cavaaller

Thank you very much for posting this! Should you happen to overhear someone mention how much the private transfer to VCE airport via Azamara costs I would really appreciate the information.

Thank you for taking the time to give us this great report. Reviews have become so scarce, it is lovely to read a good one! If you find time: could you tell us about your boarding experience in Barcelona? (When did boarding start, how was the drill handeled?) thanks again, I hope you have a wonderful cruise!

Thank you very much for posting this! It is really helpful! Did you by any chance hear how much the private transfer option (via Azamara) would be?

Thank you so much for this valuable information!

I am very sorry to hear what you are going through! On the contact-page https://www.azamara.com/de/about-azamara/contact-us there are several telefax numbers (with our insurance a telefax is treated like a certified letter.) Maybe that is an option?

I got a strange email too (having no upcoming cruises for this year) Did yours also say : We just received a reminder email “ stating:

We just received a reminder email “ stating: Our only booked cruise is summer 2024… must be a mistake but makes me nervous nevertheless (deposit is paid). Anyone else ?

Thank you for taking the time to write this great review!

@voyager1964 I am sorry - we have not used the T-pool (we are not really Spa-People). thank you for your kind words ❤️

It is great to hear first hand that in spite of all the angst people experience because of the website-debacle everything seems to run smoothly.

Super helpful. Thanks a lot!

Thank you so much for doing this trip report. I cannot wait to read your updates! Did you like the airport hotel? (We are leaving from BCN next year so are looking for a hotel either at the airport or at the terminal thus we would love to hear your input,) thanks again and have a fabulous cruise!

Really enjoying your wonderful review! Thank you very much!

Cabin Number 6091 (Owners Suite) Ship: Pursuit Month/Year sailed: March 2023 Is noise an issue: Y Balcony size: huge other comments: extremely noisy suite due to vibration and constant rattling - not only when docking in port but also while at sea (depending on speed and/or wind)

Pardon me for adding a question: The fine print of my "Experience more essentials" package says "The Shore Excursion OBC portion of the Experience More Essentials Package will be applied to the booking as an individual component, with the option to spend pre-cruise. The balance of any pre-cruise spend of Shore Excursion OBC, will be reconciled once onboard" Am I too optimistic if I think/hope that once on board shore excursions OBC becomes "just" OBC that may also be spent on spa, shops etc?

My résumé - or: what made this cruise so different from all the cruises we have experienced so far… Destination Immersion – Of course, I had read about it before booking. So I knew that Azamara puts a lot of emphasis on making sure that there is not a big drop in quality-level between the on-board experience and the off-board experience. So I knew that the layovers were much longer, that there would be overnight stays. What I didn't realize is how much it would enhance our travel quality our relaxation and our whole experience. We have never enjoyed the ports so much. Of course, we had the weather and the low season on our side. Nevertheless, I think that it makes the world of a difference how long you stay in port and, above all, what berth you are assigned. This was really a first class experience. Organization– From the absolutely smooth boarding to the tightly organized and reduced to the absolutely necessary safety exercise, to the always punctual port calls, the well-organized shore excursion, everything was very well planned and executed. Of course, the staff:guests-ratio and the fact that this trip was not fully booked (only 406 guests) helped. Staff / Service– I've already raved enough about our cabin team. But we noticed almost no employee on board who did not make an effort, was cheerful and courteous. The service on board can be described as first-class! Meals– All the restaurants we tried (these were all except Discovery) had a very good selection and the quality of the food was also very good. The surprisingly large selection for vegans and vegetarians should be emphasized. Guests- We met so many nice people on board. Everybody seemed interesting (so well travelled), open and friendly. Cabin - The Owner's Suites are beautiful. Huge amount of storing, wonderful shower, terrific mattresses, huge balcony, great perks. What they do not have is a decent mirror with decent lighting where you can you can do your make-up (I like to sit down to do so and the mirror in the bedroom is too far away for my myopic eyes and the lighting is very bad there too.) Unfortunately I forgot to mention this in my guest survey because I think that this could be so easily fixed. The other inconvenience can probably not be remedied: The cabin was terribly terribly noisy when at sea. There was rattling, humming, vibration, knocking - it was sooo loud. I got used to it at one point but it made me consider booking a forward cabin the next time. I know that the balcony can hardly be used when at sea but with the long port times that Azamara offers this should not be a problem? We have a new favorite shipping company – the next trip is already booked. I would like to thank you all for reading my lines but especially for the reactions and comments you have posted (it made it feel like less of a monologue) ❤️ you have made the writing fun! ❤️

Menus Discoveries Restaurant Discoveries Restaurant menus.pdf

Insider remaining days: THE INSIDER days 5-9.pdf last day: last day.pdf link to days 1-4

The old website provided a lot of information on the ports as downloads. Maybe these will be back after the revamp is finished. I scanned the Information we got on board in case it is of interest to any of you: Portinfo and Azamazing-Evening Schedule: Portinfo.pdf

We had arranged for a private taxi (link: CSE Civitavecchia Shuttle Express). I had received an email with the name and whats-app contact of the driver. He texted me promptly at 10 minutes before the confirmed time that he had arrived and would be greeting us at the ship's exit with a sign with our name on it. He had a clean, new Mercedis sprinter, drove carefully, helped with the luggage... everything was great. I highly recommend this service. (Price was 140 €). We checked in without delays, went to the Priority Pass lounge which was surprisingly good, flight was on time, seats were great... everything was just perfect. Perfect ending to a perfect cruise.

As usual the Captain made sure we arrived in port in time. And again: we had the best mooring position (sic?) all the way up front: Busses and some taxis were already waiting at before 7 o clock. First passengers were walking off by 7:15.

The last evening is always a little sad. Osvy was so kind to bring us dinner from Prime C because we did not feel like going "out". I was so distracted by the "last night blues" that I did not even take pictures. It was very good though. I had the lamb and the donuts. It is a good thing I had them on the last night because I would have ordered those for lunch and dinner every day! Then I went to spend my last OBC. My problem was that I had not consulted the shop-schedule and did not realize, that the shops would not open after "white night". With the 2 last days being overnight port stays I had to do the shopping very very last minute. Of course I was not the only one. I bought a very nice Coast Purse and some Clinique Cosmetics I would have bought at home anyway - so for me it was a good buy. Next time (if I have that much OBC again) I will plan ahead! Then we took another stroll around the ship Spa: and called it a night.

Back on board I decided, that if I was going to have to pack I would at least try one of those famous Atlas-bar Cocktails. Initially I had the intention to buy the beverage package but found, that for me and my taste, buying wine by the bottle was the better choice. But I still wanted to try at least one of those cocktails even though they are quite expensive: I chose the "Parisienne". And a good choice it was. Packing was still no fun but a little less horrible.

I would not go so far to say that Livorno is a beautiful city but we still enjoyed our tour. Some of the things we saw:

Initially I wanted us to visit Pisa on the second day of Livorno: It is a 6 minutes walk to Piazza grande where you can take the Lam Blu (LB) at stop GRANDE2 (4@A8049) Porto Mediceo. It goes directly to the central station where you can take the train to Pisa (or Lucca or Florence). There is also a direct bus that goes to Pisa: For taking the bus (#10) to Pisa, which departs right behind the dome and goes every full hour you go to Piazza della Republica (follow Via Grande) But as the day in Florence had been quite strenuous and it was already the last day of our cruise (= dreaded packing) we decided to stay in Livorno.