ONBOARD OPEN PASSAGES PROGRAM: Cancellation Opportunity

[Bloodaxe]

This is a sad occasion for me - I too have asked Azamara to cancel our open bookings.

 

We started our "affair" with Azamara quite by chance in 2009 - after we spotted an interesting itinerary to Iceland on this small ship we've never heard about before. It was a love from the first sight and, since then, we've done altogether 6 cruises on both ships - 3 on each (we still try to figure out which we like more! ;)). We were sure that we'll be doing many more - and that's why we booked last July , while on board the Journey, two open bookings.

 

And then came the changes - and the big price hike. To me it doesn't make sense.. Why spoil something that was working so well? (on our last 4 cruises, as far as I know, the ships were either full or almost full). The existing perks worked well for us - a glass of wine with a meal... bottled water while going on an excursion.. an occasional soda.. a latte in the Mosaic cafe while listening to Jim - that was very nice and also quite enough.. If we wanted something more - we would buy it. And anyway, we had started sailing with Azamara before all these things became "free" - and we stayed with Azamara not because of them but because of its itineraries, the smallness of the ships - and of course mainly because of the wonderful CREW (and that includes everybody there!)

It's not that I mind the new policies per se - although it's still not clear how they will affect the "demographics" of Azamara cruisers. Maybe they hope that now they will appeal more to the younger crowd of heavy beer drinkers? Well, what can I say? Only that I liked the "old demographic" well enough.. People from all over the world, mostly 'older" (but then we are that too :o) , mostly very active (how not , with so many port intensive itineraries?!), well educated, knowledgeable, curious about the world - and very , very nice. We made a lot of friends here!

 

The new "amenities" aren't for us. We are very moderate drinkers - and therefore we will not take advantage of all this "new stuff" that will be offered. And why would we want to pay so much more for the drinking habits of other people?

So for now we'll take our bookings back and go elsewhere.... Hoping that things may change.. Or that - at some point in the future - we will find some great deal on Azamara and revisit our favorite ships again. I am still curious to see them after the renovations!

 

Bill, I have to ask you for one last favor. I wrote already twice to the customer service mail address you provided, and got no answer whatsoever (not even an acknowledgment that they got my letters). Can you help in any way??

 

wishing everybody great sailings :)

Miriam

 

Your posting sums up our feelings exactly, we will have cruised Azamara 8 time since Feb 2008, 4 times on each ship.

We have seen the line develop & have really enjoyed all our cruises but do not like they direction that they seem to be heading now.

We are due to board Quest on the 2nd Dec which sadly will probably be our last time on Azamara has we have also cancelled our open passage.

[greeneg]

Your posting sums up our feelings exactly, we will have cruised Azamara 8 time since Feb 2008, 4 times on each ship.

We have seen the line develop & have really enjoyed all our cruises but do not like they direction that they seem to be heading now.

We are due to board Quest on the 2nd Dec which sadly will probably be our last time on Azamara has we have also cancelled our open passage.

 

Us too, we very much liked it the way it was and do not understand why it is necessary to fix something that isn't broken, or to make something appear to be something that it is not.

[Bill Leiber]

This is a sad occasion for me - I too have asked Azamara to cancel our open bookings.

 

 

So for now we'll take our bookings back and go elsewhere.... Hoping that things may change.. Or that - at some point in the future - we will find some great deal on Azamara and revisit our favorite ships again. I am still curious to see them after the renovations!

 

Bill, I have to ask you for one last favor. I wrote already twice to the customer service mail address you provided, and got no answer whatsoever (not even an acknowledgment that they got my letters). Can you help in any way??

 

wishing everybody great sailings :)

 

Miriam

 

Hello Miriam -

 

I'm disappointed to learn that you've decided that Azamara Club Cruises no longer fits your lifestyle needs and respect and understand your decision to go elsewhere.

 

I will check with our customer service team about the status of their overdue response and apologize for the delay that you've experienced.

 

I hope that we have the opportunity of welcoming you onboard Azamara sometime in the future and thank you for your past patronage and support. Also, I truly wish you much safety and peace in your home in Israel.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Leiber

__________________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

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

[almostnewtocruise]

Hello Miriam -

 

 

I will check with our customer service team about the status of their overdue response and apologize for the delay that you've experienced.

 

I hope that we have the opportunity of welcoming you onboard Azamara sometime in the future and thank you for your past patronage and support. Also, I truly wish you much safety and peace in your home in Israel.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Leiber

__________________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

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

 

Hello Bill,

 

Thanks for your response. Actually earlier today I received (at last!) an answer from Azamara Customer Service. It took them about 5 days, but at least it was nice and affirmative, so hopefully we'll get the refund soon.

 

And thank you very much for your support and good wishes for me and my country..

 

Miriam

[Lynnees]

I received our refund this week. They answere my email within 3 days and the refund was received within 5 days. Very good service.

[TravellerNo1]

Bill.. thank you for all your communications with Azamara clients. And thanks to Azamara, they have done the right thing by offering refunds for the Open Passage Certificates. Mine came through today.

 

I will now consider Azamara again for the right price and itinerary.

Azamara and me in Monte Carlo remains one of my favorite holiday moments.

 

Azamara's reputation is intact with me, I hope the revised experience does not change the ambiance too drastically.

 

Best wishes

 

Joseph

[almostnewtocruise]

Our refund came through too.. Much faster than the initial response! :)

 

So bye for now.....

I too have only fond thoughts about Azamara. And I'm sure that these 2 ships (and their amazing crews) will remain the yardstick by which we'll continue to measure excellency on the high seas!

Also thanks, Bill, Andy - and so many other CC members - for help and good advice when those were needed.

 

wishing you all good sailings!

Miriam

[Marmaduke]

Since reading Bill's original post of November 12, I have been deliberating whether or not to cancel my Open Passage account.

The particular cruises that I am interested in have gone up so much that they are no longer within my price bracket. I also feel that I would be paying for an expensive excursion that I do not wish to participate in. The OBC that the Open Passage account would have given me is no longer so important as all drinks are now included. I rarely take excursions or use the Spa. Another concern I had was that, should I find a cruise within my price bracket I would not be able to use my Open Passage account because of some promotional deal or finding it was a Net Price. (Still not sure exactly what constitutes a Net Price)

 

Therefore I finally e-mailed a request for a refund. Many thanks to the UK Azamara team who dealt with my request very promptly.

[Jade13]

I find this thread really sad. At least 11 persons have admitted to canceling their Open Passage as they will no longer be cruising with Azamara including Bloodaxe, SMNYCruise, CTLeeA, Haworth, ArtM, abbafan, Chuckie50, Lynness, almostnewtocruise, TravellerNo1, and Marmaduke. I wonder how many people canceled and just have no plans to post.

 

We just returned from the Celebrity Silhouette transatlantic which exceeded our expectations. We only ended up on that cruise this year after multiple Azamara itinerary cancellations/changes, The service onboard Silhouette was exceptional, and rivaled our experience on Azamara. Even though we were on a large ship being in AQU class and dining in BLU seemed more like our Azamara experience. And at about $100.00 per diem with taxes (with many paying considerably less than that who were eligible for senior, military, and/or residency rates) it is hard to justify paying so much more.

 

We are in the age demographics being targeted, but Azamara is not really going in the direction that we want with so many overnights. What we like about cruising is actually being on a moving ship. With that in mind there are still itineraries that interest us, but they are mainly repositioning cruises with a combination of port days and sea days.

 

We still have not made a decision on 2013, but unresolved customer service issues in Miami will make it easier for us should we decide to cancel as we have other options.

[dfishner]

I find this thread really sad. At least 11 persons have admitted to canceling their Open Passage as they will no longer be cruising with Azamara including Bloodaxe, SMNYCruise, CTLeeA, Haworth, ArtM, abbafan, Chuckie50, Lynness, almostnewtocruise, TravellerNo1, and Marmaduke. I wonder how many people canceled and just have no plans to post.

 

We just returned from the Celebrity Silhouette transatlantic which exceeded our expectations. We only ended up on that cruise this year after multiple Azamara itinerary cancellations/changes, The service onboard Silhouette was exceptional, and rivaled our experience on Azamara. Even though we were on a large ship being in AQU class and dining in BLU seemed more like our Azamara experience. And at about $100.00 per diem with taxes (with many paying considerably less than that who were eligible for senior, military, and/or residency rates) it is hard to justify paying so much more.

 

We are in the age demographics being targeted, but Azamara is not really going in the direction that we want with so many overnights. What we like about cruising is actually being on a moving ship. With that in mind there are still itineraries that interest us, but they are mainly repositioning cruises with a combination of port days and sea days.

 

We still have not made a decision on 2013, but unresolved customer service issues in Miami will make it easier for us should we decide to cancel as we have other options.

 

 

Jade, after our April cruise we will be saying our so longs to Azamara we are priced out and we cannot justify paying the price that Azamara is asking. We considered Azamara a true value for price paid for we cannot say that anymore.. We leave with no bitterness it was good while it lasted.

[lobsta]

Jade, after our April cruise we will be saying our so longs to Azamara we are priced out and we cannot justify paying the price that Azamara is asking. We considered Azamara a true value for price paid for we cannot say that anymore.. We leave with no bitterness it was good while it lasted.

 

Just returned from Dec 2 cruise from Spain to Rio. Loved it. Loved last year's cruise from Rio to BA. :(Might write a review. But I am disappointed in that we couldn't decide on a cruise for the coming year, so we bought an open passage. Nowhere in the pitch was the idea that prices would rise and no 50% excursions. Only that there would be free beer(neither of us drink--we were happy with free soda and latte). I will cancel and consider the fee as a tax on the next cruise line I go with.

[ikelmay]

We too will be looking elsewhere in 2013. We have had 5 wonderful cruises on Azamara, but have been convinced by our exceptional experiences on the Celebrity Solstice class, that bigger can be almost as good.

 

We were perfectly happy with the wine at meals option and really enjoyed trying the various selections - extending the drink options with a few other extras thrown in and then whacking the prices dramatically upwards seems a strange business decision to me.

[MeMomandaMap]

I find this thread really sad. At least 11 persons have admitted to canceling their Open Passage as they will no longer be cruising with Azamara including Bloodaxe, SMNYCruise, CTLeeA, Haworth, ArtM, abbafan, Chuckie50, Lynness, almostnewtocruise, TravellerNo1, and Marmaduke. I wonder how many people canceled and just have no plans to post.

 

We are in the age demographics being targeted, but Azamara is not really going in the direction that we want with so many overnights. What we like about cruising is actually being on a moving ship. With that in mind there are still itineraries that interest us, but they are mainly repositioning cruises with a combination of port days and sea days.

 

We still have not made a decision on 2013, but unresolved customer service issues in Miami will make it easier for us should we decide to cancel as we have other options.

 

You can add us to the list too.

[Jade13]

You can add us to the list too.

 

Ok. 15 people have confirmed canceling an Open Passage, or are taking their last Azamara cruise.

 

Bloodaxe, SMNYCruise, CTLeeA, Haworth, ArtM, abbafan, Chuckie50, Lynness, almostnewtocruise, TravellerNo1, Marmaduke, dfisher, lobsta, ikelmay, meMomandaMap.

[Sharon15]

This is a sad occasion for me - I too have asked Azamara to cancel our open bookings.

 

We started our "affair" with Azamara quite by chance in 2009 - after we spotted an interesting itinerary to Iceland on this small ship we've never heard about before. It was a love from the first sight and, since then, we've done altogether 6 cruises on both ships - 3 on each (we still try to figure out which we like more! ;)). We were sure that we'll be doing many more - and that's why we booked last July , while on board the Journey, two open bookings.

 

And then came the changes - and the big price hike. To me it doesn't make sense.. Why spoil something that was working so well? (on our last 4 cruises, as far as I know, the ships were either full or almost full). The existing perks worked well for us - a glass of wine with a meal... bottled water while going on an excursion.. an occasional soda.. a latte in the Mosaic cafe while listening to Jim - that was very nice and also quite enough.. If we wanted something more - we would buy it. And anyway, we had started sailing with Azamara before all these things became "free" - and we stayed with Azamara not because of them but because of its itineraries, the smallness of the ships - and of course mainly because of the wonderful CREW (and that includes everybody there!)

It's not that I mind the new policies per se - although it's still not clear how they will affect the "demographics" of Azamara cruisers. Maybe they hope that now they will appeal more to the younger crowd of heavy beer drinkers? Well, what can I say? Only that I liked the "old demographic" well enough.. People from all over the world, mostly 'older" (but then we are that too :o) , mostly very active (how not , with so many port intensive itineraries?!), well educated, knowledgeable, curious about the world - and very , very nice. We made a lot of friends here!

 

The new "amenities" aren't for us. We are very moderate drinkers - and therefore we will not take advantage of all this "new stuff" that will be offered. And why would we want to pay so much more for the drinking habits of other people?

So for now we'll take our bookings back and go elsewhere.... Hoping that things may change.. Or that - at some point in the future - we will find some great deal on Azamara and revisit our favorite ships again. I am still curious to see them after the renovations!

 

Bill, I have to ask you for one last favor. I wrote already twice to the customer service mail address you provided, and got no answer whatsoever (not even an acknowledgment that they got my letters). Can you help in any way??

 

wishing everybody great sailings :)

Miriam

 

Hi Miriam,

We cruised with you on the Journey in 2010, I believe--Barcelona to Copenhagen. We, in fact, shared dinner with the captain and hotel manager, Heike! Your husband's photography was something to behold! We, too fell the same about the changes. We like an occasional glass of wine but don't feel we need the open bar!

 

We're doing one more cruise in June--London to Stockholm, including a 2day visit to st. Petersburg. That will most likely be our last Azamara cruise. We've enjoyed 5 and look forward to number 6.

 

Happy traveling to you and Emmanuel! Let us know what cruise line you've chosen now!

 

The best for 2013!

Denny & Linda

Stuart, Fl

[onthebalcony]

Hi Miriam and Linda,

Very good message Miriam!!! We feel the same about Azamara. We are with Linda on the Baltic cruise this June and it will probably be our last with Azamara unless we can find a good deal! We enjoyed sailing with you and Emmanual last Nov. on the Quest. We did some tours together!! Hopefully we will see you again!!

 

Anne

[Bill Leiber]

Hello Readers -

 

Of course I'm disappointed to learn that we have lost former loyal guests who have decided that our 2013 product enhancements have positioned Azamara Club Cruises into a product experience and price-point that will no longer fit their lifestyle needs and have decided to go elsewhere to fulfill their cruise vacation needs.

 

We realize that travelers need to purchase what they believe to be the best for them and respect their personal preferences. Nevertheless, we do hope that we might have the opportunity of welcoming back some of these former guests onboard Azamara sometime in the future and we are grateful for their past support. Remember, regardless of how our marketing strategies are packaged, I believe that they and you reading this post, know that you will be served an exceptional onboard experience by our extraordinary staff that performs at consistently high levels.

 

Larry Pimentel and his executive onboard team have worked hard on evolving our onboard experience to ensure that our past guests will return and now with our 2013 business decision of adding spirits and AzAmazing Evenings to both our newly refurbished vessels, we are experiencing an increase in our year over year booking activity as these new inclusions attract new customers. We now offer a more compelling value proposition and a tangible demonstration of "destination immersion."

 

Nevertheless, it's obvious from this thread that most of you have a different perspective for judging whether our new enhancements make sense but from our perspective, it's strengthening Azamara as the value leader and generating more new first-time Azamara customers. As we've said before, "value" is in the eye of the beholder, and what is value to one person, can be very different to what others think of as value. A product is measured on many value points. Serving complimentary drinks does something to the ambience. Based on Larry Pimentel's past experience, he has seen that guests socialize more. They are relaxed and more comfortable to meet with friends – old and new – without having to decide who pays the bill. That is value to many guests, and it allows us to provide this value at a modest rate.

 

To remain viable we must create more "new" Azamara guests to vacation with us now and in the future to ensure that our vessels meet and exceed their revenue targets. In the October 2012 Larry Pimentel Cruise Critic Q&A, he shared that our past guests represent almost a quarter of our business which is impressive considering that it was only 5% prior to April 2010 and we're eager to see it grow. While very much appreciated for the positive word-of-mouth referral business that it drives, it also implies that we need more awareness from "new" guests. This includes the many cruise "considerers" that have not selected a cruise brand along with those "non-cruisers" who have never considered a cruise as a vacation option. With our longer stays, more overnights and night touring we offer boutique hotel land travelers an option to realize their objective of destination immersion. So our challenge is one of building brand awareness and purchase intent. These needs drove our decision to add those two "evolutionary" product inclusions (spirits and AzAmazing Evenings) to enhance the onboard conviviality and provide a tangible destination immersion experience.

 

Our focus, therefore, is to further differentiate the Azamara brand as the best of two worlds – upper premium and luxury into its own niche called “up-market." Along with our superior onboard delivery by extraordinary onboard teams and our value proposition, we believe that our 2013 product enhancements will enhance our likelihood to continue to build upon our "up-market" niche. While the awareness of Azamara Club Cruises has increased greatly over the last 2 – 3 years, we still have a long way to go.

 

The fact that you're sharing your parting thoughts and fond farewells with us is an extraordinary demonstration of the passion you once felt for our brand. We do hope that your passion will re-kindle so that we'll be able to welcome you onboard again in the future.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Leiber

__________________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

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

[marinaro44]

I'd like to hear less about "up-market" hype and instead see more responsiveness to resolving Azamara goof-ups...like what's the true story on Quest's November 14 Seville departure, Seville excursions, and azamazing evening. I find the former somewhat offensive in tone and the latter simply inexcusable.

[nordski]

Hello Readers -

 

To remain viable we must create more "new" Azamara guests to vacation with us now and in the future to ensure that our vessels meet and exceed their revenue targets. In the October 2012 Larry Pimentel Cruise Critic Q&A, he shared that our past guests represent almost a quarter of our business which is impressive considering that it was only 5% prior to April 2010 and we're eager to see it grow. While very much appreciated for the positive word-of-mouth referral business that it drives, it also implies that we need more awareness from "new" guests. This includes the many cruise "considerers" that have not selected a cruise brand along with those "non-cruisers" who have never considered a cruise as a vacation option. With our longer stays, more overnights and night touring we offer boutique hotel land travelers an option to realize their objective of destination immersion. So our challenge is one of building brand awareness and purchase intent. These needs drove our decision to add those two "evolutionary" product inclusions (spirits and AzAmazing Evenings) to enhance the onboard conviviality and provide a tangible destination immersion experience.

 

Our focus, therefore, is to further differentiate the Azamara brand as the best of two worlds – upper premium and luxury into its own niche called “up-market." Along with our superior onboard delivery by extraordinary onboard teams and our value proposition, we believe that our 2013 product enhancements will enhance our likelihood to continue to build upon our "up-market" niche. While the awareness of Azamara Club Cruises has increased greatly over the last 2 – 3 years, we still have a long way to go.

 

The fact that you're sharing your parting thoughts and fond farewells with us is an extraordinary demonstration of the passion you once felt for our brand. We do hope that your passion will re-kindle so that we'll be able to welcome you onboard again in the future.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Leiber

__________________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

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

 

Thanks for the, as usual, insightful analysis and data, Bill.

 

In particular I found the last three paragraphs interesting and, especially, the revenue goals in attracting new clients. On our previous cruises, I wondered how they could provide the experience at the price we were paying. That question has been answered. Whether the new tariffs prove to be too onerous will also, in time, be revealed.

 

And, while the new amenities don't mean a lot to us, at the same time we are pleased that, so far, ACC has not seemingly reduced onboard service or increased the "nickel and diming" to meet its objectives. Those are approaches that posters on other cruise line forums are identifying on their respective ships.

 

We will be on the Quest this spring and one of our interests will be whether this rebranding exercise will produce a new onboard demographic. We hope not, as one of the attractions was the sophisticated fellow cruisers we met. Indeed, we have left two open cruise reservations on HAL and Celebrity in abeyance as we so enjoyed the Azamara experience.

 

As for the "upmarket" tag, well, if it weren't, we wouldn't be paying the premium.

[marinaro44]

On our previous cruises, I wondered how they could provide the experience at the price we were paying. That question has been answered.

And this is exactly how Azamara should have positioned the recently-announced fare increases: By stating clearly they couldn't continue to provide the wonderful on-board experience we've all come to know and love at the existing fares. We're all grown up enough, as nordski writes above, to understand that. It was the lame attempt to justify the increase by tying it to one free shore excursion (the azamazing evening) and all-the-well-liquor-you-can-drink that could previously have been purchased for $30/day (a total of about $500 in value for a 13-day cruise, if you want the well liquor and an excursion for many hundreds) that put this customer off, and I suspect others as well.

 

As far as the "up-market" cliche goes, Azamara has been "up-market" since it changed its name. It will be no more "up-market" in its on-board experience next year than it was this past year. It has had to, of necessity, raise fares to continue providing that same "up-market" experience in order to become profitable and stay in business. Azamara should have just told us that in a straightforward manner instead of trying to snow us with all the "going up-market" and "bespoke" baloney.

 

By tying the fare increases to the one now-included shore excursion and the free well liquor, Azamara set itself up for exactly the reaction we've seen from the folks who've written above that they are now looking for alternative cruise lines. Why would people pay more if the two "enhancements" that they were told drove the fare increases have no real appeal to them?

 

All of those folks have written just how much they enjoyed the Azamara on-board experience, and how they regret having to turn elsewhere. How much better it would have been to have simply said: "Our loyal passengers have told us time and time again just how special they find the Azamara on-board experience to be. Unfortunately, the economics are such that we are simply unable to continue to provide that on-board experience and become profitable at the fares we've been charging. As a consequence, you will see increases in our fares beginning (whenever)."

 

As best as I can tell, Azamara faced three options: (1) continue business as usual and eventually go out of business; (2) keep prices as they were and cut costs by cheapening the on-board experience; and (3) raise fares to maintain the on-board experience, become profitable, and therefore stay in business. I think we would all have been capable of understanding that situation, and I suspect just about all of us would have voted for option (3) if it had been expressed that way and we were given a vote.

 

Ryszard Gussman explained the increase in exactly the rational, business-like manner I described above at the dinner he hosted for us on Quest in November, and Azamara HQ should have taken this same approach and announced it to the public--and here on Cruise Critic--in the same way.

[uktog]

Excellent post - I think when Bill is undertaking his communication review with Head Office on other issues he needs to remind the script writers, its not what we have to say its how we have to say it!

[Bloodaxe]

And this is exactly how Azamara should have positioned the recently-announced fare increases: By stating clearly they couldn't continue to provide the wonderful on-board experience we've all come to know and love at the existing fares. We're all grown up enough, as nordski writes above, to understand that. It was the lame attempt to justify the increase by tying it to one free shore excursion (the azamazing evening) and all-the-well-liquor-you-can-drink that could previously have been purchased for $30/day (a total of about $500 in value for a 13-day cruise, if you want the well liquor and an excursion for many hundreds) that put this customer off, and I suspect others as well.

 

As far as the "up-market" cliche goes, Azamara has been "up-market" since it changed its name. It will be no more "up-market" in its on-board experience next year than it was this past year. It has had to, of necessity, raise fares to continue providing that same "up-market" experience in order to become profitable and stay in business. Azamara should have just told us that in a straightforward manner instead of trying to snow us with all the "going up-market" and "bespoke" baloney.

 

By tying the fare increases to the one now-included shore excursion and the free well liquor, Azamara set itself up for exactly the reaction we've seen from the folks who've written above that they are now looking for alternative cruise lines. Why would people pay more if the two "enhancements" that they were told drove the fare increases have no real appeal to them?

 

All of those folks have written just how much they enjoyed the Azamara on-board experience, and how they regret having to turn elsewhere. How much better it would have been to have simply said: "Our loyal passengers have told us time and time again just how special they find the Azamara on-board experience to be. Unfortunately, the economics are such that we are simply unable to continue to provide that on-board experience and become profitable at the fares we've been charging. As a consequence, you will see increases in our fares beginning (whenever)."

 

As best as I can tell, Azamara faced three options: (1) continue business as usual and eventually go out of business; (2) keep prices as they were and cut costs by cheapening the on-board experience; and (3) raise fares to maintain the on-board experience, become profitable, and therefore stay in business. I think we would all have been capable of understanding that situation, and I suspect just about all of us would have voted for option (3) if it had been expressed that way and we were given a vote.

 

Ryszard Gussman explained the increase in exactly the rational, business-like manner I described above at the dinner he hosted for us on Quest in November, and Azamara HQ should have taken this same approach and announced it to the public--and here on Cruise Critic--in the same way.

 

Very well said, you have summed up the feelings of many people on this site

[CTLeeA]

I'm the person who cancelled my 2013 cruised upon what I felt was an unethical decision not to grandfather in those of us who made a deposit while AZ was still offering 50% discounts on tours. My frustration was compounded by AZ's refusal to waive the cancellation fee. These decisions were communicated to Larry Pimental CEO of AZ, on cruise Critic, who responded, that "things change". Well, I'm happy to say that there is at least one person in top mgt at AZ who was apparently able to 'get' the argument many of us were making. I obtained this person's email address, and wrote concerning my disappointment and anger at AZ's decisions. Within 60 secs, I received a email in response informing me my refund would be processed quickly along with an apology. I will not disclose who this person is, but it gives me hope for the future of AZ, at least in the long term...

 

I agree with Jade concerning her Celebrity experience...AZ was great but impossible to justify paying triple what the Celebrity rate is.

[MightyQuinn]

... Ryszard Gussman explained the increase in exactly the rational, business-like manner I described above at the dinner he hosted for us on Quest in November, and Azamara HQ should have taken this same approach and announced it to the public--and here on Cruise Critic--in the same way.

Well said Marinaro.

 

PR spin that takes the customer for a fool is a real turn-off and the underlying message becomes suspect. Honest, straightforward communication is best and earns customer understanding and respect. The savvy upmarket travelers who Azamara is trying to reach can quickly spot the difference.

[CTLeeA]

And this is exactly how Azamara should have positioned the recently-announced fare increases: By stating clearly they couldn't continue to provide the wonderful on-board experience we've all come to know and love at the existing fares. We're all grown up enough, as nordski writes above, to understand that. It was the lame attempt to justify the increase by tying it to one free shore excursion (the azamazing evening) and all-the-well-liquor-you-can-drink that could previously have been purchased for $30/day (a total of about $500 in value for a 13-day cruise, if you want the well liquor and an excursion for many hundreds) that put this customer off, and I suspect others as well.

 

As far as the "up-market" cliche goes, Azamara has been "up-market" since it changed its name. It will be no more "up-market" in its on-board experience next year than it was this past year. It has had to, of necessity, raise fares to continue providing that same "up-market" experience in order to become profitable and stay in business. Azamara should have just told us that in a straightforward manner instead of trying to snow us with all the "going up-market" and "bespoke" baloney.

 

By tying the fare increases to the one now-included shore excursion and the free well liquor, Azamara set itself up for exactly the reaction we've seen from the folks who've written above that they are now looking for alternative cruise lines. Why would people pay more if the two "enhancements" that they were told drove the fare increases have no real appeal to them?

 

All of those folks have written just how much they enjoyed the Azamara on-board experience, and how they regret having to turn elsewhere. How much better it would have been to have simply said: "Our loyal passengers have told us time and time again just how special they find the Azamara on-board experience to be. Unfortunately, the economics are such that we are simply unable to continue to provide that on-board experience and become profitable at the fares we've been charging. As a consequence, you will see increases in our fares beginning (whenever)."

 

As best as I can tell, Azamara faced three options: (1) continue business as usual and eventually go out of business; (2) keep prices as they were and cut costs by cheapening the on-board experience; and (3) raise fares to maintain the on-board experience, become profitable, and therefore stay in business. I think we would all have been capable of understanding that situation, and I suspect just about all of us would have voted for option (3) if it had been expressed that way and we were given a vote.

 

Ryszard Gussman explained the increase in exactly the rational, business-like manner I described above at the dinner he hosted for us on Quest in November, and Azamara HQ should have taken this same approach and announced it to the public--and here on Cruise Critic--in the same way.

 

 

You nailed it. AZ should hire you.