Azamara Club Cruises Reveals Extensive Changes for its Two Ships

[Spursgirl]

Cancellation penalty is $25 per person.

 

In fact the entire ship will be almost brand new when you board her! So many many changes since you booked :)

 

Oh to have a cancellation charge of only $25. Here in the UK our cancellation penalty is £250:mad:

[Haddonqueen]

Hi, I was just reading these posts and it mentions areas used for smokers, are they just on one deck. I'm not a smoker. Just wanted to know.thanks

[marinaro44]

Hi, I was just reading these posts and it mentions areas used for smokers, are they just on one deck. I'm not a smoker. Just wanted to know.thanks

Forward, starboard corner of the pool deck. Easily avoided by those who like to breathe.

[Pam]

Okay, I went back and read the article and I see some mention of a "spa suite". I'll read some more.

Edited June 20, 2015 by Pam
Finally read the article again.

[jollyjoyce]

Ok, after a great deal of thought,

I would like the outside area of Windows Cafe available for all in the evening.

Much more important to me personally is the drawer and wardrobe space in the cabins. I would hate Az to go down the Celebrity road and have next to no drawer space....what use is 5 drawers???? Regardless of hanging space. I am sure I am not the only female regular customer of Az to feel this way even though the Outside area of Windows Cafe (although wonderful and important) seems to have taken over this thread.

Whatever happens I am sure the cruise experience will still be Amazing. We have 2 cruises booked , Decemebr 2015 before the upgrades and September 2016 after the upgrades so will be able to re access our loyalty at that point.

Joyce

[Spursgirl]

Ok, after a great deal of thought,

I would like the outside area of Windows Cafe available for all in the evening.

Much more important to me personally is the drawer and wardrobe space in the cabins. I would hate Az to go down the Celebrity road and have next to no drawer space....what use is 5 drawers???? Regardless of hanging space. I am sure I am not the only female regular customer of Az to feel this way even though the Outside area of Windows Cafe (although wonderful and important) seems to have taken over this thread.

Whatever happens I am sure the cruise experience will still be Amazing. We have 2 cruises booked , Decemebr 2015 before the upgrades and September 2016 after the upgrades so will be able to re access our loyalty at that point.

Joyce

 

Completely agree with you jollyjoyce. The Celebrity cabins particularly on S club vessels are very nice but the lack of drawer space is infuriating.

 

We love Azamara too but our loyalty should not be taken for granted. We have jumped ship and cruise with Holland America next week primarily because Quest is still in the middle of its long charter

 

On balance I think the changes proposed by Azamara appeal to me but the proof of the pudding is when I experience them in 2016

[hubofhockey]

Oh to have a cancellation charge of only $25. Here in the UK our cancellation penalty is £250:mad:

 

It would be nice if there were no cancellation charges at all. I'm not crazy about the $50 lock (per two person cabin), but I suppose it's much worse (about $700 worse) for those in the UK. Is Azamara unique in charging penalties? I have only been on mass market lines and have never been exposed to one dime of penalties.

[Glenndale]

Oh to have a cancellation charge of only $25. Here in the UK our cancellation penalty is £250:mad:

 

Absolutely agree, maybe Bonnie could enlighten us as to why this is? :confused:

I'd be happy with a $25 charge.

Oceania don't charge cancellation in UK if cancelling more than 121 days out.

[Britcruiser]

Completely agree with you jollyjoyce. The Celebrity cabins particularly on S club vessels are very nice but the lack of drawer space is infuriating.

 

We love Azamara too but our loyalty should not be taken for granted. We have jumped ship and cruise with Holland America next week primarily because Quest is still in the middle of its long charter

 

On balance I think the changes proposed by Azamara appeal to me but the proof of the pudding is when I experience them in 2016

 

Hello Hazel

 

We are also missing Quest and trying Oceania in two weeks. Let us know how the lines compare. regards Diane

[Spursgirl]

Hello Hazel

 

We are also missing Quest and trying Oceania in two weeks. Let us know how the lines compare. regards Diane

 

Hello Diane,

 

Will do. Enjoy Oceania. Very interested to hear what you and Alan think of it. Are you sailing on Marina or Riviera or one of the R class vessels?

[Jay19]

Hello Hazel

 

We are also missing Quest and trying Oceania in two weeks. Let us know how the lines compare. regards Diane

 

I would also be very interested to hear a comparison with your Oceania cruise. We were looking at b2b cruises on Quest for late August/early September next year but with the changes to itinerary because of the charter we have now had to look elsewhere and are just getting ready to book our first Oceania cruises. I have been reading the Oceania vs Azamara thread on the O board but would like to get another viewpoint from an Azamara cruiser. I'd especially be interested in how their Windows equivalent works in the evening. If you get time to post your thoughts when you get home it would be much appreciated. Hope you have a great cruise!

[Grandma Gilly]

I've sailed several times on Azamara but only once on Oceania (Riviera).

We were in a penthouse suite and it was fabulous. Great bathroom and space.

 

We enjoyed our cruise however there were some definite buts.

We didn't like the food in the main dining room (GDR) however we did enjoy the food in the speciality restaurants and buffet (which turns into a grill at night) particularly the lobster.

 

The ship was very quiet at night compared to Azamara. I think the complimentary alcohol on Aamara makes the ship much more sociable even if one is not a drinker. We enjoy the Casino bar and always find someone to chat to.

Crew on Azamara are far better.

 

We would sail Oceania again if the itinerary and price were right but would put Azamara first.

Edited June 23, 2015 by Grandma Gilly

[Britcruiser]

Hello Diane,

 

Will do. Enjoy Oceania. Very interested to hear what you and Alan think of it. Are you sailing on Marina or Riviera or one of the R class vessels?

 

Hello Hazel - we will be on Nautica so it will be a direct comparison. Will let you know what we find. regards Diane

ps

Back on Quest at the end of August.

[beachmudhut]

I've sailed several times on Azamara but only once on Oceania (Riviera).

We were in a penthouse suite and it was fabulous. Great bathroom and space.

 

We enjoyed our cruise however there were some definite buts.

We didn't like the food in the main dining room (GDR) however we did enjoy the food in the speciality restaurants and buffet (which turns into a grill at night) particularly the lobster.

 

The ship was very quiet at night compared to Azamara. I think the complimentary alcohol on Aamara makes the ship much more sociable even if one is not a drinker. We enjoy the Casino bar and always find someone to chat to.

Crew on Azamara are far better.

 

We would sail Oceania again if the itinerary and price were right but would put Azamara first.

 

We have sailed six times on each. Agree with above comments from Grandma Gilly.Prices destinations and length of cruise have influenced our move to Oceania over the past year. However we have just returned from the Adriatic on Azamara and it was truly like "coming home".

[roaming_kiwi58]

We have sailed twice with Azamara (once each Quest & Journey) and once with Oceania (Nautica). We were expecting a much better experience with Oceania, but it was very disappointing. Poor service and poor food.

 

Also Oceania shore excursions are a rip off. We do a lot of DIY, but will sometimes use cruiseline excursions for convenience. We only did one Oceania excursion because we had OBC to use up.

 

Oceania do have some nice itineraries, and that is the most important thing for us, so we will use them again if the itinerary and price is right. Considering one for August 2016 at the moment. But Oceania would definitely not be our preference.

 

We are looking forward to returning to Azamara this August, and again for a B2B in December 2016. Are trying HAL in December. Have also sailed Norwegian and numerous river cruises with Uniworld and APT.

[Jay19]

I've sailed several times on Azamara but only once on Oceania (Riviera).

We were in a penthouse suite and it was fabulous. Great bathroom and space.

 

We enjoyed our cruise however there were some definite buts.

We didn't like the food in the main dining room (GDR) however we did enjoy the food in the speciality restaurants and buffet (which turns into a grill at night) particularly the lobster.

 

The ship was very quiet at night compared to Azamara. I think the complimentary alcohol on Aamara makes the ship much more sociable even if one is not a drinker. We enjoy the Casino bar and always find someone to chat to.

Crew on Azamara are far better.

 

We would sail Oceania again if the itinerary and price were right but would put Azamara first.

 

Thanks very much for this info, it is very helpful. We were actually looking at Oceania many years ago but were on a Celebrity cruise when we saw some information about Azamara, loved the itineraries and booked our very first b2b while we were on board. Since then we have sailed almost exclusively with Azamara and have quite a few more bookings to come. We normally like to cruise in the spring and autumn so the charters have been causing us some problems (although I do understand they are a great revenue source for Azamara). This year we managed to come up with alternatives on Azamara but not for next autumn. I have actually held off doing anything about other bookings because there have been so many hints and comments about the possibility of another ship coming that I really hoped that could be an alternative. Unfortunately though I feel I'm running out of time to choose something else and get the cabins we like, hence the decision to try Oceania. Anyway I really appreciate your help and comments, thank you!

[Jay19]

Thanks too to beachmudhut and roaming_kiwi58 for your comments. It is good to get a perspective from people who enjoy Azamara but have also tried Oceania. I have looked at quite a few other possibilities but came to the conclusion that Oceania would offer the closest I could come to the Azamara experience. Having said that, I am certain that Azamara will remain our very favourite! :)

[nuneham]

Completely agree with you jollyjoyce. The Celebrity cabins particularly on S club vessels are very nice but the lack of drawer space is infuriating.

 

We love Azamara too but our loyalty should not be taken for granted. We have jumped ship and cruise with Holland America next week primarily because Quest is still in the middle of its long charter

 

On balance I think the changes proposed by Azamara appeal to me but the proof of the pudding is when I experience them in 2016

 

Hazel, I know that you and Lottie have loved Azamara, as have we, so I would be very interested to read what you think of HAL. We tried Regent, on a very good deal, in Jan/Feb and have been tempted by Silversea in November. We are on Journey in August and still look forward to that. Any news of Lorna and Morris/Boris.

[Spursgirl]

Hazel, I know that you and Lottie have loved Azamara, as have we, so I would be very interested to read what you think of HAL. We tried Regent, on a very good deal, in Jan/Feb and have been tempted by Silversea in November. We are on Journey in August and still look forward to that. Any news of Lorna and Morris/Boris.

 

Hello Nuneham,

 

We chose the HAL cruise specifically for the itinerary. Our package gives us 4 full days in Barcelona, one of our favourite cities, two days in a hotel and two days on board before departure. We will definitely post our thoughts about HAL on our return.

 

Lorna and Maurice (Boris) are still cruising. They went on the Caribbean Princess a couple of months ago and go to the Baltic on Eclipse in August. I spoke to her a few days ago and she is fine although a little frustrated by her forgetfulness. These days they prefer to cruise from Southampton but know they could be tempted to sail Azamara again.

 

Enjoy your cruise on Journey. We hope to cruise on Azamara again before the end of the year.

[BeachRick]

Hi Bonnie,

 

Thank you for the clarification of the refinements of the ships. During our B2B Quest trip in the Greek Isles in 2012 we used the Windows Cafe Outdoors for many of our breakfasts and lunches. However, we had dinner in either the main dining room, specialty restaurant or on shore at the interesting ports we were visiting. This was the reason we booked the Quest and we loved the experience. There were no sea days over our 14 day cruise which made life very busy. The pool deck was very hot during the White Night events but who cared. It was great and we especially remember Philip Herbert the hotel director showing off his cooking skills at the grill. If it becomes more enclosed it could be even hotter. We are scheduled on the Journey on 01/27/16 shortly after drydock then on the Quest Norway on 08/11/16 several months after its drydock. We are looking forward to our upcoming cruises.

[BBMacLaird]

Hi Bonnie,

 

Thank you for the clarification of the refinements of the ships. During our B2B Quest trip in the Greek Isles in 2012 we used the Windows Cafe Outdoors for many of our breakfasts and lunches. However, we had dinner in either the main dining room, specialty restaurant or on shore at the interesting ports we were visiting. This was the reason we booked the Quest and we loved the experience. There were no sea days over our 14 day cruise which made life very busy. The pool deck was very hot during the White Night events but who cared. It was great and we especially remember Philip Herbert the hotel director showing off his cooking skills at the grill. If it becomes more enclosed it could be even hotter. We are scheduled on the Journey on 01/27/16 shortly after drydock then on the Quest Norway on 08/11/16 several months after its drydock. We are looking forward to our upcoming cruises.

 

Hi BeachRick,

Thank you for posting your thoughts. I see you're relatively new to CC and yet you have an amazing list of past cruises under your belt. Thank you for finding your way to Azamara. I'll look forward to hearing about your two cruises.

[excitedofharpenden]

This from a post on Azamara's FaceBook page is a picture I haven't seen yet. Cabin with new chairs and smaller table on the balcony? Looks really smart. July now so hopefully more detail soon.

 

 

Phil

Edited July 1, 2015 by excitedofharpenden

[TxnAquarian]

This from a post on Azamara's FaceBook page is a picture I haven't seen yet. Cabin with new chairs and smaller table on the balcony? Looks really smart. July now so hopefully more detail soon.

 

 

Phil

 

 

 

 

That looks incredible!! I can't wait for these renovations. I haven't been this excited for anything ship-related in a few years. Can't wait until we're onboard in June 2016. Well done, Azamara!

 

 

 

Michael

[Glenndale]

Looks fine, except I would much rather have the couch and coffee table adjacent to the balcony and not as shown.

Balcony table a lot more sensible size, pity it won't be done by November.

Edited July 1, 2015 by Glenndale

[excitedofharpenden]

Looks fine, except I would much rather have the couch and coffee table adjacent to the balcony and not as shown.

Balcony table a lot more sensible size, pity it won't be done by November.

 

I'm looking at it with some reservations because the proportions look wrong. The ceiling is too high and it's too wide to be a standard balcony cabin and too narrow to be a suite. Unless it is a new category cabin they are building. The anticipation is fun though and I love the style.

 

Phil