Newbies incoming!

[MR_T]

Hi All, 

 

So after 20+ celebrity cruises we finally got round to booking Azamara after wanting to try it for so long. I think we finally grew out of celebrity and really wanted to make the switch and find out for ourselves what we think. 
 

The first cruise we booked was a holidays cruise on Journey this year and really looking forward to escaping a piece of our Canadian winter. The second cruise we booked a week or so ago is for April/May 2026 so a fair wait for that one although we are really looking forward to it as it’s a first time destination for the both of us. And currently we are waiting to confirm a third booking for an Iceland cruise leaving July 1st this year so obviously very excited about that one as it’s another first for us both and also super close so we get to experience Azamara a lot sooner than first expected 😊

 

if anyone has any tips/advise good, bad or ugly please feel free to add a comment ☺️

[Mackdogmolly]

Welcome aboard!! I hope you enjoy the Azamara experience as much as most of us on this board! I think you will find a wealth of information on the thread Tips For Azamara Newbies.

[ChucktownSteve]

Welcome. Never too late to join Azamara.  We replaced XX two years ago and haven't regretted it. 

 

Take a look at next year's October cruise from Montreal to Miami on the Quest. It's only a one way flight home. We booked that one.

Edited June 7 by ChucktownSteve

[elmaexec]

1 hour ago, MR_T said:

Hi All, 

 

So after 20+ celebrity cruises we finally got round to booking Azamara after wanting to try it for so long. I think we finally grew out of celebrity and really wanted to make the switch and find out for ourselves what we think. 
 

The first cruise we booked was a holidays cruise on Journey this year and really looking forward to escaping a piece of our Canadian winter. The second cruise we booked a week or so ago is for April/May 2026 so a fair wait for that one although we are really looking forward to it as it’s a first time destination for the both of us. And currently we are waiting to confirm a third booking for an Iceland cruise leaving July 1st this year so obviously very excited about that one as it’s another first for us both and also super close so we get to experience Azamara a lot sooner than first expected 😊

 

if anyone has any tips/advise good, bad or ugly please feel free to add a comment ☺️

We’ve also been regulars on Celebrity, but we’ve been disappointed with them lately. We have a Silversea cruise in September, then trying Azamara in December. 

[Host Jazzbeau]

2 hours ago, elmaexec said:

We’ve also been regulars on Celebrity, but we’ve been disappointed with them lately. We have a Silversea cruise in September, then trying Azamara in December. 

Will be interested in your comparison (of A and SS; we've given up on X as well).  We are big Azamara fans after 3 cruises with 1 more booked; disappointed in SS on our first cruise (on Whisper), but have 2 more booked on newer ships (Endeavour and Ray).

 

Did you get the Silversea status match from your Celebrity status?  That may give you free laundry in September.

[MR_T]

3 hours ago, elmaexec said:

We’ve also been regulars on Celebrity, but we’ve been disappointed with them lately. We have a Silversea cruise in September, then trying Azamara in December. 

It’ll be interesting to hear what you think of silversea, we nearly booked them for our next cruise but decided on Azamara. 

[MR_T]

4 hours ago, Mackdogmolly said:

Welcome aboard!! I hope you enjoy the Azamara experience as much as most of us on this board! I think you will find a wealth of information on the thread Tips For Azamara Newbies.

I really think we will 🤞🏻

[MR_T]

3 hours ago, ChucktownSteve said:

Welcome. Never too late to join Azamara.  We replaced XX two years ago and haven't regretted it. 

 

Take a look at next year's October cruise from Montreal to Miami on the Quest. It's only a one way flight home. We booked that one.

For sure that sounds nice, funny enough we do have a September/October 2025 slot to fill so you never know 😊

[takemewithyou]

6 hours ago, MR_T said:

Hi All, 

 

So after 20+ celebrity cruises we finally got round to booking Azamara after wanting to try it for so long. I think we finally grew out of celebrity and really wanted to make the switch and find out for ourselves what we think. 
 

The first cruise we booked was a holidays cruise on Journey this year and really looking forward to escaping a piece of our Canadian winter. The second cruise we booked a week or so ago is for April/May 2026 so a fair wait for that one although we are really looking forward to it as it’s a first time destination for the both of us. And currently we are waiting to confirm a third booking for an Iceland cruise leaving July 1st this year so obviously very excited about that one as it’s another first for us both and also super close so we get to experience Azamara a lot sooner than first expected 😊

 

if anyone has any tips/advise good, bad or ugly please feel free to add a comment ☺️

Looking forward to meeting you on the Christmas and New Years cruise.  I know you are on the roll call 😀

 

We started sailing Celebrity and Azamara at about the same time…2008 -2009 and we flipped back and forth and then just stayed with Azamara. 
I think you will love Azamara.  You should get a good taste for Azamara on our Journey Christmas cruise. 

 

We love the passengers on Azamara and always have found them to friendly and interesting and well travelled.  It’s easy to find like minded folks to chat with!   The crew on Azamara is the best ever!  If you make any effort to talk, they will reciprocate and you will make instant friends!  They have a remarkable memory and will soon know you and all your likes and dislikes! 
 

Every cruise has a White Night.  Our cruise it should be in Barbados on New Years Eve and then our Azamazing Evening will be in St Maartens on the dock. 
 

For a tip, I would say be sure to visit the specialty restaurant reservation desk as soon as you board!  There you can make your reservations for specialty restaurants, Chefs Table ( which is a must do at least once) and they will have a calendar marked with White Night, Azamazing evening, and any other special meals such as Christmas Eve dinner, Christmas Day, etc.  Come ready with some nights that you might want your specialty restaurant reservations.  
 

Looking forward to cruising with you and welcome to Azamara!
 

 

Edited June 8 by takemewithyou

[elmaexec]

3 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Will be interested in your comparison (of A and SS; we've given up on X as well).  We are big Azamara fans after 3 cruises with 1 more booked; disappointed in SS on our first cruise (on Whisper), but have 2 more booked on newer ships (Endeavour and Ray).

 

Did you get the Silversea status match from your Celebrity status?  That may give you free laundry in September.

SS is usually out of our price range, even now with status matching, but we got a good enough price on the September cruise to tempt us into giving it a try. We’re sailing trans-Pacific on Silver Muse. AZ, while it’s pricier than Celebrity, seems more affordable when you factor in the tips and drinks. Glad to hear you’re happy with them!

[ChucktownSteve]

5 hours ago, elmaexec said:

SS is usually out of our price range, even now with status matching, but we got a good enough price on the September cruise to tempt us into giving it a try. We’re sailing trans-Pacific on Silver Muse. AZ, while it’s pricier than Celebrity, seems more affordable when you factor in the tips and drinks. Glad to hear you’re happy with them!

If you like SS, you may want to watch for Regent's double suite upgrade.  I've booked four of their sailings under that promotion.  They do that periodically.  Each time I was able to book a larger suite compared to the Celebrity's Retreat at less pp/pn.  But they included a lot more in the price.

[riandei]

Good morning 

 

we too left X for greener pastures.

we sailed Azamara 10 years ago when they were owned by Royal Caribbean and we really enjoyed it

 

we then sailed crystal cruise lines and absolutely fell in love with them. Sadly we all know what happened there. We have not sailed them again since they have been purchased and restarted we sailed our very first silver sea cruise in February 2024 while we like Silversea and are booked again January 25, I did not think it was as good as Crystal so I am always on the hunt for a new option that’s why we are trying Azamara again. I also am very interested in trying explora by MSC. 
 

happy to report back our thoughts after our November 8 Caribbean cruise on the journey

 

 

Edited June 8 by riandei
Typo

[MR_T]

14 hours ago, takemewithyou said:

Looking forward to meeting you on the Christmas and New Years cruise.  I know you are on the roll call 😀

 

Looking forward to cruising with you and welcome to Azamara!
 

 

Thanks, for sure we will have to catch up onboard to chat celebrity/Azamara 🍸😊

[Bobreg]

20 hours ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Will be interested in your comparison (of A and SS; we've given up on X as well).  We are big Azamara fans after 3 cruises with 1 more booked; disappointed in SS on our first cruise (on Whisper), but have 2 more booked on newer ships (Endeavour and Ray).

 

Did you get the Silversea status match from your Celebrity status?  That may give you free laundry in September.

Hi.

We will board the Quest on June 10th for our first cruise on Azamara since the COVID. We are also booked on Silversea for a TA from Lisbon in November for our first SS cruise. We did a X cruise post pandemic and like you, we were very disappointed with the service and food. We are looking forward for the upcoming cruise on Azamara Quest even if Tony and Captain Carl have moved to Onward. It will be interesting to compare Azamara before and after the split from RCCL.

Since it will be our first time on SS, we did not know about the status match from our Celebrity status; will ask our TA to check with them.

We will keep you posted on our experience after both cruises.

[Host Jazzbeau]

1 hour ago, Bobreg said:

Since it will be our first time on SS, we did not know about the status match from our Celebrity status; will ask our TA to check with them.

The process is very simple.  Go to the Celebrity App and you will see a Captain's Club blue box offering the status match.