Think this one through, Azamara

Okay- this new "third and fourth passengers sail free" is enough to make us not book Azamara on their August 8th departure which we had been planning on. Third and Fourth passengers free, middle of summer translates to CHILDREN. The reason we've sailed Azamara is because it is usually almost child free. As someone pointed out, this seems to be RCCL marketing.

We're returning to Windstar which we also like. I'll be darned if I'll spend the kind of money Azamara wants for a sailing to have kids running around. Anyone else remember the "kids fly free" promotion on the airlines many years ago? I had a flight attendant friend who said it was the biggest nightmare of all time. Perhaps I'll be shown wrong, however we're not willing to take that chance.

What are you thinking, Azamara?

...maybe that there are passengers out there who don't have quite as vitriolic a view toward children as you apparently do? :(

There are never many kids on an Azamara cruise. There are a few. They seem very bored. It is not what kids want. I have no problem cruising with kids. Most people who cruise with kids sail on the bigger ships that have children friendly activities. When I sail with my grandkids, I pick Celebrity, Royal, or HAL. I never take them on Azamara, Oceania, or Windstar. Windstar might appeal to kids. Their sports platform with water toys is a blast.

I don't believe I have a "vitriolic" view of children who cruise- but rather a realistic one.

We have cruised on Celebrity several times, also NCL, Costa, Holland America, Princess and RCCL as well as Azamara and Windstar. As Redtravel stated, Azamara is not designed for children versus other lines that are designed for families. ACC has no programs or facilities aimed towards children. When we sailed ACC to St. Petersburg we had about six children on board. Of those, four seemed fine- certainly some children are okay without 24/7 access to entertainment. Their parents knew them well and it was fine. The other two, unfortunately, were bored out of their skulls and caused constant issues with staff and other passengers. We weren't going to let two children ruin our trip and they didn't- however with "3rd and 4th free" sailings I think the percentage of children will be higher and unfortunately the possibility of children not cut out for the ACC experience might be more frequent. For those who do go on the trip, I hope I am wrong. I'll be curious to read the return reviews.

The few kids that I've seen on Azamara have been incredibly well behaved. On one cruise, there were 8 or 9 kids and the staff organized and hosted a kids' table for dinner in the main dining room. These were kids who carried on conversations in modulated tones, knew which fork to use, ordered normal amounts of food rather than gorging themselves, and wore appropriate clothes to dinner. (I was at the next table.) They were smaller versions of their parents or grandparents, I imagine. No running on the decks or cannonballs into the pool.

I guess things might be different if there were 50 or 60 kids onboard. But I doubt there will be that many. Why? Even the small suites would be crowded with four people. And folks who sail on Azamara value their comfort.

P.S. We are booked on the Journey's August 8 sailing, so we'll let you know how it goes.:)

Our daughter, son-in-law, and grandchildren love to cruise. They would hate Azamara. We cruised with them on Oasis of the Seas...everyone had a great time! The Oasis class ships are too big for us but didn't stop us from having a wonderful time with family.

Is there any space for a few waterslides at the next dry dock?

It's always the parents who are more interested in their own needs and wants so insist on bringing their kids onboard a ship that is simply wrong for them who find it "vitriolic" to prefer not being around those kids. There are plenty of ships that cater to kids. If you want to cruise with kids book one of those.

It's always the parents who are more interested in their own needs and wants so insist on bringing their kids onboard a ship that is simply wrong for them who find it "vitriolic" to prefer not being around those kids. There are plenty of ships that cater to kids. If you want to cruise with kids book one of those.

If you're referring to my post, you guess wrongly. Perhaps it might apply to other parents but I'm not one of them. I found the OP's statements about children on board to be vitriolic based on the comment about them running around and causing a nightmare similar to another kids free program. That paints all kids with a pretty nasty brush. Sure misbehaving children exist, but you could say the same about some adult passengers too. And it's sheer luck of the draw whether you encounter them or not. I've done a Christmas cruise (read: little ones on board) on X and Azamara and haven't been inconvenienced in the least. Perhaps people who are so intolerant of children on cruises and so certain they'll cause a ruckus should look into adults-only cruises?

I do think this is a bit of a silly argument though because in reality we know there won't be many takers for Azamara's 3rd and 4th passenger free promo. It applies to very few cruises and they're all ones that sail fairly soon and have been largely booked already. And as pointed out, it's not really a cruise line that has much to offer children when compared to RCI, for example, and the cabins are all smaller than industry standard. The worry about Azamara ships being stuffed to the gunnels with children because of this promo is just a tempest in a teapot. It's not going to happen.

I do think this is a bit of a silly argument though because in reality we know there won't be many takers for Azamara's 3rd and 4th passenger free promo. It applies to very few cruises and they're all ones that sail fairly soon and have been largely booked already. And as pointed out, it's not really a cruise line that has much to offer children when compared to RCI, for example, and the cabins are all smaller than industry standard. The worry about Azamara ships being stuffed to the gunnels with children because of this promo is just a tempest in a teapot. It's not going to happen.

Exactly right. Have to wonder why someone would start a thread just for this.

Supposedly someone at ACC reviews the postings here on Cruise Critic.

I thought they might be interested to know that at least one couples $10,000 is going elsewhere because of their "3rd and 4th" free promotion. All of their advertising online shows a 3rd and 4th adult (good luck with that in those cabins!) so maybe they are aiming for that. I'm not real sure what they are aiming for, we're just not willing to take a chance with that kind of money. Since Cruise Critic member tgg is going on the trip I'll be looking forward to his review.

As I said- I could be completely off base on this. I don't recall Azamara doing this before but perhaps they did and it worked out fine. For those who go on the trip, I sure wish them the best of times.

Supposedly someone at ACC reviews the postings here on Cruise Critic.

Since Cruise Critic member tgg is going on the trip I'll be looking forward to his review.

As I said- I could be completely off base on this. I don't recall Azamara doing this before but perhaps they did and it worked out fine. For those who go on the trip, I sure wish them the best of times.

He is a she.:) And yes, I am looking forward to a great cruise. I'll bookmark this thread and report back on the "kid" situation (or non-situation) when we return.

tgg- I am SO sorry about calling you a he.....my apologies.

I'm sure you'll have a great time and I'll look forward to your report!

Ok, get out your flame throwers. The last thing I want on my cruise after spending 10-15k is a bunch of kids. AZ has zero facilities for them, hence they will get bored quickly - no zip lines, slickey slides, no kids pool, etc.. This sounds like a desperation attempt to " put heads on the beds". Any cruise that has this offer is off my list.

On another note, given the substantial number of charters ( Australia ? ) in '15 and the announcement today of circumnavigating Australia in '16, it would not surprise me in the least if 1 or both ships become an RCCL Australian focused subsidiary.

Perhaps people who are so intolerant of children on cruises and so certain they'll cause a ruckus should look into adults-only cruises?

 

I do think this is a bit of a silly argument though because in reality we know there won't be many takers for Azamara's 3rd and 4th passenger free promo. It applies to very few cruises and they're all ones that sail fairly soon and have been largely booked already. And as pointed out, it's not really a cruise line that has much to offer children when compared to RCI, for example, and the cabins are all smaller than industry standard. The worry about Azamara ships being stuffed to the gunnels with children because of this promo is just a tempest in a teapot. It's not going to happen.

1) A good plan. Although not 6 star, and so maybe unacceptable to many on here, in the UK, Thomson have just announced (informally) that Celebration will be adults-only for summer 2015, based out of Dubrovnik.

2) Some High Street travel agents and maybe some cruise agents will sell whatever they're asked for, with little advice. If this promotion is publicised, it could be sold to families who expect the same type of cruise as shown on TV ads for Carnival, etc. So, nobody can say it won't happen.

In my limited experience of cruising on premium lines, most children have been extremely well behaved and taken care of. Any problems have been adults behaving like kids.

Oceania makes no bones that they are NOT children friendly, with the possible exception of the Christmas holidays. It's clear that the R ships were built for adults.

Oceania makes no bones that they are NOT children friendly, with the possible exception of the Christmas holidays. It's clear that the R ships were built for adults.

Perhaps, but when a friend cruised an Oceania Alaska itinerary last summer, there were some children onboard including her niece.

It's hard to imagine a flood of parents thinking this is a great deal, but it's great you've found an alternative that you will enjoy.

Oceania makes no bones that they are NOT children friendly, with the possible exception of the Christmas holidays. It's clear that the R ships were built for adults.

I'm sure that many 'modern' parents see their cruises as time to spend with their children, as they probably don't see much of them normally, due to heavy workloads, school etc. Those who can afford to, also bring their nanny.

Why should parents be denied the opportunity to cruise Azamara, unless they leave their kids at home?

What would a ban be called, 'kiddism'?

I'm not going to comment on kids or no kids, but, really, can you see those tiny cabins sleeping more than two?

There aren't that many suites with more floor space on the ships and the usual cabins are tight for two average adults.

JMTCW

I'm not going to comment on kids or no kids, but, really, can you see those tiny cabins sleeping more than two?

 

There aren't that many suites with more floor space on the ships and the usual cabins are tight for two average adults.

 

JMTCW

Kids don't mind where they sleep, put them in the wardrobes.

Kids don't mind where they sleep, put them in the wardrobes.

Even the wardrobe was smaller than any ship I've been on, including river cruises.:)

Even the wardrobe was smaller than any ship I've been on, including river cruises.:)

That wasn't our assessment based upon our Viking and Uniworld river cruises.

Oceania makes no bones that they are NOT children friendly, with the possible exception of the Christmas holidays. It's clear that the R ships were built for adults.

MOST, but not all O cruisers are not kid friendly when it comes to cruising. One of the reasons they choose Azamara is the opportunity to vacation AWAY from kids. It's not they don't love their kids and grandkids, they just prefer a kid-free vacation.

Some O regulars avoided cruises in Alaska where O had a few sailing with kids programs in the summer.

Some have even gone so far as to say that it is selfish to bring a child on an O cruise where there is really nothing for kids to do other than entertain themselves. That's why Royal Caribbean, Disney and even Celebrity were born! LOL

I intentionally stay away from kid friendly vacation spots. It's not the kids -- it's the parents who do not supervise them that bother me. I sail Azamara and O because they are not likely to attract children. I hope nothing changes that.

.......

I intentionally stay away from kid friendly vacation spots. It's not the kids -- it's the parents who do not supervise them that bother me. I sail Azamara and O because they are not likely to attract children. I hope nothing changes that.

I second that :)

Love children but when they are unsupervised they are not so endearing.

We try and avoid travelling during school holidays.