AZAMARA is the WORST customer service cruise line.

[brian6u]

I have sat a cumulative 3 hours on hold...simply waiting to PAY my final invoice.  No matter what I do, I cannot get a human being on the line.  HOW DOES ANYONE PAY THEIR FINAL INVOICE????

Staggering, and a good reason never to travel with them again.

[blag]

Just now, brian6u said:

I have sat a cumulative 3 hours on hold...simply waiting to PAY my final invoice.  No matter what I do, I cannot get a human being on the line.  HOW DOES ANYONE PAY THEIR FINAL INVOICE????

Staggering, and a good reason never to travel with them again.

I believe that people have success by phoning early in the morning.

It seems that much of the travel industry is struggling to cope with renewed demand. Have you phoning airlines etc.

Having said that, Azamara is not helping itself. Mercifully, we always use a TA for all our cruises and don't have the frustrations that can arise by booking direct!

[brian6u]

I got on hold with them at 9:05...it is now 10:23...no human contact.

[brian6u]

Do you know if you can use a travel agent

to pay the balance of a cruise we bought through them?

[brian6u]

The travel agent thing is very spotty here on Cape Cod.

 

[blag]

3 minutes ago, brian6u said:

Do you know if you can use a travel agent

to pay the balance of a cruise we bought through them?

Who are 'them' in this context?

[Mackdogmolly]

2 minutes ago, brian6u said:

The travel agent thing is very spotty here on Cape Cod.

 

Your travel agent does not necessarily have to be local to where you live. I have sometimes purchased my cruise direct from Azamara, then transferred to a TA for extra perks (I think there is a deadline to do this). Then it is all in the TA’s hands.

[brian6u]

1 minute ago, blag said:

Who are 'them' in this context?

ANY travel agent that sells Azamara cruises?  I foolishly bought it from the cruise line.

[blag]

Just now, Mackdogmolly said:

Your travel agent does not necessarily have to be local to where you live. I have sometimes purchased my cruise direct from Azamara, then transferred to a TA for extra perks (I think there is a deadline to do this). Then it is all in the TA’s hands.

We are in Italy and use a UK cruise specialist TA! Not local.

[Mackdogmolly]

1 minute ago, blag said:

We are in Italy and use a UK cruise specialist TA! Not local.

I live in Vermont and my TA is several states away 

[blag]

Just now, brian6u said:

ANY travel agent that sells Azamara cruises?  I foolishly bought it from the cruise line.

Still not clear. I think the them is 'Azamara'.

But to answer your question, you would have to talk to Azamara anyway to arrange the transfer of the booking to the TA, if your cruise was still in the period allowed for transfer to a TA (unlikely), and you're no better off.

No, a Travel agent cannot make the payment for a direct booking (AFAIK).

[brian6u]

Thanks for the information.  Since no one at Azamara ever answers a call, this is an impossible task.

 

[uktog]

6 minutes ago, brian6u said:

ANY travel agent that sells Azamara cruises?  I foolishly bought it from the cruise line.

No a travel agent cannot handle a payment for a cruise bought direct.  I feel your pain!

 

[blag]

9 minutes ago, brian6u said:

Thanks for the information.  Since no one at Azamara ever answers a call, this is an impossible task.

 

Sounds harsh I know but if you don't want to lose your deposit (or most thereof - I don't recall the T&C's) you just have to stay on the line on until...

 

Although there are those who won't agree, you might, after such a frustrating experience, next time choose to use a TA.

If you enjoy your cruise and decide to book another whilst onboard you can transfer the booking to a TA. I would advise you to do some research beforehand, maybe talk to potential TA's beforehand, so that you can avoid these frustrations.

Edited November 18, 2022 by blag

[FlyerTalker]

Let me just concur about the absolutely terrible customer service.  Between incomplete and inconsistent information, completely inaccurate information, over-reliance on cut & paste, missed timeframes and more, my upcoming cruise will be the last that I'll be taking on Azamara. 

 

I can get an equivalent ship with Oceania.  My past Azamara experiences have had good, but not exemplary service, and that isn't enough to remove the nasty taste in my mouth from the shoreside incompetence.

[blag]

Generally speaking I find your comments interesting and accurate.

But Robot = Roundabout (in an other topic) was an exception.

What were you thinking?

[Port Power]

So sad you are experiencing difficulties.  When I have called Azamara in Sydney, Australia, there have always been informed and helpful people on the other end of the telephone. For instance, booking a beverage package. However I book cruises through a virtuoso travel agent (or transfer to him) and don’t have any hassles at all.

[FlyerTalker]

8 minutes ago, blag said:

What were you thinking?

 

Note my comment there.

[royallondon]

57 minutes ago, brian6u said:

I have sat a cumulative 3 hours on hold...simply waiting to PAY my final invoice.  No matter what I do, I cannot get a human being on the line.  HOW DOES ANYONE PAY THEIR FINAL INVOICE????

Staggering, and a good reason never to travel with them again.

This is inexcusable Azamara and an ongoing problem for far too long.

 

To pay a final balance should be option 1 and handled via the “red” phone as a priority.

 

Starting off on the back foot is to no one’s advantage.  Hope you soon get this sorted as the onboard experience will be in stark contrast.

 

Regards

 

 

[tgg]

54 minutes ago, brian6u said:

The travel agent thing is very spotty here on Cape Cod.

 

My travel agent is 1,300 miles away.  I've never met her in person. I found her through a recommendation of someone I met on our first cruise. She specializes in upscale travel and knows the ships well. 

 

After you get over this bump, why not talk to people on your cruise and ask for recommendations for a travel agent.

 

Don't write Azamara off quite yet. You had a good reason for choosing this cruise.  I hope you'll enjoy it - and laugh about the wait time in the future. 

[lisiamc]

29 minutes ago, tgg said:

My travel agent is 1,300 miles away.  I've never met her in person. I found her through a recommendation of someone I met on our first cruise. She specializes in upscale travel and knows the ships well. 

 

After you get over this bump, why not talk to people on your cruise and ask for recommendations for a travel agent.

 

Don't write Azamara off quite yet. You had a good reason for choosing this cruise.  I hope you'll enjoy it - and laugh about the wait time in the future. 

I’d agree that you should try not to wash your hands of Azamara just yet. The whole IT situation is still in transit from being handled by Royal Caribbean, (who never cared much about Azamara, and REALLY don’t care now that the line has been sold) to a new system, and will remain like that until spring of 2023. And even then, I think we can expect growing pains, staff shortages, glitches in the new computer system, etc. 

 

Every time I’ve had to contact an airline lately, I’ve spent ages on the phone, banged my head against the wall in frustration and generally lost the will to live. So I’m not surprised that contacting Azamara is a horrible ordeal, and I can give you lots of sympathy.  I am another Azamara customer who will only book through an agent.

[Riocca]

1 hour ago, lisiamc said:

I’d agree that you should try not to wash your hands of Azamara just yet. The whole IT situation is still in transit from being handled by Royal Caribbean, (who never cared much about Azamara, and REALLY don’t care now that the line has been sold) to a new system, and will remain like that until spring of 2023. And even then, I think we can expect growing pains, staff shortages, glitches in the new computer system, etc. 

 

Every time I’ve had to contact an airline lately, I’ve spent ages on the phone, banged my head against the wall in frustration and generally lost the will to live. So I’m not surprised that contacting Azamara is a horrible ordeal, and I can give you lots of sympathy.  I am another Azamara customer who will only book through an agent.

Totally agree, Azamara has been left with a legacy system that’s not fit for purpose but writing a new IT system from scratch can’t be done quickly. I phoned Azamara yesterday selected the options recommended by Azamara staff, 3 for direct bookings and 2 for new bookings and got through to an agent in 15 minutes, however it was a complicated query involving FCC so it took the agent almost 45 minutes liaising with different departments to resolve. That in my opinion is the problem, because the current website is very limited in its capabilities the agents have to deal with too many things that could and should be done online like final payments.

Yes things are not as they should be with Azamara’s customer service at the moment but the important thing is that they acknowledge this and hopefully will address the issues with the new system. It’s taken longer than any of us would probably like but the worst thing that could happen now is that when they unplug from RCI next year the new system presents serious issues, I expect teething problems but hopefully nothing serious.

[Pizzasteve]

To add a thought, there is both a global surge in travel and staffing shortages across the board as the industry pays less than their competing industries.  We recently finished a river tour with a reputable company, and while the ship was beautiful, some services, especially food were marred by inconsistent results.

 

example:  a raw pizza sent back (2-3 at same time on various tables), chef comes out and apologized as kitchen staff didn’t know he was supposed to close the oven door while pizzas cooking.  I kid you not.  And this line is expensive.  Hummas not puréed properly, without any tahini or oil.  Basically chick peas put in a food processor, and seeming to be put into half the meals.  Did no one taste it?  Nobody was eating it.   I guess a lot of canned chicken peas were in the  pantry, but hummus is not a decorative throw away food.

 

Nearly all of the call centers have staff that are new, under paid, and likely working from home, so no experienced staff at the next door cube to consult for answers. So calls take longer, hold times expand, etc. the whole industry is not what it was and we either adapt or expectations or be disappointed.

 

Hope your issue works its way out to your satisfaction.

Edited November 18, 2022 by Pizzasteve

[Host Jazzbeau]

9 minutes ago, Pizzasteve said:

hummus is not a decorative throw away food

well, it is to me – but that's just me...  🤣

[excitedofharpenden]

3 hours ago, Riocca said:

Totally agree, Azamara has been left with a legacy system that’s not fit for purpose but writing a new IT system from scratch can’t be done quickly. I phoned Azamara yesterday selected the options recommended by Azamara staff, 3 for direct bookings and 2 for new bookings and got through to an agent in 15 minutes, however it was a complicated query involving FCC so it took the agent almost 45 minutes liaising with different departments to resolve. That in my opinion is the problem, because the current website is very limited in its capabilities the agents have to deal with too many things that could and should be done online like final payments.

Yes things are not as they should be with Azamara’s customer service at the moment but the important thing is that they acknowledge this and hopefully will address the issues with the new system. It’s taken longer than any of us would probably like but the worst thing that could happen now is that when they unplug from RCI next year the new system presents serious issues, I expect teething problems but hopefully nothing serious.

John, at the end of the day it's totally ridiculous that guests are struggling so much to get through and pay for their cruise. Unacceptable that you spend so long. Maybe in two or three years we'll look back and laugh it the situation, but for those of us who have to endlessly listen to the Azamara hold spiel for well over an hour it is not so funny. OK if I was phoning up ask about the mechanics of booking a drinks package, but it's to pay for a cruise. For goodness sake Azamara, automate it so we can pay with our credit card online. 

 

Phil