Tips for Azamara Newbies

[uktog]

On 11/24/2019 at 7:20 AM, excitedofharpenden said:

I think I'm right in saying that you can buy any drinks package and have room service delivery of it, but of course the premium package doesn't include wines. 

 

Phil 

You are correct.  We have the ultimate package and have had wine though the butler advised it could not be by the bottle we had to have it by the glass.  As we were having a lunch (just the two of us) on the balcony we asked if he could bring four glasses between us spaced over an hour - he did then get us the bottle as a "special favour".  I think its one of these things that you have to just work through.  I can understand why they do not want us building up a stock of the by the glass bottles in our suite but on the other hand the by the glass only rule does make more work for them in the long run.

[RenieRaider]

Host Grandma Cruising getting excited to experience our 1st Azamara Club cruise! A little concerned about her small scale but I will have SeaBands.  

If we want to view a football game at one of the bars...where is best....and are the beers we will be drinking really included?

Thanka for the super input to this Newbie thread and the spreadsheet.

[Tom47]

29 minutes ago, RenieRaider said:

Host Grandma Cruising getting excited to experience our 1st Azamara Club cruise! A little concerned about her small scale but I will have SeaBands.  

If we want to view a football game at one of the bars...where is best....and are the beers we will be drinking really included?

Thanka for the super input to this Newbie thread and the spreadsheet.

Beer is included.  I drink wine, so can't comment on brands

[Grandma Cruising]

33 minutes ago, Tom47 said:

Beer is included.  I drink wine, so can't comment on brands

Included beers are Newcastle Brown on draught, Becks, Budweiser and Bud Light (plus O’Douls non-alcoholic beer).

Spirits bar has TV, but I don’t know if football games will be on them. They may be on TV in your cabin.

Glad you find the ‘Tips’ helpful.

Edited November 29, 2019 by Host Grandma Cruising

[RenieRaider]

On 11/10/2018 at 5:28 PM, Host Grandma Cruising said:

"........Specialist restaurants tend to be a little smarter.

Jackets for men are not necessary, but .......". 

Plan to travel with a carry on, glad we can leave blazer at home. 

 

[Vagabondvoyager]

I have my first AZ cruise booked on the Pursuit leaving Miami on April 5.  In August, I was on the Oceania Insignia which is a sister ship to the Pursuit and I just loved her.  This blog has answered all my questions.  Many thanks to Host Grandma Cruising for all the work you have put into this blog.  Great job!

Kathy

[Robson1]

I have a question regarding the 3 for $70 speciality dining package. After downloading the PDF and zooming in to 400% I (barely) noticed the terms stating:

 

"One night of dining in Prime C or Aqualina must take place on night 1 or 2 of the cruise"

 

Is this strictly enforced or even still current? (dated 07/03/2016) We have an Azamara evening at 19:30 on the 2nd night and are planning to get back to the ship around 18:00 before getting ready and would prefer not to have to go on the 1st night either.

 

[Grandma Cruising]

1 hour ago, Robson1 said:

I have a question regarding the 3 for $70 speciality dining package. After downloading the PDF and zooming in to 400% I (barely) noticed the terms stating:

 

"One night of dining in Prime C or Aqualina must take place on night 1 or 2 of the cruise"

 

Is this strictly enforced or even still current? (dated 07/03/2016) We have an Azamara evening at 19:30 on the 2nd night and are planning to get back to the ship around 18:00 before getting ready and would prefer not to have to go on the 1st night either.

 

No it’s not enforced. On the cruise we’ve just finished we had three bookings, using this offer, well spread out, none on the first or second night of the cruise.

[Grandma Cruising]

There is a topic in the forum about Azamara”s new vegan menu. john1970 confirmed that they were able to look at the menu in Discoveries one night to order dishes for the next night. That was in addition to the vegetarian dishes on the main menu that are labelled as such.

[Grandma Cruising]

In the same topic there was a query about the items that are on the menu every day and I told them that the following items (and a few others I forgot) are part of the main menu in Discoveries MDR and are offered every day - prawn cocktail, escargots, french onion soup, chicken breast, salmon, New York strip steak, creme brûlée.

[Grandma Cruising]

15 hours ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

There is a topic in the forum about Azamara”s new vegan menu. john1970 confirmed that they were able to look at the menu in Discoveries one night to order dishes for the next night. That was in addition to the vegetarian dishes on the main menu that are labelled as such.

Uktog has reported that on her current cruise she has seen people ordering from the vegan menu to eat immediately.

[RenieRaider]

Oh my goodness, I am so excited to be going on this cruise!!!!  We enjoy traveling during the holidays to see the ship's decorated and to see the tropical islands decked out as well. How about you? Some people find it too busy a time to be traveling.

[kevey]

Hi all - just booked our first cruise on Azamara  - going to South Africa on the Journey next year.  Can't wait !  A question regarding the speciality coffees.  We have done a few Celebrity cruises and loved going to Cafe Al Bacio for a lovely coffee/tea several times each day.   Is the choice of coffee's extensive and does anybody know if they also serve Chai Latte ?  That's my wife's favourite.......

 

Loving this thread - it is whetting the appetite !

[LuAnn]

10 hours ago, kevey said:

Hi all - just booked our first cruise on Azamara  - going to South Africa on the Journey next year.  Can't wait !  A question regarding the speciality coffees.  We have done a few Celebrity cruises and loved going to Cafe Al Bacio for a lovely coffee/tea several times each day.   Is the choice of coffee's extensive and does anybody know if they also serve Chai Latte ?  That's my wife's favourite.......

 

Loving this thread - it is whetting the appetite !

 

We were on Quest this August and they did not have Chai tea!!! :( I spoke to the F&B Manager and at first he said they would only "have it on board when they were in India". I explained to him ...that at least in So Cal..it's a very popular tea...and Chai Tea Lattes are my favorite as well!!! As we were disembarking the ship he was in the line to say good-bye and he told me he had ordered chai tea!!! :) But I don't think that would necessarily be "fleet wide". I'm in Journey in 10 days or so and I'm bringing Chai tea bags just in case...if they don't have it I'll talk with the F&B Manager!!! :) We too enjoy Cafe Al Bacio and I do think the offerings/ choices are similar..except for the Chai!!! 

[kevey]

Hi LuAnn.

 

Thanks for the reply.  It's also a popular drink here in the UK with most of the coffee chains, and many of the independents, making it easily available.  

 

Look forward to heaing if it is on the Journey on your forthcoming cruise.  Have a great time !  

[newmexicoNita]

On 10/31/2019 at 6:51 PM, PirateWife said:

There are tables and chairs pool side at the Pool Bar and at The Patio that are not low and easy to get in and out of.

thank you so much. This will really be a huge help to us. Only 4 more days and so much still to do 

[lola loves cruising]

My daughter and I just booked the Lima to Miami cruise on Pursuit, departing Lima on March 23, 2020.  My last six cruises have been on Seabourn.  I am wondering how they compare.  We are really looking forward to this adventure.

[Mrs. S]

On 8/20/2018 at 11:50 AM, Host Grandma Cruising said:

It was suggested that it might be a good idea to have a ‘sticky’ thread which had tips for cruisers new to Azamara, so here goes.

 

White Night - Azamara Cruises normally include a ‘White Night’. This is an on-deck party, with a buffet served from the Patio area. Most people wear white clothing (though this is not required).

 

Speciality Restaurants- good idea to make your bookings as soon as you board. There is sometimes a bookings table in the terminal building and always one inside the entrance to Windows buffet.

 

Dining Packages - the speciality restaurants are $30pp, but you can buy dining packages at a ‘bargain’ price - for example 3 meals for $70pp.

 

Cocktails - the list of included cocktails is only intended as an example of the available cocktails, you can ask for any cocktail to be made with the included spirits.

 

Breakfast drinks - you can ask for a Bloody Mary and/or a Mimosa (Buck’s Fizz) for breakfast and you can have a smoothie made to your own tastes. If you like ginger ask for an ‘Energiser’ at breakfast - it’s a small smoothie which has ginger in it and is (unsurprisingly) very energising!

 

Stateroom fridge - the sodas in the fridge are included, the alcoholic drinks are not. You can ask your stateroom attendant to get you the sodas you like to keep in your fridge.

 

Bringing alcohol on board - you can bring alcohol on board to drink in your stateroom. If you want to drink it in a public room there is a $10 corkage charge.

 

Please add your own tips, so we can get a really good information thread for all those going on their first Azamara cruise.

 

 

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums

 

[Hebden]

Hi all, we are going on our first Azamara cruise later this month - leaving Buenos Aires on January 20. We are pretty inexperienced cruisers as we have only been on one before (probably unusually, it was 23 nights - up the Amazon with Regent), so we are very grateful for the information on here. Thanks to you all.

 

One thing I wondered about last time concerns tipping. I know that Regent and Azamara include tips - but what about transfers? Do drivers expect anything?

[Grandma Cruising]

We’ve never tipped drivers.

[Hebden]

Thanks!

[beachgirl007]

On 8/22/2018 at 2:32 PM, irisbax3 said:

Thanks so much for these helpful tips. We are considering a 26 days cruise on Azamara. We have been on many cruises but never on Azamara. What is the official language on Azamara? I know there will be people from many different countries but we were wondering about the official language on this ship.

Official language is English! on a 26 day Azamara cruise, the whole crew will know you on a 1st name basis!

 

[beachgirl007]

Hello... We are booked to sail on the March 23rd, 2020 sailing on the Pursuit from Lima (Calleo) to Miami. We have sailed on the Journey 3 times in the past, so this will be or 1st Azamara with a different crew! We chose this sailing because it ends in Miami, which is a short drive from our home. It sure will be nice not to have to deal with flying after a relaxing vacation!

Someone on a b2b asked about sightseeing in Miami and Miami Beach, which does not end at the airport. The solution to that would be a "Hop-on, Hop-off" double decker tour bus. The whole tour probably takes 2 to 3 hours if you don't "Hop-off", or you get on and stop for lunch in South Beach.  As for anyone who wants to get the Miami Cuban feel, the place to go (not far from the pier) is Calle Ocho (8th Street). If you didn't know better, you would think that you were in Havana! 

[Grandma Cruising]

Someone just posted a topic in the Azamara Forum asking about whether it’s possible to have a vow renewal ceremony onboard Azamara. tv24 answered that they had attended such a ceremony on a recent cruise and that they had organised it with a Guest Relations once onboard. Another poster had been to a ceremony organised by the ship’s concierge.

Edited January 15, 2020 by Host Grandma Cruising

[Grandma Cruising]

On 1/14/2020 at 2:31 PM, Host Grandma Cruising said:

Someone just posted a topic in the Azamara Forum asking about whether it’s possible to have a vow renewal ceremony onboard Azamara. tv24 answered that they had attended such a ceremony on a recent cruise and that they had organised it with a Guest Relations once onboard. Another poster had been to a ceremony organised by the ship’s concierge.

Bonnie has just posted information about Wedding Vow Renewal Ceremonies.