Everything great on the Pursuit (May 30-Jun 13)

[Marylebone37]

Reposting this here from the another thread to avoid going too off topic…

 

I have been/am a harsh critic of management’s system transition fiasco, and have posted about it on other threads. 

 

BUT, I boarded the Pursuit on Tuesday in Barcelona. As others have said, the shipboard experience is seemingly unaffected and truly superb. Embarkation (with nothing but a passport) was seamless and very quick. The ship is in really excellent, almost pristine, condition, the food outstanding in Discoveries and Windows, and the service levels are on par with or even better than other luxury players like Regent, Seabourn etc. Internet dropped here and there for brief periods, but otherwise very speedy and easy to set up and apply your status level discount. 
 

Heads up to those boarding in Barcelona… the online FAQ did show the wrong name for the embarkation terminal. We boarded at the Marina terminal (where the ferries arrive/depart) and NOT Moll Adossat. Luckily we had a helpful taxi driver, but keep your eyes peeled for the ship and signage. 

 

Our OBC did not make it to the ship and that is being sorted out by reception and filling out the appropriate paperwork for Miami to review/confirm. However, excursion tickets (booked and paid for using OBC prior to the transition) were waiting in the stateroom and correct. Loyalty status was totally incorrect online but accurate on board. 
 

Happy to answer any questions as best as possible. 

[lisiamc]

Thank you for seeing (and talking about) both sides. I’m really glad that your cruise is off to a good start!

[excitedofharpenden]

Thank you for reporting back and I'm pleased to hear the ship looked after you better than their on land admin did. Let's hope that part will be in the rear view mirror soon. 

 

Phil 

[takemewithyou]

Thank you so much for your reports!

Would love to hear more from you as you have time to report!

Let us know how the entertainment is.

Also, can you let us know if there are any shuttle buses being offered from port to city?

[Retired grandparents]

9 hours ago, Marylebone37 said:

 

Reposting this here from the another thread to avoid going too off topic…

 

I have been/am a harsh critic of management’s system transition fiasco, and have posted about it on other threads. 

 

BUT, I boarded the Pursuit on Tuesday in Barcelona. As others have said, the shipboard experience is seemingly unaffected and truly superb. Embarkation (with nothing but a passport) was seamless and very quick. The ship is in really excellent, almost pristine, condition, the food outstanding in Discoveries and Windows, and the service levels are on par with or even better than other luxury players like Regent, Seabourn etc. Internet dropped here and there for brief periods, but otherwise very speedy and easy to set up and apply your status level discount. 
 

Heads up to those boarding in Barcelona… the online FAQ did show the wrong name for the embarkation terminal. We boarded at the Marina terminal (where the ferries arrive/depart) and NOT Moll Adossat. Luckily we had a helpful taxi driver, but keep your eyes peeled for the ship and signage. 

 

Our OBC did not make it to the ship and that is being sorted out by reception and filling out the appropriate paperwork for Miami to review/confirm. However, excursion tickets (booked and paid for using OBC prior to the transition) were waiting in the stateroom and correct. Loyalty status was totally incorrect online but accurate on board. 
 

Happy to answer any questions as best as possible. 

My concern is what is happening for people when they get home and no inaccurate charges on credit card follow them home.  We have 1000 OBC and want to use it for the cruise but the site is not working right.  Wish I could get it done and have tickets waiting in room for us instead of the mess of going to the excursion desk with 600 other passengers doing same thing.  I really dread that.

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, Retired grandparents said:

My concern is what is happening for people when they get home and no inaccurate charges on credit card follow them home.  We have 1000 OBC and want to use it for the cruise but the site is not working right.  Wish I could get it done and have tickets waiting in room for us instead of the mess of going to the excursion desk with 600 other passengers doing same thing.  I really dread that.

Where is your dread coming from?  Have you seen any report about post-cruise overcharges?  I haven't.

[Marylebone37]

6 hours ago, takemewithyou said:

Thank you so much for your reports!

Would love to hear more from you as you have time to report!

Let us know how the entertainment is.

Also, can you let us know if there are any shuttle buses being offered from port to city?

I won’t be much help on the entertainment as we don’t go to many shows. Barry on the Keys is a character in the Den. And very talented. The CD Emily is not only lovely but a great singer too. And the house band is very enjoyable. 
 

No experience with shuttle buses yet. But will let you know. 

[Marylebone37]

Regarding shuttle buses… as I was typing we arrived in Malaga, Spain. Passed the Viking Star moored way out on the pier while we on the Pursuit sailed right past her and are docking in the middle of the city. No bus needed for us!

[Host Jazzbeau]

11 hours ago, Marylebone37 said:

Regarding shuttle buses… as I was typing we arrived in Malaga, Spain. Passed the Viking Star moored way out on the pier while we on the Pursuit sailed right past her and are docking in the middle of the city. No bus needed for us!

This is one of Azamara's strong suits!  Their small ships can dock close in, and they have a good track record on getting the prime spots.

[Grandma Cruising]

44 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

This is one of Azamara's strong suits!  They small ships can dock close in, and they have a good track record on getting the prime spots.

We always thought that too, but that wasn’t our experience in March on the Pursuit Rio to Lisbon transatlantic cruise. The Brazilian ports were fine but in Cape Verde we were the first ship there, but were docked at the furthest end of the dock. Two other ships came in after us and got nearer spots. To add insult to injury they both had shuttle buses and we didn’t. We ended up not getting off the ship there as it was too far for my DH to walk just to get to the dock gates. In Tenerife and Madeira we were also docked the furthest out of several ships. There was no shuttle in Tenerife either, but there was one in Madeira.

Edited June 1, 2023 by Grandma Cruising

[Host Jazzbeau]

4 minutes ago, Grandma Cruising said:

We always thought that too, but that wasn’t our experience in March on the Pursuit Rio to Lisbon transatlantic cruise. The Brazilian ports were fine but in Cape Verde we were the first ship there, but we’re docked at the furthest   end of the dock. Two other ships came in after us and got nearer spots. To add insult to injury they both had shuttle buses and we didn’t. We ended up not getting off the ship there as it was too far for my DH to walk just to get to the dock gates. In Tenerife and Madeira we were also docked the furthest out of several ships. There was no shuttle in Tenerife either, but there was one in Madeira.

Sorry to hear that.  I hope it will not be a trend.

[Marylebone37]

1 hour ago, Marylebone37 said:

Regarding shuttle buses… as I was typing we arrived in Malaga, Spain. Passed the Viking Star moored way out on the pier while we on the Pursuit sailed right past her and are docking in the middle of the city. No bus needed for us!

Here are 2 pics from the stateroom this morning. Could not be closer to downtown. 

[Mrs Miggins]

We board Journey in Barcelona on Saturday.  We were expecting to dock by the World Trade Centre right in the centre of Barcelona.  Have googled Marina Terminal but getting confusing answers ?

[uktog]

Things change all the time. Taxi drivers usually can work it out. The other tip is google the ships position on Marine Traffic on Saturday morning as it will park up around 0600 or earlier UK time 

[lisiamc]

4 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Sorry to hear that.  I hope it will not be a trend.

I’m sure it won’t be. We’ve been on two cruises since March (when that transatlatic sailed) and there were shuttles everywhere they were needed. Part of the problems with berths and shuttles could be that Azamara doesn’t call very often in some of those ports, especially Cape Verde. When there are other ships in port that day, that call more frequently, they are likely to get a better allocation of any scarce resources.

 

There have been a few conversations lately about Viking Ocean sailing in Alaska. They are the new kids on the block, and are not getting some of the plum allocations yet. It’s not that they don’t want them, or don’t try to get them, but there are only so many ships that can be handled well in a given place on a given day.

[wjfan417]

8 hours ago, Retired grandparents said:

My concern is what is happening for people when they get home and no inaccurate charges on credit card follow them home.  We have 1000 OBC and want to use it for the cruise but the site is not working right.  Wish I could get it done and have tickets waiting in room for us instead of the mess of going to the excursion desk with 600 other passengers doing same thing.  I really dread that.

Someone reported on another thread that they were able to call Azamara and book the shore excursions over the phone using their OBC. This was a few days ago and she said she was able to get through very quickly.

[Marylebone37]

4 hours ago, uktog said:

Things change all the time. Taxi drivers usually can work it out. The other tip is google the ships position on Marine Traffic on Saturday morning as it will park up around 0600 or earlier UK time 

This is perfect advice Mrs. Miggins. 

[Retired grandparents]

9 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Where is your dread coming from?  Have you seen any report about post-cruise overcharges?  I haven't.

Yes, I have seen a number of reports of people fighting for months to get charges sorted.  One fellow had about 3500 dollars in bogus charges. 

I have an agent.  There were problems with an overcharge of 600 for the cruise and our OBC was not showing.  Also, loyalty credits are wrong.  I don't care about the loyalty so much.  I called them multiple times sitting on hold for hours.  Was told twice they would fix it and they did not.  My agent went to them as well and it was not fixed.

I finally went to agent and put foot down as we have been with them long time and brought many friends in to them, they also sailed on Azamara with us as well.

I think it is sorted.  I insisted on an email from AZ detailing our OBC that is written to us and to ship staff.  Spent just far too much time on going back and forth and still can't get the excursions all sorted. 

But, only real concern now is I do not want to see overcharges on CC that take months to sort out.

They are struggling with the transition and I understand the pain of it.  They are my preferred line, we did more than 10 with Viking and know great service in front of the house and on the ship.  AZ is the best for destination time and quality IMV.  Hoping this cruise goes off without a glitch and we are booking more with them in future.

 

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, Retired grandparents said:

Yes, I have seen a number of reports of people fighting for months to get charges sorted.  One fellow had about 3500 dollars in bogus charges. 

I have an agent.  There were problems with an overcharge of 600 for the cruise and our OBC was not showing.  Also, loyalty credits are wrong.  I don't care about the loyalty so much.  I called them multiple times sitting on hold for hours.  Was told twice they would fix it and they did not.  My agent went to them as well and it was not fixed.

I finally went to agent and put foot down as we have been with them long time and brought many friends in to them, they also sailed on Azamara with us as well.

I think it is sorted.  I insisted on an email from AZ detailing our OBC that is written to us and to ship staff.  Spent just far too much time on going back and forth and still can't get the excursions all sorted. 

But, only real concern now is I do not want to see overcharges on CC that take months to sort out.

They are struggling with the transition and I understand the pain of it.  They are my preferred line, we did more than 10 with Viking and know great service in front of the house and on the ship.  AZ is the best for destination time and quality IMV.  Hoping this cruise goes off without a glitch and we are booking more with them in future.

 

I asked what you had read about post-cruise overcharges.  Everything I have read, and the reports you mention above seem to fit this, has been pre-cruise.  Once onboard the charges get sorted.

[crzrr]

Any erroneous post cruise charges are easily dispensed with by filing a dispute with your credit card company.  No point in waiting any great length of time if it is not corrected promptly.

[Marylebone37]

3 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I asked what you had read about post-cruise overcharges.  Everything I have read, and the reports you mention above seem to fit this, has been pre-cruise.  Once onboard the charges get sorted.

Well… after 48+ hours, my OBC is still not sorted. Spent 40 minutes at Reception this afternoon, including a live call to my TA, and we’ll see what transpires. AZ’s back office and management is still a hot mess based upon my experience as of today on board. 

[takemewithyou]

17 minutes ago, Marylebone37 said:

Well… after 48+ hours, my OBC is still not sorted. Spent 40 minutes at Reception this afternoon, including a live call to my TA, and we’ll see what transpires. AZ’s back office and management is still a hot mess based upon my experience as of today on board. 

did you come with any written proof of what OBC should have been?  
Just asking because I hope if I come with written proof, all should be ok.  
And I board 6/13.

[hamrag]

5 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I asked what you had read about post-cruise overcharges.  Everything I have read, and the reports you mention above seem to fit this, has been pre-cruise.  Once onboard the charges get sorted.

That was certainly our experience on the Onward in May, no issues at all with the onboard charges etc.

[Marylebone37]

8 hours ago, takemewithyou said:

did you come with any written proof of what OBC should have been?  
Just asking because I hope if I come with written proof, all should be ok.  
And I board 6/13.

Yes. It looks like my TA sent in their amenity voucher/receipt about 30 days prior to sailing on 30-May. But it was never applied by AZ. Working through the details now, and it’s Day 4 of the cruise. 
 

I saw the list of cabins that Reception is working on (with issues to resolve), and I’d estimate it was still 20 or 20 cabins in total after several days.
 

I will say the staff at Reception is very good and extremely professional. No bad attitudes or impatience of any kind. 

Edited June 2, 2023 by Marylebone37

[Marylebone37]

1 hour ago, Marylebone37 said:

Yes. It looks like my TA sent in their amenity voucher/receipt about 30 days prior to sailing on 30-May. But it was never applied by AZ. Working through the details now, and it’s Day 4 of the cruise. 
 

I saw the list of cabins that Reception is working on (with issues to resolve), and I’d estimate it was still 20 or 20 cabins in total after several days.
 

I will say the staff at Reception is very good and extremely professional. No bad attitudes or impatience of any kind. 

I meant 20-30 cabins long…

 

Everything else on the ship thus far continues to be excellent. Zero complaints. I’m so impressed with how well maintained everything is.