AZAMARA'S BIG ANNOUNCEMENT: More Amenities added for Up-Market Travelers

[Phxazzcruisers]

I have been following the comments on this page for the last few days and just felt that I would add my two cents worth.

 

We LOVE Azamara cruises and everything they have to offer. When people ask us what we like about Azamara Club Cruises, we ALWAYS say "it is the wonderful people on board", "the crew and the staff are like none other", "we love the food", "we love the entertainment", we love the destinations, we love the size of the ship", "we love the wonderful people we meet as fellow passengers and "we love where they take us and how they take us"!! As far as I can see NONE of this is changing!!! Azamara Club Cruises is going to continue to provide EVERYTHING that we love PLUS a little extra!!! YAY!

 

We always felt we got wonderful value for our $$$s and have no problem paying more for what we have been getting. If Azamara is now adding a few more perks....then good for them. It is unfair for people to say "we do not want to pay for something we do not intend to use". For example, we have yet to ever use a swimming pool or hot tub on board a ship....but never for a moment thought that others should be deprived of these facilities just because WE choose not to use them!

 

We hope to be sailing on the wonderful Azamara Club Cruiseships for many many years to come. We can hardly wait to get back on board!

 

We want to say a HUGE congratulations and thank you to all of the people at Azamara Club Cruises for providing us the "perfect" vacation whenever we can join you!

 

Thanks for your post. It is refreshing. I had posted earlier that I was not happy about the 50% tours going away. We drink wine only and not liquor. Will these changes stop us from traveling on Azamara, NO, they will not. As you said, it is the crew, the food, the size of the ship that we love and what keeps us coming back. We will, of course check prices and make sure it is still a good deal for us. That is a personal choice.

Azamara Club Cruises is a business and needs to make business decisions. Yes, a great deal of people have read this thread, and a great deal of people have posted opinions. However, they are just their opinions. Just as many people were upset when Azamara became the new Azamara Club Cruises and voiced their opinion about price increases and "extras" they personally did not want, after the storm blew over, they were still abel to attract clientel who found value in what they had to offer.

The changes they are making came from feedback from cruisers. It is obvious from the negative attitude on this board, that it would not have been the feedback from these posters, however, of the 550+ postings, many were repeat visits from the same people who posted more than once on the site.

There are others out there that are probably happy with the additions, but due to the negative attitudes on this post did not bother or want to post anything in fear of being "jumped on".

Azamara will try things they propose. If they work, great, if they need to make changes, fine. They have heard the "desires" of the Cruise Critic crowd, but are in business to make a profit and will make the changes they feel are necessary to attain their goals. Are they correct? Only time will tell

[cruisesoho]

could not agree more with grandmaj. Looking forward to being back on Azamara.

[laurieb]

I have been following the comments on this page for the last few days and just felt that I would add my two cents worth.

 

We LOVE Azamara cruises and everything they have to offer. When people ask us what we like about Azamara Club Cruises, we ALWAYS say "it is the wonderful people on board", "the crew and the staff are like none other", "we love the food", "we love the entertainment", we love the destinations, we love the size of the ship", "we love the wonderful people we meet as fellow passengers and "we love where they take us and how they take us"!! As far as I can see NONE of this is changing!!! Azamara Club Cruises is going to continue to provide EVERYTHING that we love PLUS a little extra!!! YAY!

 

We always felt we got wonderful value for our $$$s and have no problem paying more for what we have been getting. If Azamara is now adding a few more perks....then good for them. It is unfair for people to say "we do not want to pay for something we do not intend to use". For example, we have yet to ever use a swimming pool or hot tub on board a ship....but never for a moment thought that others should be deprived of these facilities just because WE choose not to use them!

 

We hope to be sailing on the wonderful Azamara Club Cruiseships for many many years to come. We can hardly wait to get back on board!

 

We want to say a HUGE congratulations and thank you to all of the people at Azamara Club Cruises for providing us the "perfect" vacation whenever we can join you!

 

Very well said!! I agree and hope to enjoy Azamara again in the future. Yes, the prices are going up, but, hello, they're going up on oll the cruiselines.

[Lottie A]

I have been following the comments on this page for the last few days and just felt that I would add my two cents worth.

 

We LOVE Azamara cruises and everything they have to offer. When people ask us what we like about Azamara Club Cruises, we ALWAYS say "it is the wonderful people on board", "the crew and the staff are like none other", "we love the food", "we love the entertainment", we love the destinations, we love the size of the ship", "we love the wonderful people we meet as fellow passengers and "we love where they take us and how they take us"!! As far as I can see NONE of this is changing!!! Azamara Club Cruises is going to continue to provide EVERYTHING that we love PLUS a little extra!!! YAY!

 

We always felt we got wonderful value for our $$$s and have no problem paying more for what we have been getting. If Azamara is now adding a few more perks....then good for them. It is unfair for people to say "we do not want to pay for something we do not intend to use". For example, we have yet to ever use a swimming pool or hot tub on board a ship....but never for a moment thought that others should be deprived of these facilities just because WE choose not to use them!

 

We hope to be sailing on the wonderful Azamara Club Cruiseships for many many years to come. We can hardly wait to get back on board!

 

We want to say a HUGE congratulations and thank you to all of the people at Azamara Club Cruises for providing us the "perfect" vacation whenever we can join you!

 

I do agree with you GrandmaJ. Having just had one of the best cruises ever on Quest, I think we should wait a little before people start saying "I will never cruise with Azamara again". This was also said a few years ago, when Azamara became "Club Cruises" and added inclusive wines at lunch and dinner etc. Most people would agree now that this has been a great success for the cruiseline.......I know I appreciate it!

 

I am not at all sure myself that this new "more/all inclusive Azamara" and the consequent price hikes are going to be entirely successful.....but I think we should wait for Larry's comments and more information rather than have this "knee jerk reaction". Discussion is good of course, but let's be rational about it all.

 

And I think some of those night excursions sound just great. I don't have a problem being with lots of my fellow passengers on them either. Actually I would quite like to have a ship wide "get together" at such spectacular locations....I am sure that Azamara will get it just right. I LIKE mixing with my fellow passengers and having spoken to some people onboard about their private tours....not all of them are actually high quality. Some people were taken to "shopping opportunities" despite stating they did not want to go.

 

And of course, if the evening tours don't appeal to you......then just don't attend them! Like some people don't swim, or use the Casino or The Spa or ever dine in the Speciality Restaurants.....I could go on, but I won't.

[autumn lass]

Well said GrandmaJ- I have read all the posts on this thread but haven't posted before on the topic. We too love the onboard experience and feel this is the right cruise line for us. The key to Azamara's retention of customers is the onboard experience. I don't drink but my husband does enjoy the glass of wine currently offered with meals. We have taken shore excursions both full price and at the 50% rate if its a port we haven't visited before or its not just doable on your own. The warmth and welcome you receive on board has not been replicated on any other line we have sailed with. However we also understand that hard business decisions have to be made, even if that impacts on us and reduces our vacation options.

 

Will the price rises stop us sailing with Azamara- no, but in the light of the price rises what we may have to do is trade down our usual verandah cabin to an outside or inside and look for an itinerary that visits new ports for us instead of revisiting old favourites but that is the compromise we are willing to make in order to continue sailing Azamara.

 

I look forward to reading Mr Pimental's comments next week and hope that he realises that its because we on the boards love the Azamara on board experience that both positive and negative views have been expressed by posters in this thread.

 

Hilary & Colin

[HudandPug]

Thanks to all the positive posters and the bravery of GrandmaJ. a few of us have tried to say positive and non emotive things to open up the discussion but we have been lost in the overall displeasure. It was taking a little bit of my excitement away from my first Azamara sailing next may. I am so glad to once again feel that the ship will still be full of positive, happy people.

 

Big thanks all! You have made me a happy bunny again :)

[crzrr]

Thank you GrandmaJ! Nicely put! We just got off of the Quest at the end of Sept. Already booked 2013 and 2014. Each cruise has gotten better and better and we have always felt that we got a great value for our money. We travel extensively but always look forward to our annual trip "home" on Azamara.

[pacheco18]

having spoken to some people onboard about their private tours....not all of them are actually high quality. Some people were taken to "shopping opportunities" despite stating they did not want to go.

 

Those people did NOT do their homework. Booking a private tour involves incredible research to get it "perfect." It is just as easy to have a bad private tour as a bad ship tour (you just have fewer people with you).

 

Many people do not spend the considerable time it takes to investigate to make those private tours truly incredible. They do not ask the right questions. Those of us who put in the time are not disappointed and are not taken anywhere (not even shopping) against our will. I rarely go on anyone else's private tour. I usually book them and others join me (I have booked them all for Azamara Black Sea August 13 and have had to turn people away because I max at 10 people on a tour). I prefer it that way. The only time I will go a tour organized by another person is if I know them and know they put the kind of work in that I do.

[azevedan]

Thanks for the "let's wait and see, shall we" comments. Some of the negativity has really been over the top.

 

Unlike many of this forum, we don't see cruising as our first vacation choice. We have done a handful over the years, and found Azamara to be our favorite by far. Looking forward to our Panama Canal cruise on Quest in January 2014!

[taxjam]

To GrandmaJ, et al.,

 

I think it is great that the Azamara Fan Club has had a chance to express their views albeit much different than most of the posters on this board. Unfortunately, I think you've missed the point. Nobody is asserting that Azamara has not provided a great experience. Quite the contrary, because the experience has been great, the perceived negative aspects of the changes have upset many.

 

The main theme of the negativity is a revulsion against the price increases. In 2012 we booked a 2013 cruise. If we booked that same cruise today for 2014 we would pay a price that has increased 33%. While I value the Azamara onboard experience, I do not think it warrants a rate increase of that magnitude especially considering that the staterooms are significantly below luxury cruise line standards. But, as everyone says, we will see if the cruising public will bear the freight.

 

There are a couple of secondary issues; namely, the liquor and the 50% off shore excursion rescission. While I don't drink much and don't think I should pay for others drinking in excess that is not a deal breaker although I do have concerns that the free flowing liquor will negatively change the Azamara ambiance. I am greatly disturbed by the 50% off shore excursion "bait and switch" which I think is an unethical business practice.

 

Because I think the price increases destroyed the Azamara value proposition relative to the competition and the 50% off bait and switch is not an ethical business practice, I booked our winter 2013/2014 cruise with Oceania. While I may not love everything about Oceania, at least I know what I am getting which is something I cannot say about Azamara 2 years from now.

[Christine Frances]

Deleted - Bit my tongue, no point in commenting.

[pickypicky]

Thanks for the "let's wait and see, shall we" comments. Some of the negativity has really been over the top.

 

Unlike many of this forum, we don't see cruising as our first vacation choice. We have done a handful over the years, and found Azamara to be our favorite by far. Looking forward to our Panama Canal cruise on Quest in January 2014!

 

Thanks to you, GrandmaJ, and a handful of others. My comment on another thread was "it's just a vacation". Azamara will make their own business decisions...either they will succeed or fail. Not ours to decide. Time to move on and be excited about future cruises or hear everyone's recent cruising experiences!

[cpgrneyes]

I find it condescending to call others "cheerleaders" when they share their opinions, and then state that we have missed the point. The outrage here is impossible to miss, believe me.

 

Personally, I have expressed that I find value in the Azamara experience. There were no pompoms in my hands when I did it.

 

I'll wait and see, but know I will love my experience in January.

 

Let's all try to agree to disagree. Vent over.

[greeneg]

Let me try one more time before I go to get on the Journey Monday.

 

1) The one consistent comment is how wonderful the on-board experience is on Azamara. No one has put that down at all.

 

2) Both Azamara ships are not the newest kid on the block and there are negatives to the cabin design: the sideways toilet and the shower dance come readily to mind.

 

3) Think that people are trying to say that as wonderful as the shipboard experience is, there is a point at which value for money spent does come into play. Many people here are expressing concern that Azamara may be approaching or exceeding that point. Obviously, where that drop-dead point actually is totally individualized, what I choose to spend and with whom is up to me. The same is true for everyone else. Everyone wants Azamara to be profitable and survive, a lot of us just question that cheap booze and a mass market night-time shore excursion justify the price increase that's being discussed.

 

4) The fact that people are expressing concern is actually a measure of how much they enjoy Azamara. They want to be able to continue to enjoy the line and increasing prices again and again is progressively likely to narrow the customer base, not expand it. The discussion isn't about cheer-leading, it's about reality. Past cruisers do not want to see the line delude itself into pricing itself out of existence.

 

At least that's what I think.

[pacheco18]

Let me try one more time before I go to get on the Journey Monday.

 

1) The one consistent comment is how wonderful the on-board experience is on Azamara. No one has put that down at all.

 

2) Both Azamara ships are not the newest kid on the block and there are negatives to the cabin design: the sideways toilet and the shower dance come readily to mind.

 

3) Think that people are trying to say that as wonderful as the shipboard experience is, there is a point at which value for money spent does come into play. Many people here are expressing concern that Azamara may be approaching or exceeding that point. Obviously, where that drop-dead point actually is totally individualized, what I choose to spend and with whom is up to me. The same is true for everyone else. Everyone wants Azamara to be profitable and survive, a lot of us just question that cheap booze and a mass market night-time shore excursion justify the price increase that's being discussed.

 

4) The fact that people are expressing concern is actually a measure of how much they enjoy Azamara. They want to be able to continue to enjoy the line and increasing prices again and again is progressively likely to narrow the customer base, not expand it. The discussion isn't about cheer-leading, it's about reality. Past cruisers do not want to see the line delude itself into pricing itself out of existence.

 

At least that's what I think.

 

Greeneg -- I was so tempted to quote your previous post in response to some of these "cheerleaders."

 

The key point you have made is really the only point -- do the additions of cheap booze and a one nighttime shore excursion justify the HUGE increase in price. Does that translate to value for most Azamara (and other )cruisers?

 

At some point great warm and friendly service will not be enough to make people "overpay" for even a very good product. You are spot on.

[3418ahl]

Has anybody thought of how to increase profit if Azamara indeed is not making profit??? The food is above par for price, there are shuttles provided free in port and so on.

 

Let's just say there is no profit right now. Would it have looked better to offer nothing and increase pricing???

 

What are some good suggestions to increase profit?

 

I think Azamara is trying to do what they think will work. Whether it does or not remains to be seen. If it doesn't, you will see some "tactical sales" in the future which will enable those of you who state you cannot afford the increase to be able to partake. If it does work, then you will all hear about it and want to partake.

[pacheco18]

Not everyone has said they can't "afford" the increase. Many question whether the product is worth the increased price.

 

Maybe they should not have

included wine at lunch

given 50% off excursions

included gratuities

 

Maybe their concept of ACC is great in terms of touch and feel and cruisers love it, but it's not a profitable business model.

 

I doubt we will ever know the truth but it sure raises a lot of questions.

[zqvol]

Thanks to GrandmaJ et al, for interjecting a breath of fresh air into this discussion. It has almost completely soured me on Azamara, not because of the cruise line but because if the posters on this thread are typical of Azamara cruisers I'm not sure I want to sail with them. We shall see in May. In our opinion the prices, are exceptional.

 

Our May 2013 cruise went up a grand total of $200 pp after the announcement but since it now includes liquor we had an effective price reduction. It was a good price before, and is better now.

 

The Azamara ships are much larger and newer than what we are used to sailing on, so I am sure that we will be able to find find sanity on the ship.

 

As an aside, IMO if you want to get an idea where Azamara is head look no further than where Larry Pimental came from. The ships are even being painted the same!

[3418ahl]

Thanks to GrandmaJ et al, for interjecting a breath of fresh air into this discussion. It has almost completely soured me on Azamara, not because of the cruise line but because if the posters on this thread are typical of Azamara cruisers I'm not sure I want to sail with them. We shall see in May. In our opinion the prices, are exceptional.

 

Our May 2013 cruise went up a grand total of $200 pp after the announcement but since it now includes liquor we had an effective price reduction. It was a good price before, and is better now.

 

The Azamara ships are much larger and newer than what we are used to sailing on, so I am sure that we will be able to find find sanity on the ship.

 

As an aside, IMO if you want to get an idea where Azamara is head look no further than where Larry Pimental came from. The ships are even being painted the same!

The 2013 cruises are not going up until Nov 1, so I don't know where you got the pricing....

[zqvol]

The 2013 cruises are not going up until Nov 1, so I don't know where you got the pricing....

 

Well ours has already gone up $200, but historically all cruise lines constantly raise and lower prices depending on many factors and the angst over pricing is really humorous.

[Bill Leiber]

Hello Azamara Commenter's-

 

It's 7:45 PM (Pacific) and right now there are 569 replies with over 27,000 views (27,431) posted by 131 individuals, or an average of over 4 replies per person. I'd call the size of this level of engagement and opinions expressed as the point in time where this discussion has reached "critical mass" and has attained the level for Larry Pimentel, CEO & President of Azamara Club Cruises to respond to your issues based on his philosophy and vision for our company and bring this discussion to a conclusion. In my opinion, all that can be said, has been said.

 

I found two very convincing comments expressed this evening to indicate the "place" where we all are on this debate on this thread:

§ "Cpgrneyes" indicates a long-term point of view: "Personally, I have expressed that I find value in the Azamara experience. There were no pompoms in my hands when I did it. I'll wait and see, but know I will love my experience in January. Let's all try to agree to disagree. Vent over."

§ "Greeneg" believes the "market place" of past and new customers will decide: "The fact that people are expressing concern is actually a measure of how much they enjoy Azamara. They want to be able to continue to enjoy the line and increasing prices again and again is progressively likely to narrow the customer base, not expand it. The discussion isn't about cheer-leading, it's about reality. Past cruisers do not want to see the line delude itself into pricing itself out of existence. At least that's what I think.

 

I'm sure you're all looking forward to reading the "Q&A with Larry Pimentel, President & CEO, Azamara Club Cruises." http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1720630. In fact, on October 11, Larry Pimentel published on that thread a letter to all forthcoming participants sharing his plan for responding to the questions that you've posted on that thread, which mirrors the same issues on this thread. I've included his thoughts below, to save you the effort of shifting screens:

 

Dear Cruise Critic Members,

 

As always, thank you for your input and engagement with Azamara Club Cruises. It is staggering to note that after 24 plus months following the launch of Azamara Club Cruises in 2010, over 25,000 views appeared on Bill Leiber’s post about our new 2013 enhancements. I respect and appreciate your comments – good or bad, and trust you will continue to provide your input. Regardless of different views shaped by your personal tastes, dialogue is healthy – that is why we have our Presidential debates in the USA. It is a valuable way of creating a more balanced picture of any situation.

 

It is not coincidental that Cruise Critic members voted Azamara Club Cruises “best” small ship in 5 categories in 2012, including Overall; Service; Value; Mediterranean Cruise and Fitness. I see it all over Cruise Critic that you love our onboard teams, the service and ambience they provide and itineraries we offer. Regardless of how our sales and marketing strategies are packaged, I believe you know that you will be served a product onboard by our team that is superior. This is an extraordinary value we provide - a staff that performs at consistent high levels irrespective of where guests are from. Keep in mind that our guests are coming from 40 plus countries and they have a wide pallet of varying tastes. Having stated this, we can do even better – and we will.

 

As a side note, when we introduced new inclusive initiatives in 2010 (gratuities, water, coffee, teas, city center transfers, self-service laundry and boutique wines), I received tremendous criticism (especially from Cruise Critic members) for having made a poor business decision by adding the inclusions. Factually, the concerns expressed did not materialize and the brand has grown in guest loyalty and global reputation for satisfying its guests. Guest satisfaction is at an all-time high and will continue to escalate. Overall cruise experience scores ranged from 225 - 245 when I arrived and today they range from 285 - 295 on a scale where 300 is perfection. Guest satisfaction is high. In fact, we have actually had two perfect 300 scores in the last 14 months. This is virtually unheard of!

 

Looking ahead we are delighted that the forward bookings for 2013 are excellent. In terms of revenue build we are 46% ahead of where we were last year at the same time. This is a tremendous uptick in business. Following the 2013 enhancements announcement, we are seeing our booking activities increase even further. We have worked hard on evolving our product offering to ensure that our past guests will return, as well as attracting new customers through our new inclusions. And while I realize that it is easy to mis-understand and/or disagree with certain elements, or maybe not see the full context, I will do my very best next week to outline and explain our forward direction.

 

As we categorize your questions in groups and prepare to respond to you next week, I can promise you that you will receive comprehensive responses. I will be honest and direct in my answers, and while there might be items we disagree on, we will simply have to agree to disagree. However, if I feel that there are valid points affecting the majority of our guests, I will review such topics again with my team and determine if a change is in order.

 

Some housekeeping: Questions about the same subject matter will be grouped into one topic by Bill Leiber, and I will try to address all related issues in one response rather than posting to each of your posts. I intend to respond daily throughout the week, and I’ll be relying on Host Andy to keep our conversations on track.

 

Again, thank you for your passion and interest in Azamara Club Cruises. I look forward to next week’s sessions.

 

Sincerely,

Larry Pimentel

President and CEO, Azamara Club Cruises

 

On a personal level, I've gained a greater understanding and another dimension of your level of collective conflict to maintaining your loyalty to our brand. The majority of my time as CBO is spent with all of you on Cruise Critic and I'm comfortable, although sometimes distressed, with your comments about the good, the bad and the ugly. I've assimilated into your culture and realize most of you are expressing "tough-love."

 

On the other hand, I've occasionally mentioned that our Captains and their shipboard management teams are enthusiastic readers of the Azamara Cruise Critic Forum as a vehicle to gather feedback about their performance. Although your comments were directed to the shoreside operation, I wonder how they are assimilating the heated discourse within the context of their past intereactions with you as our guests and as participants at the Cruise Critic party. I'm mentioning this point not to be judgmental but to point out that in a maritime hierarchical management structure they are not accustomed to "hearing" what is said behind "closed doors."

 

I'm looking forward to a mutually beneficial conversation ahead for you and for our CEO & President.

 

Sincerely,

 

Bill Leiber

__________________________

Chief Blogging Officer*

Azamara Club Cruises

(*CBO is an authorized and compensated representative of ACC)

[MightyQuinn]

... It's 7:45 PM (Pacific) and right now there are 569 replies with over 27,000 views (27,431) posted by 131 individuals, or an average of over 4 replies per person...

Bill, I know you like to be precise ... but your math doesn't give an accurate picture.

Some posters made their point(s) numerous times, others did so much less frequently.

In fact, 25% of all posts were made by just 4 posters.

There really isn't an average.

 

Here is the current tally:

 

Who Posted? Total Posts: 576

User Name Posts

 

pacheco18 65 dfishner 29 Jade13 26 marinaro44 25 Bill Leiber 19 Christine Frances 17 HudandPug 16 geocruiser 15 insidecabin 14 greeneg 12 150edmiston 12 taxjam 12 uktog 11 3418ahl 10 Lindy028 10 zennor 9 MightyQuinn 8 Joecors 8 crzrr 8 cpgrneyes 7 TerryAndDoug 7 midwestchick 7 BaltiGator 6 cruzluze 6 Bloodaxe 6 CintiPam 6 pickypicky 6 MrMojoRisin 5 Reggiefan 5 MeMomandaMap 5 CTLeeA 5 Dr H 5 nordski 5 nonrev1 5 Canalside 4 mare s. 4 Deegee208 4 Phxazzcruisers 4 zqvol 4 theampres 4 justhappytobehere 4 May B 4 Jancruz 4 frequent traveler 3 azevedan 3 feje 3 paremata2 3 ellbon 3 Azulann 3 koalapanda 3 procter 3 GACRUISER456 3 deise17311 2 JetAway 2 Host Andy 2 LindaM 2 fokeltje 2 davidandjulia 2 Toronto Guy 2 little britain 2 GrumpyOldWesty 2 onthebalcony 2 shedridt 2 davwen81 2 Jay19 2 excitedofharpenden 2 mara01 2 Glenndale 2 Mrs Miggins 2 Lottie A 2 Francophile 2 rockysquirrel 2 DAK76 2 kiawahdon 2 acruisergirl 1 Marmaduke 1 Ellizak 1 sivia 1 tango9 1 autumn lass 1 ccmdtraveler 1 richandi 1 Nitemare 1 ArtM 1 jdavidg 1 mom&me_cruising 1 Runaways 1 GrandmaJ 1 Redtravel 1 cardiffmatch 1 Thameside 1 Ithikan 1 cindilouwho 1 TravellerNo1 1 cruisesoho 1 genegri 1 avalon1025 1 avw 1 jeremybe 1 BEAV 1 Dianneon2 1 2fromTO 1 tabatha1 1 Angiet2 1 Joe-Neth 1 daju22 1 wripro 1 ddcruiser 1 OuiOnboard 1 GailnBrad 1 Architect 1 berkshireboy 1 santrah 1 ceba 1 JFontaine 1 redridinghood 1 brucedodge 1 Keefy 1 leonjo 1 Dididi 1 laurieb 1 abbafan 1 pmenefee 1 Grandma Gilly 1 midlandtourist 1 Tilehurst Traveller 1 mauicruiser 1 funcruzer1 1 Alice1203 1 Britcruiser 1 Dick in Falls Church 1

 

That said, this thread now holds the record for the most replies of any on the Azamara forum ...and will soon reach the record for the most views!

[CTLeeA]

I find it condescending to call others "cheerleaders" when they share their opinions, and then state that we have missed the point. The outrage here is impossible to miss, believe me.

 

Personally, I have expressed that I find value in the Azamara experience. There were no pompoms in my hands when I did it.

 

I'll wait and see, but know I will love my experience in January.

 

Let's all try to agree to disagree. Vent over.

 

I think people have lost sight of the reasons for the negativity...I have not read one single post here where anyone here has been critical of the actual Azamara cruise experience. We all seem to agree the the service is outstanding...the food, as well...the negativity stems from the marketing decisions to: 1. not honor the 50% land discovery office promised to those of us who booked for 2013 prior to Oct. 1, 2012; 2. essentially require non-drinkers to to subsidize drinkers vis-a-vis the new open bar policy announced Oct. 3. the failure of Azamara to extend the new Choice Air credit to early bookers unless we are willing to pay for the balance of our cruise at the prevailing rate which is hundreds of dollars higher than the rate at least I booked at. 4. the attempt by Azamara to convince us that the AzAmazing evening tour is wonderful, dazzling and somehow equal to the 50% tour discount they are taking away from us.

 

A small minority of people have indicated that they are unconcerned about the sharp rate increases for the future. They are mostly concerned about Azamara making enough or more than enough profit to continue to stay in business and they appear to be the $300,000 plus income earners Azamara has said it wishes to be it's target market. The 47%, or 99% of us for whom price matters understands that Azamara will not likely be in our future which is what Azamara wants. However we are insisting that Azamara honor it's commitment to those of us who booked prior to Oct. 1, 2013 as an issue of fairness and ethics...that's all we're asking.

[Joecors]

Hello Azamara Commenter's-

 

Looking ahead we are delighted that the forward bookings for 2013 are excellent. In terms of revenue build we are 46% ahead of where we were last year at the same time. This is a tremendous uptick in business. Following the 2013 enhancements announcement, we are seeing our booking activities increase even further. Sincerely,

Larry Pimentel

President and CEO, Azamara Club Cruises

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

....Have you considered that the increased bookings were the result of booking either before the 2013 "enhancements" announcements, or because people wish to avoid the unknown but proposed increases of 1st November?

 

Do you think that booking activities will increase even further after the new 2013 prices are announced?

[Spursgirl]

Hello Azamara Commenter's-

 

Looking ahead we are delighted that the forward bookings for 2013 are excellent. In terms of revenue build we are 46% ahead of where we were last year at the same time. This is a tremendous uptick in business. Following the 2013 enhancements announcement, we are seeing our booking activities increase even further. Sincerely,

Larry Pimentel

President and CEO, Azamara Club Cruises

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....Have you considered that the increased bookings were the result of booking either before the 2013 "enhancements" announcements, or because people wish to avoid the unknown but proposed increases of 1st November?

 

Do you think that booking activities will increase even further after the new 2013 prices are announced?

 

 

Hello everyone,

 

I got off the Quest last Saturday with Lottie A and another friend and as she says we had a spectacular cruise. This was my 7th cruise with Azamara and each vacation has exceeded my expectations.

 

The new 'enhancements' are not necessarily what I was looking for but as many have said the Azamara experience on board is so fabulous I trust them to implement the new treats in their usual professional way.

 

We identified a cruise in May 2013 we were interested in and I contacted the travel agent to get a quote in advance of the November price hike. Quite honestly the price took my breath away. Before I uttered a word the agent commented that the price was totally unrealistic and started telling me about the much better options I would have with Oceania.

 

Azamara.remains my cruise line of choice and I hope to sail with the line on many future occasions. But for me there is a point at which the wonderful atmosphere and service on board which we have all enjoyed cannot be described as value for money.

 

I am prepared to make compromises by booking an outside cabin instead of a veranda and cruising on Azamara less frequently but I fear that it won't be too long before I am forced to 'jump ship'.

 

I await Mr Pimentel's comments with interest.