Rosroz

Well I hope you can board from 12 as in my travel documents I am being collected from overnight hotel at 11, travel arrangements made through Azamara via my TA

Unfortunately some people are extremely defence of anything critical of Azamara and their favourite member of crew, even if it’s constructive , it’s exactly the same on Oceania FB and CC, and I’m sure the same with other lines, it would appear that many folks think ANY cruise Company they frequent is their friend, unfortunately that is not the case , these lines are a business therefore are in it to make a profit and rightly so , we as the customer should expect value for money , occasionally things go wrong but as long as they are addressed and dealt with in a timely manner and a great experience has been had then that’s all I expect from any service I use, I’m not looking for a friend . I am sailing on Onward on 17 Jan and looking forward to it, I’m not expecting everything to be a 💯 as nothing in life is except paying tax and death ! But I’m certainly expecting a good time

fYI Brits do not as a rule get their tips included unless there’s a special offer on, I think we’re being mixed up with the Australians who are strong believers in paying people the correct salary which I agree with. I do tip if I think it’s merited but to tip just because “ it’s the done thing” is a total no, no, why should someone be tipped because their employers don’t pay them enough and expect the customer to be lining their pockets , the larger the corporation the worse it seems and most cruise companies seem quite happy to pay rubbish especially when the staff come from poorer regions of the world , nothing winds me up more when I hear fellow passengers say , oh well they get paid more than they would at home, that maybe the case but it doesn’t make it right.

I am on Onward in Jan around the Caribbean, and so looking forward to it , I do hope we don’t have to go back to masks , here in the U.K. at present there are more cases of flu than COVID and flu is much more life threatening this year.

Interesting post , we used to use Celebrity a lot but stopped a few years we were Elite Plus, we found it was not such a good experience as it once was, standards had dropped but the prices had increased a lot plus our fellow cruisers had changed , we used to like the Spa cabins which enabled us to eat in Blu. We decided to give Azamara a try , we enjoyed sailing with them , there is something about Azamara that we like can’t quite put our finger on , we feel the staff truly make it and we like the way they change things as and when , making impromptu decisions to make the passengers experience better. We would not describe it as luxury boutique , the ships are not flashy , and the cabins could be improved and of course that old chestnut the shower curtain, who on earth has shower curtains these days ! We have always found the ships clean and well maintained but that’s our experience, we are on the Onward on the 17th Jan and are looking forward to it. We prefer the food and the cabins on Oceania, but if people think Azamara is boring then it makes Azamara look like Royal Caribbean in comparison.

The Royal tonic is vile , so is Britvic ,I pass on the G and T If that’s all on offer , Schweppes is fine , Fever Tree is my preference , I feel that as our US friends are not such ardent Gin drinkers and the drinks are drowned in ice that is the way it will be . My husband and I always upgrade our drinks package as he likes high end whiskey and I’m partial to champagne. long live Tonicgate 🤣🤣

Trivia, name that tune , I maybe 67 but I’m not quite in Gods waiting room just yet, it’s 2022 not 1972 !!!

Well this has proved an interesting post, I am English and have never berated a fellow diner and I’m not oh-so refined , but perhaps I should step up to the plate and be like ALL my fellow countrymen ! In my experience as a well seasoned global traveller I’ve found that the world is made up of good, bad, rude, snobby people etc… no matter where they come from, I’m not bothered if you’re gay, trans , black, white , green with pink spots I’ll share a table with you as long as you’re pleasant company. just a final note to add something else to the topic my husband sometimes wears jeans to dinner as do I , !!!

I have bought the occasional item in the shop only to use up my OBC most of the stuff is very old fashioned and dated so I wouldn’t bother with it

I would love all the cruise lines with smaller ships doing the Greek Islands not just the same old ones Santorini, Mykonos Crete etc…. More of Croatia, and Turkey once again not the same old places they always visit.

Hi it’s interesting about Paxlovid it’s not given to just anyone in the U.K. only those in high risk groups and those who are seriously ill with COVID and there is absolutely no way any Dr would give out any prescription for anything , “just in case”

My husband and I always enjoy sharing tables it’s lovely to enjoy conversations from people of all corners of the world , we don’t just eat because we need to we really enjoy our food especially if it’s cooked well and is varied. Despite having gastric surgery I cannot understand ,why order food and only eat half ,just adding to the already dreadful excessive food waste mountain . I think the way forward would be to order a child’s size meal, less food less waste!!

There have been several posts on here about entertainment ,I enjoy Oceania but I for one find the evenings sooh boring on Oceania , but you can’t please everyone. There is one show at 9.30 I’m usually still eating my dinner at that time , there should be an early and a late show , some lively music in the bar would a nice change not just the pianist and the classical music trio, and why start trivia while people are enjoying a drink before their dinner and chatting with fellow guests . My evening is usually enjoyed with fellow guests we’ve met on board , but a little more “life” would be greatly appreciated .

It looks good and I’m looking forward to my mid Jan cruise. it is after all an old ship that has been refurbished not glossy new one. I am not keen on the dark wood gentleman’s club look I prefer more contemporary finishes, however as long as it’s clean , great service and food, and I’m throughly looked after, then I’m sure I can live with the dark wood 🤣🤣🤣

Prices are absolutely ridiculous, Plus they always try to sell you equally as expensive products ! In my experience the ships spas are never that busy , no wonder at those prices . I’d rather throw a few dollars overboard 🤣🤣

Can’t abide meanness

When I read these posts about bringing drinks on board I am quite amazed , cant believe people go on these cruises and are so mean about spending money in the bar, comments like I don’t drink outside my cabin , they appear so proud of the fact they don’t spend any other money and God forbid they have lunch or have a drink whilst ashore, and contribute to the local economy , shock horror definitely not , quite honestly where is the enjoyment in sitting in your cabin and having a drink just to save a few quid.. If you can’t afford to cruise then stay at home. I fully appreciate if people want to try wines tgst are not available to them at home , but misers I can’t stand. Bah humbug

To be honest the afternoon tea is ok, both the savouries and sweets are good , however I’ve yet to have a “proper” cup of tea, they bring a tea bag on the side of your cup and saucer and then some hot water in a pot , that is not how you make tea ! So much fuss is made over the afternoon tea , but it is so pretentious and is far from the real thing. However each to their own, enjoy if you want , but coming from the U.K. I don’t think I’ll bother.

This has made my day, brilliant news 👍 am confused however why Greece requires a test , when they’ve been letting unvaccinated visitors in for months now

Not sure where your news is coming from people but Italy does not require masks on public transport but advises it, Spain , Portugal have stopped this as well , no longer need to be vaccinated , test, passenger locator forms etc… im gong to Maderia in Wednesday and will only need to wear a mask in a medical facility , care home and the likes. Many of my fiends have been going to Europe for some time now and they say things are pretty much back to normal

Here in Europe we are indeed treating things differently , most Europeans are from childhood ,seasoned Global travellers and we view things quite differently from other countries we are trying to get back to pre covid times. The world will have to live with this virus together with other tragedies , disasters etc…

I should think their job is pretty boring as far as I can see they don’t have a lot to do as the activities and entertainment is pretty non existent , this is no reflection on them as people . It would appear that a lot of what they do is very generic, there are very little impromptu activities unlike Azamara where the officers seem to have a bit more freedom.

Here in the UK the Travel industry is quite different they are governed by very strict laws ,, and they themselves are protected by strong employment laws you would be very lucky to get any extra perks they just don’t need to give you anything over and above , we the consumer are also protected by laws. However we cannot swap and change on a whim without losing our deposit etc..once we have booked we have booked , no cancelling at the drop of a hat. It is legal to charge even credit card fees here and we don’t tend to be a lot loyal lot to our Agents .You may get a slightly better price but I mean slightly and they might throw in an airport lounge but that is it, however we do pay a lot less than our North American friends.

I am no spring chicken but I find the nightlife on Oceania sooh boring as there really isnt anything and what there is is ie Trivia ! is something out of 1950’ s , my husband and I tend to eat late , so as there is only one show we miss it, we have always been lucky to meet up with some great people and tend to join them before and after our meal and that is our evening . On European sailings there seem to be a few people in the bars and we enjoy socialising with people from all around the world . I have often suggested to the cruise director why not do something else but I think the directive comes from Head Office so I doubt it will ever change.

There are some great places in and around Hampshire to stay without using a Premier Inn or similar , as another member posted Winchester is not that far depending on traffic The Vine as they said is nice and the food is good , there are some fabulous pubs with rooms and you can take in the Hampshire Countryside which is lovely , shame not to see the area if you are in the UK