"Wifi feasibility test" on Quest, December 28

[Grandma Cruising]

56 minutes ago, excitedofharpenden said:

The wifi allowances for this cruise on Journey have increased and I have free Internet for the trip. Perhaps Miami have been listening to the discussion here. I'm pleased it seems they have made it right, for the wifi at least. Copy of letter I received is below. 

 

Phil 

 

 

That’s great Phil, it does look as if they’ve been listening. I’m hoping this feasibility study is successful & gets rolled out across all ships.

[hiccups]

So, a loss of $21 for those of us at Explorer level for a a 7-day cruise.  Thanks for nothing, Azamara! 

 

I realize as an Explorer I'm in the minority here, and I'm glad for those of you that have benefited, but the internet benefit was one of the positives of LCV for me.

 

Edited January 24, 2020 by hiccups

[uktog]

1 hour ago, hiccups said:

So, a loss of $21 for those of us at Explorer level for a a 7-day cruise.  Thanks for nothing, Azamara! 

 

I realize as an Explorer I'm in the minority here, and I'm glad for those of you that have benefited, but the internet benefit was one of the positives of LCV for me.

 

That’s not fair. There should be no losers

[sunlover33]

On 1/20/2020 at 2:04 PM, marinaro44 said:

One of those Discoverer Plus "very precious people" you scorn is on this cruise with me and has 40+ Azamara cruises and ten more booked in 2020.  This person should be regarded by Azamara as "very precious" indeed...at least as much so as a first-time cruiser in a Spa suite who enjoys free internet in the current "test."

And this is why there are some cruise lines I refuse to travel with. My money is a good as the next mans, if I have travelled once or hundreds of times with them. Everyone pays for their individual cruise  and deserves an excellent level of service, irrespective of if I’m one of the “in club” or not. I dislike this attitude that because someone travels a lot with one certain company they are somehow better and deserve more than everyone else. You should get what you pay for and to be quite frank if you can cruise 10+ times in a year are you really that concerned re free WiFi and the odd bag of laundry? 

Edited January 24, 2020 by sunlover33

[hiccups]

1 hour ago, uktog said:

That’s not fair. There should be no losers

Discoverers will also lose on the shorter cruises, since they get a $100 credit towards a full voyage internet package purchase, and now will receive 50% off.

Azamara should consider a combination--either the current dollar amount off, or the proposed percentage, whichever is greater, so that no one loses a benefit.  Not likely to happen, I know.

[laurieb]

On 1/24/2020 at 8:07 AM, sunlover33 said:

And this is why there are some cruise lines I refuse to travel with. My money is a good as the next mans, if I have travelled once or hundreds of times with them. Everyone pays for their individual cruise  and deserves an excellent level of service, irrespective of if I’m one of the “in club” or not. I dislike this attitude that because someone travels a lot with one certain company they are somehow better and deserve more than everyone else. You should get what you pay for and to be quite frank if you can cruise 10+ times in a year are you really that concerned re free WiFi and the odd bag of laundry? 

It has nothing to do with being “better”; loyalty plays a role in all types of travel and it is an important role.  Someone who cruises (or stays at a particular hotel brand) certainly deserves to have that loyalty acknowledged and rewarded!  I don’t cruise ten times a year but am loyal enough to be discoverer plus now after several years  and I am concerned about the WiFi and the laundry benefits being reduced as it shows a lack of disregard on Azamara’s part.  

Edited January 26, 2020 by laurieb

[marinaro44]

7 hours ago, laurieb said:

It has nothing to do with being “better”; loyalty plays a role in all types of travel and it is an important role.  Someone who cruises (or stays at a particular hotel brand) certainly deserves to have that loyalty acknowledged and rewarded!  I don’t cruise ten times a year but am loyal enough to be discoverer plus now after several years  and I am concerned about the WiFi and the laundry benefits being reduced as it shows a lack of disregard on Azamara’s part.  

Well said, laurie.  I wish sunlover good luck in finding an airline, cruise line, or hotel chain that doesn't have a frequent flyer, frequent cruiser, or frequent guest loyalty program.  It's clear from his posting that he'd never deign to make use of one that did.  Happy traveling!

[sunlover33]

14 hours ago, marinaro44 said:

I wish sunlover good luck in finding an airline, cruise line, or hotel chain that doesn't have a frequent flyer, frequent cruiser, or frequent guest loyalty program.  It's clear from his posting that he'd never deign to make use of one that did. 

We fly frequently, for both cruise and  ski holidays. We don’t tend to stick with any one cruise company or airline. We choose whatever suits our schedule and requirements at the time. If we want ‘extras’ we pay for them. Don’t believe in getting something for nothing, and certainly wouldn’t do so to get a few extra perks.  Incidentally I’m a she not a he! 

[marinaro44]

1 hour ago, sunlover33 said:

We fly frequently, for both cruise and  ski holidays. We don’t tend to stick with any one cruise company or airline. We choose whatever suits our schedule and requirements at the time. If we want ‘extras’ we pay for them. Don’t believe in getting something for nothing, and certainly wouldn’t do so to get a few extra perks.  Incidentally I’m a she not a he! 

Sorry about the gender mix-up. 

 

We don't pay much attention to loyalty programs, either, particularly with airlines.  For cruising, however, we just happen to have liked the Azamara experience and have stuck with it until now.  The issue many of us have with Azamara is offering perqs for loyalty and then pulling them away...the best (worst?) example is with the upgrade program change.  But when Azamara trashes my loyalty, I will look elsewhere, and have found a comparable experience at Windstar.  Others will be given a shot, also.

 

Hospitality companies aren't giving anyone "something for nothing" with their loyalty programs.  They're trying to hang on to their most frequent customers.  That's perqs (read money) invested in future business.  People in high loyalty categories have paid well for whatever perqs they're being given, a reason why there is upset when those perqs are taken away.

[sunlover33]

Apology accepted, don’t worry I am not precious re my gender!  I understand from  a business perspective companies while trying to hang on to their frequent customers are also trying to attract new customers and unfortunately they can’t please everyone. We love the Azamara brand but not to the exclusivity of any other company, if the itinerary, price and level of service is similar. Maybe that’s why I don’t quite get why some people are so upset, if your not happy with what’s on offer then vote with your feet. Maybe that’s  the only way a company will actually pay any regard to loyalty and also you may find being a new customer brings its own set of  deals. 

[marinaro44]

3 hours ago, sunlover33 said:

Apology accepted, don’t worry I am not precious re my gender!  I understand from  a business perspective companies while trying to hang on to their frequent customers are also trying to attract new customers and unfortunately they can’t please everyone. We love the Azamara brand but not to the exclusivity of any other company, if the itinerary, price and level of service is similar. Maybe that’s why I don’t quite get why some people are so upset, if your not happy with what’s on offer then vote with your feet. Maybe that’s  the only way a company will actually pay any regard to loyalty and also you may find being a new customer brings its own set of  deals. 

I'm sorry you don't get that someone who spends years patronizing a company is upset when that company takes away a benefit that is of significant value to that someone.  Haven't you noticed that many of us are going to "vote with our feet" as a result of the change in the upgrade program?