wangeling gal

Hopefully that’s the case but I feel not quick enough for the OP.

Wow!! I haven’t engaged in this board since 2018 when a booked Azamara cruise out of Vancouver was changed and we were eventually offered our deposit back after much haggling by our TA, as the change wasn’t what we were looking for (repositioning )Then the world went mad, and life took unexpected twist and turns, and I haven’t needed to be back on here until now. But what is  glaringly obvious is that the same customer service issues with Azamara onshore, that I first read about 10 years ago when I took my first Azamara cruise & that my TA encountered 5 years ago , be it via a TA or people booking and using websites themselves, are still letting down what is a fabulous at sea experience. We know they read these boards so why aren’t they doing anything about it?

On 5/23/2021 at 2:28 AM, Cruizer Diana said:

I'm the OP. I was prompted to start this thread because we are booked on a Caribbean cruise in November on Azamara. We visit St Barths on a SUNDAY. Only private charters can be arranged on Sunday in St Barths. We visited that island in 2011 on Azamara and found very few businesses open to cruisers and very little interest in taxi service to cruisers. We have friends who were refused taxi service to get back to the ship and had to walk on a very dangerous road for many miles in the hot sun.

 

We book private excursions 95% of the time on cruises, but sometimes the cruise line offers an opportunity you can't get on your own. We are scheduled to be at St Barths for 12 hours. At the time we booked, it appeared that we were to be limited to a cruise ship "bubble"/excursions. Among the exciting Azamara excursions on St Barths was a quick panoramic drive, a 1.5  hour sail on a catamaran, or a 2 hour snorkel excursion. The only interesting excursion was the snorkeling--- with the age limitation. By the way, snorkeling isn't scuba diving, which is an entirely different risk factor. 

 

Yes, we will figure something out, but if Azamara calls on a port on a Sunday, that shuts down on Sundays, and does not want cruiser business, the least they can do is offer some excursions that are more strenuous than boarding a bus or catamaran and sit quietly for two hours. 

 

And, yes, if allowed by the protocols, we will arrange for serious snorkeling excursions in Aruba, Bonaire, and Curacao--including our favorite three-stop snorkel in Aruba and a drift snorkel in Bonaire. Just hate to waste a 12-hour port call.

With a 12 hour port call, for Azamara to only offer 1-2 hours excursions it's hardly the immersion experience that they promise cruising with them will give you. To call at a port that will offer only the basics to disembarking visitors on a Sunday is poor planning. And with a good number of their clientele on the more mature side, to offer activities that many can be excluded from (without alternatives just as appealing) it is sure to alienate some from doing extra cruises with them.

I am all for inclusivity and believe that the cruise line should do more if there are people who may have disabilities or minor health issues, to make sure they along with everyone else, gets to experience the best time. But our fellow cruisers also need to be, at times, less selfish. 

For those about to cruise, may you have an extremely enjoyable time.

Our first Azamara cruise was before included drinks so we opted for the Ultimate package and got great value for money. This included my favourites Cosmos & Baileys - oooh they were fabulous. When we did a cruise with the more included drinks I decided to upgrade to the package that included Cosmos & Baileys and ended up only having about 3 or 4 of said drinks!! It would've been so cheaper just to pay as I went!! Lessons learnt! Unless you really need high end liquor, the range of drinks is really very good IMHO

Hope you have a most wonderful holiday cruise :)

So if I am to understand this correctly the 30/7/2019 Vancouver to Vancouver 10 day cruise has been cancelled..... at least a week ago. Neither myself or my TA have been notified.

As I was not the one to cancel, will I get my entire $1200 deposit returned, or do I pay a $100 penalty for Azamaras decision? If someone could please advise me that would be great.

Just as I was getting excited about the 3rd ship, I've been bought back to reality :cool:

Màrtincarth, Urban Treckr & cruiseryyc

Thank you for your thoughts - i will check out the Ymcas', Badlands, Greyhound buses & TA (again) that you all recommended.

I hadn't thought of Vancouver to Calgary (or vv) but will research that as well.

Much appreciated :)

Gday

We will be visting Vancouver in 2019 where we will embark on an Azamara 10 day cruise. Very excited to be visiting this part of the world. The cruise also ends in Vancouver.

Either before or after our cruise we would like to do a tour of the Rockies - Whistler, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper ect. We would like to do a more casual, small group tour, that's not high end, maybe stay in hostels or camping areas or more budget accommodation, no more than 7 - 10 days, you know like a Contiki expect for 50 year olds.... I know that I'm not going to get everthing i want, but i was hoping some fellow CCs have some recommendations for smaller tour groups or for busing and organising hostels/hotels ourselves & any other helpful hints for a couple of young at heart (if not body) experienced traveling Aussies, trying to make our budget stretch further.

Also please let me know what you think is the best location/s to stay in Vancouver which will give us a great introduction to the city and for sightseeing.

Thanks for any help you might be able to give

Cheers

Mantra on Murray is a great place to stay in the centre of Perth, close to the train station which will take you to Fremantle, with lots of little Cafes close by and an easy walk to Elizabeth Quay or to Northbridge (lots of restaurants there).

For the most incredible views of Perth there is no better place to see it from than Kings Park -which also has the most amazing gardens proudly showing Western Australia's unique flora. A cheap ferry ride across to South Perth is also a great way to see the city skyline. Also as others have said a cruise on the beautiful Swan River(either down to Fremantle or up to the Swan Valley) is a lovely way to see our city. If you catch the train to Freo you can get off at Cottesloe, where it is only a short walk to the world famous Cottesloe Beach.

Fremantle is WA's cultral precinct and where you will find most of our historic buildings including our oldest surviving building the Roundhouse which was originally a goal. Freo is full of restaurants, old pubs, shops and if you're there on the weekend, markets.

Whatever you decide, welcome , hopefully you will have a wonderful time here.

Thanks for that info wangeling gal.

 

Do you, or anyone else, have any tour company recommendations for a 1 day visit ?

Thinking of Galle, then back to see a couple of sights in Colombo.

 

Would be for between 2 - 6 people.

 

Thanks.

Hey Tranquility Base

I'm sorry I don't know any specific tours companies that go to Galle - I used Tours-by-locals and they possibly could. Please be aware that even though it looks close on the map it is about an 8 round hour trip ( at least) if you want to see everything that I believe is worth seeing (keeping in mind I haven't visited Galle - going on a friends experience). The roads and traffic have to be seen to be believed!! ;)

I know when we went I looked at what our cruise (Azamara) was offering, then emailed private operators with a similar intinary (or if there was something really specific I wanted to see) and worked with that. TBH I would be a little reluctant to tackle a trip like Galle privately if I was only in port for a limited number of hours, I would use the ships tour ( & I really like to do my own thing) unless of course you've got an overnight or later stay.

And double check the Public Holiday dates - the 12 full moon public holidays are only the beginning!!

Enjoy your planning and have a wonderful holiday :D

Will be visiting here in early May off an Azamara cruise. We go into Colombo and I am totally in the dark of what to see here. Does anyone have any suggestions or ideas?

Hi Alidor

We visited Columbo with Azamara in 2013. We spent 2 days there. I organised a tour of Columbo with a local tour guide, who took us to some temples (one that Budha himself is said to have visited) markets and a general look around the city. While we had a nice day I would have to say there isn't a lot to Columbo itself. One thing I had wanted to do was have a High Tea at the Galle Face Hotel, which I was lucky enough to do. It was delicious and compared to the Raffles inexpensive and so much less touristy. Lots of locals enjoying it.

Some friends did a Azamara organised trip to Galle. They had an absolutely fabulous day and as hindsight is our best teacher, I wish we had done the same.

Be aware that in Sri Lanka they have a lot of public holidays. We happened to be there on a full moon day, which is one they take very seriously. So no banks, limited markets and restaurants are open. No alcohol gets served which was a disappointment as we were hoping to sip G&Ts as we watched the sunset from Galle Face Hotel (totally beautiful)

We had planned to go to the Ministry of Crab restaurant (owned by a couple of Sri Lankan cricketers) but it was closed due to the full moon. But we did walk around the complex it was in and there were some lovely shops, a couple which were open. I also visited a shop called Barefoot - some beautiful Sri Lankan made products, materials ect and so resonably priced. There are 2 but the main one on Galle road was fabulous.

I hope this helps a little . Enjoy your Spice Route cruise it is so totally the best holiday I've ever had.:D

Hi Sanger727

I was thinking that as you were unsure about where you wished to go in Asia, maybe a cruise on a small ship like Azamara, would be a great way to 'sample' what Asia has to offer and then if you like what you sample, maybe you could revisit for a more in depth look.

The cruise I was thinking of was the one that starts in Singapore, a melting pot of Chinese, Malay, Indian & British heritages, visits Thailand & Vietnam and finishes in Hong Kong. They have the advantage of being a smaller ship so when visiting cities like Bangkok & Ho Chi Min, they berth so much closer than a bigger cruise. You visit Halong Bay, which I believe is beautiful, and get a chance to go to Hanoi. Then a few days in Hong Kong will give you a great Chinese experience or you could possibly tack on a tour of China, visiting Bejing, X'ian (terracotta warriors) possibly Shanghai as a great finish. You get to visit SE Asia as well as north Asia.

That said - I have been privileged to have done the Azamara Spice Route tour which started in Singapore and finished in Mumbai, visiting Penang, Colombo, Kochi, Goa then Mumbai. We then toured the golden triangle, with the highlight being the incomparable Taj Mahal. It is a holiday that will live in my heart forever. :)

Whatever you decide I hope you have a fabulous time and enjoy your 2017/8 holidays in the mean time:D

Hi Brian1

I was lucky enough to visit India in 2013. It is an amazing country & I'm sure you'll have a most wonderful time. There is nothing more special (IMHO) than the first glimpse of the Taj Mahal as you walk through the gateway. Totally surreal.

While we didn't eat off street food stalls (though it was so tempting) we did eat some meals in small clean restaurants that were recommended by our tour guide. We ate meat Bryanis - lamb & chicken - and tandoori & butter chicken dishes. They were so enjoyable & we weren't unwell in any way for the eight days we were there. The food in these small restaurants were very cheap - especially compared to eating in the hotels. We did all the right things, bottled water, hand sanitiser, baby wipes but I'm sure we made mistakes at times. We had been told that salads were a no no because they were washed in normal tap water, and we forgot that rule till we were half way through a lovely fresh garden salad, but we got lucky. In our hotels I had G&Ts with ice, no problems but the hubby stuck to Kingfisher beer ;)

In the end I felt we had more chance getting skittled by all the chaotic madness that is the Indian traffic, than being unwell from anything we ate.

Hope this helps. Have a wonderful time in the most incredible country :D

Our friends want to visit for a overpriced Sling, are all the prices high, Beer, Gin, etc ?

 

 

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G'day Limpit

A simple answer is yes it is overpriced at the Raffles......but that doesn't stop us visiting every time we go!! There is nothing better visiting The Long Bar & getting a glimpse & taste of colonial Singapore. It still retains a great atmosphere and it's a good opportunity to visit the outside arcade of the Raffles with glimpses to the fascinating inside. Besides I love the taste of the Singapore Sling. A sling costs approx $27 SPD & a beer around $18. You get numerous peanuts to eat and throw onto the floor, and it's a great place to people watch. Ive also done the High Tea in the Tiffen Room @ the Raffles (which IMHO was overpriced and average) but not everybody would think like me, my daughter loved it :rolleyes: I just enjoy visiting this historic part of Singapore & while touristy & overpriced something, maybe, to do once in a lifetime!!;)

Have a wonderful time while you are there:D

A really good thread - thanks to all contributors.

 

We are due to dock at the Harbourfront terminal (by the cable car to Sentosa Island) for three days in February, - we sail at 2pm on the third day. Our ship does not have a launderette, so we are wondering if it may be possible to find a laundry in Singapore which is easily reached from the ship, that would be cheaper than the ship's laundry service. We are away for 5.5 weeks in all, hence our concern.

Hi Tring

A quick google search (laundry service harbour front Singapore) showed there to be 2 laundry services at Harbour Front Centre & at least one in Vivo City (shopping mall) next door. I'm pretty sure at least one of them had coin machines. Have a look - hopefully it'll be just what you're looking for!!

Hope you have a wonderful cruise & a fabulous time in tremendous Singapore :D

Something I'm discovering is what the Tour Companies really want to do is sell attraction tickets and just ferry you from point to point. I can't prove it, but it seems the tour companies can get tickets at deep discounts, and that is where they make their money.

 

As an example, one operator says we really should go up to the umpteenth floor of MBS for a few minutes and have a look around. Fine, but the ticket to do so is a day pass, SGD 25 pp. Part of me could see us spending the day there, but a quick rubberneck seems expensive.

Shawnino

This is one of the best things you can do in Singapore - I rate it more highly than the flyer. It's not something you would do for a whole day - 30 - 45 minutes is more than enough (IMHO)The view is incomparable, and I personally think it is $25 well spent. It's also great to 'rubberneck' and check out the inside foyer area of MBS and the shopping/casino precinct across the road and it's access to the bay area and the views you get from there.

I hope you have a wonderful visit to this fabulous city and hopefully we can find a tour company that will suit your needs

Wangeling gal:p

I’ll be here one day on a cruise ship. I’ve been to Bali several times and just want to go to Legian/Seminyak to eat, do some shopping, have a massage etc. The ship “tour” to Kuta (really just a shuttle) is $65 per person!

 

I was thinking of hiring a driver but that seems like overkill. Are taxis (preferably metered taxis) readily available at the port? Any idea of cost to say Seminyak Square?

 

Thanks in advance.

 

Maggie

Maggie

As you get off the ship at Benoa there are heaps of drivers and taxis, waiting outside the gate only about 50 metres away. If you are just going up to Legian/Seminyak I'd just grab the blue taxis we see so many of - they have a meter and are always good value.

Last time in Bali we used one of the driver cars at the port negotiating four 4 of us to go into Kuta - I think it was $10 each.

It can get a bit hectic but a firm no thank you and picking one person to deal with works wonders!!

As you know Bali already, you know that most Balinese are helpful & willing to ensure we have a great time.

ENJOY YOUR TIME IN Bali & have a lovely cruise:D

Deb

Has anyone toured the caves of Mumbai? My wife and I are considering seeing them and would like to know which are best to see. We will only have about 9 hours because we are arriving on a cruise ship and must be back on board before it leaves.

 

 

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Hi LTLBrissie

I didn't do the caves tours when in Mumbai, but I would suggest to you to organise your tour there with a tour operator. With just 9 hours in this chaotic, amazing, incrediable city I wouldn't risk doing it on your own.

I can reccomend that you have a chat to Pranav, the owner/operater of Grand Mumbai Tours, (currently #2 on Tripadvisor) who will be more than happy to suggest and help organise a tour that you wish to do. I'm sure other tour operators can get you there (just make sure they do what you want- not what they suggest) but I would definetly use local help.

I hope you have an amazing time in Mumbai and lovely cruise

Deb:D

grandmumbai.com

We have never been to Cochin, India before and I was wondering what is their to do here?? :confused:

 

What do you do when you go there??

 

Any tips / ideas are very welcome. :)

 

 

PS: Would it be best to do a ships tour or a private tour here??

Hi Kiwi Cruiser

Cochin is a lovely place to visit. Depending on what your ship is offering, I always think a private tour is the best way to go!

Kochi has the wonderful Chinese fishing nets, spice markets and is the gateway to the Kerala backwaters where you can sail on an old houseboat with lunch....

We dealt with cochinmagic.com when we were there. We had a great look around the old port of Kochi, then had a lovely lunch on the backwaters.

A good idea is to make a list of everything you would like to see, then ask them to make an itinerary & for a price.

The highlight if our day was the fishing nets, a real food market, the spice shop and the wonderful backwater cruise.

It's a most magical part of India, I hope you have the best time:D

I would like to experience sailing on Harmony or Oasis just to see what it's like - I'd look at it as a new sort of 'adventure' ;)

But I probably would only cruise to places I had already visited, thinking that I would spend more time aboard. I would make this sort of holiday/cruise about the ship and enjoying what facilities it had to offer & hopefully getting my monies worth, instead of the destination focus that I so enjoy with Azamara.:D

Does anyone know what the "house" pours are for gin, whiskey, vodka?

Not sure what their names are, but they've always been a generous pour, that's for sure!!:D

I know the first one but not the second. i sail more on Quest. I am finding now people take money very quietly.

We also witnessed this on Quest last year, but it did not impact on the level of service we received, but those giving the money were certainly more demanding and at times rude. :cool:

We (personally) didn't find the crew members as personable on Quest, as they were on Journey, but still had great service and a fabulous cruise :D

Yes, they are. Ketut is on Quest at the moment and Mariano is on Journey and I agree both are excellent and so many others besides. Azamara are starting to swap most of the bartenders and servers between the ships now.

 

Phil

Thanks For that - It's great to hear they're doing well. I agree there are many wonderful crew who make your cruise so much better:D but for that Journey cruise those two young men shone for us.

I have a friend on Quest atm - I'm sure he would of found and reacquainted himself with Ketut;)

We tried to tip two bartenders who had been awesome to us when we sailed on Journey in 2013. We really enjoyed their company and getting to hear about their families back home. Both politely declined, saying there was no need for an extra tip, but did ask that if we were so inclined a mention in the survey or to a manager about them would be most welcome. So we did both.

Two fine, harder working young men, (and we made them work hard ;)) you would be hard pushed to find on a ship.

A shout out to Kutut (sunset bar) & Mariano (pool bar) - not sure if they are still with Azamara, but I hope they're doing ok :)

Have cruised on both Journey And Quest and have taken our lives into our own hands ;),and used the laundry on both. A great thing to have when it was working properly and people were on their best behaviour!! But we also used the laundry service, for the simple reason that we were on holiday and we so didn't want to do it.

My memory tells me that we stuffed the laundry bag full and asked for a cold wash be used and no dryer either (Some delicate ladies tops were in there) Our clothes came back the next day, clean, folded and pressed beautifully, the same size they were before we sent them out, and only costing about $35.

To fit more in the laundry bag, we hand washed all our under garments and hung them on the now defunct washing line in the bathroom :confused:

A great value service :)

Can you give advice on other hotels in Singapore? Thanks, Kris V

Hey KrisVilla,

Singapore has a huge range of hotels - from budget through to super luxurious. What's important to you when you look at a hotel? Price? Location? Swimming pool? Included breakfast, 'free' wifi or loyalty points? Do you want to stay in the shopping district, cultural precinct or around Marina Bay? Do you walk a lot and like to use public transport or do you prefer taxis?

You will get so many different opinions - and they all will be fabulous places to stay - so good luck!!

I'll get the ball rolling and say have a look at the Rendezvous Hotel on Bras Basah Rd. Medium Priced, great location, close to public transport and good service.

Have a great visit to Singapore :D