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How does Azamara compare to Crystal?


donizetti
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To be technical, the post I was replying to was about taking a "test drive" via a "short cruise" on Crystal -- not Azamara. But you are probably correct that Crystal doesn't do <7 day cruises either.
True enough Jazzbeau. You were referencing our "test drive" on Crystal. It's a 7-day voyage which for us is a very short cruise, yet I'm fairly certain it's long enough for us to get a sense if the cruise line is a good fit. The regulars on the Crystal forum confirm that we would get a good idea of the product in that timeframe. Works for us!
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To be technical, the post I was replying to was about taking a "test drive" via a "short cruise" on Crystal -- not Azamara. But you are probably correct that Crystal doesn't do <7 day cruises either. In any case, I have sailed Crystal, will be sailing in a Celebrity Suite in a few days, and will be sailing my first Azamara cruise in a few months -- at which point I don't expect to hear any more carping about people who haven't sailed the product having opinions!

 

You were actually quoting a post from someone talking about going on Oceania and they don't do short cruises either. I hope you enjoy your Azamara cruise. It's a wonderful itinerary and I look forward to your opinion of it when you are back.

 

Phil

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Oh my goodness, such controversy about my brief comment about test drive cruises! I suppose I should have been precise. If we chose to test our Oceania, it would be for at least 7 days, more likely 14. I had completely forgotten that super-short 3 day cruises even existed! Oh well.

 

Regarding my a little too cute comment about the maturity of Crystal passengers: Based upon announcements made by Crystal and AZ on the cruises we have taken, the average age on Crystal is about 10 years older than AZ. I have to say that Crystal does an excellent job of assisting mature passengers who need some physical help.

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"Short" cruises in the general CC terminology means 3-4 days. Sorry for the confusion. I forget that most people don't read all the CC boards.

 

All the boards? Funny, probably moderators are the only ones who do that ;). For me, a 7-day is a short cruise, and a good "test drive".

 

Our "test drive" on Oceania was 14 days, and far too long (although granted, it was a TA, not a port-intensive Med trip.)

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Thank you all for your replies. I now know definitely that Crystal is far and away the best 'fit' for us. Your responses have clarified a great deal for us and so instead of sailing with Azamara on the dates which match our special occasion, we'll wait and go on Crystal later.:)

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Thank you all for your replies. I now know definitely that Crystal is far and away the best 'fit' for us. Your responses have clarified a great deal for us and so instead of sailing with Azamara on the dates which match our special occasion, we'll wait and go on Crystal later.:)

 

 

Shame, I think you would love Azamara!

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app

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Shame, I think you would love Azamara!

 

 

I should have said in my original post that we have already cruised with Crystal, so Azamara would have been a leap in the dark. From some of the replies, I am now clear as to why we would still choose Crystal over any other cruise line.

But thank you anyway.:)

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You can meet nice people or rude people anywhere. The cruise line will sell to whomever books. Most people are nice. Crystal is very luxurious and the prices reflect it. The real difference is the attire. On Crystal there are formal nights. Hate dressing for formal nights. I prefer casual. Azamara does not have formal nights.

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Crystal has been on our radar for a while but we've always hesitated, as we thought the demographic was just as you described. Then we attended a cruise presentation by Crystal hosted by a local TA and we learned that the "average" passenger was well travelled, active, mid-50s to mid-60s. Well that sounds like us! Maybe it was a sales pitch and I'm sure many Crystal passengers don't fit that profile, but it was enough to have us reconsider. So we're taking a short and close-to-home "test" cruise on Crystal in 3 weeks to experience the product first-hand for ourselves.

 

While I have run into some old and inactive passengers on Crystal (including those who almost wrecked a tour to Chichen Itza), most of the rest have been very outgoing/active and during the day the age difference didn't seem to matter (I was ~20 at the time). It was only into the way late (or early depending upon how you look at it) drinking hours that the age difference seemed to make an appearance. I seem to be the youngest or amongst the youngest on all the lines I've been on save Disney. The only time age was an issue seemed to be on Silversea.

Edited by Emperor Norton
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  • 5 years later...

An old topic....  Definitely pre-Covid.  And I am in the reverse situation - LOVED Crystal, sailed Crystal many times - both Ocean ships (before the Expedition-class ship) and the Yacht, and I have yet to cruise on Azamara (although I do have a 21-day West Africa Journey, with Morocco Extension, booked for the end of next year).

Of course, much has changed in the past five years since this topic was active.  Perhaps nobody here is currently monitoring this "thread."  But if someone is reading this, I would love to hear any further comments.  Crystal seems to have been hit very hard by the Covid-19 pandemic - more so than most lines.  And now Azamara is "flying free" - on its own.

My wife and I have close friends who LOVE Azamara, and we're certainly looking forward to seeing what all that praise is about.  We do enjoy making friends on cruises - much facilitated by the Cruise Critic Roll Calls.  Great food, educational lectures, opportunities to learn new things, interesting port itineraries, various forms of entertainment (although gambling is not of any interest to us), ballroom dancing, excellent service, comfortable rooms of a reasonable size ....  I could go on, but we found Crystal to meet all of these requirements handily.  Does Azamara beat Crystal overall? 

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My husband and I have cruised on both lines a number of times pre-Covid. We have a Crystal Cruise booked for November, because the prices are low currently. We enjoy the relaxed atmosphere of Azamara over the more exclusive atmosphere on Crystal. For example, Crystal had a jewelry fashion show when we were on board with items priced over $100,000. Passengers dress fashionably for dinner even on casual nights. The food and wine are a little better on Crystal with opportunities for special dinners and wine events but the food on Azamara is also very good and the service equally good. The entertainment is about the same with music appealing to those in their 70's+. For entertainment we prefer Celebrity which appeals more to those of us in our 60's, and younger. We like the small size of the ships (under 1000 passengers) and almost entirely adults. We find the cost of Azamara cruises to be more appealing and we will book a veranda room where on Crystal we might book a window room. Both lines have a self serve laundry facility which we love. Celebrity does not have this. For us, Azamara has a slight advantage, but we like both lines.

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1 hour ago, ChucktownSteve said:

Aren't we comparing apples to oranges when trying to equate a premium cruise line with a luxury one?

 

IMO comparing Oceania to Azamara or Regent to Crystal are more appropriate.

No reason you can't compare any cruise line to any other. 

 

Having spent 49 nights on supposedly "luxury" Regent, I'd choose Azamara every time, despite better liquor brands, bigger staterooms, and the like on Regent.  Being treated as me rather than the next person in line means more to me than having Glenlivet instead of Famous Grouse.  And we don't cruise to buy diamonds. Others' priorities may differ.

 

We board Crystal Symphony this Sunday, first time on the line,  but I'm inclined to think gofloat's comparison above is what I'll find.

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On 9/8/2021 at 4:38 AM, freddyflounder said:

I just read about refunds on crystal and maybe there is more risk involved to get that little extra luxury.


Our fully paid reservation for our first Crystal cruise was canceled 6/7/2020.

 

It took 13 months to get our down payment  back (made January 2019) from Crystal.

We kept receiving written and phone promises of fast payback but had to wait and wait …

 

Our final payment (made January 2020 ) was covered by our Chase CC and was credited after 6 weeks.

 

Crystal = never again and buyers beware.

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  • 2 weeks later...

My husband and I have taken many Azamara Cruises and it is our favorite cruise line. We love the friendly vibe on the ships and feel Azamara offers affordable and relaxed luxury (or close to it!) 

Next Friday we will be boarding the Crystal Symphony for our first ever Crystal cruise. I know that a 7 day round trip to Bermuda from NYC during Covid won’t be a true Crystal experience but we are looking forward to trying it out. I’ll post back here when we return. I expect better enrichment and possibly better food though Crystal seems to offer less menu choices in their restaurants. 
 

We did a Caribbean cruise on Oceania btw and we were disappointed. Things felt a little flat to us. A Canadian couple we dined with agreed that it was dull. I remember them saying that on a Caribbean cruise they expected steel drums not big band music…

 

Of course that is the beauty of cruising. We all have different tastes and there are options for all of us. 

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On 9/11/2021 at 12:56 PM, lenoirm said:


Our fully paid reservation for our first Crystal cruise was canceled 6/7/2020.

 

It took 13 months to get our down payment  back (made January 2019) from Crystal.

We kept receiving written and phone promises of fast payback but had to wait and wait …

 

Our final payment (made January 2020 ) was covered by our Chase CC and was credited after 6 weeks.

 

Crystal = never again and buyers beware.

From the comments I read on CC during 2020, your Crystal experience was not unique.

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A lot of customers are still waiting for their refund by Crystal.

A friend had a Crystal cruise to Asia canceled recently .

He cannot get his deposit back through  CC bank because deposit was made too long ago.He will have to wait like me and count on the “good”will of the Chinese cruise company.

 

If anyone plan to cruise with Crystal , it would be prudent to use a respected bank CC and make the deposit less than a year before departure..

 

Micheline

 

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If you have onboard credit from your cruise agent, Crystal will treat it as nonrefundable, and if you don't use it, it will be "forfeited."  "Forfeited" is the word Crystal uses on your final statement.  I was told there was one exception:  a large U.S. chain of membership stores.  I believe I made clear to Crystal what I thought of this policy.

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On 9/26/2021 at 11:07 PM, tgg said:

 

 

Marinaro44,  do you have any feedback on your Crystal sailing experience?  And how is Russ?

Russ seems to be doing fine.  Loves the two months on, two months off schedule on Crystal.  Has more extensive entertainment to oversee:  four singers and six dancers; three pianists; a violinist; a duo; a trio; and a comedian.  Five entertainment venues in the evening.  Three enrichment lecturers.  Has had a few Azamara regulars onboard to stay in touch.

 

Thoughts on Crystal when I have time.

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