Quest Alaska so far (July) esp Hubbard

[Sujormik]

Any feedback on how the Alaska cruises are going? There’s a ton of discussion in the Alaska forum about the Hubbard Glacier excursion and nobody from AZ talking about it. Was super expensive, implied small group so would like some feedback, we may decide to cancel.

[lovecruzin]

July 2 cruise didn't go to any glaciers and no Hubbard glacier excursion offered...yeah, kind of defeats the purpose of going to Alaska but we knew this in advance, many pax didn't. anyways...we have done a ship excursion at Dawes glacier, where we got off the ship and were on a smaller vessel that got closer to the glacier, it was fabulous. Do you have a link to the description?

[ellbon]

Been to AK twice and never left the ship at a glacier. One time it was pouring freezing rain..no way was anyone going anywhere,

[Redtravel]

If you want lots of glacier time, you must book tours that go to glaciers. Azamara sells helicopter, seaplane, and dogsled tours. They are expensive. Azamara does not do Glacier bay. For that go on holland america. Azamara sails by some good scenery.  It is a nice sailing.

[lovecruzin]

12 hours ago, ellbon said:

Been to AK twice and never left the ship at a glacier. One time it was pouring freezing rain..no way was anyone going anywhere,

 

We've done it twice, Dawes glacier and at Sawyer glacier. This type of excursion is offered on most/all Celebrity Solstice Alaska cruises.

[cruisinteach2]

We were on Quest June 22 to July 2. Went on the ship's tour at Hubbard Glacier. It was spectacular. 2 1/2 hours watching the glacier calf on an absolutely beautiful day that was warm - spent the whole time out on the decks which had plenty of room for everyone. Also got up close to "bird island" to see the nesting perches of hundreds of kittywakes. Saw recently birthed seals and more on the ice flows. This excursion was pricey but worth every penny!! Would highly encourage all to sign up for it!

[benjoon]

We did the first Alaskan cruise and there wasn’t any tours offered for Hubbard glacier. It didn’t matter as Captain Magnus got us in really close. It was so foggy in the morning we didn’t think we would see anything. Captain Magnus changed our arrival time once the fog had disappeared. We saw plenty of calving and it was one of the highlights of the cruise.

[PAtravelbug]

I have to agree with benjoon  I was on the same cruise.  The whole trip was magnificent.  

Edited July 15, 2019 by PAtravelbug

[SoBaycruiser]

23 hours ago, benjoon said:

We did the first Alaskan cruise and there wasn’t any tours offered for Hubbard glacier. It didn’t matter as Captain Magnus got us in really close. It was so foggy in the morning we didn’t think we would see anything. Captain Magnus changed our arrival time once the fog had disappeared. We saw plenty of calving and it was one of the highlights of the cruise.

 

And THAT is the difference a captain make... for those asking in another thread.😉

[Mackdogmolly]

5 minutes ago, SoBaycruiser said:

 

And THAT is the difference a captain make... for those asking in another thread.😉

Captain Magnus is really special 

[Sujormik]

Thank you. We previously booked the Hubbard excursion despite the high cost. So glad to hear the entire cruise was nice!

[Sujormik]

On 7/15/2019 at 4:00 PM, SoBaycruiser said:

 

And THAT is the difference a captain make... for those asking in another thread.😉

Just wanted to let you know we are having a great time.  We had a WONDERFUL pre-cruise land group and it has made all the difference for us. Hopefully they’ve changed the schedule so you arrive at the ship at a reasonable time as we did NOT and have shared our negative experience with everyone.  Off to Chef’s Table! 

[SoBaycruiser]

12 minutes ago, Sujormik said:

Just wanted to let you know we are having a great time.  We had a WONDERFUL pre-cruise land group and it has made all the difference for us. Hopefully they’ve changed the schedule so you arrive at the ship at a reasonable time as we did NOT and have shared our negative experience with everyone.  Off to Chef’s Table! 

 

What time did you arrive?  I have been worried about that based on the itinerary.  

Re: Fairbanks...Were you met at the airport by the rep or did you make your way to the hotel yourself?  Did you receive more information at the hotel?

 

 

[Sujormik]

14 hours ago, SoBaycruiser said:

 

What time did you arrive?  I have been worried about that based on the itinerary.  

Re: Fairbanks...Were you met at the airport by the rep or did you make your way to the hotel yourself?  Did you receive more information at the hotel?

 

 

We had already been in Fairbanks when to group convened at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge so I do not know about airport procedure, however all the cruise lines had people at the baggage claim so I suspect you’ll see someone with a sign.

 

We did receive more info at the hotel, our itinerary packet for the week, restaurant menu selection sheets for the included lunch days, etc. There’s some free time that first evening then you begin early the next day. We enjoyed the Riverboat much more than expected and the coach was comfy. Not a lot to see in downtown Fairbanks so no real recommendation for lunch.

 

So about the final day on land, it wasn’t great. We drove from Talkeetna to Anchorage, stopped a5 a sort of flea market then had lunch before moving on toward Seward. Unfortunately, they really f’ed up.  We arrived at the boat after 4 pm. Other than a young man with glasses of champagne and mimosas there was nobody to meet us or the other people coming from the land tours. None of the reservation tables were set up, there were no directions, it was genuinely a disaster and a very VERY unpleasant way to start the week.  I did speak to several people about it incl Phillip the hotel manager and someone from guest relations. They took all the info but have no idea what they will do for your group. Be aware of this, and if it’s your first time on azamara don’t let it get you down as it did our group. I can’t see them changing the itinerary so no idea how they remedy the problem.  

 

Weve spoken to to many people who were on the AZAMARA land package and the opinion has been pretty universal that they got this (boarding procedure and timing) wrong. Just be prepared and don’t let it put a damper on the rest of the trip

[SoBaycruiser]

1 hour ago, Sujormik said:

We had already been in Fairbanks when to group convened at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge so I do not know about airport procedure, however all the cruise lines had people at the baggage claim so I suspect you’ll see someone with a sign.

 

We did receive more info at the hotel, our itinerary packet for the week, restaurant menu selection sheets for the included lunch days, etc. There’s some free time that first evening then you begin early the next day. We enjoyed the Riverboat much more than expected and the coach was comfy. Not a lot to see in downtown Fairbanks so no real recommendation for lunch.

 

So about the final day on land, it wasn’t great. We drove from Talkeetna to Anchorage, stopped a5 a sort of flea market then had lunch before moving on toward Seward. Unfortunately, they really f’ed up.  We arrived at the boat after 4 pm. Other than a young man with glasses of champagne and mimosas there was nobody to meet us or the other people coming from the land tours. None of the reservation tables were set up, there were no directions, it was genuinely a disaster and a very VERY unpleasant way to start the week.  I did speak to several people about it incl Phillip the hotel manager and someone from guest relations. They took all the info but have no idea what they will do for your group. Be aware of this, and if it’s your first time on azamara don’t let it get you down as it did our group. I can’t see them changing the itinerary so no idea how they remedy the problem.  

 

Weve spoken to to many people who were on the AZAMARA land package and the opinion has been pretty universal that they got this (boarding procedure and timing) wrong. Just be prepared and don’t let it put a damper on the rest of the trip

 

Thank you SO much.  We are actually flying in a day early so we will not be met at the airport.  However we are staying at Pike’s Waterfront Lodge for our additional day so will expect the packet when we check in.  BTW, I asked how many were on our land package and the gal said only 6.  So I doubt there will be a big coach for us.

 

I really appreciate that you spoke with Phillip and guest relations about what was obviously a problem. I have been concerned about the late arrival. I figured if we had lunch in Anchorage and then had to travel to Seward it would be 3-3:30...I wasn’t pleased about that.  Getting there after 4 is worse.    We want to book a Chef Table  and we have some spa credit we would like to book as well... let alone just relaxing for a moment and enjoying the ship. We have been on Azamara once 11 years ago.  And Phillip was hotel manager on that cruise!  Anyway, maybe with only 6 of us, lunch will go quicker and we can be on our way sooner.

 

BTW, what Chefs Tables did they offer you... I assume French and Italian... was a third offered?

 

Rita

[Redtravel]

Time for Azamara to allow guests to prebook dining reservations before embarkation.

[Grandma Cruising]

7 hours ago, Redtravel said:

Time for Azamara to allow guests to prebook dining reservations before embarkation.

Not sure I agree. I think the current system is very fair and it means you know when things like White Night are when you book. There’s always a reservation table in Windows and another one somewhere else (on Journey in July it was in Spirits bar).

I’d be happy for the Chef’s Table to be bookable, but not Prime C & Aqualina.

 

Edited July 29, 2019 by Host Grandma Cruising

[Bloodaxe]

2 hours ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

Not sure I agree. I think the current system is very fair and it means you know when things like White Night are when you book. There’s always a reservation table in Windows and another one somewhere else (on Journey in July it was in Spirits bar).

I’d be happy for the Chef’s Table to be bookable, but not Prime C & Aqualina.

 

 

I agree, you can usually get what you want if you book on boarding and are not to fussy about dining times.

[uktog]

4 hours ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

Not sure I agree. I think the current system is very fair and it means you know when things like White Night are when you book. There’s always a reservation table in Windows and another one somewhere else (on Journey in July it was in Spirits bar).

I’d be happy for the Chef’s Table to be bookable, but not Prime C & Aqualina.

 

Fine if you board early but these guests have booked an expensive land based option through Azamara as others might do in the future so they do need to review the system.  If you read their post, there was nothing set up when they arrived so the standard response isn't appropriate for late arrivals.  

It shouldn't be difficult to transmit information on evenings to the tour and gather provisional requests for bookings.  

I know in South America the Azamara pre cruise tour from Machu Picchu arrived in very late on embarkation day and had quite a rush around as a result.  They are packing in the pre cruise experience (fair enough) but haven't adjusted how this links to the ships.

[Redtravel]

Not always get what you want.  For months before the cruise, we tried to get a reservation in Prime C on a set date at a set time.  We called, we wrote, TA called, and we were told no multiple times no reservations until embarkation. On embarkation day, I asked for the reservation and was told, “sorry that time was already full.”    Furious!   After I recounted why I wanted the reservation, the woman did cave.  She said, “let me see...oh...yes you already  have the reservation.”   

[Grandma Cruising]

55 minutes ago, uktog said:

Fine if you board early but these guests have booked an expensive land based option through Azamara as others might do in the future so they do need to review the system.  If you read their post, there was nothing set up when they arrived so the standard response isn't appropriate for late arrivals.  

It shouldn't be difficult to transmit information on evenings to the tour and gather provisional requests for bookings.  

I know in South America the Azamara pre cruise tour from Machu Picchu arrived in very late on embarkation day and had quite a rush around as a result.  They are packing in the pre cruise experience (fair enough) but haven't adjusted how this links to the ships.

I agree with you about guests on land tours having the chance to make restaurant bookings when on an Azamara pre-cruise land tour, especially if they are likely to arrive at the ship late on embarkation day. The poster suggesting it was time for Azamara to allow bookings beforehand seems to want to be able to book months before the cruise - I’m not sure that would be a good thing.

[uktog]

With an appropriate online system I cannot see why not. Guests would have to accept that options to change would be limited. If I could do this on Celebrity in 2000 which ensured a very special date could be appropriately marked it should be possible almost 20 years later on Azamara 

Edited July 29, 2019 by uktog

[Rabo]

I would agree with the option to pre-book dining reservations, but only with the provision that cancelling a reservation would incur a penalty.  There have been times when upon boarding, guests book a specialty reservation for every night of the cruise, and then later cancel the nights they choose not to go.  Until the last minute, this locks out others who may want to make a reservation.  Pre-booking specialty dining has the potential of doing the same thing.

[SoBaycruiser]

At one time I remember one of Rship lines allowed ONE night prebooking in the specialty restaurants thus allowing everyone a chance to book.  That seems fair to me and would allow people to book special occasions.  Just because someone arrives early on embarkation day should not give them the advantage.  They could open up reservations at the same time they allow check-in.  By then they should know the plans for the White night or Amazamara evening and could post that as well.  

[Grandma Cruising]

32 minutes ago, SoBaycruiser said:

At one time I remember one of Rship lines allowed ONE night prebooking in the specialty restaurants thus allowing everyone a chance to book.  That seems fair to me and would allow people to book special occasions.  Just because someone arrives early on embarkation day should not give them the advantage.  They could open up reservations at the same time they allow check-in.  By then they should know the plans for the White night or Amazamara evening and could post that as well.  

That makes sense. I guess what worries me about allowing people to book online well before the cruise is that there are limited places in Prime C & Aqualina, and some people may want to book every night, which could restrict other people’s choices, especially as Rabo says, people have been known to book every night, then cancel some of them. I quite like  SoBaycruiser’s idea of allowing people to make one booking beforehand. That way you could be more sure of getting a booking for a special date.