mare s.

Hi all. Just returned from ship excursion in Mazatlan. It was very good. Just 23 of us on the bus. The entertainment so far has been the singers and dancers and a violin duo. The singers tried hard but IMO not nearly as talented as on our previous cruises. And I guess I'm not a huge fan of violin unless its with a symphony orchestra. But Max is good and we have a guitarist who is good, so all not lost.

Park Lane not too intrusive but it a shame to see the area inMosaic formerly e piano area now is the Park Lane desk and another long table with liquor bottles (for premium upgrades) I am happy with what is offered and am steadily working my way through the included cocktails! Tonight is Le Club Voyage cocktail party so I should have more to say about Capt Jose.

Mare

Just a quick note from on board. Things for the most part are as good as our past cruises. Food excellent both in MDR and windows and pool grill. Good to see familiar faces. Excellent guest lecturer...Jay Christofferson...a marine biologist. Entertainment so far huge disappointment. Walked out on two shows. But good activities during the day. Capt. Jose is very personable but we haven't seen much of him around the ship. Tomorrow our first port day. If the spotty Internet allows, will try to get back here before the end of the cruise.

Mare s.

Here is a great thread about Vancouver. Lots of suggestions for places to stay and things to do. I definitely concur with taking a taxi to the city (the airport is a fair way away) You might check some of the larger hotels to see if they have airport transport. We stayed at the Hyatt which is just a couple of blocks from the cruise terminal and were able to walk all around town easily. Lots of wonderful restaurants. Vancouver is one of my favorite cities.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=723387

I have windows 8 so perhaps it is not compatible with Azamara's software.

Very possibly. I am still using Windows 7.

Just received an email from Azamara entitled "Free Land discoveries". At the top of the page was a box to call for a quote...ugh...I want to see how much when I'm surfing. Next box I clicked was entitled "View Eligible Voyages"...I clicked on the box and received the following message "Internet Explorer Could Not Find"...ugh again...but there was yet another box entitled "View of the details"...I clicked on the box and received the following message " Internet Explorer Could Not Find".....ugh...I deleted the email!!!!!!

Hmmm. Received the same email this morning and was able to click on eligible sailings and also was able to check prices for one that looked interesting. However, price I saw was much more for 9 nights than we paid for 12 on our upcoming cruise.

I receive almost daily promotional materials in the mail from every cruise line we've been on (and some we haven't!) and occasionally one from Azamara. But I do receive regular emails from Azamara for their various promotions (don't know what the magic trick is to get these) I did not, however, receive anything from Azamara about my e documents being ready (for that matter, I didn't receive any notification from my TA either) Fortunately, as a past cruiser I knew to look on the website for check-in and found the documents easily. I guess I've been pretty lucky with the website...again, I don't know what the magic trick is.

mare

I've never cruised with Heike, but I think her sentiments and approach are completely shared by Phillip and Ryszard....and are what makes the "warm and fuzzy" feeling on board so wonderful.

loving this review and the accompanying photos. we're on Quest in 3 weeks' time and can't wait to be "home" again. Note to self....get up to Windows before that cake disappears!

I too would like to extend

my deepest sympathy to Bill's family. He will be missed greatly by so many.

Mare

Someone in our roll call has been having lots and lots of problems with the excursions...and he can't get a straight answer from anyone at Azamara. As of last night (and this morning) I get the same error message on our January 29 cruise...no brochure available. Glad we made our reservations early, but what if we decided to change or add? Only a little more than a week before the 25% off deadline.

Glad Azamara is living up to your expectations. Have a wonderful cruise (you will, I'm sure.) Can't wait to be aboard Quest again...just a few short weeks.

p.s. Happy Birthday to Captain Jose...looking forward to meeting him.

Our Azamara cruise at the end of January stops in Mazatlan and Topolobampo...hope we can make it to both ports.

Will I be out of place with some floaty tops over dressy black slacks?

You will certainly not be out of place. I like to dress up for dinner...adds to the enjoyment for me. I always take something sparkly or floaty. However, sometimes I am happy that I can wear just nice pants and a pretty top. But no need for cocktail or dressier attire and my DH is very happy not to have to pack a tux!

We had that cabin...aft but easy to get to stairs or elevator...very quiet. I prefer 7 anything from mid ship to aft.

check on the West Coast Departures forum...lots of info on local hotels/shuttles.

I can answer a couple of these...wifi is spotty and can be slow but we were able to use our Ipad in our stateroom. Not a whole lot of selection on t.v. I can't comment on pool or hot tub as we don't use these in the evening, nor can I talk about sodas (we don't drink them) As for dinner...you can go when and where you like (the specialty restaurants do require reservations, however) In the main dining room, you can certainly ask for the same wait staff (we do) or you can ask to try different stations. It's funny...sometimes we would run into the same people over and over and others never see again after the cruise critic meeting. But we're on your cruise and looking forward to meeting you. I do hope we have good weather...it will certainly be wonderful for you coming from Canada.

mare

When we first started sailing with Azamara, the CC get together was always the next day. About 1 1/2 years ago - things seemed to have changed and they moved the get together to the day you sail. What a shame that you have to make a choice of the CC Meet and Mingle and a beautiful sunset departure.

Not sure why they did this.

Same for us...on our SA cruise, the CC get together was at 6 pm...just as we were sailing away from Rio. Really poor planning! Then many, like us, who rushed to the meeting had to leave soon after for dinner (we had set times that night). Fortunately, one of the group arranged our own little get together at White Night...persuaded staff to set up a special long table for us on deck and sent out invitations.

such devastation! my thoughts are also with the wonderful crew and their families at home.

I agree

Ladies.......duct tape or black electrician tape can be your friend. I used the black tape on our last cruise...just wrap it around the button at tightly as you can and voila.......you now have a dryer that stays on.:D ;) Oh ...the black tape does tend to stretch out a little....just loosen it and re-wrap it. Works great Doesn't take up much room in the suitcase either. :p!

terrific idea!

That is really annoying (about the hairdryers) Obviously a woman didn't order the new ones! I guess I'll be packing my own travel sized dryer.

Hello Future Azamara Quest Guests -

 

Received word today that we will be officially announcing the appointment of Captain José Vilarinho as the Master for the Azamara Quest with Captain Carl Smith, starting with the November 2, 2013 Voyage from Civitavecchia to Seville. As you know, our Captains spend 3 months on and 3 months off, so each ship needs 2 captains.

 

Most recently he served as Staff Captain on AIDA Cruises' M/V AIDAvita and prior, between 2005 - 2011, as the Master for M/V Athena and M/V Arion. Please stay tuned for an official announcement that will provide more information about his experience and personal history.

 

Best regards,

 

Bill Leiber

_____________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

Hi Bill...glad to hear of the new Master for Quest. I wonder, given your comment that captains spend three months on and three off, whether Captain Carl will be back for the January 29 Quest voyage or whether Captain Jose will stay on through mid February?

Thanks.

Bill, thank you for the information on the January 29 cruise. It does help with planning. I really thought it would be in Loreto (where we have an overnight) It will be interesting to see how the event is handled logistically, as this is a tender port and the venue is some distance away. Glad you are feeling better and back with us.

mare

Bill...glad you're back and feeling better. Can you give me anything about the event for the Quest sailing of January 29 (Sea of Cortez)?

Thanks so much.

I'm trying to be patient and understanding also. But it worries me a bit that the events for the first quarter of 2014 aren't available yet. I would think that these Azamazing events require quite a bit of planning which should be done months in advance. I'm sure I'm wrong, but this gives the impression of a bit of last minute scrambling to arrange the events...always a bad sign. Regular shore excursion info has been available for quite a while, but I've been holding off booking anything because things are so fluid.

I must say I'm not terribly surprised that Capt Stig is leaving. He did not seem very comfortable when we cruised with him last January. I think a larger ship is more his style. He was a very pleasant gentleman but not particularly outgoing and not particularly visible around the ship (compared to Capt. Carl, with whom we cruised before.)