First-timers on Azamara!

[Scubaaah]

Hi everyone! We have booked for our 30th Anniversary the 11-Night Intensive Italy in a Continental Club Suite on the Journey for next August 2022. This will be our first time on AZ and we haven't been huge cruisers. We've taken a few Celebrity and one RCCL through the Caribbean (we live in SoFlo) and then went on the Paul Gauguin in French Polynesia. Now we're super excited for this trip and of course have tons of questions, some general about the ship and others about the ports from those who may have visited these places. Any info is greatly appreciated!!!  

1. What do they mean by priority embarkation and debarkation - if we can board the ship early, what time? Do we get to debark sooner at each port?

 

2. Can you make reservations in the specialty restaurants ahead of time and if so how? If not, how do you make them on the ship/where do you go?

 

3. What night during the itinerary do they typically have the White Party? And what exactly is the Azamazing Evening? Do they book a venue off the ship for this? And again what night do they typically do this during the itinerary?

 

4. Is it better to book excursions through the ship in some ports and use alternate operators in others? 

 

5. Any recommendations for tour operators? Clearly the travel sites are full of recommendations but due to COVID some of these may have changed/out of biz.  

 

If you have any other recommendations that I haven't asked above, please feel free to share!! Really appreciate it!! 

 

[Scots Caz]

there is a great thread here that should cover most if not all of your queries

 

[ECCruise]

26 minutes ago, Scubaaah said:

Hi everyone! We have booked for our 30th Anniversary the 11-Night Intensive Italy in a Continental Club Suite on the Journey for next August 2022. This will be our first time on AZ and we haven't been huge cruisers. We've taken a few Celebrity and one RCCL through the Caribbean (we live in SoFlo) and then went on the Paul Gauguin in French Polynesia. Now we're super excited for this trip and of course have tons of questions, some general about the ship and others about the ports from those who may have visited these places. Any info is greatly appreciated!!!  

1. What do they mean by priority embarkation and debarkation - if we can board the ship early, what time? At present, no one knows how embarkation will be handled.  Some lines are doing specific check-in times and holding you to them.  Time will tell.  Do we get to debark sooner at each port? No.

 

2. Can you make reservations in the specialty restaurants ahead of time and if so how? If not, how do you make them on the ship/where do you go?  Nothing in advance.  You can book on embarkation day in the table they will set up in, at least, Windows Cafe.  May be other locations for reservations but, again, who knows at this time.

 

3. What night during the itinerary do they typically have the White Party? And what exactly is the Azamazing Evening? Do they book a venue off the ship for this? And again what night do they typically do this during the itinerary?  Both will be on a late night or overnight in port.  Currently, Azamazing Evenings are replaced with and onboard event through at least next spring.

 

4. Is it better to book excursions through the ship in some ports and use alternate operators in others?   Like any cruise line, your decision.

 

5. Any recommendations for tour operators? Clearly the travel sites are full of recommendations but due to COVID some of these may have changed/out of biz.  That would be something best discussed on the roll call for your sailing.

 

If you have any other recommendations that I haven't asked above, please feel free to share!! Really appreciate it!! 

 

 

[Scubaaah]

1 hour ago, Scots Caz said:

there is a great thread here that should cover most if not all of your queries

 

Thank you so much! This is really helpful! 

[Scubaaah]

1 hour ago, ECCruise said:

 

Wonderful, thank you for answering my questions! 

[mj_holiday]

As  has been mentioned, the way things are going to be done in the future due to COVID are not known.  

 

I have some added information about White Night that I wish I would have realized before our first cruise.  We have been on one Azamara cruise and we have another one booked because of their great intensive itinerary for destinations.  So we have been to one White Night.  It is a very large buffet on the deck with lots of buffet stations,  lots of tables set up and people saving tables early.  DH and I are not fans of large buffets.  This one had such long lines that we really didn't know what the line we were in led to.  There was music and dancing after dinner and all had a good time.  I later realized that the main dining room was open for dinner with a nice menu.

 

On or next Azamara cruise, if White Night looks like it will be similar to what past ones were like, we will go to the dining room for dinner and come up on deck afterwards to listen to the music.

[manc]

One of the specialty restaurants will also be open on White Night for  those who  prefer a quieter time

[jelayne]

I thought I read that, at least for a while, White Night was being modified to a event with hors d'oeuvres and drinks being served at various places around the ship, avoiding having the large crowd in one area.

Or did I dream that??

[Grandma Cruising]

However, the buffet food on White Night is terrific.

 

As Jelayne says White Night is changing for the time being.  Obviously a deck buffet with long lines is not sensible in current circumstances.

 

Also for now Azamazing evenings will be onboard with local entertainment.

Edited June 8, 2021 by Grandma Cruising

[uktog]

8 minutes ago, jelayne said:

I thought I read that, at least for a while, White Night was being modified to a event with hors d'oeuvres and drinks being served at various places around the ship, avoiding having the large crowd in one area.

Or did I dream that??

No you did not it is a musical or folk lore extravaganza across the whole ship with delicacies being served - so I suspect waiters circulating with trays.  To the OP, to be honest we cannot answer any of your questions other than to hope that things will be similar to the information on the Hints thread by August 2022 and not the more constraint onboard experience this Autumn may be facing

[Grandma Cruising]

Just to answer some of your questions - priority embarkation and disembarkation relates to the beginning & end of the cruise only. As Azamara ships have less than 700 passengers, you don’t need to worry about getting on and off in port, there is rarely a queue. If it’s a tender port, then you may have to wait a while but never for too long.

 

You can’t book speciality restaurants ahead, but once onboard you can book at the reservation desk on deck 9 in the entry to ‘Windows Buffet’ or in the other reservation desk which will probably be on Deck 5, either in Spirits bar or in Discoveries bar.

 

Of course as Uktog says all of this information, including everything in the ‘tips’ topic is pre-COVID, and pre Azamara being bought by Sycamore, so none of us really knows how things will work in the future, we can only talk about our past experience until cruises get started again.

Edited June 8, 2021 by Grandma Cruising

[Dr H]

Very sad you have to wait more than a year to travel with Azamara. Somewhat off topic, would you be willing to change the date of your cruise? I/we used to live in Italy, and August is the absolute worst time to go there. It is hotter than hell, mobbed with tourists, at least it used to be, and the country closes down for Ferragosto, basically everything shuts down for a month, and that includes museums. I would STRONGLY urge you to change your travel date if you can. Fall months are wonderful, the dead of winter is wonderful, and springtime is wonderful. Summer, especially August, definitely not wonderful! Okay, on to questions. Priority Embarkation. In the old days, the fancy rich people had a special check in counter, away from the riff raff. In reality, when you have fewer than a maximum of 700 passengers and about 10 check in counters, plus a lot of paperwork done on line weeks before departure, there is rarely a wait to check in and board. Our last cruise, transatlantic, there was a line at priority, and poor, humble souls that we are (Veranda, not even Veranda Plus), we had no wait at all. Now this was all pre-Covid. We think we are now going to be assigned check in times to avoid crowding. In the past, you could request a time slot from noon to about 4PM to check in; my guess is that we will now be assigned that slot. Specialty dining your big advantage in the suite. You can't pre-book, but you will be directed toward the reservation area as soon as you put down your glass of champagne after boarding. It cannot be missed, and if it is, you can call the restaurants directly, or have your poor butler do it for you. You won't go hungry, and the likelihood of missing a specific date and/or time is really, really slim. (Secret only Azamara regulars know: You can order Prime C desserts in Aqualina, and Aqualina desserts in Prime C. Don't tell anyone, please. The Prime C doughnuts with 3 dipping sauces are to die for. Our secret). White Nights. Anyone's guess... Bring a white shirt and white trousers or shorts. Show up in a suit at night in Italy in August, you are asking for a heat stroke. Excursions: if you book with the ship a) you will pay a lot more, b) get a quality trip, and C) most important, the ship will not leave without you. Many moons ago, we got stuck in unimaginable traffic  on a tour in Indonesia. We were more than 2½ hours late getting back to the ship, which was well past sailing time. The ship was held, the restaurants were kept open extra hours to accommodate us. That wouldn't have happened on a private tour. That said, we've been on some amazing private tours world wide (Tours by Locals) that have not run into any problems, and were significantly less expensive than the ships tours. Do your homework. Lastly, there is a self service laundry on board, no charge, and soap is provided. It can get crowded, but you really meet some nice people there. I did lose a sock on my first cruise about 10 years ago, which is still annoying. I'm very OCD, and I haven't lost a second sock to balance out the drawn in all these years. That's about my biggest, running complaint with Azamara. Enjoy. And seriously, change your dates if you can. We will be doing Italy intensive this October, the Sea Gods willing.  David

[GlobalMethod]

14 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

On or next Azamara cruise, if White Night looks like it will be similar to what past ones were like, we will go to the dining room for dinner and come up on deck afterwards to listen to the music.

The music and entertainment on White Night is truly worth waiting for ... but ... it can be difficult to find a table if you aren't there when it is getting started.

[SD Beach Bum]

Scubaah,

 

I too lived in Italy and concur completely with Dr. H. about visiting Italy in August.  To be avoided if at all possible!

[SD Beach Bum]

How is the quality of the WiFi in general on the ship?  (We'll be on the Pursuit in October.)  I don't like to be connected much, but my travel partner will have to stay plugged in with work.  I'm mulling over the various Internet packages.  Thank you.

[SD Beach Bum]

I've only been on large cruise ships before.  What sorts of activities are offered in the evenings?  Are there games, quizzes, trivia, etc.?

[Grandma Cruising]

10 hours ago, SD Beach Bum said:

I've only been on large cruise ships before.  What sorts of activities are offered in the evenings?  Are there games, quizzes, trivia, etc.?

There are trivia quizzes during the day but not in the evening. In the evening there is a show either by the ships singers & dancers (including the very talented cCruise Directors) or by a visiting singer/musician/magician/comedian etc. There is music in the Living Room, followed by a disco after 10:30 and a pianist in the Den.

[Grandma Cruising]

10 hours ago, SD Beach Bum said:

How is the quality of the WiFi in general on the ship?  (We'll be on the Pursuit in October.)  I don't like to be connected much, but my travel partner will have to stay plugged in with work.  I'm mulling over the various Internet packages.  Thank you.

The Wifi is OK, but not brilliant. If your partner needs it for work you might be better with a full cruise package for one device. If you buy a ‘minutes’ package you will find that lots of time gets eaten up with logging on and off. Also if you forget to log off you can lose a lot of minutes.

[royallondon]

On the “Intensive” cruises, you often only have 1 sea day (if any) and will be in port for extended times with readily available Wi-fi in Port terminals, Cafes, restaurants etc.  This reduces significantly the reliance on the Ships Wi-fi which can be patchy.

 

Regards

[SD Beach Bum]

Thanks Grandma Cruising and  royallondon.  Very helpful.  I will in fact be on an “intensive” cruise - Greece and Turkey.  Can’t wait!

[KevintheIrishDJ]

8 hours ago, Grandma Cruising said:

The Wifi is OK, but not brilliant. If your partner needs it for work you might be better with a full cruise package for one device. If you buy a ‘minutes’ package you will find that lots of time gets eaten up with logging on and off. Also if you forget to log off you can lose a lot of minutes.

True; however, I have not seen anything definitive about getting off ships unless you are taking a ship's tour.

[uktog]

17 minutes ago, KevintheIrishDJ said:

True; however, I have not seen anything definitive about getting off ships unless you are taking a ship's tour.

To be honest in most ports you can get leakage from the port terminal wifi and log in on your balcony

[excitedofharpenden]

8 hours ago, Grandma Cruising said:

The Wifi is OK, but not brilliant. If your partner needs it for work you might be better with a full cruise package for one device. If you buy a ‘minutes’ package you will find that lots of time gets eaten up with logging on and off. Also if you forget to log off you can lose a lot of minutes.

I agree. Much less stressful to buy an unlimited package. I will admit that with the exception of the odd cruise, the wifi is ok, but obviously much slower than at home. If you can go on early in the morning to do work stuff it's generally quicker.  

 

If you buy one complete package you can both use it if you need to using the same user name and password, but not at the same time on different devices. 

 

Phil 

[uktog]

Agree, I am surprised how many people are happy to pay for a cruise etc but then won't buy wifi.  OK maybe it should be included in the price but just think of your cruise price plus wifi cost equals cost of cruise with wifi included.  Its no big deal.

 

Worse still you go on a tour and the guide is starting to tell you all about a place and people immediately go whats the wifi password then travel with their nose in their phones looking neither to the left or the right at what you are passing.  Or we get to a stop, there are views to look at or a museum to see and they rush round (or don't even start) and sit in the foyer or cafe on their phones to use wifi.  

 

I am sure the cruiser who asked the question is not one of these people but there are others...... rant over.

[KevintheIrishDJ]

29 minutes ago, uktog said:

To be honest in most ports you can get leakage from the port terminal wifi and log in on your balcony

Yes; however, you are assuming these places are still open.