Is Azamara right for us?

My wife and I were originally booked on an HAL Christmas cruise that was suddenly changed to a Cuban Explorer cruise. As a result of the change we are thinking of booking an Azamara Christmas cruise.

We can be described as:

1. Destination centric - The ports of call are more important than the ship board entertainment.
   
2. Shore Excursions - Fully half of the enjoyment of a cruise comes from guided excursions
   
3. Long cruises - Usually like 10+ days, 7 days is too short
   
4. Enjoy good food - I have food sensitivities and really enjoy excellent cuisine
   
5. Good wine - My drinking days are behind me. About 3 glasses of wine in the evening is my limit.
   
6. Photography - My wife's hobby
   
7. Reading - my hobby
   
8. No computers - I am on holiday, not work
   
9. Daily exercise - mostly walking. I love wrap-around promenade decks
   

So, given our cruising style, would Azamara be a good fit for us?

Thanks for your time...

We have only been on one Azamara cruise, see my comments http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2477526

I don't remember a wrap around deck. My wife and I liked the included wines. Food was very good. There is an excellent library(better than Celebrity). We bring kindles.

No wrap-around promenade deck. Food is very good, especially in the specialty restaurants. Food is better than HAL. Library is small; bring your own reading materials. AZ specializes is port-intensive travel, and on a small ship leaving and boarding are easy. AZ often has free shuttles into town. Lots of complaints about AZ's excursions on CC. We've had adequate experience with the few we took, but they were expensive. Lots of people love the included AzAmazing night experience. We love the friendly atmosphere on board. You'll have a lot of good interaction with fellow passengers and the staff, including the Captain and Hotel Director.

Each ship has a walking/jogging track on Deck 10.

Each ship has a walking/jogging track on Deck 10.

Thanks for the correction, Travelbug. I was thinking of another ship & line...My bad!

We used to cruise with HAL but definitely prefer Azamara - by a long way. Reasons why - small ships, very friendly senior officers, crew and passengers, great food both on MDR (Discoveries) and buffet (Windows). On our last couple of HAL cruises we got thoroughly fed up of struggling to find and keep a seat at the Lido buffet - no such problems on Azamara, always easy to find a seat. Love the included drinks - plenty of choice plus two white, two red, a rose and a sparkling wine included (by the glass) every day. We've always enjoyed the excursions we have done (but they do tend to be quite expensive (as they are on HAL)). Never have a problem finding a sun lounger on Deck 9 or 11.

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I researched heaps before choosing Azamara for our first cruise because we wanted something that really fit us. We chose Azamara and were not disappointed. Your cruising style sounds pretty close to ours, so I can wholeheartedly recommend that you give Az a try! Relaxed atmosphere, friendly people, great service, easy tendering, long stays in port, nice food, uncrowded, no formal nights, few children, a nice little library (I'm a reader too, my mum is the photographer) ....what's not to like? We are heading off on cruises 2 and 3 in Oct.

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I agree with everything said above, except that the walking track on the top deck is not a perfect substitute for a true Promenade Deck [especially if it's rainy] -- but DW has found that she can get her exercise walking in just fine on any ship by finding a deck where the corridor makes a lap, and all three main cabin decks on the Azamara ships (6, 7 and 8) do that. Both Azamara ships have a holiday sailing this year, one in the Caribbean and one in Asia. The Caribbean cruise is followed by a Panama Canal transit, and then by a Costa Rica country-intensive cruise -- each one more reflective of Azamara's port-intensive focus.

Hi,

I'd like to thank everyone for their comments and suggestions. Our TA is finalizing the details, but we will likely be on the Quest for the Dec 22nd sailing. Once we get the final confirmation, we'll sign up for the meet and mingle.

Thanks again, rob...