Why I broke up with Azamara

[bigbenboys]

I came across this thread while looking for info on Azamara brochure. I have requested brochure twice now and still nothing has arrived.

 

What some of you here are tell us. Yes the 6 months before your Azamara cruise is going to be full of frustrations. But the 7 to 12 days on the ship is great. For some of us it just not worth the problems. When there are others out there in the same market and have better pre cruise service. Richard

[Waswo]

As the OP, I just wanted to return and say that I have not ruled Azamara out for the future---I am happy with my new choice and I would consider Azamara now that I am better informed about it and know what to expect. I have enjoyed every cruise I have been on and I am sure that Azamara would be no exception. I will keep reading reviews and reading the boards. If I had known about some of the obstacles in advance, I would have been able to make an educated choice about what I can tolerate.

 

Thank you to everyone for your responses and feedback.

[Texed]

Ah! A possible reconciliation. :D

Edited January 30, 2014 by Texed

[midwestchick]

Ah! A possible reconciliation. :D

 

 

Let's hope so. :D I do get E-mails from Azamara. I get so many mailings from Oceania, it's almost pathetic :rolleyes:and also from some other cruise lines, which we have never sailed on. I don't understand how some cruise lines spend so much money on those brochures. It must be costing a fortune...and, in the long run, guess who's footing the bill ...naturally cruise pax.:eek:

Believe me, my TA earns his money with me...I tell him what I want and he does the legwork. It took some doing for him, but he was able to keep me in the same cabin on our upcoming B2B cruise and he had to do it by phone with the inept people manning those phone lines. It may have taken him some time but he did accomplish it and I did choose our cabin. If someone has a TA that asks "how important is this to you", then I would ask.."how important is my business to you". There are many TA's out there waiting to do more for their customers and gain new customers, no matter what it takes.

I've checked different cruise lines and I'm bombarded with E-mails. I don't like that either and I won't mention the cruise lines that do it....but, to me, it's a total turn off.

I don't feel the need to recieve a welcoming E-mail when I book a cruise, especially since I use a TA. I did not receive one from Celebrity last year either. I know I'll get my welcome once I am on board and it will all be worth it. In the meantime, I try to pay attention to all the updates...regardless of where I have to read them. My TA is far too busy to watch a specific cruise to see if there are updates. As long as I find something and he can get me credited, then I'm totally fine with it. I don't need to be mollycoddled.

If and when I have a bad experience on a cruise, then I will voice my opinion about a cruise line.

I don't have the number of cruises under my belt, as many of you do. Perhaps I was just lucky the first time we cruised. On the other hand, we've traveled a lot before cruising and I know the difference between a good and bad experience.

I've been following this thread and reading every post.

Okay...rant over.:D

Edited January 30, 2014 by midwestchick

[nordski]

As the OP, I just wanted to return and say that I have not ruled Azamara out for the future---I am happy with my new choice and I would consider Azamara now that I am better informed about it and know what to expect. I have enjoyed every cruise I have been on and I am sure that Azamara would be no exception. I will keep reading reviews and reading the boards. If I had known about some of the obstacles in advance, I would have been able to make an educated choice about what I can tolerate.

 

Thank you to everyone for your responses and feedback.

 

And thank you for your update.

 

Your posts have been highly educational to me because you have clearly and objectively laid out some of your criteria as to acceptable expectations concerning the pre-cruise experience.

 

Although these expectations are of little moment to us, I now better understand their importance to others.

 

Enjoy your cruise, and perhaps future feedback on this board will inform you as to whether ACC can eventually provide the experience you will enjoy.

[insidecabin]

Many of the problems seem to be a hangover from the attempt to separate ACC from the Celebrity brand.

 

It went wrong was a complete mess.

 

Looks like they may have given up and are going to go back to co-branding using the same systems.

 

Pricing is still a nightmare, trying to work out what the deals are etc. especially the UK and the various promotion including stuff some times, kind of goes away from the "more inclusive" message.

 

Would love to do another ACC but it is a lot of work to get to the numbers.

 

What I don't understand is why they don't promote ACC more on Celebrity ships which already attract a more discerning customer that would probably like ACC and it could be sold as a more premium option that is a destination driven choice(going places Celebrity don't).

 

The size of the ACC ships would not impact demand on Celebrity that much and pricing(less discounting) on ACC will be driven by increased demand.

 

 

Bottom line for ACC is the on board product is let down by the shore side experience.

[wamma44]

And I thought it was just me who missed the notice the cancellation of the 25% off Land Discoveries.

 

I'm quite sure I didn't receive any notification either and I do receive their newsletter and follow them on Facebook but I'm not a FB addict so it could have slipped through.

 

The prices were changing, some by a significant amount (another pet peeve), so I didn't book the land tours last year and now, I seem to be out of luck. I contacted Azamara and they said that they wouldn't honour the offer. Well, at least it's Italy so there are a lot of other options to do things on our own. Their loss on the revenue side.

 

Azamara really does need to improve their communication with customers. Fortunately, I have sailed Azamara before so I know that the onboard experience is really good. If I hadn't, I might also think about cancelling. It just leaves me with a bad impression though I know it will be a great cruise (I hope).

[pacheco18]

They cannot keep up this poor customer service forever and stay in business.

Eventually, it will catch up to them

Why is nobody listening?

[TERRIER1]

And I thought it was just me who missed the notice the cancellation of the 25% off Land Discoveries.

 

I'm quite sure I didn't receive any notification either and I do receive their newsletter and follow them on Facebook but I'm not a FB addict so it could have slipped through.

 

The prices were changing, some by a significant amount (another pet peeve), so I didn't book the land tours last year and now, I seem to be out of luck. I contacted Azamara and they said that they wouldn't honour the offer. Well, at least it's Italy so there are a lot of other options to do things on our own. Their loss on the revenue side.

 

Azamara really does need to improve their communication with customers. Fortunately, I have sailed Azamara before so I know that the onboard experience is really good. If I hadn't, I might also think about cancelling. It just leaves me with a bad impression though I know it will be a great cruise (I hope).

 

I booked a B2B last year for this June. I was never notified about that the deal ended.

[navyaviator1955]

It's a shame that the hard work of the crew is being undermined because of corporate greed. It is quite obvious the corporate office only cares about the stockholders.

[riandei]

It's a shame that the hard work of the crew is being undermined because of corporate greed. It is quite obvious the corporate office only cares about the stockholders.

 

 

I dont think stockholders would be too happy to read some of the comments on this site

[Kellie Poodle]

I am about to embark on my first Azamara cruise. While I agree, wholeheartedly, that the shore-side experience is horrible, I do have to say that my TA advised me of the cutoff date and when I called Azimara about something else, they also advised me of the cut off date for excursion discounts.

 

While I certainly fault Azamara for their lack of communication, the fact that my reservation was locked out for over three weeks, forcing me to make excursion reservations over the phone, being told by an Azamara rep that I would not have Discoverer status just credit for the cruise, which was repudiated by my TA, I have to say that I think you folks should have been more proactive about the discount.

Edited January 31, 2014 by Kellie Poodle

[wamma44]

I booked a B2B last year for this June. I was never notified about that the deal ended.

 

If you plan to book tours, you may want to check into it.

 

When I try to book online, I only get full-price and there is now a new pdf that does not have any reference to the discount, unlike the pdf document I received when I booked. I would be very interested in knowing if you get something different online or if you get a different answer from Azamara.

[TERRIER1]

If you plan to book tours, you may want to check into it.

 

When I try to book online, I only get full-price and there is now a new pdf that does not have any reference to the discount, unlike the pdf document I received when I booked. I would be very interested in knowing if you get something different online or if you get a different answer from Azamara.

 

I only get full price on line but I emailed Azamara since my PDF document said I could book up to four days prior to the cruise. I was never notified about the cancellation so I am going on the documentation I received from Azamara.

[shedridt]

I hope you'll find a cruise line that suits your needs better. I am more than satisfied with Azamara & don't see the point in begging people to climb on board when they seem reluctant to do so.

[Kellie Poodle]

I hope you'll find a cruise line that suits your needs better. I am more than satisfied with Azamara & don't see the point in begging people to climb on board when they seem reluctant to do so.

 

Economics 101:

A cruise line is a business. It's duty is to "beg" people to climb aboard through it's marketing program and by the ease of use of its web site and the information given by its phone reps.

 

The cruise line has a duty to convince reluctant future guests to become guests. How else do they fill a ship?

 

Unfortunately, Azamara seems to have taken your advice for their corporate culture. They are pushing people away with their pathetic web site and their clueless phone reps.

 

I'm a first time Azamara cruiser who has been cruising since the mid 1980's on ocean liners and river boats. I have never come across a situation as frustrating as Azamara's shore experience. It's because of the folks on CC who have promised me that the ship board experience will be worth all the land-side trials that kept me from cancelling this cruise.

 

It had better be something spectacular or I'll never be able to justify the pricing with the outlandishly poor shore-side service to cruise with them a second time.

 

Maybe some people, like yourself, don't care how badly the shore-side personnel screw things up, but as a first time sailor, until I board the ship, the screw ups are the only thing I see.

[beachseeker]

Economics 101:

A cruise line is a business. It's duty is to "beg" people to climb aboard through it's marketing program and by the ease of use of its web site and the information given by its phone reps.

 

The cruise line has a duty to convince reluctant future guests to become guests. How else do they fill a ship?

 

Unfortunately, Azamara seems to have taken your advice for their corporate culture. They are pushing people away with their pathetic web site and their clueless phone reps.

 

I'm a first time Azamara cruiser who has been cruising since the mid 1980's on ocean liners and river boats. I have never come across a situation as frustrating as Azamara's shore experience. It's because of the folks on CC who have promised me that the ship board experience will be worth all the land-side trials that kept me from cancelling this cruise.

 

It had better be something spectacular or I'll never be able to justify the pricing with the outlandishly poor shore-side service to cruise with them a second time.

 

Maybe some people, like yourself, don't care how badly the shore-side personnel screw things up, but as a first time sailor, until I board the ship, the screw ups are the only thing I see.

 

Well said.

[Keystonetraveler]

Economics 101:

A cruise line is a business. It's duty is to "beg" people to climb aboard through it's marketing program and by the ease of use of its web site and the information given by its phone reps.

 

The cruise line has a duty to convince reluctant future guests to become guests. How else do they fill a ship?

 

Unfortunately, Azamara seems to have taken your advice for their corporate culture. They are pushing people away with their pathetic web site and their clueless phone reps.

 

I'm a first time Azamara cruiser who has been cruising since the mid 1980's on ocean liners and river boats. I have never come across a situation as frustrating as Azamara's shore experience. It's because of the folks on CC who have promised me that the ship board experience will be worth all the land-side trials that kept me from cancelling this cruise.

 

It had better be something spectacular or I'll never be able to justify the pricing with the outlandishly poor shore-side service to cruise with them a second time.

 

Maybe some people, like yourself, don't care how badly the shore-side personnel screw things up, but as a first time sailor, until I board the ship, the screw ups are the only thing I see.

 

I wish I could have said it this well. I am an experienced traveler who has traveled with numerous other ocean cruise lines, river cruise lines, and escorted tour companies. None come anywhere close to Azamara with its pathetic shoreside service. Like you, I am listening to the people on Cruise Critic who tell me I will have a wonderful onboard experience. I certainly hope that is the case. Even if I have a very good time, I cannot imagine myself sailing with them again. There are too many other organizations that are so much more enjoyable to deal with.

 

I might add that I am usually a solo traveler and share experiences with other solo travelers I have met over the years. At first, I told them of the good deal I got and the wonderful itinerary. However, of late, I have suggested that they look elsewhere. It is a shame that I embark on a journey with this attitude, but Azamara has not given me the opportunity to feel otherwise. The spark of excitement I have before a trip just isn't there this time.

[onthebalcony]

Sorry to day but the 25% discount ended on Jan. 4. You had to book your tours prior to this date. I booked in Dec. and when I went in today, the prices are no longer discounted. However, I did get the 25% discount for a new tour Azamara added in Guatemala. Thank you Azamara!!!

 

Also, for those new to Azamara, you will have wonderful service once on the ship!!! This will be our 13th cruise with them. We are getting better service out of the Miami office but it took about 10 cruises to get it!!! I understand that TAs also have issues!

 

Kellie Poodle, I will be meeting you in 2 weeks on the Quest out of LA!!! Looking forward to warmer weather!!

 

Anne

[Granny DI]

I can understand everyone's frustrations. To me my next cruise starts the moment I start "surfing the web" looking for that special cruise. We have 3 cruises booked for the next year....NCL, HAL and Crystal. Their websites made it easy to find something we would love!

[Kellie Poodle]

I can understand everyone's frustrations. To me my next cruise starts the moment I start "surfing the web" looking for that special cruise. We have 3 cruises booked for the next year....NCL, HAL and Crystal. Their websites made it easy to find something we would love!

 

If I didn't spot my upcoming Azamara cruise on a TA web site, I'd never have found it. :)

[midwestchick]

I don't deal with Azamara directly...I use a TA and let him handle it...frustrations included. And, I will say I do better with him as far as pricing goes. I'll say this, Celebrity's website doesn't seem to be much better. Again, I'll let my TA deal with the details. I know he got a little frustrated when he attempted to keep us in our same stateroom for our upcoming B2B cruise, but he got the job done....maybe it's all the years he's been in business.

I just saw a new Azamara promo on Facebook. If any of you are on there and you "like" their page, you'll see the new promos there. I did not see the latest promo on their website.

I do feel bad that people are giving up on this cruiseline before even going on a cruise...to me, that is very sad.

[Granny DI]

I surf the web looking for unusual cruises. Once I've found the cruise I want I contact my TA. She handles everything from that point on. We loved the British Open cruise on Azamara. The West Indies was OK. We learned that we prefer port intensive cruises when sailing on Azamara.

[midwestchick]

I surf the web looking for unusual cruises. Once I've found the cruise I want I contact my TA. She handles everything from that point on. We loved the British Open cruise on Azamara. The West Indies was OK. We learned that we prefer port intensive cruises when sailing on Azamara.

 

Port intensive (Med) cruises are all we have done and that is what we have booked for the future. I've been thinking about the possibility of a TA, just to be lazy on a ship and thoroughly enjoy cruising, the water, the food and not having a schedule for a few days. I think that would be wonderful. :D

Anything in the Caribbean, we prefer to be at a resort and totally relax and enjoy our beach time. I doubt that we would ever consider a true Caribbean cruise, Bermuda being the exception, although I've begun looking at resorts in Bermuda too and spending more than just a few days there.

Edited February 3, 2014 by midwestchick

[nordski]

 

I do feel bad that people are giving up on this cruiseline before even going on a cruise...to me, that is very sad.

 

I would agree somewhat, but it's clear that for some "the cruise" means the buildup from web experience to welcome e-mails etc. This stage seems almost as important as the cruise itself.

 

In that case ACC, at least at this stage, is a poor fit.