Interesting offer from Azamara concerning showers in CC suites

My TA called me today and told me that she was contacted by Azamara concerning our upcoming cruise. We are booked in a CC suite that has only the shower. They wanted to know if we would like to be moved to a cabin with a tub.

The OBC was offered after our TA said that we would want the same cabin on all three of our b2b2b cruises. They could not guarantee that, so we got $100 OBC per person on each of the 3 cruises.

I think this is a good example of Azamara listening to their customers. It was obviously too late to do anything about the decision to remove half the tubs by the time they found out it was basically unpopular. (As shown by the many discussions on Cruise Critic about disappointment over not having a tub).

I guess Azamara realizes they may have made a mistake. Or at least, they are acknowledging that people who expected the tub that had always been available are justifiably upset with the change after they booked. So this may apply only to people who booked before the reimagination and ended up in shower-only cabins

My TA called me today and told me that she was contacted by Azamara concerning our upcoming cruise. We are booked in a CC suite that has only the shower. They wanted to know if we would like to be moved to a cabin with a tub.

 

The OBC was offered after our TA said that we would want the same cabin on all three of our b2b2b cruises. They could not guarantee that, so we got $100 OBC per person on each of the 3 cruises.

 

I think this is a good example of Azamara listening to their customers. It was obviously too late to do anything about the decision to remove half the tubs by the time they found out it was basically unpopular. (As shown by the many discussions on Cruise Critic about disappointment over not having a tub).

 

I guess Azamara realizes they may have made a mistake. Or at least, they are acknowledging that people who expected the tub that had always been available are justifiably upset with the change after they booked. So this may apply only to people who booked before the reimagination and ended up in shower-only cabins

I don't agree that shower only cabins were a mistake. We are on a B2B and discovered we were in a CC tub cabin. We switched to a shower only, even though we will have to change cabins for the second leg. I am a little mobility challenged and prefer not to have to step over the tub to get in the shower :)

I'm reading this the opposite way to OP: they are offering incentives to switch to the tub cabins because there is MORE demand for showers. That would certainly be the type of suite I would prefer.

I agree...I booked early in order to make sure that I had a shower only.

I agree...I booked early in order to make sure that I had a shower only.

We booked very early also (more than a year ahead), but it was before the refurbishing, so we didn't know the shower only cabins. Now we do :D

I'm reading this the opposite way to OP: they are offering incentives to switch to the tub cabins because there is MORE demand for showers. That would certainly be the type of suite I would prefer.

Not sure, we also had communication from Azamara to "advise" us that the CC suite we had booked only had a shower as it was something customers would like to know. There was no offer of being able to move to a suite with a tub, we took it that they are experiencing passengers arriving expecting a tub and finding just a shower.

As it is we were well aware that we had a shower and while it's sometimes nice to have the tub on balance the shower is for us more practical.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I ensured that we had a bath (tub) in our suite. For me it really is a deal breaker. Regent, Silverseas, Seabourn and penthouse suites on the new Oceania ships have both showers and baths. Shame this is not the case on Azamara.

I based my comments on my opinion of the (many) posts I read after the refurb. Yes, there were people who were very pleased to see a walk-in shower (and we were among those) but my impression was that the majority of the comments were solidly in favor of a tub. A typical comment: "One big reason to pay more for a suite was to get a tub. If I wanted a shower I could have saved a lot of money and taken a balcony cabin."

My personal opinion is that it was a stranger decision to have different furniture in the cabins (love seat with tubs and wing chair with showers). I just don't get that.

On our cruise in March we received a call on the first day asking if we were willing to switch to a shower only suite. They had three different rooms wanting to switch from shower only to a tub.

I'm reading this the opposite way to OP: they are offering incentives to switch to the tub cabins because there is MORE demand for showers. That would certainly be the type of suite I would prefer.

Exactly right. Azamara should have left 25% tubs, not 50%. Big mistake not to have done it when they were in the process of remaking all the staterooms.

I based my comments on my opinion of the (many) posts I read after the refurb. Yes, there were people who were very pleased to see a walk-in shower (and we were among those) but my impression was that the majority of the comments were solidly in favor of a tub.

Not true at all. The poll taken at the time showed nearly 75% of respondents wanted showers.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2239490&highlight=shower+poll

I stand corrected. I did not see that particular thread but my recollection is still that the ones I read were more adamant about losing the tub.

But the bottom line is that Azamara is having to do some juggling for some reason because of their decision to replace half of the tubs. Whether they should have replaced none of them, half of them, 3/4 of them or all of them is another question altogether.

All I can say is that we have $600 OBC spread over three cruises because of it.

We booked about 20 months ago for a cruise next month on Quest before any talk of reimagining. When all the talk about tub vs shower was going on we had no idea what we would get and even after Journey was refurbed, we were not sure what we had although all signs pointed to the shower we wanted. Seemed at times like pulling hens teeth to get a solid answer and we even changed suites when a more forward one showed available a few months ago that was the same as the one we originally booked and had the shower. We are on the same cruise as Bob278 in an N2 and we haven't heard anything from Azamara. In any case, don't believe we would take $100 pp to move to a tub suite. Yes, there was plenty of discussion regarding shower vs. tub and chair vs couch/love seat and from our POV, Azamara did not do a good job of listening to the passengers on this board and are now paying for this. As others said, too late to change any of the tubs to showers.

I stand corrected. I did not see that particular thread but my recollection is still that the ones I read were more adamant about losing the tub.

Right. And as a result the majority of us have to scramble to avoid having to climb in and out of a tub we don't want or use because of the vocal few.

I might not have been exactly clear on the offer. Our TA said Azamara asked if we wanted to move to a cabin with a tub. She said that she was sure we would not consider it unless we could get the same cabin for all 3 cruises (she had not talked to us at that point).

The Azamara rep then said they could try to talk others into swapping but could not guarantee it. At that point, they immediately offered the OBC.

My interpretation was that they were "compensating" us for not having a tub. At no time were we ever asked which we preferred. And, since we were compensated for staying in place, I do not think it was because they were looking for a "shower" cabin. Why give us something if we didn't help them out?

We have mixed feelings about the whole reimagined cabins. We prefer the shower but would rather have the loveseat/sofa. But we'll know for sure which we prefer by early next year as we have a tub cabin on Journey in February.

What I don't understand is why the change in the first place. I don't recall the subject ever coming up on Cruise Critic. About all I remember about showers is the dreaded curtain. So what triggered the decision? Were there surveys that indicated a demand for showers only?

And the dreaded curtain is in the verandah cabins, not the CC suites, because they always only had a very small shower.

There are those of us who, for various reasons, need a bath tub.

But what I still don't understand is what triggered the change. It was obviously not cheap. I really never saw any discussions on the subject (other than talking about shower curtains in non-suites) and certainly don't remember any requests that the tubs in the suites should be removed.

Anytime there is a choice, there will be many people passionate about both sides and overall, that's a good thing.

The discussion I was trying to start was that what happened with us today indicates to me that Azamara is saying "oops". For whatever reason they had, they felt it was a good idea to compensate us for being in a cabin without a tub.

To me, that is a positive thing. They made a mistake (or felt that at least some of their customers thought they did) and they set out to make it right as best they could. To me, that is good customer service.

Not sure, we also had communication from Azamara to "advise" us that the CC suite we had booked only had a shower as it was something customers would like to know.

Agreed. If I forked out money for a suite and found out on board it only has a shower, I would throw a stink too. I get the "you should have done your research" argument, but the fact is that on premium lines like Seabourn, Silver Sea, etc. even regular balcony cabins have both a tub and a separate walk-in shower. Therefore, many who book a suite on Azamara for the first time will never even think of researching this.

Exactly right. Azamara should have left 25% tubs, not 50%. Big mistake not to have done it when they were in the process of remaking all the staterooms.

Reality has caught up with your Cruise Critic poll. Azamara's on board teams are dealing with a lot of unhappy arrivals right now who find only a shower in their suite. I'm just speculating, but perhaps this has something to do with the average age of passengers being a lot lower during the summer months - making getting in and out of a tub not an issue for most.

----I get the "you should have done your research" argument[

Impossible for a least one of Bob's cruises, as the last sector-Southampton to Montreal was booked out in Oct 2014, long before reimagining.

Let me make it clear that I am not complaining about the situation of not having a tub. Granted, we booked all of our current 5 cruises well before the reimagination was even announced so I guess someone thought we might feel like the game changed after we booked. We certainly never said that to anyone.

There was never any thought in our minds about the tubs being replaced whenever (if ever) there was a major overhaul. Sure we were surprised to learn of the changes but don't really care a lot. We are getting to the age where stepping up into a tub is going to be an issue but the Azamara tubs are not nearly as high as some on Celebrity. As long as they are no higher than before we are fine with it.

My point was and still is that Azamara gave us OBC for the simple reason that we are in a suite without a tub. I don't know why they did that and don't really care.

My guess (and that's all it is) is that Azamara feels for whatever reason they have, that people who booked before it was known that some cabins would not have tubs should be compensated for that. Somebody somewhere must have made the point that not having a tub did not match reasonable expectations at time of booking. So they decided to offer some OBC. I do not know if anyone else has had that happen but thought I would share that it happened to us.

We'll find some way to use the OBC if it's nothing more than cheesy presents for family from the shops.

See you soon, Jackie.

I hope they are giving this OBC to all suite guests in rooms with showers :D (whether they wanted a tub or a shower hehe)

Obviously as has been said Azamara have had people turning up and complaining there is no tub , but do find it odd how they are handling it. Our original August booking was made way before the refurbishment was announced and our suite was one of the ones changed to a shower, however after they changed the embarkation port from Istanbul and changed the preceding itinerary we booked the preceding cruise so it is now a b2b. However this second booking was made on Journey in January on the fist cruise post refit so we know all about the configuration.

We have still received the communication re the showers but no offer of OBC, not that we would expect any, but shouldn't all passengers be treated the same?

On the matter of configuration some do have tubs and chairs we in 8061 and that certainly had that set up, we were also told that some have showers and love seats.

Sent from my iPad using Forums

I hope they are giving this OBC to all suite guests in rooms with showers :D (whether they wanted a tub or a shower hehe)

Something doesn't seem quite right with the OP's story. I would be amazed if Azamara is willy-nillly giving OBC to passengers booked in a CC suite just because it has a shower. That makes no sense at all. Azamara does not give "money" away for no reason. Why give something to someone who has not registered a complaint? Heaven knows, there are enough complainers already on cruise ships to keep the staff busy.

As far as Floris's theory about people of "lower" age not having a problem climbing in and out of a tub, that makes no sense, either. People of "lower" age today have little interest in sitting in a tub. They take quick showers and get on with their day.

What is likely happening is the few who insist on a tub who booked before the refit and were unaware that half the tubs were being removed are being surprised by the absence of a tub, and are asking to be moved. Those who would prefer showers but were not aware that half the suites now have beautiful, large walk-in showers don't know what they're missing so don't ask if assigned a room with tub. Those who would prefer a shower and were expecting the old tub who now find themselves in a room with a large shower are surprised and delighted. Those who don't care...well...don't care.

The world is moving from tubs to showers. The Mercure hotel, where we just stayed in London, is in the midst of a refurbishment and tubs are being yanked and replaced with large, tub-sized walk-in showers. The condos where we live were built with tubs and modest-sized showers in the master bath suite. New buyers are yanking out the tubs and enlarging the showers or adding closet space.

As far as having both a tub and a shower in a CC suite on an R-ship...well...there's simply no room for both. It's not going to happen.

I wasn't informed what our CC suite has for our August 2016 and February 2018 cruises. I would want a shower and a loveseat, if that combination exists. It's probably too late for 2016, but might be possible, if it exists, for 2018.