Giving it a GO- FamilyGoBoston sails Azamara, comparisons to RC will be made!

Giving it a GO- FamilyGoBoston sails Azamara, comparisons will be made!

As a regular Royal cruiser taking on my first Azamara cruise (leaping past Celebrity entirely) I thought I would post a little comparison here of the differences, (and benefits!) when a loyal to royal takes a cruise on another ship in the company. This is not blood sport grudge match...this is one cruiser comparing a first time cruise on Azamara after being (and continuing to be!) a loyal Royal Caribbean cruiser. Many times, comparative reviews simply say, this was better, or that was worse, without any objective evidence- I'll try to tackle each statement with observations from my own experience. My hope is the comparisons will made that will help other cruisers decide if they'd like to try another cruise ship in the brand.

I have a complete review of our Azamara Journey Miami to Caldera Panama Canal cruise Feb 7 going on right now over on the Azamara board: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=49292387&posted=1#post49292387

Of course, we will have lots of content and photos on our website, Twitter, Instagram and FB pages. (linked in our signature below)

I'll organize this by the concerns and questions we had (and myths we heard) about trying Azamara after being regular Royal Caribbean cruisers.

"Will it be more expensive to cruise on Azamara?" : Value: Yup, this is true! Advertised as a destination focused luxury RC product, my Panama Canal Transit on this Azamara cruise ran us about $340 pp per day. My next Royal Caribbean cruise is invoiced at $185 pp per day. What did I get for my money?

First and foremost I got a popular itinerary at a popular time of year. There are plenty of full transits of the Panama Canal during October or April (when most ships reposition; we were booked on the Jewel full transit scheduled last Oct and bailed on it and booked Azamara instead because of the amount of sea days and general mismatch of the itinerary with what we wanted to do. For our money we were able to enjoy a full transit during the middle of the winter, which is our preferred time to take a winter escape. Journey was banged out when I booked 18 months in advance (I was left selecting a verandah cabin from a small pool of availability, some of which I had been warned off for being too close to the guest laundry room)

Second, Azamara is an all inclusive line, with almost all alcohol included in the fare. All tipping is included in the fare. However, shore excursions are extra, and specialty restaurants are an additional fee, if you choose those. We had $500 in OBC and were hard pressed to spend it, because we chose independent excursions. (In the end we bought a GoPro camera onboard, and we did it for you, dear readers, to up our video game when reporting! ) If you don't gamble, buy photos or art, or top shelf liquor and wine, you can literally cruise and walk away with a zero on your on board bill.

Third, for us, there is a lot value in a small ship experience. Which brings us to...

(our Panama Canal transit with Costa Rica was an itinerary we were willing to pay extra for)

"Will the ship be less crowded with fewer passengers?" Passenger Load: It seems, just by eyeballing them, that most public areas (pools, lounges, shops area) are about 1/2 to 2/3 the size of the ships carrying 1500-2000 pax. But AZ carries less than 700 pax, so areas always seemed less crowded. We were able to spend a whole morning in one of the "nests" on the pool deck, we never had trouble finding a spot in the lounge and often got to sit in one of the neat birdcages, or by ourselves in the high backed chairs in the Living Room. On larger ships these neat features are almost never available to use because somehow there is always someone else already using them! (I'm thinking of the perpetually occupied sala beds in the Oasis/Allure Solarium) But this is just a perception because in Douglass Ward's Berlitz cruising book, he gives Azamara a 34.9 passenger space index, compared 34.8 on Oasis to 29.8 on Enchantment or 36 on Jewel Higher means more space per passenger, so it's really just "feel" not a fact!

Additionally, in a small community, you can't be a jerk- you'll run into these people again and again, so like a small village, everyone was respectful at the buffet, shared rail space when their neighbor wants to lean in for a photo and generally gave way at the stairs or elevators with a wide smile, rather then bustling ahead with a scowl. Which brings us too...

"Will people be friendly and polite?" Social environment : With 51 % repeaters (and repeating friends we met tell us this particular cruise has a low number because of the Miami port of embarkation- other AZ cruises have a higher ratio of repeaters) the environment is very collegial - passengers know each other, crew know passengers, passengers greet crew with hugs (and fist bumps) and the officers are very accessible. However, this never veered into clubbishness that made newcomers feel unwelcome. The opposite was true, we were warmly greeted by many long time (9 cruises, 15 cruises etc.) cruisers who gladly shared their wisdom about what to try, or what to expect. Our first few minutes in line for specialty restaurant reservations, longtime cruisers told us not to book reservations to Aquilina on White Night, since this is a not to be missed party. Then they introduced us to several officers walking by and invited us to dine with them!

We found people to be well traveled and passionate about talking about where they've been but not in a "one upsmanship" way, but more as a way of sharing their passion. Experienced AZ cruisers are proud to share their number of cruises, but not at all entitled or belittling of those with less "status". We also found meeting, and finding people we've met on board much easier with just 700 vs 2-3 k. The downside to that is that a few times when we expected to dine alone- we've found ourselves with a crowd! So if you aren't a social person, it's harder to be on your own island here.So when I say experienced cruisers, does that mean...

(at the White Night Party, new friends had saved seats for us at their table without us even having to ask...our new friends were happy to include us along with their long time cruising friends!)

"Is everyone old?" Demographics: I'm not saying that it's an older demographic, but we did (this is a true story) see a lady getting her photo taken on board remark that if it turned out well she would be able to use it for her obituary! She was joking (I hope!) Well, I think that sums up the demo on Azamara- yes, folks were older on our 10 day cruise than 3 day Miami party ship or 7 day family Caribbean cruise, but my experience is that they are far more active than people of the same age on those ships and of really great humor. (i.e. My obituary pic lady- what a great sense of humor! ) Lots of laughing and young at heart attitudes, active adventurers that even this young- ish (not yet so old?) adventurer found it easy to connect them! Gentlemen on our Cartegena tour in their 70s had no trouble keeping up a blistering pace in blistering heat. There seemed to be fewer canes, scooters, but also fewer teens, and tots (that may contribute to the less crowded feel- double occupancy cabins, not triple and quad)We only saw one three year old on our cruise and he was likely a crew family member cruising. In our "no longer late forties" DH and I were among the youngest on board, although there were a handful of 30s traveling with parents or grandparents. I would say it's largely active boomers; the gym is well attended every day, and the majority of folks we met were interesting, nimble of mind and foot and destination minded. So everyone is destination focused, what about the ship?

" Is it more port intensive?" Itinerary focused: Not only are there late nights and overnights in ports but there is an understanding that guests will often have private arrangements made. There was no problem with disembarking for the tender line early if you had a private excursion. The captain included people with early private arrangements in his remarks, not just those doing ships excursions when inviting groups to go ashore. The ship and itinerary is more nimble. When the ship travels nearly around the globe in the course of each year, with a unique itinerary nearly every week or two, it's not as seamless as a ship pulling into the same port every Monday. The Captain and his staff is constantly changing things based on the weather, or the utter surprise and shock expressed by some ports that we actually arrived as planned. (In Costa Rica a sleepy head local pilot failed to show to guide us into port, and after an hour the captain announced he decided to proceed without him and told port authorities the pilot was "welcome to join us when he's ready"

It truly feels like an expedition trip when the Captain has full control of the vessel and the itinerary, and makes changes and communicates them well, rather than having to wait for accountants to tell him how to proceed. There was much chuckling by long time Azamara cruisers when the captain would say he'd be in trouble with "Miami" , for a decision, but really, for the higher prices, you get a product with a little more autonomy than you might with an "it's Monday, this must be the Bahamas" type of cruise. The brand was built to be nimble and responsive so that the focus is put on the destination and the quality of cruisers experience in it! (now I will digress here to describe how I champion the "big ships" when discussing cruise ship size with fellow Azamara cruisers, some would visibly shudder at the idea of sailing on a ship with 6 thousand people. But I was the large ships staunchest defender, explaining to all who would listen that they had to be sailed to be believed, that truly masterful design of the new largest ships makes them feel far smaller than they are! But I also conceded that you don't sail those giant ships for the destination, which for the folks we met, is the point of sailing!) Which brings us to the next thing we heard a lot... that people prefer Azamara dining over Royal Caribbean

"Is the food better" Food: What makes food "better"? Most people say "food is subjective", and leave it at that and it's true. But what makes food "better" on a small cruise only happens if the commitment is there to handle things differently than on a larger more populated ship. All cruise ships have a perfectly good chef, and most of the menus are designed by top pros, so what makes the difference? On AZ I noticed they there is more diversity of ingredients than on mass market cruises I've taken. For instance, on a large ship, there might be romaine lettuce, so every night the salad of the evening might be made with a base of romaine and something else is added- romaine and croutons, it's Caesar, romaine with beets and it's a beet salad ...etc. After a week of this, I find myself a little bored. On this smaller ship, the beet salad would have frisée, the next night a salad may be made in an endive cup, the following night it might feature radicchio. Additionally, better quality ingredients, make better dishes. On a larger ship that needs to feed thousands, cubes of white cheese and yellow cheese might be offered every day in the "cheese" area. On Azamaras buffet, one day it's goat cheese, and Swiss, the next a Gouda is out with a cheddar. If you multiply that times all the various types of food, you suddenly have more to work with, providing more varied flavors, more interesting dishes, and voila! "Better" food was what we experienced. It helped that with a low number of passengers meant you could get made to order food right on the buffet. You could get an omlette or poached egg for breakfast and at lunch, a custom made hot grilled sandwich and at dinner that station was a custom pasta station. But we had also paid for that. Paying for things brings us to...

(a chef at the pasta station in the buffet)

"Is everything is included" Nickle and diming: No taking out your card to have a drink (unless you want a better wine or top shelf liquor) and no tipping (which is what attracted many of the Brits and Aussies we spoke to- it's not that they don't want to, it's that the folks we met found it a bit mystifying to figure out what's appropriate) There were slippers, robes, nice toiletries, even a pen ( a PEN!!) and paper in your cabin. Frette linens on the table, glass and china even in the buffet during lunch and breakfast, and in every bar your drink is placed on a linen napkin. It's the little things that say luxury without being "luxurious" in a conspicuous way. Little things that probably all together don't add up to the total cost of your fare, but the value of not having to worry about those small things adds up to a much more relaxing and enjoyable experience, if it's in your budget. In general, we resist paying alcohol inclusive cruise fares because we drink so little, but we found the value in the unique and extended itineraries on AZ to be well worth the lost opportunity of a few bar drinks. And to be perfectly honest, I became known as the "virgin strawberry daiquiri lady" by the waiters on the pool deck, but I like being able to get my "drink" without having to pull out a card, and wait endlessly for the waiter to return with it! On Azamara, expect to only pay for your excursions, photos, gambling, or specialty restaurants. We had a 500 OBC, and were hard pressed to spend it! Speaking of service...

(FGB became known for her "virgin" daiquiris on the pool deck)

"Is the service is better?" Service: My first inclination was to think "well, no it's NOT!" when the first day I had to sit for 30 minutes before getting a glass of water served at lunch (15 before we were noticed and 15 before it arrived) Then the unfortunate response from a waiter being told - my hands with a full plate at the buffet, "to look for a table on the other side". I was feeling a bit bruised and that maybe the service was only for the long time repeaters or possibly for older folks. But after a rough first day (crew was stressed with a lot of post dry dock big wigs to entertain) I got to see first hand how attentive service can be on Az. Yes, we noticed our new friends who are frequent Az guests were warmly greeted like friends, but we also were treated like old friends. Soon if I was up walking with a used dish, or a full buffet plate (hey it wasn't THAT full!) a crew person was walking towards me to take it from me. The bar men asked often if you needed anything at the pool.

But most telling is that proactive service that shows the crew is truly "watching" to make sure thins are right. At breakfast I requested plain yogurt and fruit. This might have been lost in translation, because I was brought plain yogurt and no fruit. I asked for fruit and was brought fruit yogurt. As we chuckled a bit about this and were prepared to just let it go, a dining room manager stopped by and asked if everything. Was all right. We explained the issue and it was clear he had come because he noticed something was not right, simply because I had not started eating. He was able to correct the situation immediately. On a larger ship- it might have gone unnoticed and we would have settled for the service we had originally received, vs getting exactly what we needed!

"Will there be enough to do on board?" Entertainment: We had quite a few sea days and we were worried. For us, with so many sea days, we did get a bit itchy! There are plenty of trivia and fitness events planned each day ( I will have the "Pursuits" daily program posted in my review) but after a workout, especially when it was a bit cool out, we did find ourselves a little at loose ends. Each evening there was good entertainment...the shows by the CD, singers and dancers were excellent, but there was only one choice a night, once place to dance at night, and if it was 50's night, well, you were twisting the night away! No option to find something else. On Azamara's busy port intensive itineraries, honestly, it's plenty! But with a few cool sea days it wasn't quite enough for DH.

(the very entertaining CD Eric Degray, and his staff, as well as a few guest entertainers, provided most of the entertainment. Some were destination immersive entertainers such as the Panamanian folk group here.)

Our conclusion is if we are looking for a cruise with active engaging folks, that is destination focused, we are willing to pay for the smaller, nimble all inclusive ship. Especially for first time visits to new places. (We have an anniversary trip in the Adriatic booked on Azamara Quest next year already) Will we leave Royal Caribbean forever? No way! For shorter relaxing cruises in places we've already been, we love the action and energy of the Royal Caribbean ships! (I have a back to back on Rhapsody out of Tampa booked for next year already!!) For us it's different ships for different trips. I hope this review will be read in the spirit it was written...battle lines don't need to be drawn, there is something for everyone and plenty for us!

This is awesome. Thank you.

Great review!! Thank you!

Thank you, great to get some insight on Azamara.

This is awesome. Thank you.

Great review!! Thank you!

Thanks! Its what I wanted to know before I spent the money to try the upmarket brand!! One interesting thing is although 1/2 the ship was filled with repeaters, as "Diamond" in the Royal Caribbean loyalty program, we actually had one of the highest "reciprocal" levels in their Le Club Voyage despite not having sailed with AZ before, we had paper work with a list of all the same amenities as the Discover level LCV. This included a free bag of laundry (1 per cabin in 7 days) 90 minutes of internet per person (one device at a time) and a few other benefits we didn't really take advantage of.

We were also invited to the LCV party and even the upper tier party- which we skipped, because it felt a bit awkward to accept that recognition when we were essentially newbies, but we were assured, it would have been fine to attend, and I believe we would have been welcomed! We did get invited to a bridge tour, which we gladly accepted!

Absolutely outstanding!

Thank you for sharing. :) I don't get to hear much about Azamara.

Excellent contrast and I think a very balanced thoughtful review. Well done-- that review was very helpful.

Delighted that you took the time to share this on the Royal message board

Many thanks

I do find these kinds of reviews helpful myself...we really agonized between Jewel, Windstar and PG's Tere Moana for this itinerary...we even had Jewel booked! I did a lot of research but having comparisons from people who have done more than one line is really helpful!

I forgot to mention that a big factor in our choice was a casual environment- we really didn't want to spend time "dressing up" and because our itinerary included 5 days at an eco lodge (think hiking, boating all day) in Costa Rica after we disembarked and I flew directly from CR to visit my family in SW Florida, (sending the "larger" bag with DH) I had limits to the amount of baggage I wanted to bring with me. Azamara was very casual, although amazingly, no one was ever inappropriately dressed! It wasn't fancy, but you could be casual...that suited us! (lol! sorry!:p)

Enjoyed your review thanks for posting~

I LOVE getting a cocktail napkin for my drink! I hate having the "sweat" from my glass drip on me or the table! Little thing...but makes my evening!

Thanks for the excellent review :). Sounds like we'd enjoy Azamara, once the kids have flown the nest ;).

Thanks for the excellent review :). Sounds like we'd enjoy Azamara, once the kids have flown the nest ;).

That was kind of the way we're thinking too. We did a lot of the bigger ships with lots of activities with our girls, but now that they are off at school we have more time to try longer cruises on smaller ships. I'm hoping to get one to sail Rhapsody with me next spring break. But I have the feeling she's going to south or central America for school.

Great review! Thanks for the info!

This was a great review, I'll be reading the ongoing live review as well! Nice to see reviews from other cruise lines.

Hey Familygoboston... read many of your posts and reviews in the past. Just want to say this was an extremely awesome review, the best ever as a comparison to another line that I've ever read. I learned so much from this. Thank you very much :D

Great review! Thanks for the info!

Hey Familygoboston... read many of your posts and reviews in the past. Just want to say this was an extremely awesome review, the best ever as a comparison to another line that I've ever read. I learned so much from this. Thank you very much :D

Thank you! I believe in evidenced based posting ;) But truly, it's best to really think about what makes each ship different and think about what we really want from my cruise, that way, I'll hopefully pick the right one and enjoy it!

Great review.

Keith

Thanks familygoboston for a concise and thorough review. My TA keeps trying to get us to try a luxury line such as AZ or Seaborne just for the quality of service alone. However, between our son and our ages we are not at the trying age yet. You posted a lot of quality information for future reference and thought. Thanks for taking the time in doing this.

Edit: what was the dress code like, for example strick formal or casual elegance?

Thanks for a great review. Azamara seems like a good compromise between a big ship and a small one. It sounds like the same demographic found on Windstar, yes?

Thanks for the reviews. Appreciate the time invested in writing and posting.

Relishing every word. Enjoying every bit.

Went also to Azamara board for "seconds" :)

I plan to read everything you wrote, especially the Galapagos experience (and compare notes...).

I also agree with you on the subject of "all inclusive drinks" - one of the reasons I don't look into those river/luxury lines is that we don't drink...

Following avidly, Dani

 

 

"Will there be enough to do on board?" Entertainment: We had quite a few sea days and we were worried. For us, with so many sea days, we did get a bit itchy! There are plenty of trivia and fitness events planned each day ( I will have the "Pursuits" daily program posted in my review) but after a workout, especially when it was a bit cool out, we did find ourselves a little at loose ends. Each evening there was good entertainment...the shows by the CD, singers and dancers were excellent, but there was only one choice a night, once place to dance at night, and if it was 50's night, well, you were twisting the night away! No option to find something else. On Azamara's busy port intensive itineraries, honestly, it's plenty! But with a few cool sea days it wasn't quite enough for DH.

 

(the very entertaining CD Eric Degray, and his staff, as well as a few guest entertainers, provided most of the entertainment. Some were destination immersive entertainers such as the Panamanian folk group here.)

 

 

 

Our conclusion is if we are looking for a cruise with active engaging folks, that is destination focused, we are willing to pay for the smaller, nimble all inclusive ship. Especially for first time visits to new places. (We have an anniversary trip in the Adriatic booked on Azamara Quest next year already) Will we leave Royal Caribbean forever? No way! For shorter relaxing cruises in places we've already been, we love the action and energy of the Royal Caribbean ships! (I have a back to back on Rhapsody out of Tampa booked for next year already!!) For us it's different ships for different trips. I hope this review will be read in the spirit it was written...battle lines don't need to be drawn, there is something for everyone and plenty for us!

Loved reading the entire post.....but what you mention here is most important to me. We are Loyal to Royal and the brand gives us so so much to do....but we are also fascinated by a cruise on Azamara. I can well appreciate that on busy port days, there was plenty to do. We have several years before we can do a much longer cruise, but Azamara does seem interesting for the Panama Canal cruise that we do have on our list of 'must do'.

We totally enjoy the big ships, although Oasis class seems oversized for us....but we have done Allure and have a Harmony cruise booked -- the waterslide got us for Harmony. The intimacy you describe between the crew and cruisers and other cruisers sounds wonderful -- as does much else of what you write.

Thanks!

What a great read! I find myself agreeing with you as a frequent 'Royaller' booked on our first Azamara this November and very excited! We too love the 'biggies' and can't wait to take all our family on one next year, the small Azamara Journey - would it be too small and quiet for us? We shall just have to have more games of cards to occupy us! Thanks 👍🏻

What a great read! I find myself agreeing with you as a frequent 'Royaller' booked on our first Azamara this November and very excited! We too love the 'biggies' and can't wait to take all our family on one next year, the small Azamara Journey - would it be too small and quiet for us? We shall just have to have more games of cards to occupy us! Thanks 👍🏻

You will just have to return to this thread and add your own comparison for all to read!

Very interesting--thanks very much for posting! :)