Scots Caz

9 hours ago, Grandma Cruising said:

 

The premium drinks package includes several single malt whiskies 

‘ Select Cask, The Glenlivet The Master, Destiller's Reserve, Highland Park Aged 12 Years, The Balvenie Triple Cask 12 Years, Laphroaig 10 Years, The Macallan Select Oak’

 

 

 

that appears to be the list from the Ultimate package rather than Premium. Premium only has blends for Whisky

https://www.azamara.com/gb/booked-guests/onboard-packages#link-beverages

just returning to bring this thread to a close re missing FCC

After receiving confirmation that I could extend end date, I booked a trip on Quest for November 23 and again the FCC could not be located. Took all my paperwork onboard and dealt with onboard booking team (leaving them to deal with Miami) and managed to get all outstanding FCC applied to a new booking for March 24. All paid in full now...should not have been this hard!

wifi on Azamara used to be terrible however they have upgraded. There are two levels of wifi...the regular $19.95 per day if purchasing for the duration...this is SLOW but may be fine for some people. I work when onboard so upgrade to the fast wifi for an additional $8.95 per day and find this fine...I do access documents from cloud and deal with mail but don't do video calls. Note the prices are for one device but you can use it on multiple but only one at a time...when you log into a second device it logs out the first one. I have used the upgraded wifi on transatlantics on Onward and Quest. (previously most of my working was by tethering off 4G when in port if in Europe as my data plan covers this and would not have considered a transatlantic before the upgrade if needing to work)

last time I bid I was notified successful 48 hours before departure which seemed consistent with others at the time from the spreadsheet on this thread https://boards.cruisecritic.co.uk/topic/2645145-upgrade-bid-experiences/

4 hours ago, read2learn said:

Did they allow priority boarding for the loyalty members? 

as per post #4, Discoverer Platinum and Discoverer Plus can board from 1:30pm as can suites.

In Lisbon last month, priority passengers were given a green sticker and others a white one. They rounded up the green stickers for boarding first...pretty sure it started at 1:30pm

Windows for lunch on boarding day. Last trip (this month) boarding started for Priority @ 1:30pm...there have been reports of boarding as early as 12:30 on occasion but this seemed an exception, 

it is $95 for one Chef's table, no requirement to book as part of a package

1 hour ago, Mackdogmolly said:

Right now they already have a double upgrade with $1000 OBC, so it will be interesting to see how they will top that 

the current OBC is only for a few select countries (looks like US, Canada, Brazil and Mexico)...majority have zero OBC currently

I finished a cruise in Lisbon in November (on Journey).My brother and wife were also onboard and had an early flight. They checked with Guest Relations and walked off with their baggage about 5am

got it for Quest - 9th November

the times I have done B2B there is a meeting held prior to changeover day and they advise what time you will be checked out and checked back in/receive new keycard. It has been 09:00 or 09:15. (process all the B2B passengers together) I have never requested it earlier.

21 minutes ago, uktog said:

And remember your UK passport in Europe now expires 10 years from issue date not necessarily the printed expiry date. 

the expiry date remains the same but you cannot enter he EU with passports over 10 years old. (issue date and expiry date are two separate tests...there is no revised expiry date when 10 years old) As they used to add up to 9 months someone with a passport issued September 2013 showing an expiry date of June 2024 might think they are good to go anywhere as they have loads of time left on passport. However whilst they can happily use passport to enter US and many other countries...it is now no good for EU as it was issued over 10 years ago.

if you are visiting Turkey, 150 days (6 months) is required.

If you are flying to Turkey you would not be able to board flight if UK passport unless "Passports and other documents accepted for entry must be valid for a minimum of 150 days from the arrival date."

not all cruises are included in the quarterly savings, which one are you looking at?

I have priced one without logging in and then again after logging in and can see the price difference

21 minutes ago, uktog said:

Can you recall who said this, thanks

I can't unfortunately. It was on Journey in November last year - (the 'dry dock' question was mine not mentioned) but I raised it as there must be a better way than the obscene amount of plastic. I was told it was definitely planned (maybe the parts are in the container in Shanghai with the Onward balcony furniture 🙂 🙂 )

15 hours ago, VandM said:

Thanks.  I’m appalled.  Are there hydration stations if I take my own?

not currently - I asked the question regarding reducing plastic water bottles at an officers Q&A and was told it is in the plans to install water stations in future  (possibly something that may be done when in dry dock?)

26 minutes ago, Cruiser Craig said:

weren't the 'Destination Celebrations' intended to replace 'Azamazing Evenings' during the pandemic? Any insight is welcome.

  

I suspect not all itineraries can accommodate offship events. My last trip in March was Canaries and entertainment was brought onboard. There was a statement made that there will be a mix of event types. Offship still appear to be the majority but a number of cruises do have Shipboard

https://www.azamara.com/static-assets/files/AzAmazing Celebrations.pdf

10 hours ago, JaneStarr said:

https://www.azamara.com/static-assets/content/azamara-connect/promos/aza_solo_rates_2023.pdf

that shows up to end April when in fact there are solo deals up to end June 2024 currently. 

there are some good solo deals - some with 0% supplement and many at 25% (I use a third party site for search the solo offers) 

1 hour ago, LoveChops said:

Does the best price guarantee apply to the UK? My cruise has dropped in price by £1400!

with a UK booking you would cancel, lose your deposit (which is higher than some other countries) and rebook at the lower price...annoying but sounds like there is still a decent saving to be had...just need to watch out for any additional benefits with the original booking that will be lost and change to current benefits

There was a period of time that UK bookings could get Best Price Guarantee under Cruise with Confidence (which I used twice) once the final balance was adjusted and the second time, as full payment had been made, I received a refund to my card of the difference...this ended (unfortunately) at the end of 2022 and was more to encourage bookings during times of Covid uncertainty.

8 hours ago, westcoasttech said:

Questions from a 1st time Azamara pax … If you book the package that includes 1 chefs table are you then guaranteed a spot?  When do you get to choose which cuisine you want?  I’ve seen (on various postings) that French and Italian options seem constant - are other cuisines dependent on what route you are sailing?  If sailing a longer route (say a 20 day sailing), I would presume there’s more opportunities?  There are certain things I don’t or can’t eat, so am hoping I can see all menus to pick the best option!

You go to the desk for booking Speciality restaurants when you board, they will have a calendar of what Chef's Tables are on which night with the menus available to browse. You will be asked if you have any dietary requirements (which is often confirmed with a phone call day before) and they will cater for any requirements. Some tables are more popular than others and can book out quickly, in November I ended up on a waitlist for French and they organised an additional night (not sure if it was originally planned to be a different 'country' that night that was switched) It's a great experience.

1 hour ago, debcip said:

This information shouldn’t be so difficult to find!

Indeed - all it needs is a one liner after the table here https://www.azamara.com/booked-guests/onboard-packages#link-dining to say "Individual visits to Aqualina or Price C = $35

Chefs Table= $95"...would also help people see what they are saving when booking a package 

what date in November 2024

The t&cs say "....on selected voyages departing 3rd January 2024 to 9th November 2024"

If you are on a single ticket that transits the UK then the APD for departing the UK does not apply

If you have a separate ticket originating the UK then you will be hit with APD when purchasing the ticket (not sure if there is any way to claim it back)

UK APD in business for London-New York currently UK £191

Looking at random return dates in November - FCO-EWR via LHR all in business class = £2189

starting London with same LHR-EWR-LHR flights = £2,484

ITAMatrix is a useful resource to check tax breakdown on routes.

I've also used Dublin as a starting point for long haul business...a few years ago managed flights to LAX in business cheaper than economy from starting London

Onward wifi in Feb/March was great. On previous trips I had relied a lot on 4G in port (as wifi was pretty dire) but after the starlink install I risked a transatlantic and was great with no issues.

I have read that Onward is better than the others although I think they all have starlink now. (will be testing Quest next)