Why is it now Azamara???

[Cruisininfinity]

why cant it still be Celebrity its weird to say that i am going on azamara not celebrity.
well i can say that after i get off i have been on 2 cruiselines

[Host Andy]

why cant it still be Celebrity its weird to say that i am going on azamara not celebrity.
well i can say that after i get off i have been on 2 cruiselines

Hi Cruisin !

All I can say is that it was a corporate decision by Celebrity/Royal Caribbean to have 2 cruiselines. I know many folks wonder why the change, and why now.... but this often happens in the corporate world. I am not going to second guess it, it's done. I hope will be very successful for them.

[1cruiselvr]

I think it's so the cruiseline can have separate policies as these ships can't offer the same amenities or can it function like a large ship. Happy Sailing!

[Isaac]

This has been discussed in other threads, but a lot of it is marketing. They're trying to create a new brand identity to go after a different traveler segment. There has been a lot of talk about similarities between Amazara and Oceania, which is a higher end line that doesn't have a ton of direct competition. While the Celebrity name is generally well regarded and I think towards the top of the large cruise line segment, they're not grouped with lines like Oceania and Regent. They've also taken a lot of hits over the past few years with a lot of talk about how they've declined in quality. Rather than trying to convince people that Celebrity can run with the little lines, they obviously thought it made more sense to create a new line with a fancy name.

I made the analogy in another thread to car companies and someone else likened it to Starwood Hotels. I think both are true. Toyota, Nissan, and Honda wanted to run with BMW and Mercedez and attract car buyers in their income bracket. Rather than trying to convince people that their cars were as luxurious, we now have Lexus, Infiniti, and Acura. I'm not a car industry historian and don't know if that's exactly how it went down, but you get the basic idea. Starwood created W hotels to target a young, hip, wealthy crowd. They're in the process of creating aloft to go after the young, hip, not quite as wealthy crowd. They're creating Element to go after business travelers and try to compete with extended stay offerings from Marriott, Hilton, and other brands.

Different groups of people identify with different brands. I think this is especially true based on income which is why you don't see a lot of wealthy people clamoring to buy a Toyota Camry despite it's quality and reliability. They buy a Lexus instead.

[slotl]

and a good one in my opinion. We shall see how the website, printed brochures, TV commercials have to offer when they are released.

There is a large segment of the cruising population who prefer the smaller, more intimate ships which travel to exotic locations for longer lengths of time.

I think they created this "separate" cruise line to target well-heeled, well-traveled public who love to cruise in a more "personal" fashion. As the cruise progresses, you get to recognize most of your fellow passengers and the crew has the opportunity to address you by your name.

I think it is the correct move to distinguish these ships from the other Celebrity line of ships which travel to the same ports week after week. Only a very few Celebrity ships "cruise small ports around the world".

We booked the 7 day Journey to Bermuda on Oct 20th. I am really looking forward to the experience on Azamara. We have previously cruised on the Pacific Princess on the Journey's sister ship.