Dylandude

18 hours ago, uktog said:

 we are enjoying a glorious day in Argostoli in what is Azamaras first ever stop here. It is quite a breezy day which could make white  nights a little bit interesting for those who decide to go on deck. 

I beg to differ on this point. We were in Argostoli in June this year whilst cruising on board Onward.

Everything else you wrote summed up our experience of the day there.

Onward has UK EU and US sockets

9 minutes ago, Nippy Sweetie said:

@tgg: re travel problems we were booked to fly from Edinburgh to Venice via Charles de Gaulle with only one hour to make the connection. Despite being told we didn't have to go through security or passport checks it turned out that this was compulsory. My OH was desperate and shamelessly pushed in to the tops of the queues begging to be let in. We got through just as boarding was closing for the Venice flight. We were very lucky indeed. Others were in tears. We had had to run for what felt like miles. 

 

Did you book direct with Az and let them arrange your flights or did a TA book flights for you? It’s defiantly worth clarifying. 

I have had poor experiences when using both and now book my own flights.

I agree with you re the bus journey to Ravenna, no comfort break as advised, (thankfully not required).

Check in for a Suite was straightforward and we were onboard with in fifteen minutes from arrival at Ravenna.

9 minutes ago, Nippy Sweetie said:

 

I Googled Le Union de Vignerons and got a link to Yapp.co.uk who are well recognised UK wine merchant. They are selling three of Le Union de Vignerons wines for £12.75 ($15) per bottle.

This is what Yapp wines said “The Union des Vignerons Cave Co-opérative of Saint Pourçain is a benchmark example of a pioneering modern operation producing well-made inexpensive and reliable wines.”

Having tried all the Az house wines (not all are made by Le Union de Vignerons) I think the description above nails it, they are well made and reliable, who cares if they are not expensive.

1 hour ago, Grandma Cruising said:

No, it’s not, open from either 7am to 10pm I think.

1 hour ago, andrcan said:

No, I believe it’s 8am to 9pm. 

It’s one of the two.

8 minutes ago, uktog said:

You are in luck she is on Quest

Thank you Uktog

Has Ruby returned to a bar onboard any of Azamara’s ships?

Just curious as I’m onboard  Quest in four weeks.

7 hours ago, hamrag said:

Depending on what you mean by 'more upscale', Az may disappoint. The MDR food is no better than most mass cruiselines, and not as good as Cunard. We recently sailed Oceania which is similar to Az in some regards, but their MDR and buffet culinary experience is vastly superior to Az.

 

So if food is a significant part of your cruise experience, I'd be inclined to pass on Az. 😉

I have over 40 cruises to my credit on nine different cruise lines, and I would have to say Oceania was the biggest disappointment despite the fact the fact they were the most hyped.

The ships were dead at 10:30pm at night as everyone was wrapped up in bed.The crew were uninspiring,, but the biggest disappointment of all was the food.

I found the food very dated, stuck in the 1970, and 80’s. Yes it was well cooked and well presented but when you have a consultant chef who is well in his 80’s the food just lacked imagination and flair cross the ship.

I have been a regular Az cruise and cruised Az post Covid  twice in the past 10 months and have found the food and the new menus to have what is almost a cutting edge. There are lots of ethnic touches and flavours filled with the spices and discoveries that Azamara is all about.

I know not everyone is thrilled by the infusion of spice, but I think the new approach is clever and setting the mark for destination immersion brand.

4 hours ago, laurieb said:

Have you checked recently?  Just posted that it is included on the beyond 

freudian slip?

10 hours ago, tgg said:

 

I think I can guess the "group" of cruisers they're concerned about.

 

The guys show up for dinner in the main dining room wearing baseball caps, wife-beater shirts, shorts, and flip-flops. When the maitre d' refuses to seat them, they say " I paid good money for this cruise and I'll wear what I damn well please." 

 

They complain loudly about the lack of wet t-shirt contests.  

 

Elitist?  Exclusionary?  Your call.

spot on

1 minute ago, cruisinsusin said:

I realize that Azamra is no longer under the Royal Caribbean umbrella but, sInce the loyalty programs are still combined, I wonder if I can still make a future cruise reservation for an Azamara cruise on my upcoming Celebrity cruise and get the on board booking promotions. 

Thanks for any info

Highly unlikely.

On 11/18/2021 at 2:18 AM, Bimmer09 said:

 Chris will get his, I thought and of course you did.

The song I would choose if allowed only one Desert Island disc. An epic feat of the imagination.

I bought the album (my favorite Dylan) in 1965 and it has rewarded me for 56 years.

I also have never tired of Van Morrison's Into the Mystic and Listen to the Lion.

In London I had a fantastic pair of Altec Lansing speakers which I used to use like headphones-couple of pillows on the floor, candlelight, speakers either side, an inch from each ear, song on repeat. Bliss!

Cheers friend,

Norris

I can’t believe there has been Dylan theme on this thread and I haven’t contributed. It’s all in the name.

1 hour ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

Ah, got it now.  But if Sycamore owns the US distributor, that should make their provisioning even easier.

Most certainly.

18 minutes ago, Host Jazzbeau said:

I have seen that champagne mentioned as the house brand on some cruise ships [Crystal] so it must be possible to provision.

Crossed wires.
I was implying that it would be a difficult brand to purchase outright, ie ownership of the brand.

Im quite sure Nicolas Feuillatte will sell bottles to anyone or any cruise line if the price is right.

1 hour ago, JL87 said:

I haven't seen anything on Sycamore buying Nicolas Feuillatte. If you have a link or more info I would like to see it. It is a very good Champagne at a reasonable cost. I hope Azamara continues to carry it in their portfolio. As far as BTG selections, there are no cruise lines that offer the kinds of wines I normally drink. The included wines are almost all mass produced wines that offer lots of availability and consistency. Nothing really wrong with that and it's pretty much by necessity. I'll try and few and find something that I can drink with a meal. If not, then I default to Champagne which I think pairs extremely well with a lot of different foods. I also plan on buying some interesting wines in port and bringing them onboard. I have no problem with the corkage policy. I haven't sailed Azamara yet but have a cruise booked for next year. 

Ste. Michelle Wine Estates who Sycamore  have purchased are the US distributor for Nicolas Feuillatte Champagne.

Nicolas Feuillatte would be a difficult brand ( not impossible) to purchase as it is a cooperative of 4000+ small producers, and is planning on merging with another large cooperative.

47 minutes ago, sgmn said:

Vegans ?

Apologies, I never thought of that. Vegans don’t really feature on my radar.

I only asked because one is a natural product made with cream and probably salt, the other starts with a manufacturing process where they bleach the oil four time before adding up 30 different chemicals and emulsifiers to create an unnatural product that doesn’t even taste that pleasant. 

It’s great to have a choice on a cruise ship

On 9/7/2021 at 9:13 AM, the penguins said:

Just back from Silhoutte. Basically as described above but a few changes due to covid. All pre plated with various options. However the the plates are "options" we changed ours to: 1 plate 4 plain croissants, 1 plate smoked salmon with extra cream cheese, 1 x assorted croissants for the boss etc. Assorted jams and the most delicious marmalade. They will make up any combination you like. Also, if you ask nicely you can have toast. If you prefer margarine to butter collect it from the buffet the day before and bring it with you on day 1. Then ask if they will have it for you from the next day. It's a quirk in the system that only butter is automatically added to the Elite breakfast. Choice of smoothies depending on availability - no banana on our cruise.

Very few passengers participated which is a shame - not the great atmosphere you get on Transatlantics - just a pleasant relaxed breakfast with great views out over the stern

I’m sorry to ask, but who prefers margarine to butter?

7 hours ago, SSAtlantic said:

I have gotten Hot Toddy’s at Cafe al Baccio on several occasions. Some are better than others but still tasty. 

A few years ago it was funny watching an Irish cruiser express his disgust at the quality of the Irish Coffee served at Cafe al Baccia.

The team member asked the passenger to help him make them better, there were around 6-7 passengers who watched the live instruction and voila the Irish coffee was transformed into something drinkable.

I once won the shuffleboard.

3 hours ago, excitedofharpenden said:

Not sure if you are aware, but your block postings without paragraphs are extremely difficult to read and take away from what you are trying to say. I often give up a third of the way through. 

 

Phil 

That’s a good point, sometimes I just skip block postings. Paragraphs make posting so much easier to read.

From memory AZ MDR creme brûlée’s definitely crack.

17 hours ago, donaldsc said:

 

Besides Capt Nico. do any of them have any cruise or even travel industry experience?

 

DON

I think that the teams non cruise experience is a good thing.

Would you be happier with a bunch of NCL Carnival and RCL cast offs? 

On 6/25/2021 at 6:02 AM, donaldsc said:

 

Given the skill set of the new hires, I am not encouraged.

 

DON

Why?

I was named after a well known singer songwriter from Minnesota.

On 5/4/2021 at 11:44 PM, KevintheIrishDJ said:

We live near Miami.  Are there any last minute cruise discounts?

 

You won’t find them here, and rarely with Azamara.