A few newbie questions

[Mynki]

Hi all

 

I'm thinking of booking our first AZ cruise and have a few questions please.

 

What is the difference between a Veranda and Veranda + stateroom?

Can someone please explain what beverages are included with your fare? We usually sail with Celebrity so understand their classic and premium drinks packages. How does this work on AZ?

What kind of entertainment and enrichment programs could we expect to find onboard? 

Thanks in advance

 

[excitedofharpenden]

The Azamara website is probably your best bet to answer the first couple of questions.  Re veranda and veranda +:

 

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.co.uk/life-onboard/inclusive-amenities

 

Details of the included beverages, together with packages available:

 

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.co.uk/booked-guests/onboard-packages/beverage-packages

 

My opinion, for what it is worth.  Unless the Veranda Plus cabin location is particularly one you want (eg aft facing) I don’t think they are worth the money.  Especially if you are a Captain's Club member with reciprocal benefits at a level that gives you internet minutes and free laundry. As for the complimentary bar set up, the standard cabins don’t have much counter top space anyway.  More clutter.

 

Drinks package is more down to your personal choice and if the standard is good enough for you or not.  Personally I upgrade as a treat if I have OBC to spend.  Otherwise I don’t bother.  The included is fine, but I’m not a whisky or brandy drinker and there is only one included whisky and no brandy. Of course you can buy any drink by the glass.

 

Entertainment I find lively and enjoyable, but on a smaller scale to Celebrity.  Plenty of guest entertainers.  There are a number of onboard activities for sea days.  Standard stuff and lectures too.  If you Google Azamara daily paper it will throw up a few results so you can look at a typical cruise.

 

Phil

 

 

Edited November 11, 2018 by excitedofharpenden

[excitedofharpenden]

Sorry, i should also have mentioned, aside from those forward and aft facing P1 cabins, the other P2 and P3 cabins are on the least desirable deck 8, many of which are under public areas.  The cabins are exactly the same size as other balcony cabins.  I’d say you are better off with a V2 or V3 on decks 7 and 6.  There is a cabin spreadsheet sticky above that is worth looking at.  

 

As for priority embarkation and debarkation, it’s a non-issue on a ship the size of Azamara.  You’ll be one of the first off for the Azamazing Evening and that is probably the most notable priority you'll get.

 

Phil

[Mynki]

Hi Phil

 

Thanks for the info, it's very much appreciated. 

Your comments make perfect sense. We are Elite with Celebrity so as we'd book a beverage package anyway the deluxe veranda option isn't a great deal for us. I was actually looking at V2 and V3 cabins on deck 7 as I once made the mistake of booking a cabin under a public space, so never again! :) 

I'll pull the trigger and book our first AZ cruise later this afternoon. Thanks again. :) 

[excitedofharpenden]

Deck 7 or deck 6 is good.  I wouldn't be put off deck 6 from being over the restaurant for instance, but I would probably avoid one of the forward deck 6 as they are over the show lounge.  I've been in one of those and you do hear rehearsals and sound checks and of course the shows if you are in the cabin.  Have a look at the sticky.  There is a good bit of useful guidance there.  And of course welcome to your first Azamara!

 

Phil

Edited November 11, 2018 by excitedofharpenden

[nordski]

52 minutes ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Deck 7 or deck 6 is good.  I wouldn't be put off deck 6 from being over the restaurant for instance, but I would probably avoid one of the forward deck 6 as they are over the show lounge.  I've been in one of those and you do hear rehearsals and sound checks and of course the shows if you are in the cabin.  Have a look at the sticky.  There is a good bit of useful guidance there.  And of course welcome to your first Azamara!

 

Phil

 

We were just in a Deck 6 aft (over Discoveries) and, as Phil says, there was certainly no problem with noise.

[Mynki]

2 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Deck 7 or deck 6 is good.  I wouldn't be put off deck 6 from being over the restaurant for instance, but I would probably avoid one of the forward deck 6 as they are over the show lounge.  I've been in one of those and you do hear rehearsals and sound checks and of course the shows if you are in the cabin.  Have a look at the sticky.  There is a good bit of useful guidance there.  And of course welcome to your first Azamara!

 

Phil

All booked. The wife and I are now looking forward to our first cruise with AZ. 

I know it's a very subjective subject but how would you compare food and service onboard AZ to the Celebrity suite experience? 

[excitedofharpenden]

10 minutes ago, Mynki said:

All booked. The wife and I are now looking forward to our first cruise with AZ. 

I know it's a very subjective subject but how would you compare food and service onboard AZ to the Celebrity suite experience? 

You are right.  It is subjective, but I find the service and general atmosphere way better than Celebrity.  Food in Luminae is slightly better than the MDR on Azamara and of course the room is smaller, but I found Luminae had a more limited menu so overall I enjoy Azamara MDR dining more.  I liked the breakfast in Luminae, but once again the breakfast served in the dining room on Azamara is really a good match.  You won’t be left wanting and having experienced the MDR on Celebrity, there is just no comparison.

 

The two specialty restaurants are very nice.  $30 cover charge not excessive.  I prefer Aqualina, but Prime C is very good too.  There are examples of the menus in the Dining and Wines section of the Azamara site.

 

There is now The Patio open in the evening with a totally different menu to lunchtime and table service.  Once you factor in White Night Open air buffet (if you like that sort of thing.  It’s fun and a central event on Azamara) and the Azamazing Evening if there is one on your cruise, the number of cruise days seems short to fit it all in.  I really do mix things up when I’m on the ship and I find the whole atmosphere for dining is more relaxed and easier to decide on the day.  The buffet has properly dressed tables with cutlery and glassware so you don’t feel like you are eating in a transport caf.  So if you’ve been busy during the day and just want a casual dinner and you fancy the theme of the evening (there is one every night) then I find it perfect.

 

The main thing I like on Azamara is that everyone gets treated the same whether in an inside cabin or a suite.  You don’t have to be in Suite Class to get great service.  

 

These are my thoughts of course!  Others may not agree.  

 

Phil

[Grandma Cruising]

Just wanted to check you’ve seen the sticky thread ‘Tips for Azamara Newbies’.

[Tom47]

DW and I have cruised on Celebrity.  See my comparison

 

[Mynki]

12 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

You are right.  It is subjective, but I find the service and general atmosphere way better than Celebrity.  Food in Luminae is slightly better than the MDR on Azamara and of course the room is smaller, but I found Luminae had a more limited menu so overall I enjoy Azamara MDR dining more.  I liked the breakfast in Luminae, but once again the breakfast served in the dining room on Azamara is really a good match.  You won’t be left wanting and having experienced the MDR on Celebrity, there is just no comparison.

 

The two specialty restaurants are very nice.  $30 cover charge not excessive.  I prefer Aqualina, but Prime C is very good too.  There are examples of the menus in the Dining and Wines section of the Azamara site.

 

There is now The Patio open in the evening with a totally different menu to lunchtime and table service.  Once you factor in White Night Open air buffet (if you like that sort of thing.  It’s fun and a central event on Azamara) and the Azamazing Evening if there is one on your cruise, the number of cruise days seems short to fit it all in.  I really do mix things up when I’m on the ship and I find the whole atmosphere for dining is more relaxed and easier to decide on the day.  The buffet has properly dressed tables with cutlery and glassware so you don’t feel like you are eating in a transport caf.  So if you’ve been busy during the day and just want a casual dinner and you fancy the theme of the evening (there is one every night) then I find it perfect.

 

The main thing I like on Azamara is that everyone gets treated the same whether in an inside cabin or a suite.  You don’t have to be in Suite Class to get great service.  

 

These are my thoughts of course!  Others may not agree.  

 

Phil

That all sounds good.

My own thoughts are, and I'm sure some will disagree too is that Celebrity has evolved into a two tier line now. Suite class is very good, but non suite class is really starting to show cutbacks. Our last back to backs were on Summit and whilst we enjoyed the cruises which were excellent value for money, I did feel completely underwhelmed with the levels of service and regretted not upgrading to a suite based on our previous experiences. The concierge and butler team simply provide far superior service to guest relations and the excursion teams in my experience anyway. 

My perception is that the Azamara experience will be a similar 'ish' match to Celebrity suite class. Whereas non suite Celebrity class would be more comparable to Princess or HAL. 

I've had a look at a few youtube videos  and menus online etc and the dining looks good. For us this is an important part of the cruise and the X MDR isn't that exciting, although to be fair our waters were very pleasant last time. 

I like Luminae but I do agree that the menu is a little limited. Service has always been very good to excellent for us. My only niggling little criticism is that the menu descriptions conjure up images that rarely match what arrives at the table. Though the wait staff do an excellent job of explaining the dishes when ordering. 

My only slight concerns are the room sizes. Can you store your suitcases under the bed? They do look a little small as does the bathroom. :) 

Specialty dining and beverage packages certainly look reasonably priced when compared to Celebrity. 

[Mynki]

12 hours ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

Just wanted to check you’ve seen the sticky thread ‘Tips for Azamara Newbies’.

Yes I have and I found it most useful. Thanks for creating it. :) 

[audobon_tx]

42 minutes ago, Mynki said:

My only slight concerns are the room sizes. Can you store your suitcases under the bed? They do look a little small as does the bathroom. 

 

Yes, you can store luggage under the bed.  We have two large and two roll aboard cases under there now.  The rooms and bathroom are small but we are used to them.  There are ample storage drawers and cabinets.  The room attendant will remove stuff you don't want (in our case most of the wooden hangers in the closets and the tubular bed width cushion) to free up more space.

Edited November 12, 2018 by flyingshoes

[excitedofharpenden]

2 hours ago, Mynki said:

My only slight concerns are the room sizes. Can you store your suitcases under the bed? They do look a little small as does the bathroom. 🙂

 

I first cruised Azamara in 2011 and it was the room and balcony size that had put me off trying them earlier.  I was persuaded to try Azamara.  To be honest, in comparison to Celebrity the standard cabins are small, but as flyingshoes says there is plenty of storage.  Given the size of the ship it’s never too far to walk to a public area.  The loungers by the pool are very comfortable with a nice cushions and more often than not I now take a window cabin, which is fine.

 

The bathrooms are small and no match for the newer Celebrity S-Class, but once again they are perfectly formed.  You may have seen much commentary here about the size of the showers.  They are small too, but how much time do you spend in the cabin (I’m 6ft tall and 190lbs)?  You’ll want to be out and about the ship.  The beds are very comfy and the sheets, pillows and duvets better than X in my view.

 

Finally you did talk about the two tier system on Celebrity.  I totally agree.  If you have Luminae and Michael's they fawn over you.  It doesn’t seem genuine to me.  If you don’t have a suite it is totally dependent on the crew member and there have been too many poor ones of late.  Oh and the loud music on Celebrity.  Don’t get me started on that!  Thankfully absent on Azamara although I have noticed piped music around the Pool Deck at times.

 

Phil

[Mynki]

1 hour ago, excitedofharpenden said:

I first cruised Azamara in 2011 and it was the room and balcony size that had put me off trying them earlier.  I was persuaded to try Azamara.  To be honest, in comparison to Celebrity the standard cabins are small, but as flyingshoes says there is plenty of storage.  Given the size of the ship it’s never too far to walk to a public area.  The loungers by the pool are very comfortable with a nice cushions and more often than not I now take a window cabin, which is fine.

 

The bathrooms are small and no match for the newer Celebrity S-Class, but once again they are perfectly formed.  You may have seen much commentary here about the size of the showers.  They are small too, but how much time do you spend in the cabin (I’m 6ft tall and 190lbs)?  You’ll want to be out and about the ship.  The beds are very comfy and the sheets, pillows and duvets better than X in my view.

 

Finally you did talk about the two tier system on Celebrity.  I totally agree.  If you have Luminae and Michael's they fawn over you.  It doesn’t seem genuine to me.  If you don’t have a suite it is totally dependent on the crew member and there have been too many poor ones of late.  Oh and the loud music on Celebrity.  Don’t get me started on that!  Thankfully absent on Azamara although I have noticed piped music around the Pool Deck at times.

 

Phil

I'm also 6' but as you say, you don't spend too much time in there so it's not an issue. With regards to Celebrity I honestly believe that a reduction in crew is the reason for the poorer levels of service people are reporting over the last few years. At least that's what we have personally witnessed. The cutbacks are now too much, hence me posting on this board! 

Having looked at the website I've seen the LCV stateroom category upgrade offer so have just completed the form. I believe if there are any suitable upgrades available we will be contacted approximately four weeks before sail date advising us that we've been successfully upgraded?

 

And on that note, can anyone advise if you are upgraded from a balcony to a suite do you accrue 8 loyalty points per night or is it still 5? And is specialty dining included if you upgrade via this route still?

 

Thanks in advance again for the replies. 
 

[excitedofharpenden]

Yes, normally about three to four weeks before sailing and you’ll get points for the category you originally booked. You do however get all the perks of a suite including complimentary Specialty and free use of the T-Pool and private sun deck.

 

Phil