Booking Azamara on Celebrity cruise

[capsplace]

If anyone has booked an Azamara cruise while onboard a Celebrity cruise, were there any "perks" or benefits added, or reduced deposit, as an incentive to book while onboard Celebrity?  I know Celebrity offers freebies, added OBC, when booking a Celebrity cruise while on board.  Just wondering if there is any benefit to booking an Azamara cruise while onboard a Celebrity cruise, or should we just book onshore.  Thanks for any comments, suggestions, thoughts......

Edited July 28, 2019 by capsplace
typo

[excitedofharpenden]

You will get exactly the same benefits of booking onboard a Celebrity cruise as you would on an Azamara cruise. That is, a reduced deposit, discount according to your Captain's Club/equivalent Le Club Voyage level and a $200 or $300 OBC depending upon whether you book in the first or second half of your cruise. If you book in the first half to get the extra $100 then the code CRUISENOW2 should be used by the sales person. 

 

My advice as I have mentioned here previously is to go armed with the up to date Azamara onboard benefits as not all the Celebrity sales people are clued up. 

 

Phil 

 

I should also have mentioned that if you use a travel agent you can assign it to them to benefit from any additional perks they may offer you.  

Edited July 28, 2019 by excitedofharpenden

[prim8keeper]

Phil is correct! Make sure you go armed with all the information about Azamara. We did this last year and the X rep while very helpful, obviously didn't know as much as we did. Also make sure to check your booking, especially if you book on the first half of the sailing to get the additional $100 OBC. We had to have our TA fix it on the back end as they did not add this and I did not catch it at the time. 

[TMLAalum]

I am thinking of asking friends who will be sailing on the Equinox in January to book an Azamara cruise for us while they are on Celebrity.  We've had friends book a Celebrity cruise for us while they were on Celebrity without issues. Would this be possible on Azamara? Do we need to get our Le Club Voyage membership numbers ahead of time?

Thanks!

[Lottie A]

I booked an Azamara cruise for my friends who were not onboard with me that time when I was on Pursuit a few weeks ago. No problems whatsoever. Of course you will need all their details and have to pay their deposits from your credit card. They got all the benefits of booking onboard. 

 

Your friends should easily be able to do it on Celebrity for you. 

[Covepointcruiser]

Remember that most of the perks are already included on Azamara and they have a self service laundry.   You will have gratuities and the equivalence of the standard alcohol package with any stateroom.   Most times you will also receive internet minutes and on board credit.   If you are not in a suite the Specialty restaurants are $30 each and include  an Italian and a Steak optio .

[ClaudiaB]

We did book AZ while on an X cruise a few years ago.  We happened to be sailing on Thanksgiving and Black Friday deals were also given on board.  We already knew the cruise we wanted so we got the perks that were being given to all.  Then we got some additional ones because it was black Friday.   That afternoon in our cabin I emailed our on-line big TA and they also had perks for booking a cruise and contacting them on Black Friday.  They had specials and they were combinable with Celebrity's.  All in all, for our 15 day Journey cruise to Norway, we got about $3000 in onboard credit and reduced deposit and she threw in some specialty meals and wine.  And we just booked a regular veranda cabin.  It was just all a bunch of add-ons from both lines because of Black Friday and booking on board.   We ended up having about $2000 added back to our credit card from refundable OBC which basically paid for our flights.  

 

[Norwaylady]

Hello!

 

We are going on Celebrity Reflection on monday;) 

 

And the master plan is to book a Azamara cruise onboard!

We are Elite on X. 

 

So, 1. i need to book in the first part of my 8-days cruise on X to get the most of the OBC. 

Anything else I need to consider or should know?

[hiccups]

1 hour ago, Norwaylady said:

Hello!

 

We are going on Celebrity Reflection on monday;) 

 

And the master plan is to book a Azamara cruise onboard!

We are Elite on X. 

 

So, 1. i need to book in the first part of my 8-days cruise on X to get the most of the OBC. 

Anything else I need to consider or should know?

I would take along any documentation you have regarding the LCV discount percentages and the OBC amounts, just to be on the safe side.  I think it's on the Azamara website if you don't have a copy, so you could take a screen shot to have handy.

[holech]

I want to book a 2021 Azamara cruise  while I’m on a Celebrity cruise in December, but all Azamara offers are only for 2019 & 2020 cruises. Should I wait until next year when I will be on another Celebrity cruise to book an Azamara 2021 cruise? Or when offers for 2021 appear on Azamara website, book directly with Azamara?

[lenoirm]

45 minutes ago, holech said:

I want to book a 2021 Azamara cruise  while I’m on a Celebrity cruise in December, but all Azamara offers are only for 2019 & 2020 cruises. Should I wait until next year when I will be on another Celebrity cruise to book an Azamara 2021 cruise? Or when offers for 2021 appear on Azamara website, book directly with Azamara?

 

The entire cruise schedule for 2021 ( up to February 2022) is available on Azamara.com,

we made reservations for 2021 without problem onboard Azamara in July.

You should be able to make reservations onboard Celebrity !

 

Edited October 25, 2019 by lenoirm
Error

[BBMacLaird]

21 hours ago, holech said:

I want to book a 2021 Azamara cruise  while I’m on a Celebrity cruise in December, but all Azamara offers are only for 2019 & 2020 cruises. Should I wait until next year when I will be on another Celebrity cruise to book an Azamara 2021 cruise? Or when offers for 2021 appear on Azamara website, book directly with Azamara?

Hi holech,

Here's a link to our 2021 voyages

Thank you for your interest!

[holech]

My issue was current offers only included 2019-2020 sailings (Double Upgrade), not anything for 2021 cruises. I see current offer expires soon. Maybe their next offer will start to include 2021 sailings.

[BBMacLaird]

13 minutes ago, holech said:

My issue was current offers only included 2019-2020 sailings (Double Upgrade), not anything for 2021 cruises. I see current offer expires soon. Maybe their next offer will start to include 2021 sailings.

True. It's a little early for promotions on 2021. 

I'd recommend you book onboard Celebrity our 2021 you're interested in, and transfer the booking to the TA of your choice. Then the two of you watch for any applicable promotions as you get closer to departure so you can take advantage of the Best Price Guarantee in USA & Canada. 

[holech]

Thank you. Great idea. We sail on Celebrity in December. I’ll be prepared with pricing etc. in order to book Azamara while we are on board.

[Norwaylady]

Good morning from Gibraltar!
Sun is shining and Reflection is treating us well👍🏻

 

Armed and ready, off it went to future cruise the first day. 
1. No problem to book Azamara, but OBC 200 or 300$ that’s another thing.

200$ is what we get. 
according to future cruise it’s only 300OBC if you book on AZ. 
So since we book onboard X, we only get 200 OBC. 
I had a print screen of the AZ homepage were information about this was written. But it was just shuffled away and told that on X you only get 200$ OBC and it doesn’t matter if you book early or late on your cruise. 
 

But the positive thing is that we are now officially book on Suez Canal 2021👍🏻

[Grandma Cruising]

47 minutes ago, Norwaylady said:

Good morning from Gibraltar!
Sun is shining and Reflection is treating us well👍🏻

 

Armed and ready, off it went to future cruise the first day. 
1. No problem to book Azamara, but OBC 200 or 300$ that’s another thing.

200$ is what we get. 
according to future cruise it’s only 300OBC if you book on AZ. 
So since we book onboard X, we only get 200 OBC. 
I had a print screen of the AZ homepage were information about this was written. But it was just shuffled away and told that on X you only get 200$ OBC and it doesn’t matter if you book early or late on your cruise. 
 

But the positive thing is that we are now officially book on Suez Canal 2021👍🏻

When you get home it may be worth writing to Azamara to query this.

[Norwaylady]

1 hour ago, Host Grandma Cruising said:

When you get home it may be worth writing to Azamara to query this.

Maybe  @BBMacLaird knows what’s correct?

[prim8keeper]

3 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

Good morning from Gibraltar!
Sun is shining and Reflection is treating us well👍🏻

 

Armed and ready, off it went to future cruise the first day. 
1. No problem to book Azamara, but OBC 200 or 300$ that’s another thing.

200$ is what we get. 
according to future cruise it’s only 300OBC if you book on AZ. 
So since we book onboard X, we only get 200 OBC. 
I had a print screen of the AZ homepage were information about this was written. But it was just shuffled away and told that on X you only get 200$ OBC and it doesn’t matter if you book early or late on your cruise. 
 

But the positive thing is that we are now officially book on Suez Canal 2021👍🏻

 

I second @Host Grandma Cruising that you need to reach out to Azamara. We booked an Azamara cruise on X and received the $300 OBC.  However, the X onboard team did not do it correctly and we needed to have our TA fix it once we got home. They said we did not book it during the first half of our cruise as required, however we booked it before we even left port on embarkation day! We almost always book cruises on board and I would say at this point its 50/50 whether we think the person helping us knows what they are doing.

[floridafolks]

4 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

Good morning from Gibraltar!
Sun is shining and Reflection is treating us well👍🏻

 

Armed and ready, off it went to future cruise the first day. 
1. No problem to book Azamara, but OBC 200 or 300$ that’s another thing.

200$ is what we get. 
according to future cruise it’s only 300OBC if you book on AZ. 
So since we book onboard X, we only get 200 OBC. 
I had a print screen of the AZ homepage were information about this was written. But it was just shuffled away and told that on X you only get 200$ OBC and it doesn’t matter if you book early or late on your cruise. 
 

But the positive thing is that we are now officially book on Suez Canal 2021👍🏻

This too was exactly what happened to us- the Celebrity system pops up $200. Future cruise on Celebrity did not understand what I was talking about even though I had printed out the details.  I just called the LCV department when I returned and gave them sailing date and booking date to show it was during first half of cruise-- they sent it off to someone and voila- in a couple of days, the extra $100 showed up!  It was a very brief phone call and no hassle. Very impressed with Azamara and how they handled it!

IMHO do not waste time or effort on current cruise-just enjoy your cruise and make a quick call when you get home

[BBMacLaird]

1 hour ago, floridafolks said:

This too was exactly what happened to us- the Celebrity system pops up $200. Future cruise on Celebrity did not understand what I was talking about even though I had printed out the details.  I just called the LCV department when I returned and gave them sailing date and booking date to show it was during first half of cruise-- they sent it off to someone and voila- in a couple of days, the extra $100 showed up!  It was a very brief phone call and no hassle. Very impressed with Azamara and how they handled it!

IMHO do not waste time or effort on current cruise-just enjoy your cruise and make a quick call when you get home

I second floridafolks advice. Enjoy the cruise you’re on. 

I don’t know why Celebrity’s computer system is not up to date but I’m sure it will be corrected a.s.a.p.  You/your agent will have plenty of time to correct their mistake.

P.s. Thank you so much for booking our 2021 Suez Canal cruise! We look forward to welcoming you aboard!

[ptrpanpens]

I just booked a single occupancy cruise on Azamara while I was on Celebrity Constellation earlier this month. I booked on the 2nd day of a 10 day cruise. Celebrity told me the maximum OBC would be $150 for single occupancy since I booked on Celebrity not AZ. They queried AZ and showed me the email confirming this from AZ. Has the policy been changed recently? 

 

Bonnie can you clarify this with AZ? I thought I should have received $300 OBC but AZ says no. This cruise is May 14-24 on Pursuit and has very low rates for single occupancy that are not advertised as low single supplements but show up when the cruise is priced. The exceptionally low single occ fares are the supposed reason that the OBC is reduced to $150 for singles booking onboard Celebrity in the first half of a cruise.

 

i intend to clarify with AZ when I get home but would love to know what’s what before then.

 

thanks

Anne

 

 

[BBMacLaird]

3 hours ago, ptrpanpens said:

I just booked a single occupancy cruise on Azamara while I was on Celebrity Constellation earlier this month. I booked on the 2nd day of a 10 day cruise. Celebrity told me the maximum OBC would be $150 for single occupancy since I booked on Celebrity not AZ. They queried AZ and showed me the email confirming this from AZ. Has the policy been changed recently? 

 

Bonnie can you clarify this with AZ? I thought I should have received $300 OBC but AZ says no. This cruise is May 14-24 on Pursuit and has very low rates for single occupancy that are not advertised as low single supplements but show up when the cruise is priced. The exceptionally low single occ fares are the supposed reason that the OBC is reduced to $150 for singles booking onboard Celebrity in the first half of a cruise.

 

i intend to clarify with AZ when I get home but would love to know what’s what before then.

 

thanks

Anne

 

 

Hi Anne,

here are the terms and conditions from the web. I bolded the sentence re. Single Occupancy.

 

”CRUISE AGAIN “Onboard Booking Offer”: OUR CRUISE AGAIN “ONBOARD BOOKING OFFER” PROVIDES YOU WITH TWO DISTINCT OFFERS DEPENDING ON WHETHER YOUR BOOKING IS CONFIRMED (WHICH REQUIRES A REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT) OR OPEN (WHICH REQUIRES A NONREFUNDABLE DEPOSIT), AS DESCRIBED BELOW. THIS OFFER IS ONLY AVAILABLE TO GUESTS WHILE THEY ARE SAILING ON AN AZAMARA VOYAGE. Azamara’s CRUISE AGAIN “Onboard Booking Offer” (“OBO”) will provide the benefits of a percent savings based on their Le Club Voyage (LCV) level or as a first-time Azamara guest, for each qualifying booking made onboard while offer is available. CONFIRMED BOOKINGS: Adventurer guests will receive 4% savings, Explorer 5%, Discoverer 6%, Discoverer 7%, Discoverer Platinum 10%. First-time Azamara guests will receive 3% savings. Under the Confirmed Booking offer, guests will receive a US$200 onboard credit (OBC) per stateroom, which will be applied to the future cruise. OBC. The OBC has no cash value, is non-transferable, not redeemable for cash and will expire if not used by 10 pm on the final night of the cruise. Single occupancy bookings will receive a pro-rated OBC based on the single supplement rate paid for the cruise. Deposit. A reduced deposit equal to 50% of the amount normally required to be paid for bookings made in your country of residence must be paid, per person, at the time of booking for Club Veranda, Oceanview and Interior staterooms. Suite bookings require payment of the full deposit applicable in your country of residence at the time of booking. This deposit, less an administrative fee which varies based on country of residence, will be refunded if cancellation occurs prior to the applicable final payment due date.

[ptrpanpens]

Thank you Bonnie. This makes sense since it looks like I only paid a 50% supplement for this cruise which was already a great deal due to the double upgrade. 

 

I might point out to singles who are interested that several cruises on AZ in Europe in April and May 2020 have these great single rates which are unadvertised. The Pursuit April TA is even a better deal but unfortunately I can’t take advantage. I think most of the best deals are on Pursuit for some reason.

 

some of these cruises are working out way cheaper <50% of some prices on the new Celebrity cruises for 2021, which is really unbelievable.

 

Anne

 

 

 

 

[excitedofharpenden]

I don't think it's right. You should be given OBC based on booking in the first half of the cruise which is $300 not $200. So I think your pro rated OBC should be $200 not $150.  Unless that has changed. This is from the website. I'm not aware the extra OBC for booking in the first half of the cruise has been discontinued. Perhaps Bonnie can confirm. 

 

I had the same issue when I did it although there wasn't a reduced supplement. They gave me $200 instead of $300 and I had to sort it when I came home. The code CRUISENOW2 should be input on your booking. 

 

Phil 

Edited November 22, 2019 by excitedofharpenden