lahore

I just phoned them this morning because in relation to our triple back to back, all three cruises had dropped in price and although we previously had the $USD 500 OBC we did not have Wi-Fi so that got added as well. All in all that one phone call this morning to saved  me AU$3.6k and got me wifi. It’s well worth it to check the prices every month or so. 😁

Just fyi, phoned 10:00 AEST and got through immediately. Saved nearly 3.6k by price guarantee so very happy too 😃

We are cruising Azamara from Dubai ending in Melbs Jan 3 2023. It looks as though it may now happen 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼   It’s via W.A. but if that’s any issue I guess they could come down the East Coast. Got a little bit excited when I heard the news. 

On 3/6/2022 at 8:13 PM, Janet&Carl said:

 

 

I was shocked to find that there are no rules around our travel agents and our money.  There is no requirement for them to place our deposits in a trust fund or to pay them to the cruise/airline company.  Therefore when changes need to be made they seem impossible.  And refunds are practically unheard of unless you have booked direct.

 

Yep. My partner once worked in Consumer Affairs. His experiences with TA’s did nothing whatsoever to encourage me to use them. 

On 3/7/2022 at 12:17 AM, Travelingwithstyle said:

Wow!   Im sorry to hear all these comments about the different experiences with TAs.  I thank you for sharing examples and experiences because I and others need to know what is going on.  Thank you.

Yes. The lesson is book in the US whenever you can, as long as there are no strong disincentives. 

On 3/2/2022 at 12:29 PM, Travelingwithstyle said:

Thank you for enlightening me on your experiences.  Simple minded me never thought there would be differences for Australia or other parts of the world. Thank you again. 

Nothing simple minded about it.  Unfortunately there are big differences though.  I wish we had some of the cruise-travel benefits you guys in USA can obtain through TA's.  Ours seem to be poorly regulated shop-fronts with no intention of doing anything other than lining their own pockets. 

This is yet another reason why I don't do group excursions.

On 2/28/2022 at 5:54 AM, Riocca said:

As U.K. agents are basically a retail shop, either physical or online, their profit is dependent on making the best margins. They are unlikely to spend time looking for price reductions which ultimately would reduce their commissions and therefore profit.

Pretty much the same here in Australia.  I guarantee I know more about travel than most of the young things with commission in their eyes down here.  No thanks.

On 2/28/2022 at 1:09 AM, Travelingwithstyle said:

I strongly respect your opinion on TAs.  I too am very DIY.  Im in my early 50s with 65 cruises completed over 650 days at sea.  In my early years of traveling I booked direct with the cruise company until I figured out how much money I was missing out on.  Now,  I research everything but book with a TA because of the refund they give me.  My TA gives you the option of receiving a discount refund when you return or OBC.

Once I make a booking I still can call the cruise line direct for most questions unless it has to do with pricing, cancelling, or upgrading.  All general questions you can call the cruise company direct. If you like having 100% control over your booking better than receiving money, I completely understand.   I just cant pass up thousands of dollars refunded on a single cruise depending on the price of the cruise.   If your ever interested in getting a quote with a great TA let me know and Ill send you my email address.  My TA is in US on Mountain Standard Time but has clients all over the world.  Just trying to be helpful. 

Thank you, I appreciate the offer.  I also have a very close friend in USA and another in Canada who are actually TA's themselves and I know they would greatly appreciate my business.  I used to book through a TA in USA actually and the prices and conditions were certainly better than what we get in Australia, however things have changed in the last few years at the moment the exchange rate is a further major disincentive. Moreover, some cruise lines actually bar USA-based TA's from booking for Australians because the Australian wholesaler kicks up (Oceania is a prime example of this). 
Just recently, my friend's daughter lost in excess of 20k when one of our major TA companies here in Australia went bust under Covid. If she'd booked directly she would have had a refund or at worst a credit.  Another reason I prefer to book directly is, even just today, reading through posts on here about Black Sea cruises, people with TA's are regularly waiting longer to find out what's going on.  To me it's just another layer of potential for misinterpretation and loss.  I really do appreciate your offer but I'm happy to stay independent. 🙂

Certainly specific cases have been heard and dealt with in the past.  With the help of the wonderful CBO Bonnie, a potential disaster for me was seen off at the pass and rectification was made.  Many will remember the issue (RCL/Azamara Miami tried to bounce me when I had a full paid guarantee, 24 hours prior to boarding).   Azamara found me a place on board overnight and I actually received a free cruise.  Without this board I believe none of that would have occurred.    Azamara legends on here were also very supportive, turning the whole unfortunate episode into a positive for us.

I can't imagine why having one state open would be tempting for anyone, let alone the cruise lines.  Obviously we need the whole country open for it to be viable, unless you are just talking about Australia only cruising, predominantly for Australians, and that holds no interest for me.  I am booked on Dubai to Melbourne Azamara via Perth in Nov/Dec 2022, so I'm hoping but not betting on a full country opening.  

I don't watch Channel 7, what was said please?

I would say it depends whereabouts in Thailand you are planning to go and what you would like to do. I understand a lot of the local food restaurants are currently boarded up, and being as eating is one of our main things perhaps we would not choose to go at the moment. If you like eating in five star hotels in lying around on the beach there now might be a perfect time to go. 

I spent half a day wandering around the fabric area of Tokyo. You really don’t need a guide. The stores are all very close together. 

Last time we bought my husband a nice Longines watch. The time before I got a Coach bag. I also pay for the daily access to the thalassotherapy spa and we book the speciality restaurant packages as well. 

Hi, like Janet and Carl above, I noticed this week that the two back to back cruises that I have booked were both reduced in cost, plus in the past I had free Wi-Fi and a $250 credit but the new offer had a $500 credit. They have adjusted the invoice for me and added the $500 credit with no trouble whatsoever. I was very prepared, I had a full spreadsheet with every possible piece of information I might need to know comparing dates and prices, but it went through very easily. I did this by phone call not via a website form.  I am in Australia. Believe me, I am not usually an apologist for Businesses , but in this case it all worked as promised for me. 
have you paid the final amount and as someone else asked were you covered by cruise with confidence? 
 

Hi. Yes I have, but not on a cruise ship tour (although I have cruiser to Kochi, twice). We were travelling around in India and hired a Kettavellum independently to do a backwaters trip. I highly recommend it. We were living in Asia at the time And acutely aware of what the difference between local fares and white person fares is. I had to haggle for a couple of hours to get a reasonable price out of the cabal there. For that reason alone I would not recommend trying to do it independently when you only have one day.  

Agree it’s a bit nuts. My partner is 76. I’m 63. He is WAY fitter than I. 

17 hours ago, Janet&Carl said:

Sounds like a lovely long journey - the longer we cruise the longer our cruises lol...

 

Hi Janet and Carl.  Just wanted to thank you. I just got through on that number almost immediately.  In their survey I left them a message that the number on the Australian website is incorrect.  At least I am all fixed now, and I just saved us $1900 via the best price guarantee so that's a good start to the week.   Cheers from Melbs. 

14 hours ago, Grandma Cruising said:

No it’s not a unicorn🦄. You can get OBC for doing B2B cruises. How much depends on the length of the cruise. Its $150 for 4 days, $300 for 8 and $400 for 9+ nights. https://www.azamara.co.uk/plan/back-to-back-voyages

Brilliant!  Thank you so much Grandma :).  Really appreciate it.  

33 minutes ago, Janet&Carl said:

Sounds like a lovely long journey - the longer we cruise the longer our cruises lol.  Yes MSC has changed we have been sailing with them since 2010 and choose a Suite every time.  We now only sail in Yacht Club because of the perks and the ship within a ship concept.  I hate queueing to get back on the ship after walking around sight seeing all day and Yacht Club offers priority boarding in ports with butlers to escort you past the queue.  Now they are getting into the mega ships I find them too noisy - too busy and dont enjoy them as much.  We are trying Azamara for the first time.  I have watched a couple of youtube videos and I am quite excited to try it.  It seems much more like Yacht Club than the normal MSC experience.  VEry laid back and relaxing which is what we are looking for.

 

That's interesting. I've been tempted to try the 'ship within a ship' thing, but I really hate crowds and my parter is much worse than I am so I can't even get the idea to put it's head above water let alone float with him.  Azamara are not without problems - I have had quite a bit of serious trouble with the landside part of Azamara (including trying to bounce me two days before, but that is another story). However once you are on board they are great, which is why I am prepared to persevere with this phone thing.  I'm sure you will enjoy and thanks for the tip with the phone.

Hi all.  I booked an Azamara cruise and later booked the earlier leg.  I was not aware that there was such a thing as a B2B discount, but read about it on CC during the past week.  I am now thinking of adding a third leg, and I have to phone Azamara anyway so it would be good to know about this in advance.  Can anybody please share any knowledge they might have about this, or is it a unicorn?

5 minutes ago, Janet&Carl said:

  We are booked on two cruises - cant wait to get back to cruising.  We originally were doing a back to back Baltic out of Kiel, Germany and then repositioning cruise from Germany to Genoa on MSC in yacht Club.  The baltic would be a repeat - I have looked often for a black sea cruise then noticed Azamara selling them so I swapped the Baltic on MSC for the Black sea on Azamara 😉 now look whats happening !!! Hopefully, things settle down before we go in august. We will keep trying and will get to do the Black Sea eventually.  Which cruise have you booked ?

I have often fancied the Black Sea area, it would be fascinating.  I don't know about this whole Russia/Ukraine war thing, it seems that the people who live there seem more relaxed about it than the media....but who am I to judge?  I hope nothing comes of it for both their and your sakes.
Azamara is definitely vastly preferable to MSC IMO, I am sure you will love it.  Good food and no formal nights, small ship, what's not to love 😉

We are currently booked on a B2B,  Singapore to Perth, Perth to Melbs over Xmas with the Sydney NYE fireworks.  When I booked them I figured with covid I might prefer to stay closer to home. Now I've had Covid I am more confident and we are looking to make it a B2B2B extending to depart from Dubai.

16 minutes ago, Janet&Carl said:

 

 

Yes, (1800754500)  that is a wrong number !! I did ring that one first and never got an answer.  The Azamara Aussie site still lists it but it is wrong.  Ring the number I gave you and you will get through.  I have had no problems with the telephone service at all. 

 

i rang on the 16th at  3.25pm and was answered straight away and again on the 18th at 1.22pm and same straight through answer to my call.

 

 

Thank you so very much!

Where are you off to?

18 minutes ago, Janet&Carl said:

 

 

Hi Lahore- I am in Tasmania .    I rang - got straight through - in fact twice this week.  I booked Monday, I rang on Wednesday after reading CC reviews to change the cabin # because the one I had chosen had a bad review.  I rang again on Friday as I noticed that the cruise had dropped by $500 for the 2 of us.  They honoured the drop in price straight away and amended my booking accordingly.  The number I am ringing is  1800 570 552.  Hope this helps - I got an American call centre but got straight through every time.  I am ringing in normal Aussie office hours.

 

 

Contact - Azamara Connect

https://aus.azamaraconnect.com › contact

 

 

 

AU Reservations & Call Centre: 1800 570 552. NZ Reservations & Call Centre: 0800 445 733. Booking support: azamarabookingsupportapac@azamara.com.

 

 

Hi, I'm originally from Tassie :).  

Thanks so much, that gives me hope.  I did try that number and got an interminable hold message that made me want to cut my throat, but evidently I was just unlucky.  Will try again first thing tomorrow.   One of the numbers I tried (can't recall which ) gave two options: RCCL and Celebrity - even though the number was on Azamara's website it didn't mention Azamara.  Could I ask if you had the same problem at all and if so which did you choose please?