What are the positives of cruising with Azamara?

[Ken the cruiser]

I need some help convincing my DW to give Azamara a try. We've cruised on a variety of lines (see my signature below) to include over 100 days on Oceania. We really enjoy X, especially in a Sky Suite when the price is right, and will be Elite+ once we complete all of the X cruises we currently have booked. We enjoy cruising with Oceania, but would like to try Azamara for two reasons. First, the CC points will continue to accrue since we use the same CC number on both cruise lines. Second, AZ has some cool Polar Ice Cap, Antarctica and South Africa cruises as well as some nice ones in the South Pacific.

 

Here are some specifics about us. We are in our mid 60s and enjoy music from the 50s on, especially rock n roll, as well as illusionists and other quality guest entertainment. We enjoy playing trivia and going to professional lectures. We enjoy good food, but it doesn't have to great. However, I will say we just finished a 21 day cruise on the Reflection in a Sky Suite and were spoiled by the food and wait staff in the Luminae.

 

For comparison sake we have cruised on 2 of Oceania's R-Class ships, Nautica and Sirena. We had fun on both of them, but on sea days we basically went to a lecture in the morning, one in the afternoon and then went to trivia at 4 pm. In the evening we like to go to the evening show, then head back to the room, check the stars out on the balcony, check email, watch a tv show and then off to bed we go. As far as itineraries go, we like a combination of port days with a few sea days thrown in there to relax between ports.

 

So the simple question is, are we going to have an enjoyable time if we book a 3-4 week cruise on one of AZ's R class ships?

 

Edited March 18, 2019 by Ken the cruiser

[audobon_tx]

We just completed 6 cruises b2b on Pursuit last fall onboard for two months.  Mid to late 60s, Discoverer Plus.  Good food and service, visible and engaging officers who became our friends.  Great waiters who we also built relationships with.  We were onboard for 2 months and almost extended our cruise further.  We are early to bed, early to rise types, and don't put a lot of weight on entertainment but we enjoyed most of the music and the CD's show.  Itinerary and price are important to us.  We almost always do independent shore tours or self-guided.  We always book verandas and the small bathrooms (same as Oceania Rs) don't bother us.  Sea day activities are not a strong suit typically if you require lots of planned activities.  You will find a lot of Celebrity cruisers "trading up" onboard.  The passenger mix depends upon itinerary but is typically about half N. America, with the balance primarily UK and Australia/New Zealand with a dash of EU and S. America. If you find the itinerary/value to your liking, book without hesitation.  

Edited March 18, 2019 by flyingshoes

[janerlve]

One of the reasons I’ll give Azamara a try is the Black Sea Voyage in 2020.

 

[Grandma Cruising]

On the cruises we have been on there have been several trivia quizzes on each sea day, including a progressive quiz where the same teams compete every sea day to see who is the overall winner at the end. 

[Lottie A]

Sounds like Azamara will be a perfect fit for you. 

 

As for The Black Sea cruise....I was on the last one that Azamara did ....think it was in 2014. It was virtually a war zone at the time because of Russia invading Ukraine and all our ports were changed apart from Istanbul. All I can say is we had the best fun ever on that cruise and I will remember it forever. 

[mj_holiday]

We sailed Azamara for the first time to Cuba Feb 20.  We have been sailing Regents for most of our cruises. There was a learning curve for us on Azamara as things are different.  We overlooked some things (like our free internet, Discoveries breakfast buffet) for several days until I figured it out from the brochures.  We selected this cruise because of all the port time in Cuba.  And Azamara was great with this.  Since most of our past experience has been with an all inclusive we had to get use to not having a bar set up in our cabin for nite caps.  And even though this was less expensive than Regents, we still avoided anything like drinks where there would be an extra cost. The officers were very visible which I had not seen on any previous cruises.  The excursions we brought from Azamara were just great!! I got a thank you for my midcruise comments card.  Our steward was very thorough in explaining many things about our cabin and the ship.  There was great assistance for some people with mobility issues to get to their bus.  I hope to have my trip report done in the next couple of days and will post.

[Ken the cruiser]

Sounds great! The Black Sea voyage looks pretty cool and we're also hoping they offer their 14 day Costa Rica cruise again at some point as well. If you book a Club Veranda Plus stateroom and are at the Discover level, does AZ combine the perks of the two (e.g., 2 bags of laundry per 7 days, 210 free internet minutes, etc.) or are they either/or which would pretty much defeat the purpose of paying for the extras that come with the "Plus" veranda?

[manc]

We are booked on the Black Sea in Spt 2020.

 

With changes to benefits already in place and the survey this week I wonder of there will be any perks!

[Ken the cruiser]

I mentioned this issue on another ongoing thread, but wanted to raise it here since I started this one. How is the internet service on the Journey, Quest and the Pursuit? My DW, from time to time has to send an email to about 75 recipients divided into 3 distribution lists. Sometimes the email will have a 2-3 mb attachment. On average is there usually enough bandwidth, except in out of the way locations, to send it in a reasonable amount of time? We don't do streaming, or Skype or watch Netflix, but being able to send large emails like the one I mentioned is important. 

[audobon_tx]

Except for satellite dead zones, she will be fine.

[caripoo]

Simply stated.......YES....Book the larger room, because of the bigger bathroom with bigger shower.

[marinaro44]

On 3/18/2019 at 10:23 AM, mj_holiday said:

We sailed Azamara for the first time to Cuba Feb 20.  We have been sailing Regents for most of our cruises. There was a learning curve for us on Azamara as things are different.  We overlooked some things (like our free internet, Discoveries breakfast buffet) for several days until I figured it out from the brochures.  We selected this cruise because of all the port time in Cuba.  And Azamara was great with this.  Since most of our past experience has been with an all inclusive we had to get use to not having a bar set up in our cabin for nite caps.  And even though this was less expensive than Regents, we still avoided anything like drinks where there would be an extra cost. The officers were very visible which I had not seen on any previous cruises.  The excursions we brought from Azamara were just great!! I got a thank you for my midcruise comments card.  Our steward was very thorough in explaining many things about our cabin and the ship.  There was great assistance for some people with mobility issues to get to their bus.  I hope to have my trip report done in the next couple of days and will post.

Looking forward to your trip report.  Azamara suite staterooms do come with bar:  scotch, vodka, gin and rum...or mix and match among these as you'd prefer..  And with a butler.  Closer in amenities to Regent...where we've found officers to be pretty much invisible.

[Covepointcruiser]

Warn us when you are cruising as you will certainly use much of the available bandwidth when she posts.    The only thing worse is streaming videos.   I only hope for enough bandwidth to stay in touch and will not post photos.   We once had a friend who was cat sitting for us.   He sent 4 or 5 photos with each email and successfully kept us from uploading his emails as well as any others.   This was on a transatlantic and internet service was not great.

[Ken the cruiser]

7 minutes ago, Covepointcruiser said:

Warn us when you are cruising as you will certainly use much of the available bandwidth when she posts.    The only thing worse is streaming videos.   I only hope for enough bandwidth to stay in touch and will not post photos.   We once had a friend who was cat sitting for us.   He sent 4 or 5 photos with each email and successfully kept us from uploading his emails as well as any others.   This was on a transatlantic and internet service was not great.

Really??? If that's the case, then AZ definitely has internet problems if my DW can bring down the network if sends 3 emails a week, each with a 2 mb attachment.

[tv24]

I pick up that your comparison point is to Oceania.  First thing, you will appreciate the inclusive feature of AZ;  you don't have to pay for beverages or gratuities.  IMO the entertainment on AZ is better than O and the enrichment activities are about the same.  The big plus on AZ is the fact that the passengers are so outgoing and friendly.  We liked our fellow PAX on O, but the experience on AZ is super-friendly with lots of events arranged for folks to meet and greet.  Also the senior staff are all around and want to meet you.  Down side:  It's hard to compete with the excellent cuisine on Oceania.  We have never found anything to compare, not even on the fancy-pants luxury lines.

[Dean]

On 3/18/2019 at 8:13 AM, manc said:

We are booked on the Black Sea in Spt 2020.

 

With changes to benefits already in place and the survey this week I wonder of there will be any perks!

My wife and I are interested in this cruise but the prices are a little too high for us.  Any chance they will come down closer to the sail date?

[Whitby100]

My husband just got an email inviting him to a professional conference on-board that sailing (I’m excited!) but I don’t know if that means prices will remain high while cabins remain allocated for the conference. 

[Ken the cruiser]

2 hours ago, tv24 said:

I pick up that your comparison point is to Oceania.  First thing, you will appreciate the inclusive feature of AZ;  you don't have to pay for beverages or gratuities.  IMO the entertainment on AZ is better than O and the enrichment activities are about the same.  The big plus on AZ is the fact that the passengers are so outgoing and friendly.  We liked our fellow PAX on O, but the experience on AZ is super-friendly with lots of events arranged for folks to meet and greet.  Also the senior staff are all around and want to meet you.  Down side:  It's hard to compete with the excellent cuisine on Oceania.  We have never found anything to compare, not even on the fancy-pants luxury lines.

Thanks tv24. You are correct, Oceania is our comparison point because they both have R-class ships. It wouldn't be fair, let's say, to compare AZ's R-class ship experience with O's O-class ships. So far from what we have read on CC as well as their website, AZ has some very cool itineraries that O doesn't offer.

 

However, as my DW doesn't drink and I will only have a max of 2 glasses of wine a night, the unlimited beverages perk is a negative for us since we are still paying for them in the cruise price. Also, since we are Silver on O, we get free gratuities and $250 OBC (which will pay for my wine), so that pretty much takes care of the AZ "all-inclusive" booking perk. With O you get free specialty dinners, but since we have so much OBC from our TA when we book a RCI cruise, that's really not a big deal if we decided to go to one or two of AZ's specialty restaurants. On the other hand since we'll be Elite+ when we book a cruise with AZ, we'll get 1 bag of laundry per week where as we would get 3 bags of laundry per leg if we book at least an A category O cabin. We really don't socialize all that much on a cruise, so meeting other folks for us is not a biggie. In fact during trivia, we would be one of those couples that sit in the back and compete against each other rather than joining a team.

 

With O you get the option of having the OLife perks with/without airfare included in your fare or you can you can book the cruise with their "cruise only" fare option. With AZ you pretty much have only one option. It would be nice if they offered the "cruise only" fare, but that's not the case right now. As far as Internet service goes, which is free now on all O ships since May 2018 (one account per cabin), we have had minimal router-connectivity or bandwidth issues (except in remote locations where it would be expected) in our aft-facing A1 cabin on O's R-class ships (Nautica and Sirena). However, from what I've been reading here, router-connectivity issues in any of the AZ cabins is such an issue, you either need to go to a common area (like we have to do on HAL ships) or stand in the hall outside your cabin.

 

As far as food quality goes, I really haven't heard much from anyone on this thread yet. Should we be assume the food is just OK, but nothing to get wowed over? For example we love eating all of our meals when weather permits outside (under cover) up at the O ships' Terrace Café. How is the food up at the Windows Café (self-serve or are there servers for hygienic purposes)? Also, are there plenty of tables to sit at outside (at least 7-10 under cover) or are the café diners competing with guests at the Sunset Bar? How are the AZ specialty restaurants or is the MDR food so good you really don't need to go to one?

 

These are some of the comparisons that interest us. But like I said AZ has some pretty cool destinations that O just does not go, so that is a big plus for AZ. Hope this helps clarify our desires a little better.

[nordski]

11 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

 

 

As far as Internet service goes, which is free now on all O ships since May 2018 (one account per cabin), we have had minimal router-connectivity or bandwidth issues (except in remote locations where it would be expected) in our aft-facing A1 cabin on O's R-class ships (Nautica and Sirena). However, from what I've been reading here, router-connectivity issues in any of the AZ cabins is such an issue, you either need to go to a common area (like we have to do on HAL ships) or stand in the hall outside your cabin.

 

As far as food quality goes, I really haven't heard much from anyone on this thread yet. Should we be assume the food is just OK, but nothing to get wowed over? For example we love eating all of our meals when weather permits outside (under cover) up at the O ships' Terrace Café. How is the food up at the Windows Café (self-serve or are there servers for hygienic purposes)? Also, are there plenty of tables to sit at outside (at least 7-10 under cover) or are the café diners competing with guests at the Sunset Bar? How are the AZ specialty restaurants or is the MDR food so good you really don't need to go to one?

.

 

Once the Internet service was upgraded about two years ago, we have not gone to a common area nor stood in a hallway to get a signal sufficient for our normal needs. I might move if I wanted an optimum signal to use FaceTime etc., but I have also used it in staterooms.

 

As for the food we are quite content with the MDR, Windows Cafe, and The Patio. But we are not ones to engage in lengthy discussions about food and the quality of various dishes.

 

Others, of course, may readily disagree with these views,

 

 

[Ken the cruiser]

8 minutes ago, nordski said:

 

Once the Internet service was upgraded about two years ago, we have not gone to a common area nor stood in a hallway to get a signal sufficient for our normal needs. I might move if I wanted an optimum signal to use FaceTime etc., but I have also used it in staterooms.

 

As for the food we are quite content with the MDR, Windows Cafe, and The Patio. But we are not ones to engage in lengthy discussions about food and the quality of various dishes.

 

Others, of course, may readily disagree with these views,

 

 

Thanks Nordski! We're curious about dining out on the terrace at the Windows Café. Is there plenty of room to eat there during all of the meal times or are the diners competing with folks socializing with drinks from Sunset Bar? We're assuming there are no smoking sections in the terrace area. That would definitely be a non-starter if there was.

[nordski]

5 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Thanks Nordski! We're curious about dining out on the terrace at the Windows Café. Is there plenty of room to eat there during all of the meal times or are the diners competing with folks socializing with drinks from Sunset Bar? We're assuming there are no smoking sections in the terrace area. That would definitely be a non-starter if there was.

 

Can’t comment about Pursuit, but on Journey and Quest we think that recently there has been less pressure on the Sunset Bar area. Perhaps there are more cruisers new to Azamara and they don’t prioritize it.

 

On our recent cruises, when the area opens at 7:00 am there is no one but me out there. My wife arrives later.

 

If you are present right when the buffet opens for lunch, there always seem to be empty tables even though there may also be people reading books or contemplating the scenery.

 

Nor have we had any crowding issue for dinner. We sometimes start in the Patio, which we love, and end up out at the Sunset Bar.

 

If I understand your question, there is no smoking in the Sunset Bar area. The smoking area is located on the port side of the swimming pool area in proximity to the Pool Bar.

[ak1004]

2 hours ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Thanks tv24. You are correct, Oceania is our comparison point because they both have R-class ships. It wouldn't be fair, let's say, to compare AZ's R-class ship experience with O's O-class ships. So far from what we have read on CC as well as their website, AZ has some very cool itineraries that O doesn't offer.

 

With O you get the option of having the OLife perks with/without airfare included in your fare or you can you can book the cruise with their "cruise only" fare option. With AZ you pretty much have only one option. It would be nice if they offered the "cruise only" fare, but that's not the case right now. As far as Internet service goes, which is free now on all O ships since May 2018 (one account per cabin), we have had minimal router-connectivity or bandwidth issues (except in remote locations where it would be expected) in our aft-facing A1 cabin on O's R-class ships (Nautica and Sirena). However, from what I've been reading here, router-connectivity issues in any of the AZ cabins is such an issue, you either need to go to a common area (like we have to do on HAL ships) or stand in the hall outside your cabin.

 

As far as food quality goes, I really haven't heard much from anyone on this thread yet. Should we be assume the food is just OK, but nothing to get wowed over? For example we love eating all of our meals when weather permits outside (under cover) up at the O ships' Terrace Café. How is the food up at the Windows Café (self-serve or are there servers for hygienic purposes)? Also, are there plenty of tables to sit at outside (at least 7-10 under cover) or are the café diners competing with guests at the Sunset Bar? How are the AZ specialty restaurants or is the MDR food so good you really don't need to go to one?

 

These are some of the comparisons that interest us. But like I said AZ has some pretty cool destinations that O just does not go, so that is a big plus for AZ. Hope this helps clarify our desires a little better.

 

We sailed on Azamara Pursuit and Oceania Riviera. Why it wouldn't be fair to compare them? yes, they are different class, but it was Azamara choice to buy another R-class ship, with all its limitations, instead of building two new ships like Oceania did. So as far as I'm concerned, it is a very fair comparison. Both are better than the big ships and provide great experience, but Riviera wins in almost every category. Food on Pursuit is pretty good, still slightly better than Celebrity or Princess, but food on the Riviera is in a different league. Entertainment, level of activities, internet, you name it.

 

Of course if you find a unique destination that only Azamara has, that's a different story.

[Ken the cruiser]

51 minutes ago, ak1004 said:

 

We sailed on Azamara Pursuit and Oceania Riviera. Why it wouldn't be fair to compare them? yes, they are different class, but it was Azamara choice to buy another R-class ship, with all its limitations, instead of building two new ships like Oceania did. So as far as I'm concerned, it is a very fair comparison. Both are better than the big ships and provide great experience, but Riviera wins in almost every category. Food on Pursuit is pretty good, still slightly better than Celebrity or Princess, but food on the Riviera is in a different league. Entertainment, level of activities, internet, you name it.

 

Of course if you find a unique destination that only Azamara has, that's a different story.

Based on that premise, I can book a corner aft-facing cabin on a X S-class ship (not the Edge), get all the perks (free premium beverage package, free gratuities, unlimited internet for 2 and $300 OBC) plus all the perks from being Elite, get to eat in the Luminae which has much better food than on any place on any O ship, a heck of a lot better “energetic” entertainment for about the same price as an A cabin on any O ship with a similar itinerary.

 

So comparing like ships, where possible since I am the OP, is why I chose to create this thread just like you had your reasons for creating your thread.  Now if X offered the same itineraries as either AZ or O, we would choose X every time. 

Edited March 21, 2019 by Ken the cruiser

[Solon]

While I agree the food on Oceania is better, there is one feature of “O” class ships that in our experience is unique.

After 10pm, the ship feels empty!  No passengers can be found.  It is the most eerie experience that we have had on any cruise line.

If you like this, then go with an “O” class.  We prefer the friendly vibe of Azamara late into the evening.

[audobon_tx]

7 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Based on that premise, I can book a corner aft-facing cabin on a X S-class ship (not the Edge), get all the perks (free premium beverage package, free gratuities, unlimited internet for 2 and $300 OBC) plus all the perks from being Elite, get to eat in the Luminae which has much better food than on any place on any O ship, a heck of a lot better “energetic” entertainment for about the same price as an A cabin on any O ship with a similar itinerary.

 

So comparing like ships, where possible since I am the OP, is why I chose to create this thread just like you had your reasons for creating your thread.  Now if X offered the same itineraries as either AZ or O, we would choose X every time. 

 

Thank you for reintroducing the concept of logic to this thread.