Dr H

The boutique shops are closed while in port, the bars remain open. Perhaps that is the confusion. Gratuities are included on all drinks, either included or upgraded drinks. I leave a small tip when I purchase a premium drink. My premium, non included, single malt scotches usually run me $10 a pop, far, far less money than I could possibly spend purchasing an upgrade package for the mandatory two people. (Normally I'm a gin drinker, Beefeater or Gordon is usually available on the complementary list, and I've been getting decent Martinis on Quest, especially in the Living room. I'm perfectly willing to pay for my occasional Tanqueray 10 or Hendricks) Azamara allows you to carry hard liquor (and soft liquor) on board for consumption in your stateroom. I've actually stopped carrying the stuff because the bars are very good and I don't have to lug the stuff. If you can survive the Azamara computer horrors, you are in for a fabulous trip, at least once you get on board. Have a great time.

We've done at least 6 transatlantics, spring and fall, to and from Florida. No one can predict the weather, not even the climate change experts, but that said, we've never had any significant problems. On two trips out of Florida in the Spring, things did get a bit funky on the first full cruise day going into the Gulf Stream. A lot of queasy passengers, my wife included, and I have to admit, I've felt better. We went outside, flopped ourselves onto a lounger at the pool, covered up and went to sleep. End of problem. Nothing was returned to King Neptune. The only real issue we've had has been what to pack. Dead of winter on all of our trips, the weather was great, it was warm, pools were used, and what the general public doesn't know about the spa deck is fine with me. I use it all the time. Rain is a much bigger issue up there than wind, no matter the season. The weather starts to cool off when you start heading north toward the Azores and then on to Portugal, usually the last 2 days or so of the Atlantic transit. The captains know where the bad weather is going to be, and they do all they can to avoid it. Our biggest surprise about a Transatlantic was how consistently great the weather has been, regardless of season. Second biggest (maybe the biggest, actually) is how much more comfortable the WESTERN journey is out of Lisbon to Florida rather than going east. You finally are given back all those time zone hours that were stolen from your lives, and almost every day. It's almost like free cruising. Have a great trip. We are booked Lisbon to Miami this November, and counting the days.

Quick summary: 2 specialty restaurants, $35/head surcharge unless you get a dining package, which tend to save you $5-$10 pp, per meal, depending upon the package. Most alcohol is already included, I've calculated that you must drink a minimum of 5 drinks per day, again per person to break even. You can't just get 1 package, both passengers are required to buy the same package. So thats a minimum of 10 drinks (I wrote "drunks") daily. All coffee, soft drinks, water, alcohol at the bars, juice, etc. is included in your fare. Internet is available based on Azamara/former RC-Celebrity status, there is an hourly rate, daily, and cruise duration rate. I think you each get 90 minutes of free internet at Discoverer level, don't hold me to it. If you have minutes based on your status, you can eat through them, then purchase the pro-rated package if you want more time. Discoverer status gives you one free bag of laundry per 7 days of cruising (they do a fantastic job), I still haven't figured out if that translates to 2 bags on a 12 nite trip. There is a small discount at the spa, I think about 15% based on status. Very, very hard to get spa prices until you get on board. NB, they tack on a 20% "gratuity" to all spa services, so there is NO need to tip again. That's about it. Azamara is absolutely fantastic. I think they contracted with North Korean programmers to "do" their web site and there had to have been some sort of sabotage against their customer service staff. All reports I've read about service on board the ships is the old, routine, every day excellence. The misery at our end is temporary. Have a great trip!

It's a bit late, but after 10 years of cruising, DW and I still live in dread of missing the departure. I think we've had one late afternoon cruise out of Miami that we flew down to on the same day, and we won't do it again. There were multiple flights out of Atlanta, and short of a weather apocalypse we knew we would be there without problem, and even misplaced luggage would still arrive on time for the departure. But we needed anti psychotic drugs for 24 hours we were so nerve wracked! It's a bit of an annoyance, but we always arrive at the port at least the day before departure, it's just not worth the insanity, the anxiety, and the screaming at each other that we go through. We were on a 2 week North Sea to Iceland cruise a number of years ago, we and the friends we traveled with were all fine. But there was a couple from North America who arrived in Copenhagen the day of the cruise, their luggage however did not. Nor could it catch up to them until Reykjavik. I think the only change of clothing they could get was on board the ship. Great cruise for us and everyone else, for them, very, very memorable. Book a day early, blow the money on the overnight hotel.

Very nice to hear, not that I was particularly worried. Sadly, my "free" cruise that Azamara informed me had been paid in full is no longer going to be free. They've fixed that error and posted the correct amount I will need to pay by late June. Well, perhaps the website from Hell can still provide me with a nice upgrade that I'm not entitled to, but I'm not optimistic. Have a great cruise, I wish I knew how the company fouled up so badly with this IT team it's using.

I'm not quite certain what you mean exactly, but we have always been checked into the new/current room the day before the 2nd trip. If you have to change rooms, they will do it for you. You pack your loose stuff, leave everything that's hanging, and they will take care of it the morning of Journey #2. There is a meeting of the B2B folks the day before, usually you will get your key at that time, which will need validation at passenger relations sometime on departure day. Your tour operator may want to start early, you have to be on board 90' before sailing. As for disorganized mess, never had a problem and no one is reporting any problems with their cruises. The disorganized mess seems to be limited to their website. Hope this helps.

I've been eyeing that particular cruise for my bucket list for some time now. Azamara remains our favorite cruise line, and I'm very, very happy to hear that you are describing exactly what we've come to love about them. The publicity here on CC has been pretty scathing, and I've been starting to worry. Great to hear you had a great time with them. Note for the future, should you need IT assistance in the future, DO NOT hire the group that Azamara chose. All the best.

I am a light to moderate drinker. I love single malt scotch, decent gin in a martini or G&T, a rare bloody mary, wine with dinner, and occasionally lunch. And that's about it. We wouldn't dream of taking either the premier package (unless it was handed to us, which it has been at times), and certainly not the Ultimate. So how do I sate my unquenchable thirst? I pay for it. $10 a pop for my Macallan's scotch every few days. Same gouged price for my occasional Tanqueray 10 martini. It's not unusual for us to walk off a two week cruise with a $50 bar tab that covers all of the fancy stuff. If you aren't heavy drinkers, simply pay for the extras, even if it's a daily Jack Daniels, you will save a big chunk of money in the end. Oh, my martini upstairs in the Living Room is an included Beefeater, as is the gin and tonic by the pool. Included. Hope you have a wonderful trip, spend your extra, new found wealth on a taxi or a better excursion.

Truly sorry for that news. My suggestion is to find the cruise line's land address (I'm assuming this is Azamara), and mail them a CERTIFIED letter telling them of your cancellation, along with their terms of cancellation. You may wish to send a second, identical letter, uncertified via regular mail. Once the certified letter is received and signed for, you have legal proof of your cancellation. If your regular letter gets through, but the certified is rejected and returned to you, you still have proof that you contacted them. This is how we contacted patients with significant medical pathology who for whatever reason refused to return our phone calls (unpaid debts, etc). Once the copies of the letter were in their medical charts, if they tried to sue us for failure to notify them, it would not stand up in court. Best of wishes for the future.

I frequently will order a drink that is not part of the included list, and there is always a line for tip on the bill. I don't tip, my wife does. My gratuities are included in the price of my cruise ticket. The Chef's Table is a pretty hefty tab in and of itself. I have never been hit for a tip. Speak to the Maitre'D, something is wrong here. Other than that, how was the cruise? I tried to convince my kids to book it just to get away from life. They didn't. Neither did life.

Hey, if you've "already" paid the deposit, I would consider paying the rest of the invoice! However, intuition tells me this is a legitimate invoice, sent to the wrong person. Wish I knew what was going on with their IT people.

We are absolute Azamara devotes, and I'm getting just a bit worried. I understand computer glitches, but it has been more than a month since Azamara was supposed to be operational and separate from RC. There is much too much in the way of breakdowns, miscommunications, loss of data for this to be good! We've been traveling with Aza since 2010. Going into the slick new website, I am not recognized as a passenger, my current reservations are nowhere to be found, and the Cost*&^^ website where I made my reservations shows that I still have an outstanding balance on one of the B2Bs of $56. It's off by about 3 Grand. I'm starting to get worried, we said in 6 months..

I have a personal bug against vegetarians. There it's voiced and out in the open. Why would someone who voluntarily opts not to eat entire classes of foods want to attend a food tasting meal that highlights entire classes of foods? Aside from the social aspect of attending a Chef's Table, the purpose is to highlight the Chef's cooking abilities coupled with a wine pairing. It is not for the Chef to be forced/coerced into preparing an almost entirely separate menu to accommodate a few individuals who feel empowered and entitled to impose their dining habit life style on others. Now if the Chef has a menu specifically for vegetarians, go for it and have a good time. But if you insist on limiting yourself to vegetarian selections, I don't know if there is a ship afloat that won't happily accommodate you in the Main Dining Room.

Okay, for what it's worth, it is amazing how much can get stuffed into those tiny free bags. You would not want to stuff them with plutonium or enriched uranium. That said, I'm met more interesting people in the laundry room than at most M&Ms (yes we will be there, the M&M and probably the laundry too) on Sunday. The ship's laundry is expensive, they all are, but they do an amazing job, and that includes spot removals and delicates. Trust me, getting an Indian visa was much more of a hassle, and cost more than the laundry, than laundry will be on board.

There is an expression here in the US South that you won't hear (routinely at least) anywhere else in the States: "Bless your heart!" Basically it translates sweetly from "You poor S.O.B." I can say from a professional standpoint that replacement knees don't work so good. Take care of the ones you've still got, skip the stairs!

I've done "Strenuous" at the ripe old age of 72, and have been less than thrilled, but covid, time, and lack of exercise on my part contributed to the issues. Walking for me after a day or two of WALKING is no issue, stairs and hills are pushing the envelop. Even I have to admit that I'm not 25 any longer. Moderate for me is no problem. There is a ship's tour in Mumbai to Elephanta involving A LOT of stair climbing. I would have killed my wife, and left me VERY unhappy and near death. It's labeled "strenuous", I opted out. Hope this helps.

Having just made Discoverer Plus, I have to agree with all of the above. I'll never live to see Platinum, and the perks aren't that great. That gives me a major incentive to "jump ship" and sail with someone else SO, Azamara, throw us a few bones, please! Increased laundry, deep discounts on purchased booze or packages, boosted percentage discounts on future voyages or ship excursions, discounts on specialty dining. There a lot of little things that can be done to boost loyalty, above and beyond where we all currently.

I have booked many cruises with Azamara over the past 10 years or so. Invariably, there is a major price drop, occasionally sever, and those price drops have always been honored. You might lose the perks that came with your original package, that $500 on board credit may drop to $200, but the price of the cruise will be honored with either a refund, or a reduced final payment. Your travel agent should be able to guide you. I have 3 almost B2Bs coming up in November, and I've had close to $3000 "returned" to me. The quotes because I hadn't made my final payments yet, but they were reduced. Significantly. Best of luck, enjoy your travels.

Bill, lovely seeing you posting! Don't know if you are going or not, but Sandie and I actually spent a day in Chioggia, many, many moons ago when we lived in Padova. Dinky little sea side fishing village just south of the lagoon on the mainland. (This goes back to the mid 70's, so who knows, they may have a Trump Tower and gambling center, though I doubt it). We were out for a day with out neighbors, and followed the Brenta canal to the end. I remember a lovely lunch there. Very Venetian, without being in venice, and certainly worth spending a few hours there. Send my best to Diana, we are off to Dubai end of November, Azamara to India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Singapore then B2B to Western Australia. Then the Indian-Pacific train from Perth to Sydney, leaving on Christmas, and finish with Celebrity from Sydney to Auckland beginning on Jan 2. We get home on Jan 18, Sandie is off to her sewing/quilting retreat on the 19th. I'll be going to bed. You folks take care. Dear moderator, sorry it this is a tad off topic, but Bill is an old cruising buddy. We cruised together out of Rome last Fall just as Azamara was restarting.

You generally meet fascinating people in the laundry room. I met a really lovely professional female basketball player of the LGBT persuasion on a recent cruise. I'm 5'6, and my underwear was at about 6'4 in one of the upper washers. She was very helpful and extremely gracious! But note, an Azamara machine did eat one of my socks back in 2010, Azamara still has not reimbursed me for the loss, and my sock drawer back home remains off balance. And another word of caution. The machines are on deck 7. If you have a veranda room port side or inside near the laundry room, you probably want to change if you can. It gets busy with traffic and noise. As someone posted, soap is provided they ask you NOT to use your own. Laundry service is always available, it is superb, and it is costly. Enjoy your trip!

I am an American and I resent tipping in any form, even if it is our cultural de rigueur here. In most restaurants in Italy, service is already added. On taxi's I usually add 10% to round up the final number. On Azamara, tips are already included and that INCLUDES your spa bills. We usually add $5 or local equivalent to tour guides IF they have done a great job.

My 2 cents: Azamara provides as much bottled drinking water as you can carry, no charge. I however have just given some financial support to my buddy Jeff (Bezos) to help him put his kids through college. For $20, I purchased an ultra high tech UV sterilizing water bottle, that promises to kill 99.9% of all micro organisms in the water, bacterial, viral, parasitic. I am clueless as to how to test this out, but I figured that if we can afford an Azamara B2B from Dubai to Singapore and on to Perth, I can afford to blow $20 bucks on this gadget. It has a Li battery to power the UV LED, so it will have to go into hand luggage. If you are that concerned, check them out. Prices are all over the spectrum (if you can forgive a high tech pun).

Definitely Alaska. We did a transpacific out of Seward a few months before the plague hit, and the Aleutians were fantastic. AZ needs to go back. For our first time in 10 years, we jumped ship, and will be on divorced sister ship Millennium with Celebrity this Thursday for a 7 day inside passage tour. We still have all of our Azamara perks, but we don't have the Azamara crew. I had been hoping to grab 3 segments on the world cruise going from So America to New Zealand. Grossly overpriced and out of our league, but Celebrity is offering almost the same cruises (cruises, plural) for much, much less. I would like to see AZ in the South Pacific, at AFFORDABLE rates!

They do. They will even add hot chocolate mix to it for a mocha, and ice cream if you ask. Best coffee on the ship by far. We have a 10 year running battle with the restaurant director and the coffee served in the MDR. It's lightyears better in Mosaic, regardless of what you order.

Sgadk, I am a physician, Internal Medicine, and you are fine. Technically, all you needed was the single J&J immunization. You have your required two shots, the booster being the best one on the market. Stop worrying about covid, and worry about where you will have lunch the day you board, and what you will have for breakfast on Day 2. Fondest regards from the US.