ptrpanpens

I am paying $726 to fly one way NS CDG to LAX NS business class on Air France in November. So there are still deals depending on where you go. I have found fares going through CDG to LAX to be better deals especially through Air France and Delta. But I had to look hard to find decent business class RT fares for next spring. Also returning from CDG. And open jaw from LAX to Copenhagen and back from CDG in May is costing me $2,500 in business class on Air France.

i think the days of cheap upper class fares via choice air may be coming to an end. 

4 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Sadly, whilst Azamara can fill their ships the old days of their proud solo fare boast seems to be a thing of the past. 

 

My main bugbear with Azamara now is that in order to fill sailings they send the cabins off to consolidators to sell cheaply or as Interline rates at huge discount, thus cutting out their loyal customer base (like solo cruisers for example). It's such a pity, but Royal Caribbean finally have their claws in what was once a pretty autonomous cruiseline.  

 

Phil 

Unfortunately I only began sailing Azamara recently so missed out on the good old days for the most part. I like the experience once I am onboard but sometimes dealing with customer service and the web page (as a single) is just so frustrating that I never get that far unfortunately.

I have noticed some very good fares in the UK but I don't like their cancellation terms. I am an experienced traveler though and know how to get the deals, generally, if they are to be had, so I will just keep trying and have a look at Silversea and Crystal. Even Celebrity has significantly increased prices so that they are comparable with Azamara on some itineraries, like the Adriatic.

Anne

32 minutes ago, BBMacLaird said:

 

I’m sorry you gave up, Anne.

We still have some specials on Alaska, including Last Minute deals...

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/int/find-a-voyage#promo=6832

Thanks for your help Bonnie. The prices on all the Alaska cruises now  are at least $2,000 more than they were when I last looked so I have lost interest. I was not that keen to go to Alaska anyway and it was the exceptionally low prices about a month ago that  tempted me. Since they are long gone, so is my interest.

Anne

2 hours ago, BBMacLaird said:

HI ptrpans, I can only speculate why the quoted fare wasn’t what you expected.

For example, perhaps the cabin category you wanted wasn’t available with the 25% single supplement. 

Are you working with a travel agent? S/he would be able to get to the bottom of it for you.

Thanks Bonnie.

but in the meantime the prices have gone up considerably and I just gave up on the cruise.

Anne

3 hours ago, BBMacLaird said:

We currently have four 2019 voyages to Alaska with a 25% single supplement!

https://www.azamaraclubcruises.com/int/luxury-cruise-deals/solo-cruise-deals

Bonnie,

When I called about those discounted Alaska cruises a couple of weeks ago the prices were way more than double for me than for double occupancy. When I asked for a breakdown as it didnt make sense (they were not guarantees at that point), the agent told me I would have to send an email to a supervisor for clarification. This was so frustrating to me, I just stopped pursuing it as i wasn't prepared to wait Days for an answer and the cruise would probably not have still been available anyway.

On Celebrity this issue with single occupancy on guarantees has always been resolved immediately to my satisfaction by their resolutions department so I would love to know if Azamara does something similar. If not they should! There is no excuse for poor customer service.

anne

Interesting discussion. I have only sailed on AZ twice but once I was able to snag an Oceanview guarantee with no problem at all. It turned out to be an obstructed 08 which I was able to switch to another obstructed in a better location between two lifeboats. It had to be done manually by a supervisor, though. I have often had to ask Celebrity too on guarantee solo cabins but have always been able to book them in the end.

Recently I had a very frustrating experience with an agent when I was trying to book an Alaska cruise which supposedly had a reduced single supplement. When the price came up  it was considerably higher than what two people would pay even though it was not a guarantee. I asked to speak to a supervisor so I could understand the pricing but the agent insisted I would have to send an email, and who knows how long that would have taken. She was so obnoxious and unhelpful I just got frustrated and didn’t pursue booking any further. But it was very upsetting and left a bad taste in my mouth although I do love the Azamara experience when onboard. 

They need to get their act together regarding transparent pricing.

anne

1 minute ago, BBMacLaird said:

Hi Anne,

yes, the latter...any cruise in the same stateroom or suite category!

So if you booked an oceanview, the new voyage will be in an oceanview.

 And, our team is reaching out to both booked guests and agents. 

 

Bonnie

i just called AZ and they clarified that this means any cruise that will be substituting Cuba ports for other ports, except for the 2019 TA. In other words, Caribbean cruises that were Cuba cruises in 2019. That makes more sense as I doubt they would let you substitute the TA for a Capetown Cruise or some other expensive itinerary, even in the same category stateroom. 

Hi Bonnie,

What does “in the same category” mean? Does this mean, for instance, if you booked a transatlantic, you can book another transatlantic for the same price as you paid for the Original TA? Or does it mean that, if you booked an ocean view on a transatlantic cruise that visits Cuba, you would be able to an ocean view on any other cruise on Azamara regardless of he itinerary for the same price as you paid for your existing cruise? If the latter, that would be an especially amazing deal. How do we get clarification?

Also if you booked through a TA will Azamara be reaching out to the passenger booked or only to the travel agent?

thank you for your help.

Anne

A few years ago, Celebrity informed passengers when they were boarding in Rome, that the Israel ports had been cancelled due to the violence at that time, and that they were being substituted with Greece. Then there were the cruises that had to drop Istanbul after the coup and airport attack. And on and on.

 I guess we should be lucky this happened before final payment to allow us time to consider possible alternatives.

Ask the room steward or the hotel manager to give you the name of the maker. I agree the bedding on AZ is fantastic and such a great upgrade from Celebrity or other similar lines, it is unbelievable the difference.

also they will bring you all the pillow options if you want to try them.

The first time I sailed Azamara I booked a guarantee obstructed oceanview to save myself about $2,000. I was used to balconies on Celebrity so took a deep breath before I opened the door to Cabin 6036, which was positioned between two lifeboats so had somewhat of a view, like Phil’s cabin.

I must admit that I really liked this cabin so much that I booked it again. Like Phil said, it is very well laid out and I found it cozy, not cramped at all. Of course, I travel alone and will say it might be a little tight for two people. (Although several couples I met had obstructed OV cabins and were fine with them.) You do have to be careful though, when dressing, to close the curtains as the crew often is right outside the window cleaning the lifeboats.😱😱

And BTW, the quality and comfort of the bed and linens on Azamara more than made up for any size deficiency compared to Celebrity! 

Anne

I will be canceling this cruise if they have not decided about Cuba by the time final payment is due in about 5 weeks. I have a backup plan just in case. Hopefully Azamara will do the right thing and fully disclose before people are locked in (if they aren’t already).

i did notice that the following cruises to Cuba are still showing so maybe it has something to do with the US port (Key West) as I heard there were some problems going there and then to Cuba. 

On 4/25/2019 at 11:23 AM, dabear said:

We flew AF, business class a few years ago, Chicago-Paris and Paris-New Dehli. Great flight, service , very good food and wine. Excellent business class lounge in Paris. Last few flights to Europe on Lufthansa and KLM were in PE. While both good, the new seat pitch is very tight when the person in front of you moves seat all the way back. The problem lately is that it's very hard to using ff miles to get business class.

On 4/25/2019 at 11:23 AM, dabear said:

We flew AF, business class a few years ago, Chicago-Paris and Paris-New Dehli. Great flight, service , very good food and wine. Excellent business class lounge in Paris. Last few flights to Europe on Lufthansa and KLM were in PE. While both good, the new seat pitch is very tight when the person in front of you moves seat all the way back. The problem lately is that it's very hard to using ff miles to get business class.

I fly Air France businss class all the time and find that it is one of the easier airlines to find business class for 67;500 miles but this is from LAX to CDG, Rome, Barcelona or Lisbon. Alsoeasy from JFK and sometimes less miles. I am sure it makes a difference what route. Also, the easiest miles are to be found on the 388, not the 777 which is better if you are flying alone. I have never flown their premium economy but booked it once and was able to upgrade to business class at the airport for decent amount of $$$ plus some miles. 

Thank you Bonnie. No one has been able to figure it out yet that I spoke to. And with that going on, no wonder they have so many empty cabins. The reps dont even catch the fact that the prices they are seeing do not make sense given the posted prices on the web site. It seems like it should immediately jump out at them that $1,199 plus a 25% single supplement should not come out to over $4,000 even with high port taxes. 

anne

39 minutes ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Maybe the lead in price per person of $1,199pp is based upon two sharing a guarantee (where the cruiseline allocate the cabin), but solo travellers in most cases can’t book a guarantee and therefore you have to pay for an allocated cabin.  I can’t even get into the US booking engine to do a dummy booking and see, so that is only a guess, but I’ve been caught out by this before.

 

Phil

Thank you Phil. I thought about that too and have had that issue before but this is not the case here. The cabins are specific not guarantees. I tried a few days ago when I was onboard Pursuit and the same thing happened. Even the future cruise manager was puzzled and promised to notify AZ but who knows if he did? Anyway today the same thing happened when I called AZ and the agent didn’t know why either. So hopefully she brought the attention to someone higher up.

it is really irritating especially when the prices are posted really cheap with a 125% supplement on some of them. I have not been to Alaska even though I live in LA and hoped to get a great deal of the prices were accurate. No such luck..

thanks for your help

anne

Can someone please explain why the prices showing on the website for last minute Alaska cruises , some with solo occupancy deals, are way more than they are showing online when priced out by Azamara reps? Every last minute Alaska deal is at least twice what it should be according to the web site page when I call and ask Azamara to price directly. I also encountered this issue when trying to book Alaska onboard. 

Fir instance, a cruise that advertises $1,199 pp with a 25% single occupancy should not end up being priced out at over $4,000. This happened consistently with all the Alaska cruises for May and June when I called AZ to price them and the rep didn’t know why. There were still plenty of cabins available too. 

What gives here? This is very bad PR for Azamara IMO.

Bonnie (or anyone) can you try to find out the problem? I have noticed it with other cruises but most consistently with last minute Alaska Cruises.

28 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

 

Oops.  I meant AmaWaterways river cruises.  Too many favorites that start with 'A'!

I thought I was missing something. But thanks Iwill take a look at AMA be ause I want to go to  Budapest too. Thanks.

Prices to Black Sea and Istanbul are outrageous. I think I will just go back to Istanbul on my own now that they have a new airport and things seem to be quieting down there. I havebeen to Istanbul 3 times but want to take one more trip there. But not for those prices!

So disappointed but maybe Celebrity will return to Istanbul now that AZ has. And hopefully prices will be cheaper.

I am thrilled they are finally putting Istanbul back on their itineraries. The Black Sea cruise looks interesting.

Thank you for your review. I just got off that cruise and thoroughly enjoyed it. Now I am spending some days in Nice at the hotel Suisse and have the exact same view you posted above of the Promenade des Anglais just by looking out my hotel window. Million $ view from this hotel.

I agree about having hair done on land especially in France. I do not blow dry my hair ever when I am on vacation and although it is very thick and wavy, I wear it in a straight bob. It takes me over an hour to blow dry at home even with Keratin and even then it is never as straight and silky as when the hairdresser does it. I am in Paris right now and have gone to the same hairdresser here for several years every time I come. She has trimmed my bangs and does a great job but thats all I will let her do except for a wash and blow dry. It is expensive but well worth saving the time and hassle to look good. The French really appreciate it when you have great hair and they love to do it. But the cost in my experience is not any cheaper than when I have mine done in Beverly Hills.

believe it or not the best Steiner hairdressers I have had by far are on Royal Caribbean and the worst on Azamara.

I have had Keratin express treatments on AZ, Celebrity and RCCL. Some were better than others but they all did the job! I also have blow drys onboard and have been pleased with them for the most part. I am very particular with my hair, have done hair modeling in the past and have very wavy chin length hair which is not easy to blow dry straight in a bob but they do it fine for the most part.

i would never let them do a color or cut. Only my hairdresser does those things.

Thanks for this info. That may work for me and I will try it. Nothing to lose. But as you say, plenty of risk taking too much of value on Las Ramblas. I learned my lesson  many years ago only to take the minimum $ and one credit card no matter where you are

3 minutes ago, Lottie A said:

As you board the ship there will be someone to take care of your carry on luggage. They will label it and it is delivered to your cabin later. 

So if you want to go into Barcelona on embark day you can. 

Yes I know this, however, I dont want to carry around all my money and cedit cards, IPAD, etc. especially on Las Ramblas and I do not want to lock them up in luggage that is being stored onboard. So I dont want to go out unless I can leave valuable stuff in my safe. I guess I will just board and when cabins are available go out for a couple of hours or as long as I can. I have been to Barcelona many times and staying four nights before the cruise so will probably just go to the Boqueria or the Gothic Quarter and walk around on that day anyway.

thanks again for all the help.

Thanks, thats what I remember.