First Cruise on Azamara, have some questions

[sarasotascott]

We are looking forward to our first Azamara cruise on the Journey for 15 days in a Continent Suite.  We are regular cruisers mostly on Celebrity.  I have a short list of questions, so any help will be appreciated. 

 

What is the earliest time can we expect to board? 

 

When are the cabins typically ready to drop off carry-on bags?

 

What times are the evening shows?

 

Where do I go to book specialty dining as soon as I board?

 

I'm thinking of booking 5 Prime C, 4 Aqualina, 1 Chef Table and the rest will be White Night and Discoveries.  Are there any don't miss dinners in Discoveries that we should consider? 

 

Where do I go to purchase the Experience More Indulgence package? I will purchase as soon as I'm done with booking the dining.

 

Any general tips?

 

  

 

 

[mj_holiday]

• We got to port around noon and there was a special area for Club Continent to wait.  We didn't wait more than 15 minutes.       
• We don't drop luggage in our suit early, don't want to interfere with the work all the room stewards, so can't answer that.     
• We were able to book specialty dining at a table just outside Windows after we got a board.   
• For Experience more, ask the person who is working specialty reservations, but I think you can do it with any bartender.
• Do not overlook Discoveries for dining, we have enjoyed our meals there. We got bored with Aqualina, but enjoyed Prime C
• After our first White Night, we learned we could eat in Discoveries or a specialty restaurant that night, which we did our next cruise. While I am sure White Night is enjoyed by the many people there, I just did not enjoy all the lines for food, when you couldn't even see what was being served. We had a nice dinner at Discoveries and then went on deck to enjoy the music.
• Get  to know your butler and one or two friendly servers.  You will have a great time.

[tgg]

6 minutes ago, mj_holiday said:

•  
• After our first White Night, we learned we could eat in Discoveries or a specialty restaurant that night, which we did our next cruise. While I am sure White Night is enjoyed by the many people there, I just did not enjoy all the lines for food, when you couldn't even see what was being served. We had a nice dinner at Discoveries and then went on deck to enjoy the music.
•  

 

We do this too. I love a nice, quiet dinner followed by lots of dancing outdoors.

 

Be sure not to miss the special dinners with ethnic food specialties served in Windows at night. You can have a lovely dinner eating outside on deck 9.

[uktog]

There is usually an area you can drop off your carryon once on the ship and they deliver it to the room immediately. They frown on guests heading to rooms before the general announcement around 1330

- all rooms are “released” at the same time. Azamara is very much a classless ship though you of course have suite benefits- breakfast in Aqualina is a really nice one 

[Dr H]

I'd say I'm jealous, but we board Pursuit in two weeks for two weeks around Greece and Turkey. Okay, coming from Celebrity, you are in for a big treat on Azamara. First, dining, you are spending much too much time in the specialty restaurants. Menus are limited in both, and while service, ambiance, and food quality is excellence plus, the MDR is no slacker. Some meals are better than others, but in 14 years of cruising with Azamara, I can only report one that was really bad, and that was back in 2010 (some demented Uzbekistani dwarf's interpretation of "Beef Stroganoff". Almost 15 years later, I'm still talking about it.)  Our favorite so far remains MDR's Wiener Schnitzel.) Before you book your specialties, they will have the MDR menus available in Window's Cafe.   Chef's Tables, we've done a lot. The Good: Unimaginably, the food tends to be better than what you get in either the specialties or MDR. The better: the wine pairings. Someone invariably had a lot of fun putting them together. The bad: If you aren't wine drinkers or wine lovers, don't waste your money. My favorite is the Italian dinner, not so much for the food, which was amazing, but I think overall, the quality of the Italian wines were better than the French. Number 2 is the French Dinner. We don't bother with the American, if I want good American food, I can stay home and save a lot of money. We've never done the Arabic dinner, and while not officially a "Chef's Table", occasionally they will do a Rijkstafel. We've done it twice, disappointed twice, won't be doing it a third time. Considering the number of Indonesian staff, we've been very surprised that both were less than great. Boarding time: Officially you need to sacrifice either some birds or a white bull to determine an accurate time. Usually while not promoted, you can check in around 11:30, and board anywhere from 15 minutes to a 1+ hour wait, it depends upon the wind direction and moon phase. White Night: It's a fun evening, very loud, very good food, and yes, long lines. I don't dance, but do enjoy watching others who do enjoy the tribal activities. Dinner in either the specialties, MDR, or Cafe (and dinners in the Cafe can be VERY pleasant, and very, very different from the Discovery experience) is possible that night, if you so choose. All in all, you should have a great time. As I said, I wish I could be jealous, I just have a big smile on my face wishing I could see your reactions to our favorite line.

[Host Jazzbeau]

10 hours ago, mj_holiday said:

After our first White Night, we learned we could eat in Discoveries or a specialty restaurant that night, which we did our next cruise. While I am sure White Night is enjoyed by the many people there, I just did not enjoy all the lines for food, when you couldn't even see what was being served. We had a nice dinner at Discoveries and then went on deck to enjoy the music.

Depending on when you like to dine, you might miss the Crêpes Suzette!  We like to dine late, so I start with dessert at the White Night and then go to Discoveries for dinner.

 

[edited to add:]  No, I started with a Citrus Salad [Grand Marnier is orange-based, right?] then proceeded to dinner.  Yeah, that's it.  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

[wjfan417]

One of the nice things about MDR is that you can request a shared table, giving you another opportunity to meet new people.

[sarasotascott]

Thanks to everyone for your information….very helpful.  Does anyone know what times the evening entertainment begins?  

[Grandma Cruising]

33 minutes ago, sarasotascott said:

Thanks to everyone for your information….very helpful.  Does anyone know what times the evening entertainment begins?  

On Onward on this cruise it's been 8:15 and 9:30

[Dynacruiser]

@sarasotascott, since this is your first cruise, you may want to google "Azamara daily Insider" and find examples that folks post online.  Very helpful to understand daily schedules.  Now, some schedules change, but meals and shows and usually around the same time.  Example:

 

https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2986976-copies-of-past-insider-daily-brochure/

 

I hope you enjoy your first Azamara cruise! Many of us love them, have cruised with Azamara for years, and have 2, 3 or 5 future cruises booked.  However, Azamara may not please everybody, not everything is perfect (is there a "perfect" cruise line?).  If you go with reasonable expectations, you may have an unforgettable experience.

Edited September 26 by Dynacruiser

[NicNata]

To all the above comments, I would add that I never skip the Indian Buffet night in Windows Cafe. The food is always sensational

[AllisonJames]

My personal preference, but I just can’t imagine doing 10 nights specialty dining on a 15 night cruise…I haven’t found the menus in Prime C and Aqualina extensive and interesting enough for that many nights and we enjoy Discoveries. We also like to dine at least one night at the Patio. We usually do the Chef’s Table plus 2 and between Discoveries, Patio, White Night we find that is plenty of variety for a 12 night cruise. You might plan for a couple dinners in each specialty first and see how you like Discoveries before booking that many specialties.

[excitedofharpenden]

8 hours ago, AllisonJames said:

My personal preference, but I just can’t imagine doing 10 nights specialty dining on a 15 night cruise…I haven’t found the menus in Prime C and Aqualina extensive and interesting enough for that many nights and we enjoy Discoveries. We also like to dine at least one night at the Patio. We usually do the Chef’s Table plus 2 and between Discoveries, Patio, White Night we find that is plenty of variety for a 12 night cruise. You might plan for a couple dinners in each specialty first and see how you like Discoveries before booking that many specialties.

I'm with you. The variety in the Specialty Restaurants isn't enough because the menus don't vary, except for a special which is also pretty static. On a 10 night cruise I might go there once or twice, even when I'm in a suite. I also felt that Discoveries had upped it's game last time as far as food is concerned. I felt the wine service there was better than in both Aqualina and Prime C. 

 

I definitely like to mix it up. Discoveries, Patio, buffet. They actually do a really nice job in Windows with dressing the table for dinner so you don't feel as though you're in a buffet. And then if the weather is decent you can sit out at the back of the ship with the best view. Of course you have to go and get your food, but the crew are so helpful. 

 

Phil 

[excitedofharpenden]

On 9/22/2024 at 4:06 PM, mj_holiday said:

 

• After our first White Night, we learned we could eat in Discoveries or a specialty restaurant that night, which we did our next cruise. While I am sure White Night is enjoyed by the many people there, I just did not enjoy all the lines for food, when you couldn't even see what was being served. We had a nice dinner at Discoveries and then went on deck to enjoy the music.

This is a good tip, but if you are new to Azamara you probably want to go for the experience. I don't enjoy the queues either. 

 

Phil 

[federalexpress]

One dining tip I'd add is The Patio, which others have mentioned but perhaps needs explaining further. It is a semi outdoor venue on the pool deck, most people use it for burgers etc at lunch, but in the evening, it turns into an informal grill, with freshly cooked meat and fish, no supplement. It is also right next to Windows so you can mix and match a bit e.g for starters or desserts. I'm not sure whether your cruise is likely to enjoy decent weather, because it is at its best on warmer evenings and while it does have heaters if it's cool, it's unlikely to open in poor weather.

 

Like you, we were in a CC suite so used the speciality dining a fair bit, but we used Patio more than MDR or the Windows buffet, because it was usually quiet(which we like, others may not), was handy if you wanted a break from the fancier cuisine elsewhere plus I like seeing my food freshly cooked to order (it's an open kitchen). It's a much under appreciated asset in my view.

 

One other dining tip is room service. You will need good weather for this, not too much breeze and/or be on the right side of the ship, but it is possible to have a veranda dinner if you fancy a quieter evening and like outdoor eating. You order off the MDR menu and this is where your butler comes in handy because rather than just delivering you the whole lot, your butler will lay the table properly and bring your meal course by course. It is especially nice if you are cruising where you might have views of the shore.

 

Have a great time.