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She was outstanding and the backdrop video was stunning. Sadly at the first show less than 100, I do hope the second house is far fuller otherwise it doesn’t feel like a “celebration”

Dubrovnik was a shock to the system having been in so many quiet places we hit it at the wrong time in our quest for a walk around town. In addition to journey (tendering) and quest (docking with the shuttle) there was a big Marella ship in town plus several very large coach tours and all of them were being walked round by guides at the same time. If we come here again and I’m doing it on our own we would delay going off the ship until 11 or 1130 the mistake we made was trying to go off at 10 -where were also delayed because they had to take one of the tenders out of service Many people went to climb the walls and be energetic we admire them for that. Currently you can only pay in Croatian currency however this is the last few weeks that Croatia will be using their own currency they join the euro on the 1st January 2023 so if you are coming next year you only need to have euros to be able to purchase local tickets. Nevertheless despite the crowds we did our usual and found some side alleys where I was reminded how beautiful the lamps are that advertise every restaurant. So much restoration has been done since we were last year when at that time you could still see a lot of bombed out buildings now it is very hard to imagine how destroyed this beautiful town was only 20 years ago. Tonight we have the destination celebration evening disappointingly despite it being a lovely evening weatherwise the pattern on Journey unlike Quest is for the entertainer to operate indoors the same entertainer Ana Rucner does her show outdoors on the other ships. I’m not sure the reason why but having seen her before outdoors I’m not sure how well this is going to translate indoors but time will tell. It also does not feel like a whole ship celebration when it is split into two groups at 6:30 and 8.30.

No need for a photo go to guest relations and leave a message that you want to meet with them. They will meet you, never known them not respond to a request to speak with them. The officers are at pains to state they are not mind readers and they do not see everything so if something is not right tell them

Unfortunately since Brexit you have to go through checks at any European arrival ex Edinburgh even in transit. Whoever ticketed that connection had it plain wrong and you should indeed be raising issues about it. On board there are sometimes some staff that just don’t get it right for you. Speak to the hotel director if you have issues- not sure from your posts what they are doing “wrong” but the managers will want to know. You should get an interim feedback form very soon which you can fill in by QR code or old fashioned pen and ink. Do so. They do listen and react. Hope your cruise experience improves

Every balcony gets a drenching on a port day at least once a cruise, twice on longer trips. You should get a note in your room the night before although last cruise we did not (we did this one). However that would be down to our steward who has since been transferred off the ship. He had significant training needs.

Unfortunately they are not Azamaras strong suite. Norway this year was particularly poor - older gentleman who was not up to speed with the ports on itinerary- he even told guests about the features of Skarra Brad Orkney when we weren’t stopping but were going to the Shetlands

It is indeed

Our flowers arrived day 2 it’s a delivery issue. Spirits is a quick fix with the butler. If you’re looking to be negative you will always find something I suppose. I’d rather focus on the positives like being lucky enough to snag a suite at a much reduced price in the bid up process

I think they provide the menu the majority of suite guests want. They will get you what you want just ask. Alternatively there is no one compelling you to eat in Aqualina and the other breakfast venues (MDR, Windows or Mosaic) are all equally pleasant

There are fleet wide issues with tote bags. They are in a container with many other items the ships in Europe are very keen to see. I think it’s always unfair to judge a cruise on night 1 whatever the line

We are currently enjoying 2 12 night cruises on Azamara and have used them many times but have also sailed Viking and will do so again in 2023 purely driven by itinerary. We liked Viking and could see a lot of merit in the additional space but found their crew less engaged and the experience much less personal. Viking do not seem to have the capacity to react to situations as Azamara do. For example on Viking they cancelled two ports so we had four consecutive sea days. Locals were amazed in both ports the vessel did not arrive. Azamara had an issue with one port (same part of the world) but found a solution of an alternative port. The food on Viking was acceptable but not as diverse as on Azamara. I would agree Viking rooms are better but how long do you stay in your room?

Hvar is a beautiful town - for us after the exertions of the last two days it has been a quiet walk around we have been here before so knew the harbour walks we could do. The tender stops right at the end of the pier and you can walk either straight ahead and into the town or head round to the right which is a gentle seaside path to an old church. if you do want to venture further afield there are lots of little taxis selling water trips to neighbouring islands like this one. we did not do it this time but know it is enjoyable We loved our gentle walk around the square and waterfront

We had time to go out pre dinner and enjoy the illuminated world and also photo it from Deck 11

It’s a hard cheese made from sheep milk. They have smoked varieties some made with olives and one with truffles. They mature it for a year. It’s not blue

Today has been another eating excursion from Zadar. We headed out on a drive to Pag Island where the famous Pag cheese comes from. It was a very interesting drive again seeing rural Croatia before a tour of an award winning cheese factory complete with tasting. Them further on into the remote centre of the island for lunch at the Hotel Boskinac which was the second restaurant in Croatia to be awarded a Michelin star. The three course lunch all with paired wines was delicious based on local shrimp and cheese risotto local tuna with veg grown in the hotel garden and a delicious dessert. DH nut allergy was nicely catered for he said his pomegranate tart was very refreshing indeed. We returned to the ship and went to the top cruiser event which was held on the Sunset Verandah- a much nicer more relaxed event than when it’s in the Cabaret lounge, much less formality and very pleasant. As we were not leaving until 8 and were docked so close to town we went out to look at the beautiful sun installation we dock beside, see the sea organ which was a haunting sound even on such a calm day and walk in a little of the old town. This is a port where you tie up right on a Main Street so self exploration is so easy

It’s $35. The three tour is $85 and chef’s table is $95

Last night on board the ship was brilliant for two reasons. firstly showing that they do listen to feedback Azamara had opened the patio on a soft launch whilst they trained the chefs. They have never had this group of chefs On Journey doing patio evening service. Well they don’t need much more training because it was the best lamb tournados I have had on an Azamara patio! One course was enough after our lunchtime eating but it was great! We then went to the show. Kristian Grey an Irish comedian magician. Unbelievable- starts tamely a few tricks you think ok but then his tricks become more and more unbelievable ending with a finish everyone is still saying how did he do that - we are talking about large items disappearing!! Look forward to his second show tomorrow

Explorers Dinner also cancelled replaced by French. The chefs had a meeting from all four ships yesterday to discuss new options

This is how close the tender drop off is to the amphitheatre

Pula Today we are back burning money on a ships excursion. Groznjan and the San Servolo brewery including lunch. If we thought Bologna had too much food well it was a little picnic compared to today. We would summarise it as a yes recommend the drive is pretty. Groznjan (population 80, car free little artist and craft shops is divine. The brewery visit is interesting but the lunch was way too much. Appetiser soup pasta with truffles (divine) look how much truffles each serving had fillet steak (served rare a shame it might have been nice medium well but the courgettes were gorgeous) and a very creamy dessert I forgot to photo and did not eat (too rich for me) Each course was served with a different glass of beer oh and we had a beer cocktail on arrival 😂 So you get the message if you go thinking lunch time chefs table you will be ok but don’t plan to eat again that day. And Groznjan is so beautiful and you had free time there in a non commercial setting. My biggest complaint after all that lunch my new beach outfit I got in Groznjan may not fit 😂😂😂 200 euros a bargain I’d say 😂😂😀 Unfortunately our excursion was 90 minutes late back due to the long lunch so no time to explore the Roman ruins and amphitheater in Pula walking distance to the tender drop off. It looked spectacular

Tonight we enjoyed two very different entertainment events Firstly Sasha from the Ukraine the band leader did a wonderful show. He is such an accomplished musician he deserves wide recognition for his skills as a concert pianist. Then a Slovenian folk band hot footed it from Onward to Journey to provide local entertainment. Journey was first to leave, a tight manoeuvre but all paint intact at the end of a memorable day. Farewell sisters though we will see Quest again in Dubrovnik

It’s not until Corfu

Yes they are. Here is a picture from Journey as we all lined up just after dawn. As I have said on another thread what is going on is not about the guests - far more important it’s about the crew who have been given freedom to go between vessels. It’s been emotional uplifting and I would say very motivational for many of the crew. They are seeing shipboard family many of whom they have not seen since late 2019. Today is the day I for one feel so privileged to even be able to witness that excitement for a few moments that is enough for me. A grand event ashore was never going to be an option but think they might manage that next year when they are hoping to get the ships together again

Oh dear I have lost a post so here goes Our day in Koper. We docked right beside the elevator up to the town which made it such an easy walk in to the quaint middle square Tito square where we were able to see a lot and also visit the tourist information. it is a beautiful little town lots of alleys and small shops to enjoy. We have been told via another guest that there was a food festival on today however that information that had come from Azamara head office was incorrect but perhaps more enjoyable for us there was an organ music festival on and we were able to hear the magnificent church organ being played in a demonstration and I could’ve stayed there all morning but we had other plans. when we came off the ship we found right at the port entrance the booking office for.Istranka tours whom we had looked at online. We opted to take their hop on hop off guided panoramic tour that gave us a photo stop at Isola for the view over the bay a drive-through portoroz and two hours free time in the beautiful little town of Piran all for €24. Piran we have since discovered that the ships identical tour which is called panoramic Slovenian coastline was being sold for $89 so our advice is if you are in this part of the world look at is Stanka tourist they also do small group tours to quite a few of the places that the cruise line is going to but at a fraction of the price we found them excellent today A final thought which I hope you do not find too rude things often get lost in translation when you are abroad this sign left you in no doubt where are the restrooms where and where they were not!!