Anyone take the 12 day Black Sea cruise?

[alexandra cruiser]

round trip from Istanbul.Did read the 9 day one below and that was helpful.

Also, amazed by the price increase.Looking at 2013 Dest.guide and lists club suites as 5999,now for 2015 it over 7000.whew.With only 1 cruise in Aug.,not much choice.Ex.between 2 lines,thinking of Oceania also.Have read a few of the comparision.Not much difference,Have never taken Azamara but do LOVE Oceania.Guess I ll go by itinerary,dates,prices,and really have to compare what s BEST for ME.

Also, the 2014 already SOLD OUT.Have to book HOW FAR AHEAD??:confused:

[Phxazzcruisers]

We did the Black Sea Cruise last year and will do it again in 2014. They only do it once and it always completely sells out, most of the time pretty fast. IT is a great cruise, some ports were interesting, some not. They have changed many of the ports for 2014 and added a few. We love Azamara, but have never done Oceania, so we do not have anything to compare. We booked the 2014 cruise in mid 2013 and the Suites were already sold out.

Edited December 1, 2013 by Phxazzcruisers

[pacheco18]

I took that cruise this past August -- I chose Azamara over Oceania because I wanted to go RT Istanbul and then on to Cappadoccia. We spent several days pre cruise in Istanbul, returned to Istanbul post cruise for one night, spend 4 days in Cappadocia and then a few more days in Istanbul. I love Istanbul.

 

The cruise was wonderful.

 

We are going to back to Istanbul and to other ports in Turkey (and some in Greece) in September 2015 on Azamara on a b2b.

Edited December 1, 2013 by pacheco18

[ddcruiser]

We have done lots of cruises on both Oc and AZ. The Azamara experience can't be beat (in our opinion), particularly now with the Azamazing evening thrown in in addition to the wonderful AZ ambiance. We did Black Sea last summer and the Az evening was at the most beautiful vineyard in Yalta. In our opinion, the Black Sea cruise is one of our favorites--to be able to see some of Turkey, Ukraine, Georgia, Russia, Bulgaria, and Romania in one trip was just terrific. Definitely do it. ddcruiser

[alexandra cruiser]

and the 2014 sold out already.Would want a suite,guess smallest one,so when would I need to book it.? Hate to tie up $2,200 deposit for that long,plus would need to purchase cancel for any reason insurance then,,and pay for THAT.

The price is really higher it seems than O,since air is nOT inc.May have to rethink this.My TA also says(deals in luxury only) that A is NOT considered same par as O(which he covers).Odd? Not sure how cruises are rated.:confused:

Edited December 1, 2013 by alexandra cruiser
word wrong

[roaming_kiwi58]

We did the 12 day Black Sea cruise with Azamara August 2013. (Confess I actually have a nearly finished review which I have never got as far as posting!) We enjoyed the cruise, as we have all our cruises. We chose this itinerary over others because it included more Black Sea ports - many only do the western half of the Black Sea and/or include Greek islands and/or Ephesus instead, which we didn't want, as we have done all that before. The ports were very varied and interesting. We booked our cruise 10 months in advance. Even though we got in just before a price rise, it was still considerably more expensive than the Azamara cruise we did in 2012. Itinerary is most important to us - also we are very limited as to when we can travel. We have not tried Oceania yet, but have a cruise of theirs booked for 2014. Despite their ever increasing prices, would still do Azamara again if the itinerary is right.

The full Black Sea itinerary is worth doing, but we would not do it again - always on the lookout for new territory!

[pacheco18]

and the 2014 sold out already.Would want a suite,guess smallest one,so when would I need to book it.? Hate to tie up $2,200 deposit for that long,plus would need to purchase cancel for any reason insurance then,,and pay for THAT.

The price is really higher it seems than O,since air is nOT inc.May have to rethink this.My TA also says(deals in luxury only) that A is NOT considered same par as O(which he covers).Odd? Not sure how cruises are rated.:confused:

 

I do not agree with your TA

Both lines are quite good

They are comparable -- they are different

A is better is some respects; O is better in others

 

Read my comparison after taking my first Azamara cruise (Black Sea)

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1913581&highlight=musings

[alexandra cruiser]

not sure exactly WHAT is considered luxury,per se.

But with A I have to upgrade to suite to get same perks as O concierge level,tub,full room service breakfast,specialty rest.s,etc.,,,so will COST me more.So still not sure what s best for me.Since next yr.on A sold out,may have to take O since they have bigger ships.Or just wait till 2015.whew.Some say the food ,beds,etc better on O,but itinerary better on A.Decisions,,,,??Doing a river cruise in June from Budapest to Bucharest(with extension to Constanta)..so may end up just waiting 1 more yr.or take another river cruise.To alternate between the 2.Have a Dec.2014 O cruise already booked.Love to cruise and running out of places to visit,,how rough,eh?:)

[brunello22]

We sailed onboard Azamara Journey this past August and had an awesome time! We spent time in Istanbul pre and post cruise; the city is really unique and magical!

 

The ship was wonderful as well as the staff and officers; very visible and hands on.

 

The ports ... well some we loved, and some were so-so. Our favorites were Batumi, Odessa, and Nessebar. Our least favorites were Sochi and Novorossiysk, mainly because of the delays with Russian immigration (not Azamara's fault), and Constanta, mainly because there was nothing to see or do there, and the town was still in a heap of rubble.

 

We were on a local bus in Yalta, and one of the locals overheard us speaking English and asked us, "Why are you here?" I suppose not many people from the US vacation there!

 

So ... Would I sail this itinerary again? No, but I arrived back home feeling enriched from the experience of living, breathing, and eating the culture. I think this is just one of those rare itineraries you have to experience at least once in your lifetime.

Edited December 2, 2013 by brunello22