What happened to the Le Club Voyage announcement?

[uktog]

Hello Azamara,

I am the OP of this thread (which was started in December of last year). The last of the promised deadlines have passed. Since December, there have been 3 promises of information about the new program (each with their own deadline). However, nothing has been announced. It is a fact that AZ doesn't HAVE to announce anything ... but then, why promise??? A good adage in business is to 'under promise' and 'over deliver'.

As you know, I am an Azamara 'cheerleader'. It's time to 'step up to the plate'!

John

 

Bonnie?????

 

John this is one of those situations where phrases like blessed is he or she who expects nothing for they shall not be disappointed comes to mind. But as you say, promised dates were given and that is where the expectations came in.

 

The plate though is being bypassed so I think we know the reality, I just wish we were on a fairer points earning rate, the benefits - who knows but I'll still hope, certainly as more people hit the plus level I suspect the pressure will grow.

[ellbon]

John this is one of those situations where phrases like blessed is he or she who expects nothing for they shall not be disappointed comes to mind. But as you say, promised dates were given and that is where the expectations came in.

 

The plate though is being bypassed so I think we know the reality, I just wish we were on a fairer points earning rate, the benefits - who knows but I'll still hope, certainly as more people hit the plus level I suspect the pressure will grow.

 

I think more people have hut the plus level and they think we will go away. But I still question what can Azamara give us but more free laundry and more internet minutes. I doubt that we will get a free massage.

[English Tim]

What's the difference about me harping on about the all inclusive / more inclusive experience, or others doing the same about status?

 

The onboard experience is why we choose Azamara and we've learnt to be disappointed by the rest.

[lightning bolt]

They could give you a dinner or two in Prime C or Aqualina, and upgraded Liquor.

Most everything is included but these are a few things that could make it better.:)

[Spursgirl]

They could give you a dinner or two in Prime C or Aqualina, and upgraded Liquor.

Most everything is included but these are a few things that could make it better.:)

 

Upgraded drinks package would be great but I can't see them doing that. The obvious thing to do is offer a dinner in one of the speciality restaurants which would be lovely for us and negligible cost to them. Although this of course would be zero benefit for suite guests.

 

On our May Journey cruise I was one of only six Elite Plus cruisers on board. At Le Club Voyage party Sarah-Lou said that the announcement re extended benefits would be coming 'soon'.

 

I am disappointed though not surprised that we have all heard nothing.

[ellbon]

They could give you a dinner or two in Prime C or Aqualina, and upgraded Liquor.

Most everything is included but these are a few things that could make it better.:)

 

While this sounds nice as Spurgirl said this does not help suite guests at all. There are many plus level people on my winter cruise and I know one Zenith couple. The better drink package would be great. I tend to pay for better booze.

[Lottie A]

I would like a free Spa treatment.

 

Or how about Champagne or Cava/Prosecco to be included in the free drinks once you are above a certain Loyalty level?

That would make me very happy! :)

[Going Coastal]

We have kept this thread going for a while now. We are obviously a persistent bunch.

 

Sent from my KFTT using Tapatalk

[Tony UK]

As people are dreaming up some wonderful ideas that new status levels could receive I think Azamara would do well to make an announcement quickly.

Otherwise there could be a negative reaction if the announcement doesn't live up to the suggestions made!

[Xport]

As people are dreaming up some wonderful ideas that new status levels could receive I think Azamara would do well to make an announcement quickly.

Otherwise there could be a negative reaction if the announcement doesn't live up to the suggestions made!

 

That Azamara well knows that negative reactions have surfaced for more than six months now... Many have already sailed with a supposedly higher LCV status level and the only thing they've been granted--unless sailing in a suite--is a lower rate of cruise point accrual... Gee, thanks!

 

It is what it is and I know it's not easy for a mostly inclusive line; I, for instance, couldn't care less what wines/liquors/beers are included as I rarely drink what they include now but do understand/respect that it matters to some... I just wish that--whatever they do/don't do--they get on with their announcement... It's been promised for months--one target was April [which was already late for first quarter cruisers]; then it was second quarter [also now past]--and their lack of action only serves to foster additional negative impressions as to the credibility of Miami Headquarters leadership...

 

The longer they continue to procrastinate, the larger the good will deficit...

[kiawahdon]

What a lot of people do not understand is that Azamara has a history of over hyping and under delivering; or not delivering at all. One only has to go back 2 years for all the hype on major refurbishment dry docks for the 2 ships that never happened.

Edited July 7, 2014 by kiawahdon

[Phxazzcruisers]

What a lot of people do not understand is that Azamara has a history of over hyping and under delivering; or not delivering at all. One only has to go back 2 years for all the hype on major refurbishment dry docks for the 2 ships that never happened.

 

While I agree that, unfortunately, they do a lot of over hyping and under delivering and I am dispappointed that they have not announced anything as promised, I do not hold the hype over the major refurbishment over them. The majority of th rennovations were done in the crews quarters. Even though many may not agree with me, I feel that it was money well spent. The ship still looks fine to us, and we feel that the crew was VERY deserving of the refurbishment they reveived during the last drydock.

[TommyD3]

This is a stupid question but I'm just curious. I printed my Edoc for my October cruise on the Azamara Quest and checking my status on it, I just see the E (not E+ as I supposed) in the blue square close to my name. Being my first cruise ever as elite plus, is it normal or are they missing a +?

 

Azamara has yet to add ANY new benefits for those who are Elite+ or Zenith.

Was promised by the end of June.

Everyone is asking on another thread, but no response.

Therefore you will be treated as if you were still Elite.

 

I doubt there is anyone who has earned Elite+ or Zenith by traveling exclusively on Azamara. I am Zenith but have 3 cruises on Azamara and 95 on Celebrity.

 

Because of this I suspect that Azamara is in no hurry to add extra expense for Elite+ and Zenith members:(

[Xport]

Elite status in Celebrity's Captain's Club equates to Discoverer status in Azamara's Le Club Voyage, Elite Plus status in Captain's Club equates to Discoverer Plus status in Le Club Voyage, and Zenith status in Captain's Club equates to Discoverer Platinum status in Le Club Voyage...

 

Azamara created their new membership levels just after Celebrity changed its Captain's Club last November but, fact is, they haven't yet defined what the new membership tiers mean in terms of enhanced benefits; all members having Discover status or higher are getting the same benefits... You'll find a lengthy thread--it's toward the top of the list; I saw it earlier today--related to the whole matter...

 

I have Elite Plus status with Celebrity and did a back-to-back cruise on Journey in February... And though I don't recall what coding was on my Xpress Pass, it worked just fine in terms of getting me Discoverer level benefits--the highest Azamara currently offers--on Azamara... Unless something has changed very recently, you should also be prepared for the fact that Azamara was--and I'd guess, still is-- unable to print the new, higher LCV membership levels on Sea Pass cards...

 

At the end of the day and until/unless the matter gets resolved, I wouldn't much worry about Xpress Pass coding or membership citation on one's Sea Pass card... I'd familiarize myself with the benefits associated with LCV Discoverer membership on Azamara's website and--after confirming that your Welcome Letter from the LCV Hostess outlines them properly--wouldn't much worry about the nomenclature...

 

Much to the consternation of many, the issue has gone on way too long...

[kiawahdon]

While I agree that, unfortunately, they do a lot of over hyping and under delivering and I am dispappointed that they have not announced anything as promised, I do not hold the hype over the major refurbishment over them. The majority of th rennovations were done in the crews quarters. Even though many may not agree with me, I feel that it was money well spent. The ship still looks fine to us, and we feel that the crew was VERY deserving of the refurbishment they reveived during the last drydock.

 

I also believe crew areas are important if you want to attract and retain good people. However I do hold management responsible for their hype as illustrated by the below post from Mr. Pimentel. They seem to go out of their way to create PR issues when a little thought and common sense would negate the ill will generated. The bold is my emphasis.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

January 24th, 2012, 09:37 AM

Larry Pimentel Larry Pimentel is offline

President & CEO

Azamara Club Cruises Join Date: Feb 2010

Posts: 116

 

Our DryDock Plans

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

There were several questions concerning our drydock plans for Azamara Journey and Azamara Quest. Just so you have a clear picture of this, the Quest will be in drydock in Cadiz, Spain from November 18 through December 1, 2012, and the Journey will follow in Singapore from January 6 through 18, 2013. Each drydock will take between ten days and two weeks.

 

As you know drydocking is a normal procedure during which routine maintenance is undertaken and sometimes special redesign and revitalization takes place, and this will be the case with our ships. During the drydocking of the Quest and the Journey, we will not only accomplish the routine refurbishment and upgrading of public rooms and staterooms with new textiles, colors and other materials, but we will be undergoing major design changes. Call them surprises. I can’t tell you much more about them as they haven’t been finalized yet. Besides, they wouldn’t be surprises then, would they?

Edited July 7, 2014 by kiawahdon

[tgg]

Azamara has yet to add ANY new benefits for those who are Elite+ or Zenith.

Was promised by the end of June.

Everyone is asking on another thread, but no response.

Therefore you will be treated as if you were still Elite.

 

I doubt there is anyone who has earned Elite+ or Zenith by traveling exclusively on Azamara. I am Zenith but have 3 cruises on Azamara and 95 on Celebrity.

Because of this I suspect that Azamara is in no hurry to add extra expense for Elite+ and Zenith members:(

 

There are several people who have earned Discoverer Plus status on Azamara sailings exclusively. There are passengers who stay onboard for months at a time in suites.

[TommyD3]

There are several people who have earned Discoverer Plus status on Azamara sailings exclusively. There are passengers who stay onboard for months at a time in suites.

 

If that is the case, Azamara is foolish to not implement additional benefits for the Plus level.

It would be nice if Azamara would answer the question of why they missed their own promised deadline.

In reality I don't understand why they did not unveil additional benefits late last year.

They must have known what Celebrity was about to do when Celebrity announced the changes in November.

They are both part of the same corporation with offices in the same building.....

[English Tim]

My wife and I have just returned from a fantastic week's holiday in the Austrian mountains. We have stayed at the hotel many times, but due to doing more cruises, had stayed away in recent times.

 

The cost was about half the price we'd pay for a cruise and we stayed in a wonderful hotel, with fantastic service and facilities, so I believe cruise lines need to 'up their game', provide what they promise, etc or they are in danger of losing customers.

 

We have been putting Azamara first when considering a holiday, but no longer, even though they've recently sent us two gifts, a pen and a picture!

[marinaro44]

Pimentel's posting quoted above was made two months before Quest's fire. That fire cost Azamara many millions in lost revenue and repair costs. The planned drydock upgrades were cut back as a result of this significant hit to the company's bottom line.

 

Did you expect him to anticipate that when he explained the drydock plans two months before the fire? Both Pimentel and Heike told me in early June that staterooms would be a focus in the drydocks planned for late 2015 and early 2016.

[Jade13]

My wife and I have just returned from a fantastic week's holiday in the Austrian mountains. We have stayed at the hotel many times, but due to doing more cruises, had stayed away in recent times.

 

The cost was about half the price we'd pay for a cruise and we stayed in a wonderful hotel, with fantastic service and facilities, so I believe cruise lines need to 'up their game', provide what they promise, etc or they are in danger of losing customers.

 

We have been putting Azamara first when considering a holiday, but no longer, even though they've recently sent us two gifts, a pen and a picture!

 

Tim, Ok, but you are I believe retired and traveling a lot, so both cruising and doing land vacations. Even if you consider a land vacation first and only go on an Azamara cruise once per year it is still more cruising than most do.

 

But, I do agree that people are looking at costs no matter how much money they have. We were able to go an an African Safari at a lower per diem (when adding in tour costs when cruising), and with A&K, than Azamara's new price points. There are many vacations options available and lots of new places to visit. We will only consider Azamara (at their new price points) for exotic type locations where we have not yet traveled.

Edited July 8, 2014 by Jade13

[Spursgirl]

Pimentel's posting quoted above was made two months before Quest's fire. That fire cost Azamara many millions in lost revenue and repair costs. The planned drydock upgrades were cut back as a result of this significant hit to the company's bottom line.

 

Did you expect him to anticipate that when he explained the drydock plans two months before the fire? Both Pimentel and Heike told me in early June that staterooms would be a focus in the drydocks planned for late 2015 and early 2016.

 

Completely agree with the points you make about the fire.

 

However, this does not negate the fact that Azamara should have got its act together regarding the announcement relating to Le Club Voyage.

 

If they feel as a more inclusive operation that they cannot offer any more goodies for Discoverer Plus and Discoverer Platinum levels all they have to do is say so.

Ignoring the issue completely after first giving us an April deadline and then a second quarter deadline is just making people cross.

[kiawahdon]

Pimentel's posting quoted above was made two months before Quest's fire. That fire cost Azamara many millions in lost revenue and repair costs. The planned drydock upgrades were cut back as a result of this significant hit to the company's bottom line.

 

Did you expect him to anticipate that when he explained the drydock plans two months before the fire? Both Pimentel and Heike told me in early June that staterooms would be a focus in the drydocks planned for late 2015 and early 2016.

 

No, I realize he does not have a crystal ball. But I do expect him to announce the drydock scale-back as soon as the decision was made. This was not done; and no announcement or specific details until drydock substantially underway.

[pacheco18]

What a lot of people do not understand is that Azamara has a history of over hyping and under delivering; or not delivering at all. One only has to go back 2 years for all the hype on major refurbishment dry docks for the 2 ships that never happened.

 

Funny you should say that.

 

On my last Oceania cruise our Meet & Greet was "hosted" by Kunal Kamlani, COO of Prestige and President of Oceania (he was on Regatta because it was the first sailing after the major refurbishment). At the M&G he was asked many questions by CC members, one of which was, "Why don't you call Oceania "luxury" -- this is certainly a luxury experience?" His answer" "We like to under promise and over deliver."

 

That is a smart business model for any business -- cruise line, hotel, restaurant, hardware store.

 

Azamara does many things right -- but marketing, communication with past and new passengers and general flow of information is absolutely awful. You have all attested to that here -- even Azamara's biggest "cheerleaders." For cruisers like myself who do not need their "hand held" it is not a big deal. I can find out what I need to know though my own resourcefulness. But there are a lot of folks out there who need more from the cruise line -- especially straight talk delivered in a timely manner. Even with a dedicated Chief Blogging Officer we do not get the information -- because SHE does not get the information.

 

Sad commentary on a cruise line that is clearly not maximizing its potential IMO. Marketing and communication are an absolute disaster.

[English Tim]

Tim, Ok, but you are I believe retired and traveling a lot, so both cruising and doing land vacations. Even if you consider a land vacation first and only go on an Azamara cruise once per year it is still more cruising than most do.

 

But, I do agree that people are looking at costs no matter how much money they have. We were able to go an an African Safari at a lower per diem (when adding in tour costs when cruising), and with A&K, than Azamara's new price points. There are many vacations options available and lots of new places to visit. We will only consider Azamara (at their new price points) for exotic type locations where we have not yet traveled.

 

I am still working, but trying to maximise my holidays, whilst still fit enough to travel. If I am asked to pay more than £200 per day for a balcony cabin, I feel the cost too high.

[Jade13]

I am still working, but trying to maximise my holidays, whilst still fit enough to travel. If I am asked to pay more than £200 per day for a balcony cabin, I feel the cost too high.

 

If you are paying that amount for a balcony on Azamara (assume per person per diem), well that is amazing. I haven't seen Azamara cruises that low in years.