away.

Then the following ports could revert to the original timetable?

Carol

 

What a good idea!

Not until reading this - and the other, solid suggestions for dealing with our mangled itinerary - did I realize how disappointed and flat I've been feeling about this cruise. La Rochelle! St. Nazaire!

 

I so much want to return to excited anticipation and planning. The Azamara onboard experience suits us perfectly, it is superlative and has never been an issue. However, I would not have booked this cruise in Feb. had I known Belle Isle would be dropped, Bilbao greatly reduced, and Porto transformed from a rich, full-day experience to an abbrieviated afternoon.

 

Corporate has drastically reduced our time in port, for whatever reasons. Looking more closely at what we have left, I now wonder what is the San Sebastian festival which, per ACC shore excursion page, will close most shops and draw lots of visitors during Aug. 15 and 16? Bill, can you help with this question?

 

Teri

[RZ06]

What a good idea!

Not until reading this - and the other, solid suggestions for dealing with our mangled itinerary - did I realize how disappointed and flat I've been feeling about this cruise. La Rochelle! St. Nazaire!

 

I so much want to return to excited anticipation and planning. The Azamara onboard experience suits us perfectly, it is superlative and has never been an issue. However, I would not have booked this cruise in Feb. had I known Belle Isle would be dropped, Bilbao greatly reduced, and Porto transformed from a rich, full-day experience to an abbrieviated afternoon.

 

Corporate has drastically reduced our time in port, for whatever reasons. Looking more closely at what we have left, I now wonder what is the San Sebastian festival which, per ACC shore excursion page, will close most shops and draw lots of visitors during Aug. 15 and 16? Bill, can you help with this question?

 

Teri

 

Bill - Will it help if we all sign a letter to Azamara Corporate with the suggestion above of La Rochelle and St. Nazaire?

[Ithikan]

I may have answered my question: the ship calls at San Sebastian during their annual Semana Grande/ Aste Nagusia party, which involves a fireworks competition over the bay every night for a week.

[Ocean Hills]

We attended the annual fireworks competition in Canada and it was spectacular.

[Bill Leiber]

What a good idea!

Not until reading this - and the other, solid suggestions for dealing with our mangled itinerary - did I realize how disappointed and flat I've been feeling about this cruise. La Rochelle! St. Nazaire!

 

I so much want to return to excited anticipation and planning. The Azamara onboard experience suits us perfectly, it is superlative and has never been an issue. However, I would not have booked this cruise in Feb. had I known Belle Isle would be dropped, Bilbao greatly reduced, and Porto transformed from a rich, full-day experience to an abbrieviated afternoon.

 

Corporate has drastically reduced our time in port, for whatever reasons. Looking more closely at what we have left, I now wonder what is the San Sebastian festival which, per ACC shore excursion page, will close most shops and draw lots of visitors during Aug. 15 and 16? Bill, can you help with this question?

 

Teri

Hello to the Journey's August 9 Followers -

 

This past Sunday, when I read Teri's sincere comment that, "I so much want to return to excited anticipation and planning. The Azamara onboard experience suits us perfectly, it is superlative and has never been an issue," those thoughts clearly confirmed to me your loyalty and passion to our exceptional onboard experience that many of you have expressed. At the same time, I recognized the names of some frequent CruiseCritic posters who I respect and have helped in the past as we both learned more about the Azamara experience and operation. I've often said, our most important resource is the quality of our customers’ relationships.

 

So it seems to me, we're united by a sincere desire to reassess the revised itinerary so that Azamara can hopefully welcome you onboard this coming August as you had originally planned. I'm suggesting for those of you who are disappointed about the impact of 'tides of Bordeaux' on the published itinerary, that we can find a way, perhaps, to begin focusing on how our revised itinerary composition might soothe the discord of disappointment that still remains in your initial "Journey imagination" because its pleasant expectations were forced to suddenly change.

 

I think it's important to address your two issues and to set them aside before we move forward with your other issues:

 

#1) THE TIDES OF BORDEAUX:

Several of you have expressed your skepticism about how the unexpected tidal flow change in Bordeaux could have actually had such a far-reaching impact on the original itinerary, i.e., the "domino effect." I have shared your opinions with our itinerary planner and I'll let you know his response; however, before I do, it's important for me to clearly state for other readers of this thread that I have no intention of starting the precedent of introducing "itinerary rationale" discussions on Azamara's Cruise Critic forum.

 

One of the "givens" or core operating principles in the cruise itinerary planning process, is the crucial role of the itinerary planner plays in creating a successful operation. This person receives the port of call suggestions into their unique knowledge base and previous experiences and is then tasked with assimilating them into yearly deployments for each of the company's vessels. Following a tedious review process with port officials and our captains, the itinerary planner then has the formidable responsibility to make the final decision before seeking executive approval. When it's accepted - it's a "given" and becomes the "frame" or the "starting point" upon which the Azamara experience it crafted.

Consequently, when our itinerary planner assimilated the new tide information; created an alternate itinerary recommendation and then sought approval for implementation from our executive team, it was done so without any doubt of its accuracy. I've shared your opinions with him and he mentioned "the tides change every 12 hours so if we get a new time to sail INTO Bordeaux, this also means a new time getting out of BDX [bordeaux]." Tide change notices are issued by the port pilots and there is simply "no other reason" than this to explain the change. "They may not buy it - it is a matter of tides, speed and distances."

 

Let me reiterate that one of the inescapable risks of the cruise product which explains why the industry is always sure to clearly state that itineraries are subject to change.

 

#2) BORDEAUX VS. LA ROCHELLE AND/OR ST. NAZAIRE:

After reading a few of your comments, it seems to me that Bordeaux has a serious misperception problem about being perhaps boring and one dimensional. I noticed that a few of you were excited with the idea of trading Bordeaux with La Rochelle or St. Nazaire. Simply stated, it would not be a wise business decision to drop "Bordeaux" from the itinerary line-up. As you have already pointed out, this voyage's title is "Bordeaux Wine & The Guggenheim" and to suddenly make such a drastic change by deleting Bordeaux would be extremely harmful to our future bookings. Interestingly, in spite of our current itinerary issue discussion, we're pleased to find that our booking level for this voyage is on track to meet its revenue target. With the exception of Belle Ile, the ports that featured today were all part of the original itinerary, albeit with modifications to port times. We believe that "Bordeaux" and "The Guggenheim" are both important "draws" and must be continued.

 

[OUTSTANDING ISSUES:

A. Request for an overland tour from Pasajes/San Sebastian to Bilboa for the Guggenheim:

"Louise P" and "EastSideGuy#9," I have discussed your suggestion that we consider creating an afternoon overland motor coach tour from San Sebastian on Thursday, August 16 to Bilbao with an opportunity to reach the Guggenheim and participate in their last 5:00pm in lieu of participating in our private opening of the Museum on Friday morning, August 17 which includes such an early morning departure. Although your option provides you with more time in Bilboa, our itinerary planner believes spending time in the old quarter of San Sebastian is worthwhile. My only concern about this option is that it seems to me to be a very "rushed" experience exacerbated by having to meet the 5:00pm deadline for the last Guggenheim tour, especially with the risk associated with unforeseen highway conditions along the way. We recommend that you arrange your own private Land Discoveries tour through our Group Shore Excursion Department by calling 1-877-999-9553. If you decide to do so, please let me know through this thread, so that I can alert the department to expect your call.

 

B. Azamara's Bilbao and The Guggenheim Museum Tour:

We are offering an exclusive, private opening and viewing to tour the Guggenheim Museum beginning at 7:30AM on the morning of Friday, August 17. You'll have 1.5 hours to tour the museum without crowds since our departure time from Bilbao is at Noon. This excursion is available for booking on our website. Several of you have commented that the $115 per person cost seems excessive, but remember there is an extra premium for the early opening. There's no question that the start-time is early, but the private tour ambiance along with the time for rest and relaxation as you leisurely sail to Porto makes it worthy to reconsider.

 

C. Azamara's Night Tours - From Pasajes/San Sebastian to Bilboa (Under development):

Shortly details and costs for an overland tour from Pasajes to Bilbao tour will be available. The experience will include a visit to Getaria, one of the most beautiful towns on the Basque coast and home-town of the navigator Juan Sebastián Elcano and the designer Cristóbal Balenciaga; a stop at the Aldamar Palace in Getariaan old residence and a tour of the avant-garde Balenciaga museum; a special dinner experience in Azurmendi which a two star Michelin restaurant located just outside of Bilbao and then a drive-by of the Guggenheim Museum so that the Guests get a look at this fascinating architectural wonder at night.

 

OUTSTANDNG QUESTIONS

A. When the Journey arrives into San Sebastian on August 16 at 10:30PM will guests still have the opportunity to view the spectacular week-long fireworks competition over the bay during the annual Semana Grande/ Aste Nagusia party? (We are checking the firework schedule with the operator, and will advise once details are available.)

B. During our time in Pasajes will we be providing free shuttles since the distance from the vessel is 4 miles? (Will verify with the operator that shuttles are required. If so, they will be provided.)

C. I know that shore excursions are subject to cancellation if participation does not meet the minimum required. Will the same hold true for the Guggenheim Museum? (Since we are paying for this private opening the tour will operate regardless of number of guests.)

D. San Sebastian Festival, August 15 & 16, is the biggest event in San Sebastian with open air concerts, Basque sport events, daily fireworks and partying - destination immersion at its finest!

 

CLOSING CONSIDERATIONS

At the outset, I stated that I sensed that you're united by your confidence and trust that Azamara will deliver an onboard experience that will exceed your expectations, however, because of the itinerary manipulation you are concerned about the risk that it might not happen.

 

I can relate to your thinking when it comes to change. Someone once said to me, "you can't have a better tomorrow if you're thinking about yesterday all the time." I respectfully suggest that the same is true about evaluating our itinerary revisions. Forget the old sequence and determine if you can imagine yourself in a slightly different order but the constant is still being surrounded by Azamara's exceptional officers, staff and crew. You're not going to miss anything because every port is a highlight!

 

It's time to focus on the experiences the new itinerary delivers as told to me by Claudius Docekal, our itinerary expert whose expertise is to highlight the best an area offers:

 Full day in the charming and idyllic St. Peter Port followed by a relaxing day at sea.

 Almost two full days and a night in amazing Bordeaux where, due to the small size of our vessel, the Azamara Journey will docked there in the middle of town. It's a close second to Paris. You'll be there at the peak time of the year for the vineyards of the region. If you're not a wine aficionado, venture southwest to the town of Arcachon, on the Atlantic coast, famous for its oysters and is known as the tapas capital of Spain.

 St. Jean de Luz has always received rave reviews from our guests in the past and also offers easy access to magnificent Bayonne and the famous resort town of Biarritz.

 Yes, you can travel overland from Pasajes to Bilbao in about 75 minutes or so on August 16 when we sail from there at 4:00PM. But why miss all that San Sebastian has to offer when the ship is in Bilbao on the next stop and we have the Guggenheim opened early for an exclusive viewing?

 

Image yourself immersed in the experience. Get out there and see the grapes hanging on the vines in St. Emilion outside of Bordeaux and take a drink of our complementary wine and relax and enjoy the experience. If you're not buying off with what I've tried to describe, then we'll understand your decision to do what's best for you.

 

I'm hopeful that this knowledge of what to expect has restored your confidence so that you can again begin to heighten your level of anticipation for this fabulous voyage on the Azamara Journey.

 

In the meantime, I'll be checking in again with answers to the outstanding questionsmentioned above.

 

Respectfully,

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[cpgrneyes]

This cruise sounds fabulous! We loved Bordeaux when we did an overnight there with AZ in 2010, and vowed to return one day. A private opening at the Guggenheim? Devine! And, what, a FIREWORKS COMPETITION? I would be in heaven.

 

Enjoy, all, I so wish it could be me.

[uktog]

I have to say I agree with you cpgrneys.

If it was not that we have Olympics tickets for 8th and 9th I would have been looking at booking

Bill, the way you described the cruise and the various ports was much more engaging than the current brochures - is there any way you could persuade the brochure and website people to be as full in detail and with this level of "pressing the right buttons"

[Louise P]

Hi Bill,

The number you posted had no information for me. They suggested I email Groupshorex@rccl.com

I will get in touch with them and hope we can resolve this to everyones satisfaction.

[Bill Leiber]

Hi Bill,

The number you posted had no information for me. They suggested I email Groupshorex@rccl.com

I will get in touch with them and hope we can resolve this to everyones satisfaction.

Hello Louise P -

 

I'm sorry that your call didn't deliver results. I know that the email address is accurate; therefore, when you send your request please include the following information in Subject section: Journey's Aug 9, 2012 Overland Tour: San Sebastian to Bilbao-Guggenheim/Cruise Critic CBO Request.

 

I will be sending that department an email with the same subject message along to other management staff in that department.

 

I'm confident that you'll be successful in arranging a custom-tailored Land Discovery for your group that will be one of many highlights on the forthcoming voyage.

Regards,

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[Ithikan]

This cruise sounds fabulous! We loved Bordeaux when we did an overnight there with AZ in 2010, and vowed to return one day. A private opening at the Guggenheim? Devine! And, what, a FIREWORKS COMPETITION? I would be in heaven.

 

Enjoy, all, I so wish it could be me.

 

cpgrneyes, you are restoring my faith in this cruise.

 

As I was trolling the CC forums searching references to Bordeaux, there was a description of the Azamara musicians set up on the dock, serenading passersby. Perhaps someone from your voyage? Sounds very nice!

 

I'm looking forward to seeing all the shore excursions online, with pricing.

 

Bill, thank you for the time you've invested in researching this itinerary. It has been a moving target, for sure. Good practice maybe, because Belle Ile is back in 2013, just prior to a Bordeaux port of call. :)

[Bill Leiber]

I have to say I agree with you cpgrneys.

If it was not that we have Olympics tickets for 8th and 9th I would have been looking at booking

Bill, the way you described the cruise and the various ports was much more engaging than the current brochures - is there any way you could persuade the brochure and website people to be as full in detail and with this level of "pressing the right buttons"

Hello UKTOG -

 

Thanks for noticing the very positive influence that our itinerary planner, Claudius Docekal, had made on my writing style. As we worked together on the adjusted itinerary, I began to take notes of his enthusiastic descriptions of his experiences at each of these places. He made me "feel" the experience by "pressing the right buttons."

 

You can see him "live and in person" on the US/Canadian market website by clicking the "Destination Videos" link on our home page, located to the lower left of the revolving world globe. He and our Senior VP of Marketing and Sales, Edie Bornstein, highlight the itineraries of most of our voyages.

 

Although we're trying to reduce the number of pages in our Destination Guides, our marketing team said that they would consider that concept of more descriptive copy on our website.

 

You always have great ideas!

 

Regards and thanks for your loyalty,

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[Bill Leiber]

cpgrneyes, you are restoring my faith in this cruise.

 

As I was trolling the CC forums searching references to Bordeaux, there was a description of the Azamara musicians set up on the dock, serenading passersby. Perhaps someone from your voyage? Sounds very nice!

 

I'm looking forward to seeing all the shore excursions online, with pricing.

 

Bill, thank you for the time you've invested in researching this itinerary. It has been a moving target, for sure. Good practice maybe, because Belle Ile is back in 2013, just prior to a Bordeaux port of call. :)

Hello Teri -

 

I appreciate your comments and hope that my information added another dimension to the conversation that had previously existed.

 

I'll be following up with the answers about the fireworks and whether there will be shuttles offered in Pasajes.

 

I've been fascinated by your Cruise Critic name, Ithikan. When I see it, I hear myself saying "I think I can." From the positive content in your messages I think I'm right and know the reason you chose it.

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[Ithikan]

Well thanks, Bill, for the nice words about my CC name. And since you're so nice - full disclosure - it's my 2nd CC name. Due to a computer fry I lost quantities of logins and passwords, and tried in vain to retrieve the password for my original name: Ulisses. I confessed all on a thread for ACC's Dublin to Lisbon cruise from Aug., 2011. So you see, I've been trying to make this itinerary happen for Mark and I for what feels like a long time. And after I grabbed Ulisses' new name I was appalled to discover that changing one's name for these forums is frowned upon, so I hope I won't now be booted from the boards.

 

Looking forward to what you learn about shuttles in Pasajes. And I wonder, Bill, can you estimate when the excursions for Porto will be listed? Those on the ACC site don't seem possible because they depart in the morning or are longer than our 6 hours in port.

 

Thank you,

Teri

aka Ithikan,

formerly Ulisses :)

[vival]

Hello UKTOG -

 

Thanks for noticing the very positive influence that our itinerary planner, Claudius Docekal, had made on my writing style. As we worked together on the adjusted itinerary, I began to take notes of his enthusiastic descriptions of his experiences at each of these places. He made me "feel" the experience by "pressing the right buttons."

 

You can see him "live and in person" on the US/Canadian market website by clicking the "Destination Videos" link on our home page, located to the lower left of the revolving world globe. He and our Senior VP of Marketing and Sales, Edie Bornstein, highlight the itineraries of most of our voyages.

 

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

 

We had the pleasure of attending a destinations lecture by Claudius on board the Quest a couple of years ago. His knoweldge was tremendous and his enthusiasm infectious. He certainly encouraged us to think of new places.

We love the fact that Claudious has focused on making Azamara a destination based line ( alongside the fantastic on board experience of course)

[Bill Leiber]

Well thanks, Bill, for the nice words about my CC name. And since you're so nice - full disclosure - it's my 2nd CC name. Due to a computer fry I lost quantities of logins and passwords, and tried in vain to retrieve the password for my original name: Ulisses. I confessed all on a thread for ACC's Dublin to Lisbon cruise from Aug., 2011. So you see, I've been trying to make this itinerary happen for Mark and I for what feels like a long time. And after I grabbed Ulisses' new name I was appalled to discover that changing one's name for these forums is frowned upon, so I hope I won't now be booted from the boards.

 

Looking forward to what you learn about shuttles in Pasajes. And I wonder, Bill, can you estimate when the excursions for Porto will be listed? Those on the ACC site don't seem possible because they depart in the morning or are longer than our 6 hours in port.

 

Thank you,

Teri

aka Ithikan,

formerly Ulisses :)

Hello Teri/Ithikan -

 

Thanks for sharing the history of your name! I think you're a name dropper.

 

I just wanted to touch base to let you know that I'm still waiting for the answers from our tour operator and I have not forgotten.

 

I did learn that shuttles are recommended to reach San Sebastian from Pasajes but I'm waiting for definite confirmation from the tour operator.

 

I'm hopeful that I'll hear something by the start of next week.

 

Regards,

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)