brucedodge Posted September 13, 2012 #1 Share Posted September 13, 2012 Hey Bill, In about six weeks, we and the Quest are programmed to port in Tunis, and I hope we do. BUT with current events, I'm guessing the head office is looking at this port stop, and considering contingencies. If Tunis is dropped, I'd like to cast the first vote ;) -- for Malta as an alternate. Cheers, Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nonrev1 Posted September 13, 2012 #2 Share Posted September 13, 2012 I was thinking Ibiza would be a fun alternate. :rolleyes: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onthebalcony Posted September 14, 2012 #3 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I am glad someone brought up this issue. We have been watching the news and the future doesn't look good in this area. Tunisia was mentioned 3 times on the evening news as a possible next hot spot. We are in favor if either of those ports!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Leiber Posted September 14, 2012 #4 Share Posted September 14, 2012 Hey Bill, In about six weeks, we and the Quest are programmed to port in Tunis, and I hope we do. BUT with current events, I'm guessing the head office is looking at this port stop, and considering contingencies. If Tunis is dropped, I'd like to cast the first vote ;) -- for Malta as an alternate. Cheers, Bruce Hello Bruce - Earlier in the year I mentioned that Royal Caribbean Ltd's Global Security department is constantly monitoring the world's political situation and although I have nothing definitive to report about Tunisia, I will keep you posted on this new thread. Here I am stating to you again that in "today’s world, one must expect the unexpected." It's been a very long spring... I'll pass on your alternative suggestions. Best regards, Bill Leiber __________________________ Chief Blogging Officer* Azamara Club Cruises (*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr H Posted September 14, 2012 #5 Share Posted September 14, 2012 I'm beginning to sweat the post dry dock Indonesia January cruise - payment in full is due in just over 2 weeks. At this point, only a lunatic would dock anywhere in North Africa, much less get off the ship! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Leiber Posted September 15, 2012 #6 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Hello Azamara Quest Guests - I want to let you know that the October 27, 2012 Azamara Quest voyage will cancel its planned call at La Goulette, Tunis, Tunisia on October 31, 2012. We should be announcing its replacement port as soon as the review of berthing availability has been completed within the parameter of not impacting the berthing confirmations we currently have in place in the ports pre- and post-Tunisia. Hopefully, I'll be able to let you know the port by the end of business (EDT) on Monday. Best regards, Bill Leiber __________________________ Chief Blogging Officer* Azamara Club Cruises (*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brucedodge Posted September 15, 2012 Author #7 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Thanks, Bill, for the early info. I don't expect anyone is or will be surprised by the cancellation. Earlier I voted for Malta as a replacement. There have been some other votes. I thought I'd through Siracusa in the mix. Cheers, Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nonrev1 Posted September 15, 2012 #8 Share Posted September 15, 2012 Thanks for the info, Bill. I was looking forward to visiting Tunisia....but, after the events that took place and are still taking place, I am relieved we are not going. I am looking forward to hearing the replacement. Thank you again! Lauri Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silkismom Posted September 16, 2012 #9 Share Posted September 16, 2012 Travel Warning U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Bureau of Consular Affairs Print Email Tunisia September 15, 2012 The Department of State warns U.S. citizens against all travel to Tunisia at this time. On September 14, 2012 the Department of State ordered the departure of all non-emergency U.S. government personnel from Tunisia, following the attack on the U.S. Embassy in Tunis. The airport in Tunis is open and U.S. citizens are encouraged to depart by commercial air. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooKeef Posted September 17, 2012 #10 Share Posted September 17, 2012 I am seriously thinking about booking this cruise. Excited to hear oOf the option to replace Tunisia. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Leiber Posted September 17, 2012 #11 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Hello Azamara Quest October 27, 2012 Guests - On the forthcoming October 27, 2012 Azamara Quest voyage, the planned call at La Goulette, Tunis, Tunisia on October 31, 2012 has been cancelled and will be replaced with a full-day visit to Mahon, Minorca, Balearic Islands, Spain on November 1, 2012. Our reservations team is in the process of notifying booked guests and travel partners. Although Malta would have been a good port of call, it unfortunately takes us into the opposite direction of our next destinations. According to our itinerary planner, "Mahon offers not only a very scenic entry into the narrow bay but also our visits there in the past have met with very good guest satisfaction. It is one of those lovely small ports that also sets us apart from the big ships. Making this choice also allows us to keep the rest of the itinerary intact without any other port changes nor changes in any of the other ports times." DATE PORT/CITY ACTIVITY ARRIVAL DEPARTURE Saturday, October 27 Rome (Civitavecchia) - Italy Embark 6:00 PM Sunday, October 28 Sorrento - Italy Tendered 8:00 AM Monday, October 29 Sorrento - Italy Tendered 6:00 AM Monday, October 29 Capri - Italy Tendered 8:00 AM 10:00 PM Tuesday, October 30 Trapani - Sicily Docked 12:00 PM 7:00 PM Wed. October 31 At Sea Cruising Thursday, November 1 Mahon, Minorca - Spain Docked 8:00 AM 9:00 PM Friday, November 2 Palma De Mallorca - Spain Docked 8:00 AM 8:00 PM Saturday, November 3 Cartagena - Spain Docked 12:00 PM 6:00 PM Sunday, November 4 Malaga - Spain Docked 8:00 AM 11:59 PM Monday, November 5 Gibraltar - United Kingdom Docked 8:00 AM 4:00 PM Tuesday, November 6 Seville - Spain Docked 11:30 AM Wed. November 7 Seville - Spain Debark Best regards, Bill Leiber __________________________ Chief Blogging Officer* Azamara Club Cruises (*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nonrev1 Posted September 17, 2012 #12 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Bill.....Thanks for getting back to us so fast! We have not been to Minorca before, so we are excited to visit a new place. Lauri Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
silkismom Posted September 17, 2012 #13 Share Posted September 17, 2012 Sounds good, thanks for letting us know so soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brucedodge Posted September 18, 2012 Author #14 Share Posted September 18, 2012 Thanks Bill, Claudius was very quick with the change, no? Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacaduli Posted September 19, 2012 #15 Share Posted September 19, 2012 Hi Bill, I see our port change to Mahon, on November 1, 2012. This looks like a lovely place to visit, however, by swapping the sea-day, we will be docking in Mahon on a National Holiday. I believe most places will be closed down for All Saints Day. Could Azamara look at swapping the sea-days, and have us dock there on October 31st instead?? Thanks for any consideration, pacaduli Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WooKeef Posted September 19, 2012 #16 Share Posted September 19, 2012 Hi Bill, I see our port change to Mahon, on November 1, 2012. This looks like a lovely place to visit, however, by swapping the sea-day, we will be docking in Mahon on a National Holiday. I believe most places will be closed down for All Saints Day. Could Azamara look at swapping the sea-days, and have us dock there on October 31st instead?? Thanks for any consideration, pacaduli Since I live in Europe I thought to just mention that while most businesses and Govt offices are closed on these holidays, the tourist spots rarely are. The economy is bad here and especially there, I foresee no opportunity to make some money off tourism will go unnoticed. I hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare uktog Posted September 19, 2012 #17 Share Posted September 19, 2012 And in addition, you may have the opportunity to see some of the local religious celebrations - a perfect day to visit I would say! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Leiber Posted September 20, 2012 #18 Share Posted September 20, 2012 Hi Bill, I see our port change to Mahon, on November 1, 2012. This looks like a lovely place to visit, however, by swapping the sea-day, we will be docking in Mahon on a National Holiday. I believe most places will be closed down for All Saints Day. Could Azamara look at swapping the sea-days, and have us dock there on October 31st instead?? Thanks for any consideration, pacaduli Hello Pacaduli - Unfortunately, we require the sea day to sail from Trapani, Sicily to Mahon, Menorca. Indeed, many shops on Menorca are likely going to be closed on November 1 but as was mentioned on this thread, there might be a few merchants who will be open in light of the current economic condition in Spain. My suggestion is to consider the Land Discoveries we offer in Mahon and to remember there will be plenty of opportunities to shop in Spain, and with more choices, in Palma, Cartagena & Seville. Although the Land Discoveries offered in Mahon on November 1 on the Azamara Quest's October 27, 2012 voyage are not yet offered on our website's Land Discoveries PDF, here are the titles of the Land Discoveries available on the Azamara Quest's September 25th voyage when it calls at Mahon on October 3, 2012: HW01 Mahon, Torralba & Xorroi PRICES: Adult 40.00/Child 27.00 USD DURATION: 4 hr(s) 15 min(s) HW02 Taste of Menorca PRICES: Adult 42.00/Child 27.00 USD DURATION: 4 hr(s) 30 min(s) HW03 Cultures of Menorca PRICES: Adult 40.00/Child 27.00 USD DURATION: 4 hr(s) 30 min(s) HW04 Discover Ciudadela PRICES: Adult 33.00/Child 24.00 USD DURATION: 4 hr(s) 30 min(s) HW06 Binibeca & Torralba PRICES: Adult 34.00/Child 24.00 USD DURATION: 3 hr(s) 45 min(s) HW08 North Coast Panorama PRICES: Adult 40.00/Child 27.00 USD DURATION: 4 hr(s) I hope this information is helpful and the shore excursion table will be updated on our website. Regards, Bill Leiber __________________________ Chief Blogging Officer* Azamara Club Cruises (*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swh&cv Posted September 20, 2012 #19 Share Posted September 20, 2012 We were in Tunisia last year on Celebrity and to make you all feel better................you havent missed much. I think the Spain port will be much more enjoyable.:o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larainerenee Posted September 21, 2012 #20 Share Posted September 21, 2012 We were also in Tunis last year (on Princess). While it added Africa to the list of continents we have visited, we never felt safe and the merchants and street vendors were ruthless and obnoxious. Enjoy Spain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bellevue Al Posted September 24, 2012 #21 Share Posted September 24, 2012 Hi Bill, Pacaduli raised a good point in her post #219 on the main board today, which she didn't mention in her post above, and that is how the 500-600 non-Cruise Critic passengers are going to be notified of the port switch from Tunisia to Menorca, and when, and by whom, if at all. Many if not most of the guests will probably have signed up or pre-paid for shore excursions in Tunisia, and since the sailing date is rapidly approaching, some might be trapped into a non-refund situation if they don't act quickly, such as a 30-day cancellation policy that might be strictly imposed by some tour guides or tour vendors. Any info on how this will work, either a mailed or emailed notification from Azamara to all passengers, or thru a passenger's travel agent if they used one? I know that I haven't heard anything from my travel agent, who will have close to 160 passengers on the sailing (mostly non-CC people), and I talked with them about the cruise on Friday afternoon, just two days ago. Thanks for any information or even speculation on how Azamara notifies passengers of port changes that take place well before the sailing date. Al Finegold (BELLEVUE AL) a finegold at msn dot com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Leiber Posted September 25, 2012 #22 Share Posted September 25, 2012 Hi Bill, Pacaduli raised a good point in her post #219 on the main board today, which she didn't mention in her post above, and that is how the 500-600 non-Cruise Critic passengers are going to be notified of the port switch from Tunisia to Menorca, and when, and by whom, if at all. Many if not most of the guests will probably have signed up or pre-paid for shore excursions in Tunisia, and since the sailing date is rapidly approaching, some might be trapped into a non-refund situation if they don't act quickly, such as a 30-day cancellation policy that might be strictly imposed by some tour guides or tour vendors. Any info on how this will work, either a mailed or emailed notification from Azamara to all passengers, or thru a passenger's travel agent if they used one? I know that I haven't heard anything from my travel agent, who will have close to 160 passengers on the sailing (mostly non-CC people), and I talked with them about the cruise on Friday afternoon, just two days ago. Thanks for any information or even speculation on how Azamara notifies passengers of port changes that take place well before the sailing date. Al Finegold (BELLEVUE AL) a finegold at msn dot com Hello Bellevue Al - Your question about itinerary change notification is a good one and today emails / fax notifications have been sent to the travel agent community to notify their clients who are booked on this voyage. Guests who have booked directly with us do not receive this notification; however, they will be contacted by telephone this week. The shore excursions for Mahon were added to our website today for you to make your bookings. I hope this information is helpful and my best wishes for an Azamara experience that exceeds your expectations! Regards, Bill Leiber __________________________ Chief Blogging Officer* Azamara Club Cruises (*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bellevue Al Posted September 25, 2012 #23 Share Posted September 25, 2012 Hey again Bill, three quick things for your consideraton or to pass on as appropriate. 1 - Your message #22 just above says that "The shore excursions for Mahon were added to our website today for you to make your bookings." I just read and downloaded the update. and it shows that every one of them had exactly doubled in price from your message #18 listing: (http://browse.azamaraclubcruises.com/shoreExcursions/brochure/download.do?brochureFileName=SHXQS121027USUSD09252012.pdf) Did the update inadvertently add Mahon at full price rather than the discounted 50 percent off? Incidentally, the Mahon excursions prices for the Quest's prior sailing there two weeks earlier, on Oct. 17, (http://browse.azamaraclubcruises.com/shoreExcursions/brochure/download.do?brochureFileName=SHXQS121016USUSD09192012.pdf) shows the same fifty percent prices that you mentioned in your message#18. It seems unlikely that every excursion would double in price in two weeks. 2 - Just FYI, you said above in your message #22 that all passengers who booked directly with Azamara would get phone calls about the port change sometime this week. Please be aware that this week, starting on Tuesday and ending very late Wednesday night, or slightly beyond for some people, is the Jewish High Holdiay observance of Yom Kippur, and most Jewish people will likely be in their temples or synagogues and not at home to receive phone calls, unless a message is ieft for them about the change, or with instructions to call Azamara when their holiday observance is over. 3. Finally, just as a courtesy suggestion, when you say, as you did in your message #22 above, that the new itinierary for Mahon was "added to our website today," or any words to that effect, would you mind providing a link to that information that passengers can click on and go directly to? You of course know the Azamara website well, but many of us do not, and "Azamara's website" covers a lot of territory, so we have to do a lot of searching at times to find just where it is, especially when the page or the information is buried three or four layers down from the home page. Thanks. Bellevue Al Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onthebalcony Posted September 25, 2012 #24 Share Posted September 25, 2012 I was just in the Azamara website and the home page has changed so you can't log in from there. I had to type in reservation in the search box to get to manage my reservation. A whole section on My Azamara is missing from the home page. I find it more user unfriendly than before the changes!! Is this a work in progress for the home page?? Also Bellevue is right about the prices. They are all double. I tried making a reservation to see if the 50% prices would show up on final booking but it does not. I canceled the tour!!! I also did not get a phone call!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill Leiber Posted September 25, 2012 #25 Share Posted September 25, 2012 Hey again Bill, three quick things for your consideraton or to pass on as appropriate. Bellevue Al Hello Bellevue Al - Thank you very much for your detailed message and suggestions to improve the value of my responses: 1. Mahon shore excursions - the 100% prices are being adjusted; however, at this time I do not have the time when the process will be completed. 2. I understand your concern about ensuring that our reservations staff leave a proper message with our Jewish guests who have booked directly with Azamara in light of the Yom Kippur Holiday and will remind our call center manager to be cognizant of that fact during the call-out process. 3. Your point about adding a "link" to our website whenever I refer it makes sense and I will do so going forward. Thank you again for time and effort. "May You Be Sealed for a Good Year in the Book of Life." Sincerely, Bill Leiber __________________________ Chief Blogging Officer* Azamara Club Cruises (*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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