azamara vs. Celebrity Eclipse for Northern Europe?

[robinlynn]

I am in the beginning stages of researching our 45th anniversary cruise of Northern Europe for next summer. We have been on the inaugural year of the Solstice(Mediterranean) as well as the Silhouette( Adriatic and Italy). Did Aquas class on both and had a great cruise both times. The itinerary and dates I am interested in will be available on the Eclipse.

We have always wondered about the Azamara ships however. It appears the cabins are smaller and not as many onboard amenities. Any thoughts on the positives other than a more personalized smaller ship experience? The itineraries are very similiar and with some of the specials being offered by Azamara, there is not that much of a difference in cost, since drinks and gratuities are included.

Am leaning toward Celebrity....is there something I am missing about the Azamara?

I would really appreciate any input from anyone who has done both.

Thanks!

Robin:confused:

[3418ahl]

There are many threads on this, and a recent one on the Azamara board. The cabins are smaller, but the experience is not to be missed. See this

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1766662

 

Given my choice and unlimited $$, I would travel with Azamara more!

[bphman]

We've done a Caribbean on the Equinox and Athens to Istanbul on the Quest. To me, the decision is simple. Azamara boasts longer port times and this was great. We also docked in more convenient locations. Cabins are smaller but very well appointed and everything fit in it's place. Food is much better on Azamara as is the service. We love the small ship experience and we formed good friendships.

[MMAYr]

We have been several times with Celebrity, but switched three years ago to Azamara. Last year we went on Eclipe to the fjords and were disappointed in comparison to Azamara, so much so that we booked Azamara virtually as soon as we came back and didn't regret it. We have been to the Baltic and St Petersburg with Azamara and as the ship can get right up the river would recommend that as you are so much nearer to The Hermitage etc. either way I'm sure you will enjoy the trip

[Spursgirl]

I am in the beginning stages of researching our 45th anniversary cruise of Northern Europe for next summer. We have been on the inaugural year of the Solstice(Mediterranean) as well as the Silhouette( Adriatic and Italy). Did Aquas class on both and had a great cruise both times. The itinerary and dates I am interested in will be available on the Eclipse.

We have always wondered about the Azamara ships however. It appears the cabins are smaller and not as many onboard amenities. Any thoughts on the positives other than a more personalized smaller ship experience? The itineraries are very similiar and with some of the specials being offered by Azamara, there is not that much of a difference in cost, since drinks and gratuities are included.

Am leaning toward Celebrity....is there something I am missing about the Azamara?

I would really appreciate any input from anyone who has done both.

Thanks!

Robin:confused:

 

If you want a cruise, book the Eclipse - it's a very nice ship. If however you want a wonderful travel experience with like -minded fellow passengers choose Azamara

[pacheco18]

We did the Baltics on the Eclipse because when we compared it to Oceania (our line of choice) it was thousands less per person. For the price difference, we opted for the larger ship (which we also enjoy) and we have no regrets.

 

But if you are finding the prices to be similar (or even close), it's a no brainer. Go for the smaller, more intimate ship. The only time I go larger is if it's an itinerary that is not offered on the smaller ships or if the price difference is HUGE.

 

I have one more cruise on Celebrity (Antarctica) and it will likely be my last. Between Oceania and Azamara I have 5 R ships to choose from. I much prefer the 700 passenger experience. I think you will too.

[excitedofharpenden]

I am in the beginning stages of researching our 45th anniversary cruise of Northern Europe for next summer. We have been on the inaugural year of the Solstice(Mediterranean) as well as the Silhouette( Adriatic and Italy). Did Aquas class on both and had a great cruise both times. The itinerary and dates I am interested in will be available on the Eclipse.

We have always wondered about the Azamara ships however. It appears the cabins are smaller and not as many onboard amenities. Any thoughts on the positives other than a more personalized smaller ship experience? The itineraries are very similiar and with some of the specials being offered by Azamara, there is not that much of a difference in cost, since drinks and gratuities are included.

Am leaning toward Celebrity....is there something I am missing about the Azamara?

I would really appreciate any input from anyone who has done both.

Thanks!

Robin:confused:

Eclipse is a beautiful ship, but my preference now is the smaller ships and more intimate service of Azamara. You won't find as many venues, Journey and Quest lack the wow factor of the S-Class ships and as you say the standard cabins are smaller, but I feel the food is better on Azamara, the overall friendliness of the staff considerably more and as was mentioned the ships dock in more convenient (and often scenic) spots.

 

In the final analysis Azamara and Celebrity are quite different and personally I would go for Azamara as something a bit more special. I still enjoy Celebrity and will go with them for the right price, but my heart now belongs to Azamara.

 

Phil

[uktog]

I would look seriously at Azamara. Whilst Celebrity is good, you have to bear in mind there will be many placed in Europe where although Celebrity can dock, Azamara will dock much closer in to town.

Depending on the dates, you might also find one of the Azamazing nights happens on your anniversary!

[ljk76]

We are Celebrity regulars, but after our first Azamara cruise last summer, it will be Azamara for any European cruising. The S class ships wow, but the Azamara staff...well I did feel like a princess! The staff seems to actually take delight in good service, and are quite empowered to make anything you want or need happen without "checking with the boss." I never thought the officer contact business was important, but we enjoyed meeting senior officers out and about everywhere , and I think they really set the tone as well. It was great to dock right in city centers. We are doing another cruise with Azamara this summer and cannot wait! The food was wonderful, too, in every venue. I wouldn't say we would never do X in Europe, and we certainly will in the Caribbean , but I think the Azamara experience would make for a wonderful anniversary cruise.

[ellbon]

Azamara!!! if you can afford it go for a mid ship Club suite for the butler.

Azamara has later nights in ports- gets better docking space all the time..

crew and officers are great. .food in speciality resturants is better than celebrity too...

the list goes on and on too.

[fourkidsinfamily]

I was faced with this decision this year. I started planning a Baltic cruise for my family, including 4 teenagers, and my parents late last summer. We have cruised on HAL (ok), NCL (never again), RCCL (nice), Disney (nice), Celebrity (great) and Azamara (fantastic). We narrowed it down to Celebrity Eclipse and Azamara Quest, both with very similar itineraries. 3 of my kids prefer Celebrity, my wife and 1 child prefer Azamara ( for Europe anyway). Ultimately we chose Azamara Quest for 3 reasons.

1. Getting on and off is much easier.

2. 700 people swarming a port is much more comfortable than 2100.

3. In this particular comparison, the Azamara Quest does the same number of ports in 12 nights that the Celebrity Eclipse will do in 14 (we are flying across the ocean to see as much as we can).

 

Actually we went back and forth, even paying a deposit for both, until we finally made our decision.

Interestingly, my sister and her family (2 kids in their 20's) were originally going to join us but then decided to go with Celebrity (she has never been on Azamara) because of the greater choice in shipboard activities.

 

Either is a great choice, but if you want a great cruise take Celebrity. If you want a great experience take Azamara.

So for us Europe will be Azamara and the Caribbean will be Celebrity.

My thoughts anyway.