Live from Quest -- May 15, 2010

Live from Quest. I think Azamara calls this cruise the Best of Italy. Random thoughts on the cruise to date composed on first day at sea.

I think this is Wednesday. Pretty much checked my brain at the door when I boarded. :)

These thoughts are not set forth in any specific order. That being said, there may be some subconscious influences. They may also follow some time line. This is truly just a stream of conscious approach to getting these thoughts down.

After stressing over volcano ash cloud and Italian baggage handlers strike, the trip from Phoenix to Rome via Heathrow was a piece of cake. Stayed in FCO area instead of heading to Civit as we landed approx 7:30 in the evening. Stayed at Marriott Courtyard. Very convenient to airport. Pre-arranged for driver with Rome Cabs to take us and one other couple to port next day.

Boarding in Civit was particularly easy. I was surprised out how few passengers were at the terminal. I think we arrived at approx 1:00PM local time. Rooms were already ready when we boarded. Wow.

Here comes the random thoughts/impressions:

Dined first night as suite guest in Aqualina. Setting is very nice. I am familiar with layout of ship from previous cruise on Oceania. Nevertheless, looking directly out large bank of windows at aft of ship was captivating. Appetizer of scallops particularly nice. Surprised me as I assumed scallops were not something that a cruise ship would be able to handle well. Pan-seared red snapper was another story. Did not fare well from going from a clearly frozen state to my plate. Very rough seas first night from on-going low front that was sitting over this part of Italy. The ladies excused themselves from the table prior to dessert and bolted for cabins. Some folks were helped from the restaurant by the waiters to keep from crashing into other tables.

Cabin attendants very nice. Butler is sweet. Not happy that I won't avail myself more to his services. Every morning he almost begs me to take coffee, etc in my room. Finally conceded to take tea on balcony one day. Actually it was very nice. Delivered more small sandwiches and dessert items than four people could have eaten. Typical heavy-handed approach for all cruise ships I've sailed. Restraint with food does not enter the equation. Presumably the ship assumes all people want to gorge themselves over tea in the afternoon.

More food: Accepted invitation while dining first night in Aqualina to a six course wine tasting dinner being served a couple of days later at Prime, the other specialty restaurant. Cost was $60 per head. Rich for a cruise ship when you think about it, but here's the thing – the food was amazing. The wine parings were obviously well thought out. (More on that in a moment.) I think there were twelve of us at the table. For the main entree, each guest had a choice of either sea bass or filet. Both were surprisingly good and approached the level of quality you would find at the best American steak house. One of the earlier courses consisted of salmon and lobster. This dish will go down as one of the best things I've eaten anywhere. The wines pored were all California. This was the only disappointment. Attended university in the San Francisco bay area. Spouse is also born and raised in bay area. At this stage of my life, I try to drink anything but California wines.

Side note: Looking out windows in the Windows ding venue. Sea is dead calm. Wife will be thrilled!

Another important side note: Thanks to Sue and Darren for the welcome aboard gift of wine and cheese. Both were consumed first evening with relish!

Time to break and see if I can cut and paste this missive into the Cruise Critic boards. Wish me luck!

OK, that didn't work. For some reason, my laptop won't make the connection to the ship's wi-fi.

Onward. I believe both the ship's captain and cruise director boarded the ship for the first time when we boarded. I don't have names handy, but will locate and get them down into these scribblings. During Cruise Critic party (first evening on board) we were told the cruise director was joining us after finishing a tour of duty on the Seabourne Odyssey. At least I think that's what we were told.

OK, laptop making connection, but when I tried to cut and paste this missive into cruise critic I was timed out. Maybe it posted, maybe it didn't.

Onward again. Something to remember if your cruise takes you to Sorrento. Plan for the contingency of not actually making it to Sorrento. I had read on several postings in Cruise Critic that poor weather may make it impossible to dock in Sorrento as this is a tender port. This was the case on our cruise. Due to high winds (forget the fact that it was pouring rain), we were forced to dock in Naples. Much disappointment felt by many. For one thing, Naples is an industrial port. Compared to the serene setting of Sorrento the scene from your balcony while docked in Naples can be alarming. All the more so on this cruise as we were scheduled to overnight in this port. Oh well, nothing to do but make the best of it. Heidi (time to introduce her) and I had planned to do our own thing for the first day in Sorrento (now Naples). Our main plan was to do Pompeii. Pouring rain as we disembarked. The train station (generally easy means of getting to Pompeii) looked to be an easy walk, but in the rain – forget it. Time to cough up for a cab. Find cab driver. Convinces me to use him for drive to and from Pompeii. Grab another couple who were huddled in rain and asked if they wanted to share transportation to and from Pompeii. They looked like they were fed up with rain as well, so they whole-heartedly agreed to plan. Now the trip cost half the price. Got to Pompeii. Rain tapering off. Purchased tickets. Couldn't figure out how to get into a group for guided tour. Much confusion on my part and everyone else due to rain. Saw a group heading off with their guide and walked into the middle of it. Turned out to be a group from a Princess ship. They didn't seem to care we were joining them. Guide didn't seem to care either. I'm not even sure they realized we weren't part of their tour. Recommendation from me as well as what you will see posted on Cruise Critic: Use a guided tour! I'm sure Pompeii is doable on your own, but having a guide describe what you are seeing and where you are walking is definitely the way to go. Pompeii is a huge site. Be prepared for a lot of walking over varying surfaces.

Day two in Naples. Heidi and I had made a connection through Cruise Critic with two other couples for a private driver to do the Amalfi Coast. Another recommendation: Use a private driver for Amalfi. With three couples in a large Mercedes van, the cost was less than ship excursion on bus. Needless to say, the intimacy of doing Amalfi in a private car is preferable to bus. A stop in Positano is not even possible by bus.

Tom - it sounds as though you are having a good time even with the weather and rough seas! You guys deserve it. I hope that the weather improves and the trip exceeds your expectations! Enjoy the Best of Italy! We're jealous.

Sue

Thanks for taking the time to send us live reports! I hope that sunny skies and calm seas prevail for the rest of your trip. Looking forward to your updates. :)

Sorry that you docked in Naples. Don't be. From Naples there is a direct train to Pompeii. It's easy, close to the dock, close to Pompeii, runs frequently, and its cheap. Enjoy. Pompeii is fantastic, Enjoy!

Hi What a Market !

Thank you for your excellent onboard update. I hope you have a fantastic Quest sailing. Please stay in touch !

Don't write off Naples. Most of the treasures from Pompeii are actually in the archeological museum in Naples. And the world's best pizza is in Naples.

Don't write off Naples. Most of the treasures from Pompeii are actually in the archeological museum in Naples. And the world's best pizza is in Naples.

I think the OP's disappointment was mostly due to the view from the ship where they were docked, since they had an overnight there. Having been in both ports, I understand the disappointment in what they missed in the way of views, but that's the nature of cruising. Sounds like they did very well with their change of plans on short notice.

Buon Giorno What a Market!

I just wanted to say Grazie for doing a live from thread!

While Naples in the rain isn't the prettiest port...it does have a few plus'

You offer a great reminder for all of us who have itineraries that port in Amalfi and Sorrento that we should have a contingency plan...

if you are planning on DIY from either of those ports..just know how to do it from Naples..with directions to the train, the schedules and even bus schedules filed away just in case..

As a California girl I understand the desire to venture out of our own backyard for wines,

isn't it funny though..how many people around the world

in other wine countries say how lucky we are to have such access to wineries from north to Anderson Valley and down to Temecula!!!

I look forward to hearing about the rest of your adventure!

Buon Viaggio!

K.

Onward again. Something to remember if your cruise takes you to Sorrento. Plan for the contingency of not actually making it to Sorrento. I had read on several postings in Cruise Critic that poor weather may make it impossible to dock in Sorrento as this is a tender port. This was the case on our cruise. Due to high winds (forget the fact that it was pouring rain), we were forced to dock in Naples. Much disappointment felt by many. For one thing, Naples is an industrial port. Compared to the serene setting of Sorrento the scene from your balcony while docked in Naples can be alarming. All the more so on this cruise as we were scheduled to overnight in this port. Oh well, nothing to do but make the best of it. Heidi (time to introduce her) and I had planned to do our own thing for the first day in Sorrento (now Naples). Our main plan was to do Pompeii. Pouring rain as we disembarked. The train station (generally easy means of getting to Pompeii) looked to be an easy walk, but in the rain – forget it. Time to cough up for a cab. Find cab driver. Convinces me to use him for drive to and from Pompeii. Got to Pompeii. Rain tapering off. Purchased tickets. Couldn't figure out how to get into a group for guided tour. Much confusion on my part and everyone else due to rain. Saw a group heading off with their guide and walked into the middle of it. Turned out to be a group from a Princess ship. They didn't seem to care we were joining them. Guide didn't seem to care either. I'm not even sure they realized we weren't part of their tour. Recommendation from me as well as what you will see posted on Cruise Critic: Use a guided tour! I'm sure Pompeii is doable on your own, but having a guide describe what you are seeing and where you are walking is definitely the way to go. Pompeii is a huge site. Be prepared for a lot of walking over varying surfaces.

Day two in Naples. Heidi and I had made a connection through Cruise Critic with two other couples for a private driver to do the Amalfi Coast. Another recommendation: Use a private driver for Amalfi. With three couples in a large Mercedes van, the cost was less than ship excursion on bus. Needless to say, the intimacy of doing Amalfi in a private car is preferable to bus. A stop in Positano is not even possible by bus. Weather beginning to clear. No rain, so tour was perfect. Thanks much to Renee for making the arrangements.

Day three in Taormina. Good news – weather is perfect. Mostly sunny. High probably 70 degrees. Azamara provided bus transportation from where we tendered in up to the actual city of Taormina. Not a lot to do in Taormina (assuming you stay put in town as we did) but wander through city streets. We did hike up to Greek theater. Impressive. The main street through town are lined with shops. The ceramic tile factory stores make both beautiful and gaudy pieces. (Based on recommendation from our private tour guide, we purchased a ceramic piece while on our Amalfi drive tour. The shop is called, believe it or not, Piccadilly. Our driver stated the quality and price would not be beat in the other cities we were doing. (At least those places likely to be frequented by tourists.) As to price, I can state he has been accurate so far. Another recommendation: Get off the main street and wander through the backstreets. The people of Taormina clearly take pride in their beautiful town. The unique architecture, both old and new, is impressive. The collection of flowering plants and wrought iron treatments hanging from the sides of almost all the buildings is striking and unexpected. Had a lunch at a small (maybe eight tables) restaurant. You will wander by scores of them as you trek through these back streets. A Moretti beer with a Caprese salad and a dish of prosciutto with melon – perfect. Conclude with an espresso. Starting to feel like I'm on vacation!

As I pound this out (did I note I can't type), Eyup (spelled correctly – I looked), our butler just delivered afternoon savories (his term, not mine). Dining again in Aqualina, so I showed some restraint and did not eat Heidi's share. Day four is winding down. This is a full day at sea as we cruise from Taormina around to Ravenna on the Adriatic side of Italy. Great day with mostly calm seas. Slept in deck chair. Worked out in the gym. Massage. Haircut. Needless to say, pretty decadent day. The deck and the gym were not crowded. Easy to get a deck chair and to get on any piece of equipment in the gym.

Attended evening show. Performer was a Welsh violin player introduced as Fireworks on Four Strings. With a show name like that you had better live up to it. Definitely a lot of flash. Enjoyed by everyone in attendance. Too bad he stuck to “easy listening” classic pieces.

Susan-M was right on point. Just some disappointment looking out over industrial port scene of Naples as opposed to the scenes to be seen in Sorrento. We're in Italy, so not too hard to make the best of it. Ha!

Day five dawns foggy and still. No seas as we pull into the harbor of Ravenna. Renee has once again secured a private guide for a walking tour for six of us to see the famous Mosaics of Ravenna. Azamara pulls through once again with the promise of bus transportation to the city center. The ship is docked out in a commercial port. I suspect this is the only port for Ravenna. Not very attractive obviously. We are meeting our tour guide at 9:15 so we miss the initial crush of people trying to disembark and board bus for quick drive (maybe 15 minutes) to city center. (Side note about disembarking on Azamara ships: “Crush” is a relative term. With only 600 some odd passengers on board the process of getting on or off board is fairly quick, even when tendering.) This is where we meet our guide. By the way, I believe I heard this was Azamara's first time to Ravenna. The central part of Ravenna is tiny. I guide informed us that you could walk from one side of town to the other in ten minutes. This proved accurate about ten minutes later. Culturally, Ravenna is known for one major thing – Mosaics. The people of Ravenna are justifiably proud of these works of art, found at the major churches scattered around town. They are amazing. The other thing Ravenna (and this region of Italy as whole) is famous for is its food – prosciutto, cheeses, and wine. All were sampled for lunch at a restaurant recommended by our tour guide, Ca de Ven (sp).

For dinner this evening, Azamara promised a barbeque pool-side to include locally sourced fish that the Food and Beverage manager (a young Polish gentleman) acquired in town. Too bad most people passed on these whole grilled fish, they tasted, as they say, like the sea – clean and fresh. The daily free red wine being served was a Chianti. Too bad they didn't stretch to come up with a more interesting Italian wine. Free wine side note: This is a nice feature of “new” Azamara. The boards on Cruise Critic are already full of commentary as to the merits of this perk in the old and new pricing structure, so I'll pass for now, on adding to this dialogue. But I will make one comment: The wines, while drinkable, are extremely boring. With the world-wide glut of now inexpensive wines, I would think Azamara would have made some better effort to provide a more interesting selections of wine. Example: One wine poured a couple of evenings ago was a Blackstone Merlot. Again drinkable but one of the most generic reds in the American market.

Glad you are having a good trip - Eyup looked after us well on our Quest trip to the Far East and we also saw him when again last summer - say hi to him from Ann and Charles in Scotland

Is Edwin on has Head of Housekeeping - he is another favourite

Day five dawns foggy and still. No seas as we pull into the harbor of Ravenna. Renee has once again secured a private guide for a walking tour for six of us to see the famous Mosaics of Ravenna. Azamara pulls through once again with the promise of bus transportation to the city center. The ship is docked out in a commercial port. I suspect this is the only port for Ravenna. Not very attractive obviously. We are meeting our tour guide at 9:15 so we miss the initial crush of people trying to disembark and board bus for quick drive (maybe 15 minutes) to city center. (Side note about disembarking on Azamara ships: “Crush” is a relative term. With only 600 some odd passengers on board the process of getting on or off board is fairly quick, even when tendering.) This is where we meet our guide. By the way, I believe I heard this was Azamara's first time to Ravenna. The central part of Ravenna is tiny. I guide informed us that you could walk from one side of town to the other in ten minutes. This proved accurate about ten minutes later. Culturally, Ravenna is known for one major thing – Mosaics. The people of Ravenna are justifiably proud of these works of art, found at the major churches scattered around town. They are amazing. The other thing Ravenna (and this region of Italy as whole) is famous for is its food – prosciutto, cheeses, and wine. All were sampled for lunch at a restaurant recommended by our tour guide, Ca de Ven (sp).

 

For dinner this evening, Azamara promised a barbeque pool-side to include locally sourced fish that the Food and Beverage manager (a young Polish gentleman) acquired in town. Too bad most people passed on these whole grilled fish, they tasted, as they say, like the sea – clean and fresh. The daily free red wine being served was a Chianti. Too bad they didn't stretch to come up with a more interesting Italian wine. Free wine side note: This is a nice feature of “new” Azamara. The boards on Cruise Critic are already full of commentary as to the merits of this perk in the old and new pricing structure, so I'll pass for now, on adding to this dialogue. But I will make one comment: The wines, while drinkable, are extremely boring. With the world-wide glut of now inexpensive wines, I would think Azamara would have made some better effort to provide a more interesting selections of wine. Example: One wine poured a couple of evenings ago was a Blackstone Merlot. Again drinkable but one of the most generic reds in the American market.

Actually, we were on the Quest a year ago and the ship overnighted in Ravenna. The first day, a group of us on the Roll-call went to Bologna ( we started out with 3 couples who were going to take the train together and hire a guide in Bologna and ended up with 25 people, our own chartered bus and two guides in Bologna- we had a wonderful day BTW.); the second day we spent the morning in Ravenna and enjoyed the mosaics.

I hope you enjoy the Best of Italy Cruise as much as we did.

Thanks for bringing back some fabulous memories! I just finished culling my pictures from last year's Best of Italy cruise.:o Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

Day Six in Trieste. The Quest is docked directly in front of the city center. No other ships in port. For today Heidi has suggested we do our own walking tour of Trieste. I'm not fooled. I know this means shopping. We stop by the Guest Relations area on deck four to pick up a city map from a tourist representative from Trieste has been brought on board. (This is standard procedure in every port.) The city map has a walking tour laid out that will take you to each of the major sites in Trieste, so we're set. As we disembark, there is another tourist representative handing out larger maps. I stopped to pick one up, which turned out to be a blessing because this larger map contained far more detail of the city streets. Trieste is a warren of small streets with a major fort and cathedral perched on a hill over looking the city. We see the main sites and start shopping assuming prices in Trieste will be cheaper than the main upcoming cities of Venice, Florence, and Rome. (We are doing Rome at the conclusion of the cruise.)

One of the many highlights of the cruise so far came while in Trieste for a couple of reasons. We ended our walking tour by having a drink in the main city square fronting the sea. With thoughts of Venice to come, I assumed the cost of having a drink in the main square will be enormous. We had already noticed while walking through the streets of Trieste in the late afternoon that all the locals were drinking an orange colored cocktail with a slice of orange floating in a wine glass. I assumed it must be some kind of sangria. When seated in the square we asked our waitress what the drink was. Response: Aperol Spritz. Well we recognized the word Aperol because there are Aperol umbrellas everywhere outside of the restaurants scattered around the city streets. What is Aperol? It's about the same as Campari, only lighter. The funny thing is, Heidi had noted earlier in the cruise the total absence of Campari umbrellas that she remembered from traveling in Europe in her youth. So basically an Aperol Spritz is basically a Campari and soda, only lighter. What happened to Campari? I have no idea. Something to discover as we proceed with the cruise. So check off one highlight for me – enjoying a drink in the city square with the locals watching life walk by. (Yes, even the locals in Trieste enjoy afternoon cocktails in their main city square. Something we won't see in Venice obviously.) As to cost, the bill came to only nine Euros for the two cocktails, which also came with an assortment of munchies provided by the waitress. Now comes another highlight at the same moment. While drinking our Aperol, a young gentleman takes a seat at the table next to us. He is obviously a member of the crew from the ship, noticeable by both the AZ golf shirt he is wearing and his crew ID tag dangling from his belt. I said hello and noted we were guests on the ship. He introduced himself as Alexander (American spelling) and that he was the Manager of ….. (Stupid me, I didn't catch it.) We chatted about our day in Trieste. Alexander is Serbian and Heidi noted there was a beautiful Serbian Orthodox church here in Trieste. We each discussed where we were from. Alexander asked if we had children and we said that we did, but they were now just out of the house (finally). Alexander said he had one child and that he and his wife were expecting a second. Heidi asked if would be able to get home for the birth of his second child. All he could do was shrug his shoulders. A great reminder that every member of the crew busting their hump to make sure we guests are having a good time on the ship is a real person with a real life. Yes, they freely chose the life (mostly), but still a nice moment to remember that each crew member is a real human being, deserving of both respect and consideration.

A little too preachy? Maybe. So on to Venice. One more Alexander note. Alexander found us on a canal bridge in Venice. He thanked us for directing him too the Serbian Orthodox church. Sweet.

Thank you for the details. In Venice where does the ship dock and are any shuttles provided. WE will overnight on the Quest in September.

Tom,

Keep up the posts! Sounds as though you and Heidi are having a wonderful, relaxing trip (which is much needed). I hope that the rest of the trip goes beautifully. Keep checking out the local drinks;)!

Reading your posts is bliss. I feel I'm there too - and you make me laugh! :)

Continue to enjoy and I will too.

Thanks a million

Lynne

I'm enjoying your posts also. We were on the Quest in January in Asia. I love how you enjoy the smaller things and the local things that just make a trip. Seeing highlights like the Eiffel Tower, the Coliseum, etc. are wonderful but it's these small moments that one remembers with so much fondness.

Continue to have a safe journey...

OK, first mistake of the trip. I managed to sleep through the sail in for Venice. Here's the thing though. Sitting on deck outside of the Windows Cafe, drinking my morning cappuccino, looking out over the rooftops of Venice on a glorious, partly sunny day. So, I can't feel too sorry for myself. Anyway, the ship will take the same route out when departing tomorrow afternoon, so one more chance to catch the views of Venice from an upper deck of the ship. This is an overnight stay for the Quest, which is one of the things that attracted Heidi and I to this particular cruise. There are three planned overnights – Sorrento (which ended up being Naples – damn it all to hell), now Venice, and finally Florence (actually the port of Livorno).

Time for a couple of side notes. First on my note regarding over-sleeping this morning. Sleeping on the Quest has not been all that enjoyable because the beds, which to borrow a phrase from my kids, SUCK. The mattress is completely worn out, lumpy and hard. Even if the mattress was in it's original condition, I doubt it would be all that much better because it is of such a cheap quality. If Azamara is competing against even middle range quality hotels, all of which have upgraded to high end bedding, then it needs to get its head in the game. I read somewhere else on the Cruise Critic boards that Azamara was planning to upgrade bedding sometime soon. For me this didn't happen soon enough. Other comments on CC leads to the next side note. I had read that the Quest (maybe Journey as well) was beginning to show wear and tear throughout. This is not something I have noticed in any overwhelming way. In trying to be critical on this point, here is what I noticed in our cabin: one small chip on the edge of a bedside table and some missing grout around the inside and outside of the shower. That's it. As far as the public rooms, they all seem in very good shape. If someone is trying to compare the overall condition of the Quest to any newly launched cruise ship then I feel they are being somewhat disingenuous. A ship of this age is obviously not “showroom” new.

Finally got the name of our cruise director: Russ Grieve. As I noted earlier, Russ just joined the Quest at the beginning of this cruise. Prior to AZ and Seabourne Russ was with the production of Mama Mia for seven years playing one of the main characters. I don't know the play or the movie, so it didn't register with me as to which character he played. I believe he said he was doing the Broadway production of Mama Mia, so that's big time. Russ gave a 60s and 70s musical show in the Cabaret (the main entertainment venue on the Quest) a couple of nights ago. I don't really go for ship board style shows, but here's the thing, Russ can really sing. He is also extremely gracious with his time.

On to the first day in Venice and first recommendation: Get up early and get off ship as quickly as possible if you only have one ship day in Venice. Venice is extremely crowded with tourists. Heidi and I got off the ship sometime around 9:00AM. And went to the Accademia Gallery art museum. We spent a few hours there viewing the wonderful collection of Renaissance paintings from mostly Venetian masters. This museum is an easy walk from where the ship was docked. (Venice docking side note: The Quest was within easy walking distance of the Vaporatto and the water taxis. For that matter it was within decent walking distance of St. Mark's Square (Piazza San Marco), with the Accademia about half way from where we docked and St. Mark's. A number of the bigger behemoths (ships) were docked further out in the industrial port area. A crew member told me that the only form of transportation from where these larger ships docked was a regular taxi. If true, that hardly seems like the thing to be doing in Venezia. I will note though that a lucky Royal Caribbean ship was docked just outside of the Grand Canal, just beyond the Doge's Palace.) We then walked to St. Mark's. I last visited St. Mark's during the summer in 1977 and 1978 (My God, how time flies), and remembered thinking at the time how crowded it was. Well let me tell you something, I definitely was not prepared for the sea of people packed into St. Mark's Square. A person could practically walk across the heads of everyone and not touch the ground from one end of St. Mark's to the other. A shopkeeper in the Square told us the crowds in May are nothing compared to the crowds in June and July. The head reels!

This blog is not supposed to be a travelogue per se, but a few quick highlights: Get back into Venice at night, if you can. The crowds are considerably diminished. Learn how to use the Vaporatto. This is no more intimidating that using a subway in any major city, probably less so. Don't bother asking for recommendations for dinner on shore. I pressed a shopkeeper, who lived in Venice, where to go for dinner. After he rattled off a couple of places that advertise heavily, I asked for a place that he would go to for dinner. He told me that even Venetians are happy to get lost in there backstreets and just sit down someplace that looks interesting. This is what we ended up doing. It was a great night. Oh yes, do a gondola ride. Sounds cheesy, but if you are with someone you love, it's magical. Our second day in Venice consisted of another self-guided walking tour. We did hit the Guggenheim museum, which contains an overwhelming collection of modern art. Interesting contrast to the antiquity of Venice. One sad note for our stay in Venice – The Bridge of Sighs. It is under restoration, with the entire area surrounding the bridge covered in a massive blue advertisement for Mont-Blanc pens and watches. I guess Mont-Blanc put up the money for the restoration, but it is shocking how expansive the advertising is. Definitely ruins the experience of seeing most famous bridge, after the Realto. We get back to ship for our 2:00PM sail away. (Pushed back two hours from its originally scheduled time of 12 noon.) Heidi and I grab a table on the railing of the outside deck of the Windows Cafe and enjoy a nice lunch before the sail away. Announcements start popping up on the ships intercom system. Guess what? We are missing two guests who are supposed to be back on board. The ship waits exactly 30 minutes after the scheduled departure time, and then pulls away from our mooring. Even if the Captain had wanted to wait longer, I doubt he could have. A tug pulled along side of us before 2:00, and I'm assuming the port authorities call the shots on the comings and goings of the big cruise ships. We were told later that evening that the couple was physically fine. (People on board were obviously concerned.)

the sail way begins. Our seats on the rail at the back of the ship prove to be a perfect location to take in the views of Venice as they pass by. Arrividercci Venezia.

Thank you so much for taking the time to share some of your cruise experiences, I have so enjoyed reading them and thinking of the times my husband and I enjoyed in Venice and other ports. We too just like to walk and experience the moment and the place, of course there are some things you "must" see but we've had the most fun just sitting at an outdoor cafe and meeting new people. We will be first time guests on the Azamara Quest in October, Barcelona to Rome; I hope the beds are replaced by that time, nothing worse than a bad mattress. Take care and be safe. Lanz

Our seats on the rail at the back of the ship prove to be a perfect location to take in the views of Venice as they pass by. Arrividercci Venezia.

I love your writing. Thank you so much. I can't wait to hear more.

 

Time for a couple of side notes. First on my note regarding over-sleeping this morning. Sleeping on the Quest has not been all that enjoyable because the beds, which to borrow a phrase from my kids, SUCK. The mattress is completely worn out, lumpy and hard. Even if the mattress was in it's original condition, I doubt it would be all that much better because it is of such a cheap quality. If Azamara is competing against even middle range quality hotels, all of which have upgraded to high end bedding, then it needs to get its head in the game. I read somewhere else on the Cruise Critic boards that Azamara was planning to upgrade bedding sometime soon. For me this didn't happen soon enough.

.

The Azamara decision makers need to go try out the beds on HAL. They are so comfortable and so loved by all that they actually sell them on their web site. They also sell the comforters and sheets. You can have your own HAL "Mariner Dream Bed" delivered to your home..

Azamara should strive for a great product, a great mattress and great sheets that are good enough to sell to their clients. Besides, they are looking for ways to increase their profits.

The Azamara decision makers need to go try out the beds on HAL. They are so comfortable and so loved by all that they actually sell them on their web site. They also sell the comforters and sheets. You can have your own HAL "Mariner Dream Bed" delivered to your home..

 

Azamara should strive for a great product, a great mattress and great sheets that are good enough to sell to their clients. Besides, they are looking for ways to increase their profits.

I have just read on the Oceania board that they have upgraded their mattresses and from what I have read..they were pretty nice to begin with. Azamara should be trying to keep up with what other lines like Oceania are doing! Re HAL: I have had varying results with the mattresses on HAL. Just OK on Zaandam....Good on Westerdam and Volendam and downright uncomfortable on Noordam in 2009! Didn't even feel like the same bed as we had on Westerdam.

Philip Herbert (HM) himself checked with headquarters in Miami in Dec and told me that the matresses were going to be updated on Quest this spring.....???? Guess that hasn't happened. I guess we'll just ask for the mattress topper again....but I am disappointed...very. Please make sure you bring this up while onboard....if we keep complaining maybe they will make this a priority. Please give your feedback to the HM - directly.

Thank you for your LIVE posts What a Market!! Having fun reading them....looking forward to some of the same ports in September!!