kml246

Sailaway from Sibenik, Croatia this afternoon. Just as @aliaschief had a wonderful first cruise on Pursuit looking forward to staying on board, tomorrow is our turnaround day after our 7-day Croatia Intensive cruise on Onward. Tomorrow we begin our 11-day Italy Intensive cruise. It's been a wonderful seven days so far - from the ship to the staff to the ports. Even the torrential rain in Dubrovnik yesterday didn't damper spirits. It was supposed to be an outdoor event in a Dubrovnik fort at night, but rain ended that idea. Onward crew managed to get the entertainment on board and we still saw the show. Today, we went to Krka National Park.

The traditional library became Atlas Bar. There are shelves of books in the Living Room and some travel books in the Den.

We have 650 on board Onward for our first cruise. I don't know what tomorrow will bring on changeover.

We're getting these on Onward this week, too. Not delivered to our staterooms, but available at Guest Relations.

No, I didn't. We don't debark until June 28 in Civitavecchia. We booked our own private transfer with Rome Cabs.

Interesting. Perhaps this is a ship by ship decision on how they handle ticket delivery.

For those concerned about transfers from Chioggia to the airport (VCE), here is what we received in our stateroom yesterday. We aren't using it because we are on for another cruise, but the options seem quite reasonable.

As I've been writing that the onboard experience is excellent, for those worrying about booked excursions, we received our excursion tickets shortly after boarding and they were correct. Kevin

That hasn't been my experience booking air with cruise lines (sometimes Choice Air with Celebrity, but usually EZ-Air with Princess). Once I made the booking it generated a PNR. With that you can see your reservation on the airline website. If you have or create an account with the airline, you can manage some aspects of the flight. American doesn't allow you to reserve seats until ticketed, though United does. I have been successful in calling American in the past and sweet-talk the agent into reserving our desired seats. Now that you can change or cancel and rebook flights without penalty (at least for US customers), we always book our flights directly with the airline. We never use a TA to book flights as that adds an unnecessary layer to your booking. While I feel most of the angst, worry, and frustration with Azamara is unnecessary regarding loyalty and OBC, it's understandable with flights and feel for those affected. Kevin

Lovely evening on Onward sailing out of Zadar, Croatia. We did not stress a lot before the trip, had to fly here (booked on our own), spent ten minutes straightening out loyalty once on board, and have enjoying a wonderful cruise.

You're welcome, Jane. I did not book any Excursions with CC as I had a lot of OBC, and haven't done the Essentials package. In speaking with Guest Relations, they confirmed any Excursions paid with a CC will have the OBC applied first once on board and credit card overpayment will be refunded after the cruise. This is pretty much how it worked on all the cruises we've taken.

You really don't need to worry about the OBC. It was updated within 36 hours of boarding Saturday and it is correct. Guest Services on board has been extremely helpful. Kevin

Thanks, received our invite last night.

On board Onward since Saturday. I already reported on embarkation and how easy it was to update our loyalty status at Guest Relations after boarding. Guest Relations said OBC should show within two days. They appeared yesterday and are correct. Onboard experience is wonderful! Kevin & Nan

We are staying on for the next cruise but the turnaround is in Chioggia and we debark in Civitavecchia. I expect it would take about the same time as our drive from Maritima to Fusina, 20 to 25 minutes. Kevin

Boarded Onward today in Fusina. Check-in was easy in Venice at Station Maritima. First got our luggage tags and dropped off luggage. Took about ten minutes. After a short wait in the terminal we picked up our cruise cards. Unfortunately, as expected, they didn't show our loyalty level. They said to see Guest Services after boarding as there wasn't anything they could do there. We then waited on a line for a bit less than fifteen minutes to go through security before boarding the bus to Fusina. The bus ride to the ship took about twenty minutes. Upon arrival we were directed to the Cabaret Lounge to complete check-in. After that, we could go to our cabins. Afterwards, I went to Guest Services to have the loyalty level corrected. A lovely representative said we were showing as Adventurer (me) and Preview (Nan) when we are both Discoverer. After a few minutes in the system to confirm we are Discoverer, she updated our profile, and printed us new cards. Very little effort. OBC is not showing, yet, but should be updated by mid-cruise. She confirmed that if you paid for any extra by credit card, OBC will be used first to settle your account and excess credit card payments will refunded. First day was pretty stress free and the staff is great. Kevin

Enjoy! Hope you have a wonderful time.

Boarded Onward today in Fusina. Check-in was easy in Venice at Station Maritima. First got our luggage tags and dropped off luggage. Took about ten minutes. After a short wait in the terminal we picked up our cruise cards. Unfortunately, as expected, they didn't show our loyalty level. They said to see Guest Services after boarding as there wasn't anything they could do there. We then waited on a line for a bit less than fifteen minutes to go through security before boarding the bus to Fusina. The bus ride to the ship took about twenty minutes. Upon arrival we were directed to the Cabaret Lounge to complete check-in. After that, we could go to our cabins. Afterwards, I went to Guest Services to have the loyalty level corrected. A lovely representative said we were showing as Adventurer (me) and Preview (Nan) when we are both Discoverer. After a few minutes in the system to confirm we are Discoverer, she updated our profile, and printed us new cards. Very little effort. OBC is not showing, yet, but should be updated by mid-cruise. She confirmed that if you paid for any extra by credit card, OBC will be used first to settle your account and excess credit card payments will refunded. First day was pretty stress free and the staff is great. Kevin

On the bus to Fusina to board Onward for 18 days. No issues at check-in at Terminal 117 Station Maritima in Venice. Don't know yet whether our loyalty is correct. Will find out on board and will report back. Kevin

Arrived safely in Venice this morning for three days of sightseeing before we board Onward on Saturday. Here's the view from our hotel room. See you in ten days! Kevin and Nan

Thank you for the tip about the UK website. I was able to log in and see my loyalty level and points. It has 57 points too many because it's crediting points from a Celebrity cruise we took in April. In any event, we are sailing on Onward Saturday and am typing this on our first of two flights to Venice. I hope on board the loyalty level will be correct, but if it isn't, these screenshots will help. Kevin

Looking forward to it! Safe travels. Kevin & Nan

We were just there on an Atlas cruise last month. The entire Arts and Sciences complex is beautiful. Excellent zoo in Valencia, too - Bioparc Valencia. Looks like a great Azamazing Evening! Enjoy the rest of your cruise. We leave for Venice tomorrow to catch Onward on Saturday for a B2B Kevin

If you use Microsoft Edge, to the right of the address bar is a translate button. Click on the button and you get the following dialog box.

You're welcome, Marilyn. Smaller airports are usually a better experience, but the advantage of a large airport like SFO, especially if it's a hub, is the numerous flights available if you get delayed or cancelled. When we're flying overseas, I check all the airports within a three-hour drive to see what works best. Good luck, Kevin