tazza_0712

2 minutes ago, JimmyVWine said:

I’ll go with “most of us.”  That gives everyone the ability to agree and yet exclude themselves from the insult!  

You’ll find cruise critic is in fact social media, and so you effectively solidified the insult at the outset. 
 

Note also that I don’t exclude myself from anything. I’m of sound enough mind to know that I too can become unreasonable when a cruise line cancels a “maiden” cruise with 96 hours notice when we (the collective, majority “we”) rightfully suspect and believe that there were potential ways to mitigate the fall out before it got to that late point. 
 

To your original point, had Princess released a statement to the effect that you drafted, I believe this would have gone some of the way to bridging the current gap. “Gap” is a loose term. Perhaps cavernous void is better suited. 

1 minute ago, JimmyVWine said:

I guess you just described the people who post on social media sites. 

…what I think you mean to say, is that I’m describing all of us. 

4 hours ago, JimmyVWine said:

But only to a point.  Let's be honest here.  Suppose Princess had published the following press release:

 

Dear loyal Princess customers.  We regret to inform you that we will not be able to proceed with our inaugural sailing as planned.  We simply are not ready to sail.  We severely overestimated the ability of the workforce at the shipyard to get the ship finished in time for the scheduled departure, and vastly underestimated that amount of remaining work that would be needed to get the ship into the first-rate condition that you have come to love and rightfully expect.  Some of the issues are labor related, some are supply-chain related, and some are just our own miscalculation as to how long it would take to complete the build.  And if we are being totally honest here, we still don't know when the ship will be ready to sail.  Our February 18 departure is looking doubtful, and beyond that we just don't know.  We will do our best to keep you apprised of the progress being made.  We know that you are deeply disappointed and so are we.  We want to see you on board as much as you want to be on board.  All that said...[INSERT ALL OF THE REFUND AND FCC STUFF HERE].

 

OK. Now, with all that said, how many people would come to this board and say: "All's good. PCL is doing good by me."  And how many people would come here and say: "JP doesn't know what he is doing.  He should be fired.  PCL is a ridiculous operation.  I can't believe the incompetence!"

 

I'm not suggesting that honesty is not the best policy.  But I think that we have a tendency to overstate just how impactful that honesty would be on our real world, real time reactions to the situation.  Princess could have fallen on the sword here and put the blame squarely on itself and been as open and honest as it could, and the cancelled vacations and honeymoons would still exist, the stress levels would be just as high, and the anger would still get vented.    

But you're basing your question on the response of what would be most likely, the most 'unreasonable' person. The reality is, a proper PR statement from Princess to the effect that you drafted would have resulted in far greater understanding from a far greater number of people. That's a fact that I would happily bet money on.

Don't discount the value of the brand, the loyalty that the brand has built within its most loyal cruisers, many of whom booked on the early Sun Princess voyages, or the respect with which people want to be treated.

My cabin assignment came through about 5 days before departure.

The ‘Protocols’ as noted in my earlier comment are most definitely still in effect. The cruise industry and CLIA are both lobbying government to remove or at least revise the protocols prior to the commencement of the upcoming Aus/NZ summer cruise season.

CC members reading these comments should feel even more compelled to conduct their own research, and always remember to consult the cruise line’s website to know what is required for your specific sailing. 

Any ship visiting Western Australia (which Silver Explorer does) is bound by the Eastern Seaboard and Western Australian Cruise Protocols. These are state government imposed regulations. 
 

You can find the full list of requirements by googling the name of the protocols but in essence, these outline what I mentioned in my earlier post. 

6 hours ago, taxatty said:

AFAIK, Silversea. Australia didn't require proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test to enter from the US.

In a nutshell, Australian state governments still require the negative pre-cruise testing of cruise ship passengers, as well as full vaccination for at least 95% of those passengers onboard.
 

Cruise ships are governed under separate protocols and regulations, so this doesn’t apply to passengers arriving by air.

I watch all of the aforementioned channels (and others) and enjoy the variety of opinions and perspectives shared, especially for cruise lines that don't frequent Australia. I might also give myself a plug - YouTube.com/thecruiseandtravelguy

In March of this year, just as things started to go haywire down under, we had quite a few of these "ghost ships" situated off the coast of Sydney. I made the trip down to the south coast, a little ways out of Sydney and put together a video. It was quite the sight. I remember thinking in March that it wouldn't be long before things would return to normal, and now here we are in September (just about), and we're still in the midst of it all!

If it's not ok to share this video, feel free to delete.

When there last, I used Rite Price Rentals. They are located very close by, and they put on a shuttle for the return trip from the wharf to their office. Very friendly staff and late model, clean vehicles.

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All Azamara will see is your three forward bookings. They won’t know what you’re thinking. So hopefully if you don’t like it, you vote with your wallet and stop sailing on them to really prove the point. That’s the only way.

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Your best avenue is to check the individual cruise line websites and read about their suite programs. Your friend no doubt has very a specific concept of what they want, so check for a black and white description for each cruise’s suite option so there aren’t any surprises onboard.

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This would make sense in light of recent reports that RCI is looking at creating one of their theme park-like islands in “Australia”.

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The smaller ships definitely move about more than larger vessels. I was quite surprised by the amount of movement, though we had some fairly heavy swell.

Pick a midship cabin, as there was a noticeable feeling of stability there compared to up front where our suite was located. We were woken several times by loud bangs and shudders as the ship crashed into the waves.

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Hi tazza,

No, in the Spa Suite the new $300 OBC replaces both the Nights in Private Places, as well as the $200 spa credit.

I meant to reply to this long ago after our return from the cruise, however time has passed me by.

We were happy to receive the Nights in Private Places, the $200 Spa Credit and the $300 per person OBC on our cruise. This is what should have occurred based on the website description, so I was certainly pleased this was the case.

To clarify for a few of you, you’ll definitely be able to see the fireworks from White Bay cruise terminal. You’re a stones throw away from the harbour centre.

I’m not commenting on what was promised and what’s now being delivered. Merely pointing out that it is still going to be magnificent. I suggest you YouTube sydney NYE fireworks to get a full understanding of just how far spread they are throughout our harbour and city.

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For my January 21 sailing this year, the AzAmazing evening wasn’t published until just a couple of months before. Just the way it goes, and the delay might be reflective of the itinerary.

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It’s decent. You’ll enjoy it.

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Conversely, each time my partner and I tried to go to the MDR for dinner at around 7-7:30pm, there was a substantial line of approximately 15-20 people. On one occasion, we were told that it would be a 15-20 minute wait for a table for 2.

It will ultimately depend on your fellow travellers, and when the majority of them choose to dine.

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So you actually get to sleep....or whatever...... out on deck?

 

 

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Indeed! Nights in Private Places is quite special.

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So glad you enjoyed your cruise. I hadn't seen the Spa Suite before so really appreciated your lovely pictures.

 

 

 

Sorry but I'm in the camp of no background music around the pool. If they introduce it those that dislike will not be happy whereas fans of music could always enjoy their own selections using a device and headphones.

Thank you! It was a lovely room, and I took a whole lot of photos in case anyone had any questions about specific parts of it, like the power points etc. As it is quite hard to find information about it.

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No need to apologise! Everyone is entitled to their opinion and to their own feedback on their survey. I didn’t play the music, only suggested it - and the reason I ever even mentioned it in my review was to explain to everyone how Azamara works with customer feedback, which I thought was fantastic. It was the cruisecritic membership base that decided to run with it as the main point of my review - which it never was.

 

 

 

They are excellent with customer feedback as I made a mid cruise comment about a door that banged and they phoned me to apologise and the door closer was fixed that day - wonderful reactive service.

 

 

 

They’re so good with the feedback! It really makes a difference to the overall experience onboard in my opinion.

 

 

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We were on the same cruise and noticed music playing one day around the pool and neither of us could remember if it had bee playing everyday! Anyway we suggested in the end of cruise survey that they stop the music -sorry

No need to apologise! Everyone is entitled to their opinion and to their own feedback on their survey. I didn’t play the music, only suggested it - and the reason I ever even mentioned it in my review was to explain to everyone how Azamara works with customer feedback, which I thought was fantastic. It was the cruisecritic membership base that decided to run with it as the main point of my review - which it never was.

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Isn’t it wonderful! We got to enjoy it set up for Nights in Private Places. Definitely a lovely deck area to enjoy with the pass or suite access.

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Thank you for your review and photos of your beautiful spa suite. Was the suite rectangular?

 

 

 

I was rather surprised at the comments on the discreet background music which was put on around the pool following your comments. I thought that was a lovely gesture. One of the things I especially enjoyed about Azamara Journey was the availability of live music. Discreet music shouldn't be blaring, but background music that adds to the atmosphere, which you find yourself silently enjoying.

Thank you for your comments! I thought it was a wonderful gesture as well, it really punctuated the Azamara difference. Having your feedback recognised and acted upon is really quite a thrill - as it happens so rarely.

Yes, the suite is basically one big rectangle. I find myself missing it even now haha.

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