Azamara journey will dock in Venice on May 17, and May 18, 2023.

[luv2travel90266]

If we are in fact docked at Chioggia in lieu of Venice it appeared the fastest way is to take a bus. We have a hotel reservations walking distance from Piazzale Roma which also offers a bus to Venice Airport at the end of our trip.

 

 Chioggia - Venezia
Over 50 daily connections between Sottomarina, Chioggia and Venice Piazzale Roma. Runs every 15 minutes during the busiest times.
www.arrivaveneto.it › 

[fruitmachine]

On 1/2/2023 at 11:14 PM, luv2travel90266 said:

If we are in fact docked at Chioggia in lieu of Venice it appeared the fastest way is to take a bus. We have a hotel reservations walking distance from Piazzale Roma which also offers a bus to Venice Airport at the end of our trip.

 

 Chioggia - Venezia
Over 50 daily connections between Sottomarina, Chioggia and Venice Piazzale Roma. Runs every 15 minutes during the busiest times.
www.arrivaveneto.it › 

The Arriva website doesn't have a decent map of the route, and I wanted to see how close to the port it went, so plotted my own version based on the timetable stops.  A taxi to/from the end of the line at Piazza Europa in Sottomarina may be the best option, especially if there are pedestrian restrictions in what looks to be, until now, an industrial port.  The biggest issue though may be luggage space on the bus if there are may fellow travelers.  You can see one parked at the terminus in Sottomarina: https://goo.gl/maps/gr6FpeCCJzQyV73j7

[CobraQuestor]

On 1/2/2023 at 7:14 PM, luv2travel90266 said:

If we are in fact docked at Chioggia in lieu of Venice it appeared the fastest way is to take a bus. We have a hotel reservations walking distance from Piazzale Roma which also offers a bus to Venice Airport at the end of our trip.

 

 Chioggia - Venezia
Over 50 daily connections between Sottomarina, Chioggia and Venice Piazzale Roma. Runs every 15 minutes during the busiest times.
www.arrivaveneto.it › 

So we finally got a response from Azamara (Over three weeks) and they confirmed Chioggia. I asked about the change as our stuff we had printed from their site said Venice and they said it was due to port issues. They will provide a transfer to Venice at a cost (Someone else said $150). They are essentially dropping us 53 kilometers from where the had said and charging us to get to our destination. The previously offered excursions (printed from the site) have disappeared. They said excursions would show up again in a week or two. I asked about prices for the excursions and was told they may be adjusted.

 

The bottom line is they made a change and we are going to pay for it.

[lisiamc]

9 minutes ago, CobraQuestor said:

So we finally got a response from Azamara (Over three weeks) and they confirmed Chioggia. I asked about the change as our stuff we had printed from their site said Venice and they said it was due to port issues. They will provide a transfer to Venice at a cost (Someone else said $150). They are essentially dropping us 53 kilometers from where the had said and charging us to get to our destination. The previously offered excursions (printed from the site) have disappeared. They said excursions would show up again in a week or two. I asked about prices for the excursions and was told they may be adjusted.

 

The bottom line is they made a change and we are going to pay for it.

Its not that Azamara no longer want to dock in Venice, it’s that they can’t do it since the rules changed. It’s become like an itinerary saying the ship is calling at Rome or Florence. I don’t expect the cruise line to take me to either of those cities free of charge, even though they are listed on the itinerary.

Edited January 11, 2023 by lisiamc

[CobraQuestor]

1 minute ago, lisiamc said:

Its not that Azamara no longer wants to dock in Venice, it’s that they can’t do it since the rules changed. It’s like an itinerary saying the ship is calling at Rome or Florence. You don’t expect the cruise line to take you to either of those cities free of charge, do you, even though they are listed on the itinerary?

It clearly said Civitavecchia in brackets for the Rome stop. It said Venice for our final destination but it now says Venice with Chioggia in brackets. To me that is a change.

[lisiamc]

7 minutes ago, CobraQuestor said:

It clearly said Civitavecchia in brackets for the Rome stop. It said Venice for our final destination but it now says Venice with Chioggia in brackets. To me that is a change.

Of course it’s a change, but it was made because of Italian legislation which banned cruise ships over a certain size from entering Venice. The change came into effect in July of 2021, and since then, the variable is which other facility they will use. All possible choices are at some distance from Venice itself, and other cruise lines have been trying various solutions. I believe Azamara 

could be more proactive in advertising the replacement ports, especially because they have tried more than one, but I don’t feel they should be responsible for getting us to Venice at their expense this long after the rules changed.

 

There is also the fact that ports can and do change, before and after final payment, sometimes after the ship has actually sailed. If a person really has their heart set on calling at a particular destination, its better to book it as a land trip.

[luv2travel90266]

They could arrange for busses at a reasonable price of approx $65/passenger if they chose for the 1 hour trip to Venice Piazzale Roma. A taxi van from Chiogga might cost $150 and could take 6 passengers. It might be the best option to get together on the roll call. I'm actually on an earlier docking in Chioggia on April 14th.  

[Riocca]

Chioggia, Fusina and Marghera are all in the Metropolitan City of Venice, the local authority decided a few years ago that cruise ships would no longer be allowed to dock in the historic part of Venice and would instead use those locations. Last year Azamara was unable to secure berths in those locations and changed to Ravenna, providing transportation to Venice and Marco Polo Airport. This year they are using Chioggia and Fusina which is part of Venice so saying Venice (Chioggia) and Venice (Fusina) is correct. 
Unfortunately Venice now joins many places worldwide where cruise ships dock away from what is considered the main tourist areas and something we’re going to have to get used to.

[Vineyard View]

Just a thought - Viking has been using Chioggia this past year - after having used the industrial port - for a bit and there are some threads on their board regarding what various options people have tried/used to transfer to Venice Piazalle, as well as VCE that may be of some assistance here.
I was following it due to an itinerary they have that is basically a B2B out of what is now Chioggia and trying to determine if that makes any sense whatsoever. It’s a bit of a trick, but other options such as Ravenna are much more difficult for those who wish to explore Venice. At least you can walk off the ship in Chioggia whereas you cannot do so if docked at the Industrial port. I chose a different itinerary on a different line for this year after that vs B2B. I think of you are starting or stopping in Venice, then the best bet is go in early or stay late in Venice and maybe take a day to enjoy Chioggia. That said, if plans are already in place, then I understand the hoops now being jumped through, however no ships have been able to dock in Venice proper for all of 2022. 
love2travel that bus schedule is a great resource to have for coming and going during the day so thanks for posting it. 

[luv2travel90266]

Was doing more research and it appears the second stop Piazalle Europa on Chioggia is the first stop for the bus except for 6:28AM. Busses appear to run every 30 minutes and the trip is 1 hour 15 minutes. The last stop is Pizzalle Roma which is by the old cruise port in Venice that was closed to big ships and steps from my hotel. Would hope there is room for luggage on the bus so if someone has info that would be appreciated by all. Now to determine how to get to Pizalle Europa from the ship. It appears that the cruise ship might be docking at the North end of Chioggia so 2.7 km/ 1.7 miles is not viable walk with luggage for most of us. As my trip is a month earlier than yours will post once I'm there to help my fellow cruisers. 

 

 

[CobraQuestor]

On 1/12/2023 at 1:46 AM, luv2travel90266 said:

Was doing more research and it appears the second stop Piazalle Europa on Chioggia is the first stop for the bus except for 6:28AM. Busses appear to run every 30 minutes and the trip is 1 hour 15 minutes. The last stop is Pizzalle Roma which is by the old cruise port in Venice that was closed to big ships and steps from my hotel. Would hope there is room for luggage on the bus so if someone has info that would be appreciated by all. Now to determine how to get to Pizalle Europa from the ship. It appears that the cruise ship might be docking at the North end of Chioggia so 2.7 km/ 1.7 miles is not viable walk with luggage for most of us. As my trip is a month earlier than yours will post once I'm there to help my fellow cruisers. 

 

 

A private transfer for two with luggage  is 130 euros from Chioggia to the Piazzale Roma.

[fruitmachine]

2 hours ago, CobraQuestor said:

A private transfer for two with luggage  is 130 euros from Chioggia to the Piazzale Roma.

This Azamara partner says €80, or €90 for a limmo, (more for a bigger van) but I'm not convinced that they've set it up for Chioggia or may perhaps are still assuming Marghera.

https://transfer.aloschibros.com/en/transfers/

 

[terry&mike]

Was just on a Webinar, and one of Azamara's presenters, Katie, stated that Azamara would "mainly be using the port of Chioggia for Venice for 2023". 

 

I also see that the sailing I am booked on (Onward, September 3-10, 2023) now shows online as Venice (Chioggia) for our disembark port, where previously it just showed as Venice. I haven't received a notice of this change for my booking, or for my friends who are also traveling. Oh well, we'll make it work. 

Edited January 26, 2023 by terry&mike
copy add

[luv2travel90266]

Any comment on providing transportation to Venice? It is an hour away. 

[terry&mike]

2 minutes ago, luv2travel90266 said:

Any comment on providing transportation to Venice? It is an hour away. 

No, no other comment on this subject. It was in answer to an attendees question about where the ships are going to port for Venice. Questions were submitted by typed request, and only seen by the presenters. 

The webinar was actually on the new booking system that is coming online with the transition away from Royal at the end of February.

[terry&mike]

Cruisemapper is not up to date on the changes. Previously our cruise, which ends on September 10, 2023, showed ending in "Venice" on Cruisemapper. As of today, our cruise shows ending in "Venice Marghera" on September 10, but shows the sailing departing September 10 to be departing from "Venice Chioggia". 

[fruitmachine]

2 hours ago, terry&mike said:

Cruisemapper is not up to date on the changes. Previously our cruise, which ends on September 10, 2023, showed ending in "Venice" on Cruisemapper. As of today, our cruise shows ending in "Venice Marghera" on September 10, but shows the sailing departing September 10 to be departing from "Venice Chioggia". 

Cruisemapper is just a Bulgarian website that trawls around trying to find the schedules and news about cruise ships and the cruise industry, funded, I assume, by advertising.  There's nothing official about it.  Although often a useful resource, you can't place any reliance on it.

[twotoeheads]

I'm on the May 6th cruise ending in Venice.  Following this thread I am very confused about what port we will be landing in. HELP

Jan

[jasardeax]

32 minutes ago, twotoeheads said:

I'm on the May 6th cruise ending in Venice.  Following this thread I am very confused about what port we will be landing in. HELP

Jan

You’re cruise will be ending

in Chioggia. 

[terry&mike]

For anyone who disembarks in Chioggia, please let me know at what time were passengers allowed to Self Disembark? And what time were you scheduled to arrive in port?

 

I understand that each sailing is different, but this will give me a general idea. 

 

We are scheduled to dock at 7:00am. I am thinking to book a flight from Venice VCE airport that departs at 11:30am. It is a domestic flight (to somewhere else in Italy), and I am willing to arrange a car and driver for the transfer, as well as pay for the airline cabin class that allows me to have Priority Check In and Fast Track at the airport, so I'm thinking this can work. 

[fruitmachine]

9 minutes ago, terry&mike said:

For anyone who disembarks in Chioggia, please let me know at what time were passengers allowed to Self Disembark? And what time were you scheduled to arrive in port?

 

I understand that each sailing is different, but this will give me a general idea. 

 

We are scheduled to dock at 7:00am. I am thinking to book a flight from Venice VCE airport that departs at 11:30am. It is a domestic flight (to somewhere else in Italy), and I am willing to arrange a car and driver for the transfer, as well as pay for the airline cabin class that allows me to have Priority Check In and Fast Track at the airport, so I'm thinking this can work. 

As far as I'm aware very few (and no Azamara) ships have used Chioggia before.

[Mrs Miggins]

Viking have used Chioggia several times.  A friend was on one of these sailings.

 

We were on Azamara last April and docked in Ravenna.

[terry&mike]

14 hours ago, fruitmachine said:

As far as I'm aware very few (and no Azamara) ships have used Chioggia before.

Yes, but Azamara will begin docking there in April for this season, so I'm hoping some folks will post their experience here when they return. As I don't dock there until mid-September, I've got a bit of time. 

[lisiamc]

10 minutes ago, terry&mike said:

Yes, but Azamara will begin docking there in April for this season, so I'm hoping some folks will post their experience here when they return. As I don't dock there until mid-September, I've got a bit of time. 

One thing we already know: Chioggia is a charming place on its own merit, like Ravenna. It’s a great place to eat seafood, and worth a day or part of a day as a destination in itself. If my cruise finished there, I’d plan to see Chioggia and then if possible spend a few days in Venice in a hotel. The trip back and forth will eat up a useful part of your day.

[combine]

3 hours ago, lisiamc said:

One thing we already know: Chioggia is a charming place on its own merit, like Ravenna. It’s a great place to eat seafood, and worth a day or part of a day as a destination in itself. If my cruise finished there, I’d plan to see Chioggia and then if possible spend a few days in Venice in a hotel. The trip back and forth will eat up a useful part of your day.

Would agree. We would never have experienced  the wonders of Ravenna if not for the change of port and we were fortunate to have a day and overnight there at the end of our cruise.

 We are taking the same view with Chioggia with an overnight there and intend to explore the town also. Of course it helps that we have visited Venice a couple of times and I do understand that for some it would be a first time  to visit. 

Edited February 8, 2023 by combine