Dubai to Athens

[chromered7]

We are on the Dubai to Athens cruise in May 2016 . Has the cruise been done before and if so is there any advice anyone can give? This is our first Middle Eastern cruise and while it is exciting we are a little out of our comfort zone.

 

 

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[KazLoudspeaker]

Hi chromered7. My husband & I did a cruise on Azamara Quest in November 2014, that left from Athens and ended in Mumbai. We visited Rhodes, Safaga, Muscat, Fujairah & Mumbai. Our cruise was 16 nights with 6 sea days in a row after we left Safaga. This was traversing the Gulf of Aden where there are some risks from pirates.

 

In saying this, many extraordinary measures were put in place to ensure we were as safe as possible. We never felt threatened & our normal routine wasn't impeded much at all.

 

Which ports are you visiting?

 

Any further specific info you want, just ask & I can try and give you answers or at least my insights.

 

Karyn

[procter]

suggest you try the roll call for this cruise (380 posts at present).

Look at top of page for roll calls.

[chromered7]

Hi chromered7. My husband & I did a cruise on Azamara Quest in November 2014, that left from Athens and ended in Mumbai. We visited Rhodes, Safaga, Muscat, Fujairah & Mumbai. Our cruise was 16 nights with 6 sea days in a row after we left Safaga. This was traversing the Gulf of Aden where there are some risks from pirates.

 

In saying this, many extraordinary measures were put in place to ensure we were as safe as possible. We never felt threatened & our normal routine wasn't impeded much at all.

 

Which ports are you visiting?

 

Any further specific info you want, just ask & I can try and give you answers or at least my insights.

 

Karyn

 

 

Thanks Karyn.

We are visiting Muscat, Salalah, Aqaba, Suez Cannel passage, Haifa, Athens.

 

 

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[excitedofharpenden]

It's not your typical Azamara cruise, but I've done the Red Sea and Suez trips three times and really enjoy it. The itineraries have evolved a bit from when I did them. They used to be straight through from Mumbai to Athens or the other way round, but they've split them up a bit now because I don't think they sold very well. That split enables them to start or end in Dubai rather than visiting Fujairah in the middle of nowhere and which involves a desert drive to get somewhere interesting. It also enables them to do more Med ports in the itinerary, do a Dubai roundtrip or include some ports in India. Muscat has a good HoHo bus service and Aqaba involves a long drive to Petra. Lots of sea days which I enjoy. It's interesting going throught the Suez, but not picturesque.

 

Be aware that the outside decks will most likely be out of bounds for a few days from Dubai as you pass through pirate territory and the ship lights switched off. No balcony use dusk 'til dawn. How strict this is and how long it lasts for will be dictated by the security team that will travel with you and how quickly you pass through the area. Most likely the ship will keep a speed of 16 or 17 knots to be fast enough in case of a threat. 24 hour watch from all round the ship by security team and crew. You'll have an Operation Safe Haven drill once you leave Dubai to demonstrate guests getting to hallways in the event of an alarm, but there hasn't been an attempt for some time. The pirates have gone quiet of late because of heightened awareness and military presence. Oh and it's likely to be hot, even on sea days.

 

I really like the trip and am looking to book another one for next year.

 

Phil

[chromered7]

My Kevlar jacket is in the post.

 

 

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[excitedofharpenden]

My Kevlar jacket is in the post.

 

 

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No, they'll give you one of those at the drill;)

 

Phil

[Grandma Cruising]

Like excited we have done this trip, but in reverse. We have done it twice - Athens to Dubai and Athens to Mumbai. We are thinking of booking it again in 2017. It really suits us. We love the sea days as we love sun bathing and reading! The Suez Canal is quite interesting - it makes a change from looking at sea!. Muscat is lovely - there are some nice sights - the mosque, the palace and the museum, and there's a great bazaar which is walkable from the port gates, where the shuttle stops. Ther's not much at Safaga or Fujeirah (though there is a large, very modern shopping mall at the Fujeirah and a free shuttle bus to take you there. There are some nice excursions - desert safaris etc - from Safaga.

We had a lovely Azamazing evening on board the ship at Sagaga - it was an Egyptian night with snake charmers, fortune tellers, whirling dervishes etc. The ship was beautifully decorated. It was lovely.

I'm sure you'll love the cruise,and all the security doesn't impinge on you during the day at all. As far as I'm aware no ships have been attacked in this area for a long time.

 

 

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[lucyl]

Hello, my husband and have also done this cruise twice before, once from Athens to Mumbai and last year Singapore to Istanbul. It is very safe with the military personnel on board going through Suez. I agree the HOHO bus in Muscat is a good trip,and overall it's a very interesting cruise. I am also doing this trip again in May. Love the sea days. Enjoy!

 

Anne

[gazzer159]

you must do wadi rum and petra

[Antonintassie]

I travel to the UAE for work ,one word of advice it will be very hot in May so pace yourself and try and do outdoor activity earlier in the day or in the evening .It is a fantastic part of the world and if you get the chance to go to Petra it is worth the drive .

As Phil mentioned shipping has in the past been the attention of some unwanted attention . This seems to have dropped away to nothing in the last 24 to 36 months .I suspect that other than an increased speed and some lighting changes and some very low key security personnel you will not notice any difference.

[chromered7]

Thanks everyone for the good advice and information.

 

 

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[Elizabeth29]

Has anyone else booked an afternoon tour of Wadi Rum on May 10?

[Turangi!]

AZ Affecionados,

 

We did this cruise from Dubai to Istanbul last April 2015. This is not a cruise for the faint of heart.

 

Captain Carl was hard on the gas pedal through the Somali pirate territory but we didn't see any pirates, mostly because the Saudi airforce was patrolling everything on the water there to stop arms transport to Yemen that they were in active combat with when we went through. There is an international armed forces presence also patrolling the Gulf of Aden and they are usually bored so they investigate anything suspicious!

 

We "went dark" for only four nights but we were allowed to dine in the dark on the back deck at Windows Cafe. A new CC friend was upset because she couldn't use her balcony but when I told her she could go to Windows, she was happy. We both agreed it was disappointing when they put the lights back on!

 

Then we speed through the Red Sea to make our Suez Canal transit. The Canal is silting up so there was only one-way traffic, backing up traffic at either end! (Not sure if this has improved since last year?)

 

Envious that this trip stops in Aqaba. Jordan is a marvellous place to visit. We did Petra in the 1990s with our then 6 year-old son. Petra is a World Heritage site. DO NOT MISS IT. Don't take the camel ride into Petra, wait until you are tired and hot and take it back out, it used to be half the price!!!

 

Have a great cruise... we did Progressive Trivia (and we have bragging rights) and I learned that I'm not ever going to become a famous watercolour artist, but it was fun to learn on the many sea days!

 

 

Turangi!

[excitedofharpenden]

AZ Affecionados,

 

We did this cruise from Dubai to Istanbul last April 2015. This is not a cruise for the faint of heart.

 

Captain Carl was hard on the gas pedal through the Somali pirate territory but we didn't see any pirates, mostly because the Saudi airforce was patrolling everything on the water there to stop arms transport to Yemen that they were in active combat with when we went through. There is an international armed forces presence also patrolling the Gulf of Aden and they are usually bored so they investigate anything suspicious!

 

 

I really think you are over dramatising it. Captain Carl is a lovely guy, but does like to exaggerate for effect;). Do the trip with Captain Johannes and see the difference.

 

Phil

Edited March 17, 2016 by excitedofharpenden

[sunlover33]

Apparently on this cruise we have Captain Jose, cruise director Tony, Hotel director Phillip and chef Fabio.

[Derby Street]

AZ Affecionados,

 

We did this cruise from Dubai to Istanbul last April 2015. This is not a cruise for the faint of heart.

 

Captain Carl was hard on the gas pedal through the Somali pirate territory but we didn't see any pirates, mostly because the Saudi airforce was patrolling everything on the water there to stop arms transport to Yemen that they were in active combat with when we went through. There is an international armed forces presence also patrolling the Gulf of Aden and they are usually bored so they investigate anything suspicious!

 

 

Really ?

[Grandma Cruising]

Yes, really. We saw lots of US and UK navy ships and helicopters in that area on our Suez cruise.

 

 

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[KazLoudspeaker]

When we were there Captn Carl was on board and there were plenty of international security forces are stationed there on a rotational basis. The New Zealand Defence Forces were carrying out drills whilst we were in transit. We were asked to alter our course marginally because of this. However, we always felt very safe & Captain Carl was keeping to 17+ knots during this transit as well.

The Q & A with the security forces on board, Captain & senior officers was exceptionally interesting.

 

Tony was our CD & he did a talk about when he was on board a ship several years earlier (another line) that came under attack from pirates.

 

Karyn

 

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[Derby Street]

Yes, really. We saw lots of US and UK navy ships and helicopters in that area on our Suez cruise.

 

 

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Oh dear I think I am faint of heart and have made a mistake booking this cruise. Too late to cancel?

[chromered7]

Military manoeuvres was not mentioned in the brochure. It could be like Dads army at sea.

 

 

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[KazLoudspeaker]

Oh dear I think I am faint of heart and have made a mistake booking this cruise. Too late to cancel?

You will be fine. It is no biggie, it was a great cruise, we thoroughly enjoyed it. Seeing all of the military presence was reassuring rather than concerning, for us. It was very relaxing.

 

Karyn

 

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[excitedofharpenden]

Military manoeuvres was not mentioned in the brochure. It could be like Dads army at sea.

 

 

DON'T PANIC!

 

Phil

[Turangi!]

AZ Affecionados,

 

I agree with Kazloudspeaker that the military presence made the transit much safer, and I would definitely do this cruise again. There's no reason to rethink your travel plans, but go in knowing it's not a typical cruise and the extra security measure are in place to keep you and the multimillion dollar cruise ship safe!

 

Some people didn't know about the Gulf of Aden situation before boarding and did express concerns which was what I was trying to convey with my initial comments. We all have different comfort levels :o!

 

Turangi!

[aussie travel bird]

We have full confidence that we'll all be in the best of hands during this cruise itinerary and the countdown is well and truly on! We should remember, even given current world events , we're probably most likely safer on this cruise than driving on the roads at home.

 

Love it that some people are using their sense of humour to lighten this topic (can we be on your triveria team?) We are looking forward to experiencing this part of the world that we've not yet seen in detail yet while we can. Maybe we'll be taken outside our comfort zone, then so be it. Maybe not? That's when we 'grow' isn't it?

 

If Tony Markey says that Petra is the only place in his world travels that truly took his breath away the first time we saw it, then I want some of that! I don't want to do the same old stuff every holiday, I want to do things differently, experience the 'different', stretch my comfort zone and boundaries (within reason). When I'm travelling Azamara helps us achieve that. We also know we are priveledeged to be in a position to do this and do it on Azamara.

 

We can't wait to see some of our dear 'Azamara family' who welcome us back time and time again and experience the 'new' Quest on our glorious 32 nights onboard. Countdown is well and truly on!!!!

 

Good luck for a trouble free dry dock, see you in Singapore real soon.