2014 Discontinuation of 25% Savings on Land Discoveries and Enhanced Tour Program

[mzk90]

We decided a while back, as we saw cruising prices increase & our need for a more intensive in-country experience increase along with those prices, that we would soon begin to pick a country & spend 2 to 3 weeks in that country, right after our up-coming cruise on Journey in SE Asia. We would have been hard-pressed to go from hotel to hotel in a car trip in that part of the world, & are so glad that Azamara will allow us to enjoy this experience.

 

BUT...after this year we will try sinking our roots into a country in auto trips of 2 to 3 weeks duration, starting with France & maybe ending there as there is so much to enjoy in that country but still - we will have Italy & Britain to enjoy just as much.

 

I cannot help but think that many cruisers will begin to weigh the relative benefits of a per diem per couple of $1,000 against having an on land experience at half the price, including food. Granted, there will not be the camaraderie of a cruise, but we will struggle by.

 

It may not have occurred to cruise line management that although they taught us how to travel, we are now fully fledged & ready to spread our wings to enjoy a more intense experience. If they have priced themselves out of the market, perhaps it was a market that many of us were ready to leave anyway.

 

Just some thoughts.....

 

Just wanted to say I think that this is a very good posting and talks a lot of sense. :)

[MIKESCOTLAND]

Your ideas make a lot of sense. We come from a different angle and have found

there is often merit in doing an air/land tour of a foreign country concentrating on some of the highlights & subsequently going back to the same country(s) on a cruise (e.g. Australia, separate Asian countries and parts of South America and Africa) There is usually only limited overlap & we find on the cruises we can often get to places which would otherwise require air flight changes or & arriving/departing from foreign airports at unsociable hours.

 

However I have to admit that we are reaching a stage in life when we are more tempted to go on a leisurely cruise with say Azamara or Oceania than do a land based tour.