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Journey impressions

cirpi

By cirpi,
in Azamara

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cirpi

cirpi

Posted
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Here is a mini review on our March 20-April 5 transatlantic on the Journey.

Ship – Absolutely ship shape. No worn carpets, frayed drapes or mold. Mid-size just right for us.

 

CREW– Friendly and accommodating, but what’s this butler thing? All we saw were cabin attendants in tuxes.

GETTING ON – Quick and painless. Took less than 20 minutes.

GETTING OFF – See above.

FOOD – Shoot me, but I thought the food in the main dining room was as good and at times better than in either of the specialty restaurants where some pretty presentations are more form than substance. Example: The Aqualina version of ossobuco, only a distant relative of the real McCoy. No bone with its heavenly vessel-clogging marrow. Instead, the meat was stripped from the bone, molded into a cute little cylinder, then wrapped in pancetta or bacon. The result was overly salty and dry. Ossobuco in the main dining room is what it is supposed to be, however.

WINE – Azamara is strictly enforcing its two-bottle-per-stateroom policy. Don’t even think of bringing wine from a port to your room. It will be confiscated and held until you disembark. In my view, Azamara should allow passengers to bring aboard one bottle per port, either for the stateroom or for the dining room where the $25 corkage would apply.

SHIP PHOTGRAPHERS – Pleasant enough, but good luck on purchasing that picture you liked. We tried unsuccessfully four nights a row during times the photo kiosk was supposed to be open, but not.

CONCLUSION – The good far outweighed the bad so, if the gods of Wall Street are benevolent, I will book Azamara again.

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tgg

tgg

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I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who missed the bone when they served the osso buco. I assumed that they'd served me someone else's dinner. They insisted it was osso buco. Not in my neighborhood.:)

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Andy

Andy

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I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one who missed the bone when they served the osso buco. I assumed that they'd served me someone else's dinner. They insisted it was osso buco. Not in my neighborhood.:)

 

Hi Tgg !

 

I had a very similar dish served at Blu on Celebrity Solstice - the one with the shredded meat put into a mold etc. I couldnt figure out what it was all about. While it was tasty, it certainly wasn't Osso Buco. Someone at Celebrity really likes this dish. I could live without it though. Give me a well made Osso Buco, and I'm a happy cruiser.

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cirpi

cirpi

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I was just wondering if there are any real differences between the Journey and the Quest. They look the same as far as their layout.

 

Just a guess, but I'll bet the daily menus are almost identical -- as the ships are virtually identical in layout.

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tgg

tgg

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I agree with molfetta. If you're used to fresh (never frozen) lobster, you'll hate Azamara's lobster. I ordered it, took one bite, and sent it back and got something else. It was truly terrible.

 

We're looking forward to our 4th Azamara cruise in June. No osso buco in Aqualina and no lobster. I can't wait, however, for the chocolate desserts.:)

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Oceanurse

Oceanurse

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I ordered the lobster at Aqualina and I honestly could not eat it because it was so salty. It was the one bad meal the entire trip. The loster in the dining room was excellent.

 

I am surprised to hear they would not let you bring wine on board- we were on Journey in February and had no problems. Others on the ship said they bought a case of beer in port and carried it right on board. Maybe Azamara is enforcing their stated policy. Does anyone else have a similar experience?

 

Cathy

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denims

denims

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I ordered the lobster at Aqualina and I honestly could not eat it because it was so salty. It was the one bad meal the entire trip. The loster in the dining room was excellent.

 

I am surprised to hear they would not let you bring wine on board- we were on Journey in February and had no problems. Others on the ship said they bought a case of beer in port and carried it right on board. Maybe Azamara is enforcing their stated policy. Does anyone else have a similar experience?

 

Cathy

 

On our Journey cruise in Feb, we brought both wine and hard booze on board from ports with no problem.

Just be discreet, and don't be chugging the booze as you go through x-ray machine!!!:D:D:rolleyes:

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cirpi

cirpi

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On our Journey cruise in Feb, we brought both wine and hard booze on board from ports with no problem.

Just be discreet, and don't be chugging the booze as you go through x-ray machine!!!:D:D:rolleyes:

 

I can assure you that this tactic did NOT work on my March 20-April 5 transatlantic. We got by with it once in Punta Delgada by telling the security monitor that what we had in the bag was a statue when, in fact, it was a statue and a bottle of hooch. The ship crew, mostly from the dining-room staff, took turns as monitors. If something resembling a bottle showed in the x-ray, the monitor would ask to inspect. Now, flash back to my three previous TAs on the Millennium. I once brought 8 bottles on wine aboard on embarkation and brought wine or hooch aboard from ports without incident. The present policy is lousy, IMHO. Azamara should allow one bottle per cabin per port and charge the usual $25 corkage if brought to the restaurant. It would be a win-win for all.

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ortrud

ortrud

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We just returned from our Journey Med Cruise. We loved the ship, service etc.

but did have a problem with the food.

It was not bad, but a bit too gourmet. Sometimes i did not recognize the food I was eating. The menu was very confusing, too many items listed.

The steak at Prime-c was very good, but my rack of lamb at Aqualina came in several chops, that had a strange seasoning.

My DH had the steamed Lobster, it came on a bed of mashed potatoes, with a small serving of more mashed potatos on the side.

The buffet was excellent at lunch if you arrived right after they put it out.

 

Anyway, We don't cruise for the food. The pool was great and the ports fantastic.

We would definetly go with Azamara again.

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hmorrow "Live from...." Rare

hmorrow

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If you get t he lobster in Aqualina, the way to go is steamed. Others had it broiled, and it was not good. I had it steamed and it was QUITE good. I just posted a review of the TA 3/20 Journey trip. We also thought the food was EXCELLENT in the main Dining room. Helaine

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j!m

j!m

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we have lobster at home 4/5 times a year so i think we know a good lobster when we eat one.

 

last aug we had two very nice lobster meals on quest in the med and we did an excursion to a winery, bought 6 bottles of wine and they were not confiscated on returning to the ship. and the wine was in a couple of little boxes with the winery name on it and was passed through the xray machine

 

guess each ship is a little different????

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