Azamara compared to HAL Alaska

I have just finished reading Librarylady19s wonderful review of her cruise on the Journey. I can appreciate the things that made her decide not to rush back to Azamara.

We have just returned from a HAL Alaska cruise and I think, based on her review, we would find the Journey very similar to our HAL experience. We are looking at ports more than the ship and entertainment is not important. As a matter of fact, we didn't go to any shows or even the bars that had some sort of music.

For a cruise that is port intensive (no sea days), if we loved our HAL cruise, will we be happy on an Azamara cruise?

One of the things I liked about Azamara on our Baltic cruise was the fact that we were docked closer than the bigger ships. In St Petersburg we were right in the city. Big ships were a 40 minute bus ride away.

Azamara provided free shuttles where we weren't right near town.

We also were docked for a long time. Eg 8am- until 10pm.

I will write a report as soon as I get some time.

It's really a personal choice. I would cruise with Azamara again. I think if you had a lot of sea days though it might be a bit too quiet. My husband loved the included drinks the most.:D he would definitely go on Azamara again.

Best thing about AZ over HAL is the smoking restrictions on AZ! Also the number of passengers much better on AZ in my opinion.

Kathy

Interesting, as a former smoker who now rants against it, I didn't notice it on HAL. Good to know it's even better on AZ

I have just finished reading Librarylady19s wonderful review of her cruise on the Journey. I can appreciate the things that made her decide not to rush back to Azamara.

 

We have just returned from a HAL Alaska cruise and I think, based on her review, we would find the Journey very similar to our HAL experience. We are looking at ports more than the ship and entertainment is not important. As a matter of fact, we didn't go to any shows or even the bars that had some sort of music.

 

For a cruise that is port intensive (no sea days), if we loved our HAL cruise, will we be happy on an Azamara cruise?

Yes! We cruise both Azamara and HAL (and Celebrity).

I am in a minority that thinks Azamara is more similar to HAL than to Celebrity. I haven't been on a HAL ship in a number of years, but we prefer Azamara when we have the choice. They only have two ships so the onboard customer service is great. HAL has more ships to fill so the service will vary.

Try Azamara! You should be very pleased.

Yes! We cruise both Azamara and HAL (and Celebrity).

 

I am in a minority that thinks Azamara is more similar to HAL than to Celebrity. I haven't been on a HAL ship in a number of years, but we prefer Azamara when we have the choice. They only have two ships so the onboard customer service is great. HAL has more ships to fill so the service will vary.

 

Try Azamara! You should be very pleased.

Until last year we had only cruised with HAL, starting with an Alaskan cruise and our last cruise with them was around South America from Santiago to Rio three years ago. Initially we loved HAL, but we did feel that standards had dropped over the years, especially in the dining room. We had our first cruise with Azamara last year and loved it. The service was way above that offered on HAL. We loved the fact that you see the officers around the ship and make themselves known to you. The captain was brilliant and his morning. Road casts, alongside the Cruise Director were hilarious. The food was fabulous. The buffet was not the bun fight that we have found on HAL - so no competition in our eyes!

I have just finished reading Librarylady19s wonderful review of her cruise on the Journey. I can appreciate the things that made her decide not to rush back to Azamara.

 

We have just returned from a HAL Alaska cruise and I think, based on her review, we would find the Journey very similar to our HAL experience. We are looking at ports more than the ship and entertainment is not important. As a matter of fact, we didn't go to any shows or even the bars that had some sort of music.

 

For a cruise that is port intensive (no sea days), if we loved our HAL cruise, will we be happy on an Azamara cruise?

Addressing only Alaska, we are Celebrity fans for the most part but for Alaska we switched. for the first time, to HAL. We loved 2 things about that 2011 cruise round trip out of Seattle for 14 days. First and foremost was the route, ports and length followed very closely by my being able to tender in at Sitka. I use a wheelchair fulltime and HAL normally has an escalator on most ships for wheelers. We were in a suite on the Amsterdam and it doesn't have an escalator so they brought a tender up on the davits for my husband and I and for an elderly couple. I was a Russian History major and was not about to miss Sitka because a cruise ship suddenly couldn't get me into the same lifeboat they swear they will get me off the ship in during an emergency.

We were on the Journey its first repositioning after its Bermuda season from NJ to Miami with stops in Bermuda (an overnight), Labadee, Santa Marta, Cartegena, San Andros Island and I think Nassau. San Andros at that time was not ready for wheelers in my opinion and nothing to miss but a beach and a working military installation so I never asked about their tender policy.

Food was definitely better on Azamara. It may be Alaska where it stays light out very late but HAL's Amsterdam seemed absolutely dead by 10pm. The one jazz trio was gone by 10:30pm. We tend to eat late and then have a night cap or two before bed. The Journey had their dance lounge upstairs still jumping even before a big port call until about 1am. Their buffet always had something going until at least midnight. We had access to the Amsterdam's Neptune Lounge for munchies but that tended to close down at 10pm too.

We did not check out any show on the Amsterdam just tried a few bars and the coffee spot. Live music was reasonable. The Journey was still, painfully obvious, auditioning for spots in the night club area downstairs. We left after 3 songs by who is now known in our house as Whitney Houston's anorexic heroin addled great aunt. No disrespect to Ms Houston's own body of work. This women kept forgetting lyrics within 4 lines and desperately trying to get her band to cover for her. Several ship officers were behind us and they were not looking happy and they left right before we did.

I doubt we would want to do a long transatlantic on either and I am more into ports while my husband is normally more a sea day kind of guy. We both like good food, conversation and a nice after dinner experience but not big production numbers. HAL is just not there unless the ports I want to see are tendered. We've been waiting to find a really great cruise on Azamara because we loved the ship and their verandah accessible rooms are the bomb! Wish they had accessible suites. Not every disabled person is broke.

I'd go with Azamara for a port intensive cruise. HAL had breakfast out very early in the Neptune Lunch but with ports where you come back very late like in Europe you might need room service if you need a late night snack. We just booked the Quest in 2016 for the Sydney to Aukland Explorer of 16 days during the second person half off verandah and a friend is booking too as a single, I think. We are both looking forward to it because the sea days will include some great scenery although not as close as in Alaska. Oh, and neither of us wants to pack for formal nights when resort casual works for everything even onshore 99% of the time.

Two reasons Azamara Club Cruises is better for port-intensive itineraries:

- smaller ships mean you get closer to town, more likely/able to dock rather than tender, and less people to get on & off so fewer lines or long waits to disembark.

- we are the Destination Immersion cruise line...offering "longer stays, more over-nights, and night touring"