150edmiston

Note to Host Grandma Cruising - might be worth adding this topic to the “newbies” sticky at the top of the board as this question comes up regularly?  David

Thanks for the update uktog.

Good to hear that the crew are as motivated and engaged as those on Journey and Quest.

David

Thanks for the reply lvi.  I did a bit of further investigation over the week-end,  and although I believe I paid a premium,  we have a private transfer arranged for us when we land (driver will meet us with a name board).  For the sake of another $20 on top of a taxi price its worth it IMO after a 14hr flight.   Same company will take us and our four cruising buddies to our hotel at the end of the cruise. David

Thanks for the advice on this thread.  After a bit of research,  I have tried a few taxi firms.  The web page for Taxi Ezeiza is screwed up and wont let you put a date in.  Worldcar havent responded, and another only runs minibuses for groups.  

Having had horrific experiences at other cruise ports,   Im keen to get this tied up.  Does anyone have a contact/firm that is reliable and can be booked online?

We need a transfer from EZE to our hotel in the city on arrival,  and then from the port to our hotel at the end of the cruise. David

Thank you for posting this UkTog. Very interesting observations. Some of our american cruising friends have tried a couple of times to get us to join them on river cruises, one of them last year with AMA. We didnt think it was for us, but reading and looking at your “blog”, i think we’ll look again. Thanks for taking time. David

Well done HGC, this looks fantastic and will be a huge help to anyone who has, or is thinking about booking with AZ. David

I think all the bathrooms have a circular vent opening that exhausts from the bath constantly.

Correct. Both Journey and Quest have extract fans in bathrooms....at least in all of the V1-VX that we’ve occupied. David

Thanks for posting mackdogmolly. Hope you enjoyed Azamara as much as the majority of the posters on this forum. Always good to “feel” the energy through people posting their thoughts and experiences. Have a safe trip home. David

Wow!!! What an improvement. Long time coming but this looks like a major step forward. Thank you.

We find storage space to be a bit limited, in the bathroom in particular. We always take one of those hanging shoe organisers to hang behind the bathroom door. Handy for Suntan lotion and all sorts.

We have taken the double upgrade previously ............+ free flights, 1 night in Singapore. Wasnt a cheap holiday, but a bargain in comparison.

The cruise we curently have booked on pursuit was discounted (easter promo) + as LCVs we recieved an extra 10% off. Swings and roundabouts as they say here. Book early with an agent who can cancel without too much penalty. USA/CA residents can switch easily.

If you book any holiday, and drop your deposit in the box, youre willing to pay that price surely?

We have a cruise booked 24th Feb on pursuit. I can almost guarantee that the curent price will drop as 6 months out the ship is less than half full. Wont bother me a jot. Im in the cabin i want, portside, at the price im willing to pay. David

Hi Bonnie, received an email today regarding an itinerary change on our upcoming cruise on Pursuit - 24th Feb.

The 2nd day has switched from Punta Del Este to Montevideo. No problems with that however just a heads up that the email says that the Punta Del Este day is now the 19th March. I will unfortunately be home in a very different climate by then. The Punta Del Este day is actually Friday the 8th March. A simple typo, but worth clarifying before HQ are inundated.

Cheers. David

We did a similar trip on Quest in 2012, although it we stopped in Phuket instead of of Sri Lanka.

Singapore - if you have a couple of days there, research Sentosa island. You can get there by cable car. Orchard Rd for shopping (window shopping only for us as its Gucci, Prada etc!!), Clark Quay at night for food. A drink at the rooftop bar in Marina Bay Sands hotel. The rooftop Lantern bar at the Fullerton Bay hotel is great as well. Raffles is missable IMHO. We warned, drinks are expensive in Singapore! We stayed in the Mandarin Oriental and it was the equiv of £16 a pint. Keep your eyes open for a 7-11 or similar as its a lot cheaper to buy sodas and alcohol there and take back to the hotel.

Cochin - We did a walking tour for a few hours, saw the fishing nets, visited a Synagogue, had lunch and then headed back to the ship. The backwaters trip didnt appeal to us but others said it was great.

Mumbai - I would strongly recommend a private guide. If you organise one, post on your roll call to get a group organised. Limit this to around 8/10 people. We had a great Indian guide who lived in Mumbai. We went to Matunga flower and food market, Victoria train terminus (it has a very long name which I cant recall - this is where the scene from Slumdog Millionaire was filmed) , Dharvi slum (incredible place), Dhobi Ghat (the outdoor laundry with 7000 people working in it), Ghandi museum and ended up at the Taj Mahal palace for a drink. An incredible city which we loved, but is full of very stark contrasts. Take some hand sanitiser, and as advised take water from the ship and drink lots of it. We went mid April and it was low 90s.

Dubai - Gold Souk is interesting, and you can take a short cruise on a traditional Dhow in the creek. Other than that its really based around tourism - hotels/resorts and beaches. The metro was being constructed when we were last there but I think that might now be a good way to get about.

Have visited various temples on other AZ cruises in Asia, and as advised you will need to cover shoulders and legs.

You have plenty of time to research. Have a great trip. David

We have not stayed in either but would recommend the Buenos Aires Centro Histórico which is an NH Collection hotel. Not expensive, very good quality and close to the port. David

This is a great thread Alsun and thanks for taking valuable time to post during your holiday. David

Great Pic Odd and the weather has been incredible for the last couple of months in the UK as well.

Hope you and Synnove are well.

David

Great pics thanks for posting.

The furnishings look comfortable, and the colour scheme/decor looks very upmarket.

I agree I will miss the tables at the pool bar. We've never had an issue getting loungers, so this is a little surprising.

Also agree about the grotesque "Golf Ball on the Tee" on Deck 11.

David

Here's a link to an interview with Captain Carl that was on FaceBook this morning. There's nice camera work on areas of the ship, including the Sunset Veranda. It might be the same one that's on BBC but because I'm in the U.S., I can't get it.

 

 

Garry

Great find Garry. The ship looks fantastic, and Sunset looks so much better without the bar. David

Thanks for posting these pics John. An invaluable insight over the last few weeks to see the ship stripped back and re-emerge the other side of the re-fit. We sail on Pursuit Feb next year in South America and these updates have really got us charged. Thanks again. David

Wow! Looks fab. What a feeling that must be. Im excited for you just looking at the pics.

Look forward to hearing about your trip uktog.

There is also a 'sticky' at the top of the main page, so you can see other cruisers views on a host of cabins that they've occupied.

My own view is Deck 7 as its the quietest. David

Whilst I agree that some comments can be over the top, here is a link to a prime example of why being vocal has benefits............AZ do read these comments.

https://www.cruisecritic.co.uk/news/news.cfm?ID=6526

The posters on this board no doubt influenced this particular idea, so if there is a debate to be had, we should continue to express our opinions to help influence the outcomes. David

Have only seen the screen out once in 5 past cruises with AZ ......overnight in Mumbai and the movie was slumdog millionaire. For me the MUTS would be a total turn off even though i am a football fanatic. Once established, it ‘could’ become the norm. Not for us. David

Not sure I've seen many ships stopping there recently, but a few years ago we took a tour to Isla La Tortuga. Essentially it was a party boat to a deserted beach. Was great fun at the time but the next day wasn't so good! There is a little market at the port as well.

I think you'll need to really research this before you go and book anything as the political situation is really volatile at the minute. Hope that helps. David

Same issue recently AllisonJ on both Mac and PC. Tried clearly my history and cookies to no avail. I ended up calling to book and spoke to a really helpful guy, miguel, and was off the phone within 10 mins, and had email confirmations immediatly. Really easy transaction and great customer interaction. David