Azamarajunkie

We stayed in the Hotel Gaudi, just off Las Ramblas and an easy 15 minute walk to the cruise terminal. It is directly opposite the Gaudi Museum and we had an excellent room and balcony overlooking the very decorate rooftop. It is also very handy for both the underground system for travelling around Barcelona and many good restaurants.

To be honest I’ve never felt the need to wear a jacket in any restaurant on Azamara and no longer pack one. Sometimes I wear a long sleeved shirt but mostly just a short sleeved one. As always it’s down to personal choice, I’ve seen people with Jackets, with or without ties and even the odd tuxedo. The nice thing about Azamara is that you can wear whatever you’re comfortable in to Dinner ( except distressed jeans, shorts, baseball caps etc)

Hi Tim

When we’ve left the ship in Miami, likewise we’ve always hired a car for the day as the flight back to the U.K. has always been a late one. in the past we’ve tried South Beach, always been too busy to park, but had better success driving down to Key Biscayne which has a very nice state park to visit. Unless you particularly want to shop in Walmart for bargains, i’d Avoid it like the plague:D

Last time we went after our March cruise through the Panama Canal, we couldn’t get down to Key Biscayne due to a Tennis Tournament creating severe traffic delays and ended up at Miami Seaquarium for a good few hours!

Steve

Judging by the OP on the other thread it would appear that it’s already been implemented.

 

 

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Looks like the status quo is in place, check out Phils message on the other thread concerning his email with the LCV ambassador. Phew, that’s a relief.👍

Hi Host Grandma Cruising,

I've found that thread, and am looking into what's happening, and when changes take effect.

Hi Bonnie, perhaps it ought to be ‘when or IF changes take effect’. Always best to be optimistic that the status quo remains😀

I love your username! We do plan on having one of the most extensive Greek deployment in our brands history, stay tuned for new Azamara Pursuit extensive country intensive voyages on the broader smaller Greek islands. I think you’ll be delighted.

Just love the Ships Larry, and we’ve made good friends with the officers and staff, we’ve got 3 cruises booked for 2018 and are looking forward to seeing the 2019 Med deployments.

Never notice shorts on the patio at night. But I do not look nightly.

Just quoting from personal experience Robin:D

Thanks again for all of your suggestions. I've got a follow up, but related, question. If we eat at the Patio or the outside area of the buffet, are shorts appropriate for my husband? This is the Caribbean and it will be hot, and sweaty is just not a good look on anyone outside of a gym. But I'd love to enjoy dining al fresco if possible.

 

 

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No problem wearing shorts in the Patio, Sunset Bar or even inside Windows. It’s only in the MDR and speciality restaurants where shorts are not permitted at Dinner.

The new packages are based on stateroom booked

 

Interior, Oceanview and Balcony - based on a 10 day cruise

 

$300 Shore Excursions Credit - Unlimited Wifi for 1 device - Premium Beverage Package for 2 guests

 

The benefits for Club Continental etc are better

 

There is no longer any loyalty level cruise fare discount for booking on board

 

Also last week B2B discount was lowered

 

Now $300 for cruise of 8 days or less - $400 for 9 days or more

 

Peter and Trish (now onboard the Journey)

Are these a special onboard promotion which are not combinable with the Loyalty discount? Only yesterday, Bonnie has posted the T&C’s in respect of the Loyalty Discounts in respect of Le Club Voyage levels when booking on board or taking out a future cruise certificate. I haven’t seen any announcement from AZ changing this.

Thank you everyone for your reassurances. I know this cruise is a year away for us, but it’s nice to know that we will be able to use our balcony during the sea days. The planning has already started for the Ports of Call!

When we get back to the UK later this week I will post a bit more of our journey on the Journey! If you have any particular questions I will do my best to answer.

We are on this cruise next year, can you clarify the security arrangements, during the 4 days at sea after the Suez Canal Transit? Is it possible to sit on your balcony during the day, I know at night you are in blackout conditions but are not clear if you are able to use the balcony during daylight hours.

So not really ‘more nonsense’ then, just commercial reality in covering their back!

Dover sole in Aqualina, especially if you ask for it to be served with fresh vegetables rather than the puttanesca sauce it comes with. A lovely experience watching the waiter fillet it by the table when it is served.

Thanks again for your help Bonnie. Must admit it hadn't occurred to me that UK and US DVD formats may be different

They are indeed different, US is Region 1, Europe is Region 2, it depends how your DVD player is configured, some can be multi region, others are specific to the Region you live in.

If you can find anyone with a multi region DVD player it may be worth trying your DVD in it, alternatively it may play in a PC DVD player.

Apologies for getting technical, good luck!

We decided to do Angkor Wat after the cruise, flying from Singapore to Siem Reap with accommodation and personal guides for 2 nights and returning home via A short stay in Kuala Lumpar, all for half the AZ excursion cost. We also didn’t want to miss out on the Bangkok visit and Azamazing Evening.

Perfect, thanks!

Azamarajunkie, I have read that you need to select a “tourist reason’ from 12 options for that Cuban visa. Is it okay to do a ships tour on day 1, then just get off and wander around on your own in Havana in day 2? We have 2 half days there, so thought we’d do the ships “3 hr classic car tour” on the first afternoon, then stroll on our own the next day.

 

Is all the Cuban visa paperwork completed on the ship or do you need to provide any info in advance. Read all the Azamara info faqs and there is a lot to take in!

Thanks Linda

We had the form sent to us in advance, however they were being handed out at Check In before boarding. No need to provide advance info. We did a private tour on our first day to the Vinales Valley in an old Plymouth then wandered around Havana on our own on the second day. You don’t need to do an Azamara tour. And we didn’t keep any receipts as some people have said, neither have we been asked to provide any evidence of People to People interaction.

Uktog is right, when we did the inaugural Cuba cruise on AZ this year the Visa cost was charged to our account and cleared by our OBC.

Jus to to clarify UKtogs post, corkage is only applied if you take your own wine into dinner, if you consume it in your own room, there is no additional charge.

 

The pricing for 2 is interesting- huge premium for a balcony.

 

 

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Must admit trying to follow the logic of these screenshots, the website shows the price of an OV as £5662 pp, whereas if you go through the booking process it’s £5985 as a total for two people. No wonder our TA gets confused whenever she speaks to AZ!

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Let me tell you something else they did today. My TA is ballistic. I got a general email from Azamara from a person within their company saying he was my new booking agent to contact him to purchase cruises.

 

Whoa! pretty bad.

 

Kathy

I don’t see a problem with that, we’ve often had an AZ rep ring or email us to offer us a booking service, we’ve never used it because we prefer booking onboard wherever possible to get our onboard benefits, and it’s always been transferred to our usual TA without issue. It’s just a normal commercial practice. Why has your TA gone ballistic?

There are many small Greek islands that do not figure on Azamara’s itineraries which tend to visit the Popular islands that the mainstream lines also visit. Do you envisage including the smaller islands in the future, and even a sail through the Corinth Canal?

To satisfy our own needs in this respect we have had to resort to a Seabourn itinerary for 2018, despite AZ being our line of choice.

UK site says there’s still 11.5 hours on the countdown clock. It won’t allow a redirect to the US site either.

 

 

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You need the link from the LCV email that was sent this afternoon to access the details of the Pursuit itineraries, with phone numbers for booking direct.

Just booked Rio to Lisbon TA March 2019. :)

Still don’t understand how you booked this as I understand that there is an embargo on bookings until the global release this afternoon, and then only for LCV members initially. How did you manage it?

Just off a b2b on the Quest. We saw more men wearing sport coats in the MDR and both specialty restaurants than ever before on Azamara. Women were also more dressed up than on previous cruises. They were still in minority but not by much.

That’s unusual, perhaps it was because it’s later in the season, or there was a greater number of first timers on board yet to fully embrace the Azamara culture.

Scotch selection in the "free" package is limited to just one brand Cutty Sark....very few scotch drinkers I know drink that brand not even certain if it would be considered a house brand in most establishments in the US. Wish they would add some variety or at least offer "Dewars" and RCCL and Celebrity does for their happy hours.

Whilst I recognise that proper scotch single malt whisky are very good, I don’t know why every one has a downer on Cutty Sark, which is one of the oldest British Blended Scotch Whiskys that has had a particularly interesting history during the US prohibition years. I find it very drinkable with Ice or mixed with some ginger ale after dinner whilst watching a show in the cabaret lounge. It’s worth reviewing the history of its creation on http://cutty-sark.com/cutty-story/#25