First time Azamara cruiser impressions

DH and I took our first Azamara Cruise in November on the Journey. We took a B2B cruise that began in Dubai and ended in Singapore, 27 days later. Our longest cruise ever! Here are some of our impressions. Apologies in advance for the length.

Ship: We loved the Journey, although we found it strange to be able to go from bow to stern so quickly. There was a couple who walked an enormous number of indoor laps that took them through the Mosaic Café. Round and round and round they went. I think they needed a bigger ship! There was a very nicely equipped gym they might have used, but we only used it to walk through to the Spa Terrace. We loved all the different venues: Living Room, Library, Spirits Lounge, Discoveries Bar, etc. The Journey was in great shape (unlike us after not taking advantage of the gym). Oh, I had my hair colored in the salon. I was apprehensive, but the gray roots motivated me to do it. It turned out very well if I say so myself!

Stateroom: We chose a Club Continent Suite because of the long cruise. Beautiful and roomy, it had lots of storage (3 huge deep pull out drawers, plus a very nice closet). We had a "shower only" bathroom (our choice). Three deep shelves created plenty of space for our toiletries. Loved the large shower and shower head. Everything was in perfect working order. We were very happy there. The only negative was the morning noise from movement of pool furniture (and yes, I’ve put all of this in the Cabin Sticky Thread). This was our first time with a Butler. We had the fabulous Erlo who was perfect for us. I suspect he is good at adjusting to the various styles of passengers. Our cabin attendants were wonderful too. Azamara crew are truly special (more on this next).

Crew: Can't praise the crew enough. From Hotel Director Heinke flawlessly handling all the complicated immigration issues, especially in the Indian ports, to CD Eric, the first CD who I have ever felt was genuine when talking to me, to every server, maitre'd, maintenance person, cabin attendant, entertainer and on and on, we felt the crew totally lived up to high expectations set by reading other reviews on CC. There was a change in Captains near the end of the first cruise, so we enjoyed both Captain Johannes and Captain Magnus. Officers were very visible and friendly throughout both cruises. We even got to meet the doctor, as DH got an eye infection in Mumbai and needed treatment. When the doctor saw us later in Windows Café, he quietly asked how DH was doing.

Food: For a smaller (at least to us) ship, there were more than enough dinner venues and plenty of good to excellent food. We liked being able to see the menus on the in-room TV. The food in Aqualina and Prime C was excellent. We ate in one or the other at dinner about half the time. Favorites were lobster bisque, Dover sole, and lemon soufflé in Aqualina and the lobster salad, crab cakes, and filet in Prime C. We ate in Discoveries only twice, and the food was good. We also ate at several themed buffet dinners in Windows, and a dinner or two in the Patio. Breakfast and lunch in Windows were average, but had a lot of variety every day. Afternoon tea service was very nice. As I said, plenty of good food.

Beverages: Erlo kept our fridge full of sodas. They never ran out of Coke Zero which sometimes happens on cruises (probably due to me!). We are not big hard liquor drinkers, but we do like wine. The included wines were hit and miss. Most of the reds were ok to good, but we did not like some of the whites. For example, we really didn't like the Sauvignon Blanc. But there was always another choice. Servers in all the bars and restaurants were very attentive. It was occasionally crowded in the Spirits Lounge, but, a glass of wine always appeared.

Activities: This was an itinerary intensive cruise, but we had enough daytime activities to keep us busy on sea days. There was a wonderful speaker, Michael, who gave very interesting talks about our destinations on both cruises. (It would have been nice to have his lectures “on demand” in the stateroom, rather than just catching them randomly on TV). Delightful Chris gave watercolor lessons on both cruises too. DH enjoyed the bridge lessons (two different instructors, both very good) and the duplicate bridge. We didn't participate in bingo or trivia. We went to the White Night party and the Azamazing Evening on the first cruise. Both were lots of fun and a nice change of pace during the cruise. It was raining for the White Night on the second cruise and it was held indoors, so we didn’t go, and we were so tired from a long tour in Yangon, that we skipped the Azamazing evening there.

Entertainment: The lead singers and singer/dancers were wonderful. The best we've experienced on any cruise. Like everyone on Azamara, they were very friendly. We enjoyed each production show and were happy to see them again on the second cruise. Guest entertainers were hit or miss. The hypnotist that couldn't hypnotize anyone should make this into a comedy act instead. We enjoyed the singing magician and the comedy magician. Guest singers were ok to good. CD Eric was a fabulous addition to the last production show. Max, the singer and pianist, quickly became a favorite. He had a show in the Cabaret Lounge as well as nightly entertainment in the smaller venues. They also had an excellent guitar player (I’m sorry I can’t remember his name) and, of course, the Journey Orchestra. We went to the Jazz Buffet in Discoveries just to hear them play.

Land Discoveries: There was a huge disconnect between the brochures and the actual tours. We kept hearing that “Miami” created the brochure. So, to Miami I say: “please look at the descriptions more carefully”. Tours that began in the afternoon described going to “morning markets” or having “afternoon tea” which, due to scheduling was at dinner time. The employees at the LD desk included two very nice and helpful people and one grouch. We went on more than a dozen LDs. Overall, we were pleased. The busses were more comfortable than we anticipated from the dire warnings in the brochure. We had two bus incidents: a total breakdown on one tour and lack of A\C another. In both cases, the problem was resolved without too much inconvenience. The guides were good, but spoke English with varying degrees of proficiency and comprehensibility (as expected and as indicated in the brochure from Miami!)). Each guide gave us insight into the country and the people.

Ports: Our favorite ports were Yangon, Myanmar, Phuket, Thailand, Cochin, India, Georgetown, Malaysia, Port Klang (gateway to Kuala Lumpur), Malaysia and Singapore. Ports we could have done without were Port Blair, Andaman Islands and Male, The Maldives. In fact, I think these two and Chennai are not included in the revised Spice Route cruise. Mumbai, Goa, and Chennai were interesting ports, just not among our favorites (although the temples and antiquities we saw in Mamallapuram out of Chennai were fabulous).

Fellow Passengers: We met many delightful people from all over the world on this cruise. It was very easy to sit with others, if desired, or to stay by ourselves when we wanted to do that. With one exception (a person who sat next to the tour guide on every single LD we had together and was rude to other passengers), everyone we toured with on the LDs was friendly, courteous, and fun to be around.

Bottom line: We had a wonderful time and will certainly be looking to take another Azamara cruise. Thanks for reading if you made it this far! Happy to answer any questions.

Thank you for the review, CYNSport!

We look forward to having you aboard an Azamara vessel again soon :)

What a lovely review. The good news is if you select your next Azamara cruise on Quest, it will be just as good.

DH and I took our first Azamara Cruise in November on the Journey. We took a B2B cruise that began in Dubai and ended in Singapore, 27 days later. Our longest cruise ever! Here are some of our impressions. Apologies in advance for the length.

 

 

 

Ship: We loved the Journey, although we found it strange to be able to go from bow to stern so quickly. There was a couple who walked an enormous number of indoor laps that took them through the Mosaic Café. Round and round and round they went. I think they needed a bigger ship! There was a very nicely equipped gym they might have used, but we only used it to walk through to the Spa Terrace. We loved all the different venues: Living Room, Library, Spirits Lounge, Discoveries Bar, etc. The Journey was in great shape (unlike us after not taking advantage of the gym). Oh, I had my hair colored in the salon. I was apprehensive, but the gray roots motivated me to do it. It turned out very well if I say so myself!

 

 

 

Stateroom: We chose a Club Continent Suite because of the long cruise. Beautiful and roomy, it had lots of storage (3 huge deep pull out drawers, plus a very nice closet). We had a "shower only" bathroom (our choice). Three deep shelves created plenty of space for our toiletries. Loved the large shower and shower head. Everything was in perfect working order. We were very happy there. The only negative was the morning noise from movement of pool furniture (and yes, I’ve put all of this in the Cabin Sticky Thread). This was our first time with a Butler. We had the fabulous Erlo who was perfect for us. I suspect he is good at adjusting to the various styles of passengers. Our cabin attendants were wonderful too. Azamara crew are truly special (more on this next).

 

 

 

Crew: Can't praise the crew enough. From Hotel Director Heinke flawlessly handling all the complicated immigration issues, especially in the Indian ports, to CD Eric, the first CD who I have ever felt was genuine when talking to me, to every server, maitre'd, maintenance person, cabin attendant, entertainer and on and on, we felt the crew totally lived up to high expectations set by reading other reviews on CC. There was a change in Captains near the end of the first cruise, so we enjoyed both Captain Johannes and Captain Magnus. Officers were very visible and friendly throughout both cruises. We even got to meet the doctor, as DH got an eye infection in Mumbai and needed treatment. When the doctor saw us later in Windows Café, he quietly asked how DH was doing.

 

 

 

Food: For a smaller (at least to us) ship, there were more than enough dinner venues and plenty of good to excellent food. We liked being able to see the menus on the in-room TV. The food in Aqualina and Prime C was excellent. We ate in one or the other at dinner about half the time. Favorites were lobster bisque, Dover sole, and lemon soufflé in Aqualina and the lobster salad, crab cakes, and filet in Prime C. We ate in Discoveries only twice, and the food was good. We also ate at several themed buffet dinners in Windows, and a dinner or two in the Patio. Breakfast and lunch in Windows were average, but had a lot of variety every day. Afternoon tea service was very nice. As I said, plenty of good food.

 

 

 

Beverages: Erlo kept our fridge full of sodas. They never ran out of Coke Zero which sometimes happens on cruises (probably due to me!). We are not big hard liquor drinkers, but we do like wine. The included wines were hit and miss. Most of the reds were ok to good, but we did not like some of the whites. For example, we really didn't like the Sauvignon Blanc. But there was always another choice. Servers in all the bars and restaurants were very attentive. It was occasionally crowded in the Spirits Lounge, but, a glass of wine always appeared.

 

 

 

Activities: This was an itinerary intensive cruise, but we had enough daytime activities to keep us busy on sea days. There was a wonderful speaker, Michael, who gave very interesting talks about our destinations on both cruises. (It would have been nice to have his lectures “on demand” in the stateroom, rather than just catching them randomly on TV). Delightful Chris gave watercolor lessons on both cruises too. DH enjoyed the bridge lessons (two different instructors, both very good) and the duplicate bridge. We didn't participate in bingo or trivia. We went to the White Night party and the Azamazing Evening on the first cruise. Both were lots of fun and a nice change of pace during the cruise. It was raining for the White Night on the second cruise and it was held indoors, so we didn’t go, and we were so tired from a long tour in Yangon, that we skipped the Azamazing evening there.

 

 

 

Entertainment: The lead singers and singer/dancers were wonderful. The best we've experienced on any cruise. Like everyone on Azamara, they were very friendly. We enjoyed each production show and were happy to see them again on the second cruise. Guest entertainers were hit or miss. The hypnotist that couldn't hypnotize anyone should make this into a comedy act instead. We enjoyed the singing magician and the comedy magician. Guest singers were ok to good. CD Eric was a fabulous addition to the last production show. Max, the singer and pianist, quickly became a favorite. He had a show in the Cabaret Lounge as well as nightly entertainment in the smaller venues. They also had an excellent guitar player (I’m sorry I can’t remember his name) and, of course, the Journey Orchestra. We went to the Jazz Buffet in Discoveries just to hear them play.

 

 

 

Land Discoveries: There was a huge disconnect between the brochures and the actual tours. We kept hearing that “Miami” created the brochure. So, to Miami I say: “please look at the descriptions more carefully”. Tours that began in the afternoon described going to “morning markets” or having “afternoon tea” which, due to scheduling was at dinner time. The employees at the LD desk included two very nice and helpful people and one grouch. We went on more than a dozen LDs. Overall, we were pleased. The busses were more comfortable than we anticipated from the dire warnings in the brochure. We had two bus incidents: a total breakdown on one tour and lack of A\C another. In both cases, the problem was resolved without too much inconvenience. The guides were good, but spoke English with varying degrees of proficiency and comprehensibility (as expected and as indicated in the brochure from Miami!)). Each guide gave us insight into the country and the people.

 

 

 

Ports: Our favorite ports were Yangon, Myanmar, Phuket, Thailand, Cochin, India, Georgetown, Malaysia, Port Klang (gateway to Kuala Lumpur), Malaysia and Singapore. Ports we could have done without were Port Blair, Andaman Islands and Male, The Maldives. In fact, I think these two and Chennai are not included in the revised Spice Route cruise. Mumbai, Goa, and Chennai were interesting ports, just not among our favorites (although the temples and antiquities we saw in Mamallapuram out of Chennai were fabulous).

 

 

 

Fellow Passengers: We met many delightful people from all over the world on this cruise. It was very easy to sit with others, if desired, or to stay by ourselves when we wanted to do that. With one exception (a person who sat next to the tour guide on every single LD we had together and was rude to other passengers), everyone we toured with on the LDs was friendly, courteous, and fun to be around.

 

 

 

Bottom line: We had a wonderful time and will certainly be looking to take another Azamara cruise. Thanks for reading if you made it this far! Happy to answer any questions.

The R ships are terrific. But, if you want a cruise line choice that includes both R ships and something a bit larger (O ships at under 1100 passengers), you may want to look at Oceania.

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Terrific summary of what makes an Azamara cruise so attractive.

Looking forward to hearing about your next itinerary.

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Great review! Thanks for taking the time to write and post; I enjoyed every word and concur that Azamara is terrific.

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Glad to read that you fell under the Azamara magic spell!

When they sort out Land Discoveries, it will be a winning choice every time for us to.

Glad you enjoyed your first Azamara cruise. Thanks for taking the time to write a review. Spursgirl is right....Quest is just as good as Journey and they are both very good indeed! :)

Have fun planning your next Azamara cruise.

The R ships are terrific. But, if you want a cruise line choice that includes both R ships and something a bit larger (O ships at under 1100 passengers), you may want to look at Oceania.

:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

Thanks for the detailed review. We were on Journey in October and I believe I would recognize the grouch in the LD office!

And we also had a CC suite, with shower only, and although it was a lovely big cabin, we didn't feel it was outfitted to full advantage. Not enough drawers, small closet, and no love seat. Oh, and the noise from above as well.

I agree that if you thought the "R" class ship was too small for you, that there are alternatives, but not sure Oceania is one of them. The ambiance on an Oceania cruise (IMHO) is quite different than Azamara.

Thanks to everyone for your nice comments at this busy time of year. Cheers to all!

Sounds like you had a wonderful 27 days! :cool:

I agree that if you thought the "R" class ship was too small for you, that there are alternatives, but not sure Oceania is one of them. The ambiance on an Oceania cruise (IMHO) is quite different than Azamara.

Dead on. Once on Oceania was enough.:(

Dead on. Once on Oceania was enough.:(

I love Azamara and have had many fabulous cruises on Quest and Journey. Cruising on Oceania for the first time in May. Marina looks gorgeous and our itinerary is wonderful. However I am not loving the many snarky comments I am seeing on the Oceania board and am wondering with trepidation what my fellow passengers will be like.

I will be going with an open mind but whatever happens we are fortunate enough to be coming home to Azamara at the end of July:D

I love Azamara and have had many fabulous cruises on Quest and Journey. Cruising on Oceania for the first time in May. Marina looks gorgeous and our itinerary is wonderful. However I am not loving the many snarky comments I am seeing on the Oceania board and am wondering with trepidation what my fellow passengers will be like.

 

I will be going with an open mind but whatever happens we are fortunate enough to be coming home to Azamara at the end of July:D

When we cruised Oceania before I found many other passengers snooty and aloof. However I enjoyed the ship and crew that I came into contact with very much. Never witnessed senior level staff or the Captain. I enjoyed the food very much.

What I am really looking forward to is our first Azamara cruise after reading many of the comments on this board and observing Bonnie's cruiser interaction. I suspect the vibe on board will be totally different from O.

When we cruised Oceania before I found many other passengers snooty and aloof. However I enjoyed the ship and crew that I came into contact with very much. Never witnessed senior level staff or the Captain. I enjoyed the food very much.

 

What I am really looking forward to is our first Azamara cruise after reading many of the comments on this board and observing Bonnie's cruiser interaction. I suspect the vibe on board will be totally different from O.

I have seen many of your posts Chucktown Steve and you seem like a very nice gentleman. I think Azamara's ambiance will suit you very well. I have encountered the odd difficult guest on Azamara but the vast majority of people are well travelled, amusing, friendly, kind and courteous. Many guests I have met are now cherished friends.

Have wanted to try Oceania for a while. If all else fails one of my friends tells me the Lemon Drop Martinis are divine so every cloud.........

Merry Christmas.

I have seen many of your posts Chucktown Steve and you seem like a very nice gentleman. Merry Christmas.

:o TYVM however I believe you can find several peeps who would disagree with you, especially on Celebrity's board. :D They tend to be from up North and the West Coast. :p

Merry Ho-Ho to you too. I hope to someday share a cruise ship with you.

Thanks for a wonderful review.