Tips for Azamara Newbies

[Mackdogmolly]

9 hours ago, Huntingdon1701 said:

I work on library policy in the UK and we've been discussing quarantining of books with Public Health England. It was required at the start of the outbreak but now we know more about transmission and infections have come down significantly, they say there is no need to quarantine them. Given that everyone is tested before boarding, there's no reason why that can't be applied to onboard libraries too. 

 

Thanks for all the tips in this thread. It will be my first Azamara cruise in August so this is really helpful, notwithstanding potential changes to operations because of Covid. 

I have been following some of the thread on Viking’s start up in the UK, and it appears that their library is intact.

[excitedofharpenden]

14 hours ago, Mackdogmolly said:

I have been following some of the thread on Viking’s start up in the UK, and it appears that their library is intact.

Fingers crossed the same will be true when Azamara start. I know it's a very popular place to go. I'm no great reader (I really should be!), but.on longer cruises like to get a couple of books out to take and read on the Promenade Deck. 

 

Phil 

[Mackdogmolly]

5 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Fingers crossed the same will be true when Azamara start. I know it's a very popular place to go. I'm no great reader (I really should be!), but.on longer cruises like to get a couple of books out to take and read on the Promenade Deck. 

 

Phil 

I am not a big trivia person, and don’t know what the other onboard offerings might be on cruises with multiple sea days, so I would probably plan on a lot of deck time, reading. Really don’t want to have to lug a suitcase full of books. But at least I will forewarned, as mine is not the first cruise out.

[oldgringo]

On 5/18/2021 at 6:30 PM, Mackdogmolly said:

The Azamara library is a wonderful thing, I think. I don’t use a Kindle and am loathe to fill my suitcase with books. That said, I would buy a Kindle if I had to, but it would be good to know the status of the library in advance.

Betsey

My wife loves her Kindle and uses it all the time. It's not just for cruises.

 

--Jeff

[marinaro44]

43 minutes ago, oldgringo said:

My wife loves her Kindle and uses it all the time. It's not just for cruises.

 

--Jeff

We use our Samsung tablets to read.  Not heavy at all.  Can access better libraries than Azamara's.

[Grandma Cruising]

2 hours ago, oldgringo said:

My wife loves her Kindle and uses it all the time. It's not just for cruises.

 

--Jeff

Me too, and with Amazon’s daily deals I have hundreds of books waiting to be read. It also has the advantage of having an inbuilt light so I can read in the middle of the night without disturbing DH.

[islandwoman]

2 hours ago, marinaro44 said:

We use our Samsung tablets to read.  Not heavy at all.  Can access better libraries than Azamara's.

What libraries do you access with your tablets?  I'm guessing that the books you borrow from them have to be returned in a couple of weeks?  Can you download the books from your libraries at sea?

[mchell810]

5 hours ago, islandwoman said:

What libraries do you access with your tablets?  I'm guessing that the books you borrow from them have to be returned in a couple of weeks?  Can you download the books from your libraries at sea?

Your local library will provide free access to a huge selection of ebooks. The most popular service used by US libraries is Overdrive; they have 2 apps — you only need one. The apps will work on almost any phone or tablet.  If you have WiFi a during your cruise  you can download, but I generally download a bunch things before leaving home. Overdrive also has magazines (and videos); the selection will depend on what the library offers.  My local library has literally thousands of books and magazines. 

[GlobalMethod]

On 5/29/2021 at 8:25 PM, islandwoman said:

What libraries do you access with your tablets?  I'm guessing that the books you borrow from them have to be returned in a couple of weeks?  Can you download the books from your libraries at sea?

We read a good deal on board ship ... because of extra reading time we've each read several as we are cruising ... we share a public library account with my wife's mother so it is always active and can be utilized while on travel ... "Goodreads.com" is an excellent resource we use in finding new books since we both read so many ... if you can't borrow from a public library then they will sell almost any book to you ... 🙂 ... there are also some threads on CC that are helpful on this topic.

[mj_holiday]

On 5/29/2021 at 10:25 AM, islandwoman said:

What libraries do you access with your tablets?  I'm guessing that the books you borrow from them have to be returned in a couple of weeks?  Can you download the books from your libraries at sea?

 I checkout library books on my IPhone.  They end up getting returned automatically at 14 days (my only complaint)  but when you recheck it out the book will open where you left off. I check out a couple right before we get on the ship because the wifi on the ship might be sporadic.  If new to checking out make sure you are checking them out completely so you do not need wifi to read them (from past experience)

[marinaro44]

45 minutes ago, mj_holiday said:

 I checkout library books on my IPhone.  They end up getting returned automatically at 14 days (my only complaint)  but when you recheck it out the book will open where you left off. I check out a couple right before we get on the ship because the wifi on the ship might be sporadic.  If new to checking out make sure you are checking them out completely so you do not need wifi to read them (from past experience)

Right.  If using Overdrive, be sure to do "download" in addition to "borrow."  And then open the book to be sure the download is complete.

[mj_holiday]

If unsure, one way to test that you are getting a book downloaded to read without wifi is to checkout a book.  The next day put your phone in airplane mode (no wifi) and open the book.  If opens correctly, you are set to go.

[GlobalMethod]

On 5/29/2021 at 6:22 PM, marinaro44 said:

We use our Samsung tablets to read.  Not heavy at all.  Can access better libraries than Azamara's.

I like a tablet instead of a Kindle also ... it gives me a computer at my fingertips and I have a skype telephone number loaded on it that we've used for years ... it has on occasion been very handy.

[excitedofharpenden]

There are a lot of people who still like the feel of holding a real book. I have a friend who reads a lot on cruises, has a Kindle, but if we are on a long cruise with lots of sea days she comes armed with two or three books too. 

 

Phil 

[TeaBag]

I'm a voracious reader and I prefer real books.  The rotary club in our area has a sale twice/year where they offer 6,000 - 7,000 books for $2 each.  Proceeds go to charity so everyone wins especially me!

[islandwoman]

6 minutes ago, TeaBag said:

I'm a voracious reader and I prefer real books.  The rotary club in our area has a sale twice/year where they offer 6,000 - 7,000 books for $2 each.  Proceeds go to charity so everyone wins especially me!

You can leave your book purchases in the library onboard and then have room/weight for souvenirs in your checked bag.

[capsplace]

Are there free steam rooms on board the Pursuit?

[excitedofharpenden]

53 minutes ago, capsplace said:

Are there free steam rooms on board the Pursuit?

Yes there is.  Deck 9 forward in the spa changing room. Showers too and very nice Elemis Revitalise Me products. 

 

Phil 

[capsplace]

7 minutes ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Yes there is.  Deck 9 forward in the spa changing room. Showers too and very nice Elemis Revitalise Me products. 

 

Phil 

Thank you!  This is excellent news!

 

[Cruiser Nonna]

Category V1 - shower has a curtain - is it magnetized or need to bring a clip so it does not stick to passenger showering?  Apologize if this has already been asked and covered. Thank you

 

[Mackdogmolly]

8 minutes ago, Cruiser Nonna said:

Category V1 - shower has a curtain - is it magnetized or need to bring a clip so it does not stick to passenger showering?  Apologize if this has already been asked and covered. Thank you

 

I think that others have brought clips, but it was never a real problem for me.

[marinaro44]

50 minutes ago, Mackdogmolly said:

I think that others have brought clips, but it was never a real problem for me.

Not for me, either.

[Grandma Cruising]

13 hours ago, Cruiser Nonna said:

Category V1 - shower has a curtain - is it magnetized or need to bring a clip so it does not stick to passenger showering?  Apologize if this has already been asked and covered. Thank you

 

No it isn’t magnetised, but like others, we haven’t found it to be a problem.

[islandwoman]

Does Azamara provide transfers from the airport or hotels to the port?  I'm looking for a transfer from Athens to Piraeus.

[Grandma Cruising]

10 hours ago, islandwoman said:

Does Azamara provide transfers from the airport or hotels to the port?  I'm looking for a transfer from Athens to Piraeus.

We usually use a taxi. Costs about €50.