Journey is just fine

[Spursgirl]

English Tim has posted many times about the confusion some cruisers experience regarding what drinks are included.

 

Since 'more inclusive' was launched I have sailed 4 times on Azamara and have never seen any concerned pax. If they like us have a query they ask the bar staff who respond in their normal helpful manner.

 

Obviously those people who are unsure gravitate towards English Tim

[dln929]

Well given that the RCI operational auditors were onboard all last week, local sourcing is clearly a permitted policy. There was a lot of flexibility being demonstrated by the ships management and crew all of which was being done under the eyes of the said auditors. So it is not correct to give the impression that Azamara works under Head Office SOPs and cannot vary from them.

 

There has always been local sourcing, that's why Aqualina can serve local catch of the day. Maybe there were other reasons why Tim was told items he wanted could not be procured. I trust Tims surprise was not disbelief as that is how it reads to me as the original poster.

 

The new rose wine was a delight, the Sauvignon Blanc appeared day 6 and I would say all did equate to the standard on Celebrity, not though the standards in their classic package,more the premium level and/or$50 a bottle level.

 

As regards the disembarkation procedures, maybe it's a new way of working, maybe it was cruise / disembarkation port specific, time will tell but it was nice.

 

We met many new cruisers, I did not see anyone confused by the included drinks but as several are planning to post,no doubt they will chip in. I would suggest as we want to keep paper to a minimum these days, if any changes are needed these could be added to the relevant menus and not issued somehow to new passengers. That said, where does it end, we et a lady one day who thought the burgers at the Pool Grill were an additional cost as her travel agent had told her only to eat in the MDR and the Cafe.

 

Local sourcing of food and drink is one of the most delightful things about Azamara! Phil--excitedofharpendon--you'll remember this one. It was the day we were in Sorrento, suppertime at the Sunset Bar. You were eating dinner and Rob, Philippa and I were at the bar enjoying a beer. Michael, the bartender, asked if we'd tried any of the several cheeses that Chef Fabio had purchased that day. We said not yet and at Michael's urging Rob went to the buffet and came back with a plate of gorgeous Italian cheeses. Chef Fabio was your table chatting with you but he came over to say hello to us afterward and tell us a bit about the different varieties of cheeses he'd gotten. I wish I had a plate right now. :D

[excitedofharpenden]

I do remember. I also remember being on Quest in Sanary sur Mer when the exec chef went off the ship to buy a large quantity of fish from the local fishermen. Great for the guests and the locals. Probably left checking when Azamara would next be in town!

 

Phil

[cruisemuse13]

The only confusion about drinks I saw was shall we have an alcoholic beverage or wait until G & T time ;)

 

This was the daily discussion dilemma, the wait staff always waited patiently for the conclusion. Which was usually a glass of diet coke with one ice cube please:eek:

 

I have posted a review, they are a bit thin on the ground given the numbers that post on here and have sailed recently.

 

Yvonne

 

I just read your review. It sounds like you had a delightful trip. Thank you for sharing.

[jollyjoyce]

Can I just add that 2 ladies in our company on the Mumbai to Athens trip liked Rose wine, the ship ran out of it on day 2.

They asked the captain if they were getting any more, he rang whoever to ask and they were told no, sorry we are not taking anymore on until Athens!!!

Funny how they always had some for the Captains cocktail parties though.

 

So all you folks who have had good experiences of local sourcing have been lucky because it doesn't always happen!

 

Lastly, we have done 3 Azamara cruises since the "semi AI" came into being and we have never heard anyone complain about being confused about it all.

In fact everyone has been amazed how liberal the serving of the alcoholic beverages have been!

 

We look forward to our next trip.

Joyce

[uktog]

Can I just add that 2 ladies in our company on the Mumbai to Athens trip liked Rose wine, the ship ran out of it on day 2.

They asked the captain if they were getting any more, he rang whoever to ask and they were told no, sorry we are not taking anymore on until Athens!!!

Funny how they always had some for the Captains cocktail parties though.

 

So all you folks who have had good experiences of local sourcing have been lucky because it doesn't always happen!

 

Lastly, we have done 3 Azamara cruises since the "semi AI" came into being and we have never heard anyone complain about being confused about it all.

In fact everyone has been amazed how liberal the serving of the alcoholic beverages have been!

 

We look forward to our next trip.

Joyce

 

Yes I recognise we were fortunate, we were in Spain/Portugal and it was a Portuguese wine they brought on board in Gib (yes I know nothing to do with the Spanish ;) )

 

I think the caveat is local sourcing happens when it can I suspect the Middle East would not be a great place to source rose - but it does happen