Azamara Quest - Mediterranean Cities, October 28-November 4 2021

[Miaminice]

Hi Norris,

 

it is nice to read that Carol and you enjoyed the cruise! Great report - thank you!!!

 

We are also enjoying the slow return to our regular travel habits. However, we have to admit that we have been lucky and we were able to soothe the withdrawal symptoms by doing a cruise on German TUI Cruises last year, some fantastic land trips to Lago di Garda, Venice, Madeira and Mallorca and finally a cruise on Celebrity‘s fabulous Apex followed by a land trip in Greece in September this year.

The perks of living in Europe… everything is pretty close. Unfortunately due to the travel ban we weren’t able to fly to New York in October to celebrate our anniversary in the city where we met where we got married. So we went to Venice instead. As DW Birgit put it: if Venice is your second choice, life is not too bad 🙂

 

Anyway… great to read that you guys are enjoying travel again as well.

 

All the best!

 

Oliver

 

[Bimmer09]

7 hours ago, rdsqrl said:

I'm late, but I have an excuse.  Just give me a minute to think of one. 

 

I'm a bit concerned about Azamara's provisioning, given the way they ration out French fries.  And the less said about that "hamburger," the better.  Nevertheless, I'm enjoying your food porn from a new cruiseline immensely.  Especially enjoying cruising vicariously on a copycat of my beloved Pacific Princess

Annie!!!

To get a better representation of Azamara's food offerings my Cuba review shows them as they were pre Covid. 

The Hamburger should have come with a note from the chef's mother and a follow-up visit from a Grief Counsellor. Carol also had a disappointment when she ordered a wedge salad and the head of lettuce came to the table chopped up fine as if someone had planned to make coleslaw out of it. There was also some "black pudding" that I found on our last morning in the buffet that appeared to have finely minced ground beef as a component. I wanted pigs blood and oatmeal as I have been eating it in N Ireland since I was 5. No traces were found.

But every meal in Discoveries was delicious and the plates licked clean. The missing omelette man and buffet stations at the Discoveries breakfasts were hard to take. All pax were vaccinated, in our case 3 times and tested-we had a total of 5 tests costing us a lot of time and @$900 and the line stood in while waiting to exit to our coaches would have been no different than a line for an omelette or buffet tray at breakfast. Everyone was masked until sitting at their table eating and drinking.

 

In normal times (come back soon) the food offerings are the best I've had on a ship but I've only sailed 3 lines.

 

How is your mother? I assume she has written a note explaining your tardiness?

Great to see you!

Norris

[Bimmer09]

4 hours ago, Dylandude said:

I can’t believe there has been Dylan theme on this thread and I haven’t contributed. It’s all in the name.

Welcome sir!

My reviews have more Dylan quotes than any other performer but I savaged him in this one. I revere the Dylan I knew way back when and his 60's albums are still fresh despite having been played so often over the years. Only he could have stood beside my Beatles albums and taken preference when I needed to get lost in music as a teenager.

 

Ah but I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now.

Norris

[Bimmer09]

47 minutes ago, Miaminice said:

Hi Norris,

 

it is nice to read that Carol and you enjoyed the cruise! Great report - thank you!!!

 

We are also enjoying the slow return to our regular travel habits. However, we have to admit that we have been lucky and we were able to soothe the withdrawal symptoms by doing a cruise on German TUI Cruises last year, some fantastic land trips to Lago di Garda, Venice, Madeira and Mallorca and finally a cruise on Celebrity‘s fabulous Apex followed by a land trip in Greece in September this year.

The perks of living in Europe… everything is pretty close. Unfortunately due to the travel ban we weren’t able to fly to New York in October to celebrate our anniversary in the city where we met where we got married. So we went to Venice instead. As DW Birgit put it: if Venice is your second choice, life is not too bad 🙂

 

Anyway… great to read that you guys are enjoying travel again as well.

 

All the best!

 

Oliver

 

Oliver, Gruss Gott!

Great to see that you have been reading along. I always follow your cruise exploits and enjoy your photos. You introduced me to Cappadocia in Turkey which I was unaware of.

 

Italy, France and Spain all seemed to be taking Covid seriously with regard to masking and social distancing. We took a chance and came home safe and refreshed by being in Europe and on a ship.

We have to hope that our tickets for the Bayreuth Festival this August can get used as Germany and Austria ( we love to visit Vienna) are struggling with Covid right now.

 

Hopefully you can visit New York when the weather will be tolerable. May is always glorious. It may not be exactly your anniversary but Better Late than Never is a good motto.

 

Thanks for joining us!

Norris

 

[Bimmer09]

In the back corner of the Living Room with its panoramic windows looking forward over the sea, is the Card Room. The In Touch also designates it as an Internet Center with computers for those who have paid for Wi Fi. 

 

 

 

We had 120 minutes of free wi-fi as our cabin was known as Verandah Plus. Unlimited Wi Fi was available for $170.31 It was in this room that our Covid test (15 minute results) was given before our Barcelona excursion to Montserrat Monastery.

Edited November 21, 2021 by Bimmer09
spelling

[CruiserRob]

42 minutes ago, Bimmer09 said:

I was so much older then, I'm younger than that now

My Back Pages.  Another Dylan song that I prefer by somebody else - in this case the Byrds.

 

Robert

[Bimmer09]

THE DEN

The Den was once the Casino space but on a ship that would tie up in a harbor for a couple of days and stay late in port the Casino was often closed and not earning its keep. Some of the desks that were on the floor below-Future Cruises, Excursions were brought up to fill the space and make room for more cabins on 4. A nice bar was added with space for a grand piano. Maryfer was the excellent pianist on board.

 

Taking care of business

 

Spirits, the piano bar

 

an elegant space

[Bimmer09]

9 minutes ago, CruiserRob said:

My Back Pages.  Another Dylan song that I prefer by somebody else - in this case the Byrds.

 

Robert

Right on the Money Rob. 

The Birds had a unique sound and knew a great song when they heard it!

Norris

[Bimmer09]

Elegance. Yes that word fits the impression given to me by the Azamara decor. There's no flash, no explosions of color. Soothing. You are here to relax.

That's Mosaic Cafe in the back right corner so you can sit and sip in these comfy chairs

 

I forgot this pic from our oft-visited Shore Excursions desk in the Den

 

In this pic of the lovely staircase from deck 5 down to 4, LT Hambone spotters can see the great man trying to decide which yummy pastry to try at the Mosaic Cafe. I just noticed him. I think he said "I'll just have one of everything". Wise choice.

 

While we are on the staircases...

 

[Bimmer09]

DIRECTIONS

 

 

 

 

[scubacruiserx2]

23 hours ago, Marvy Mare said:

Trying to remember how to cut back to the quote. I saw Tina perform this when I was in university. She was still with Ike at the time. A great performer to see live. Adult only content. I remember being shocked and it was the 70s.

 

I did enjoy the Tina Turner version but prefer the original CCR version that was released 2 year prior and quote from the Wikipedia article .Bayou Country contains what is arguably John Fogerty's most heralded composition, "Proud Mary", which peaked at #2 on the singles chart. In a 1969 interview, Fogerty said that he wrote it in the two days after he was discharged from the National

Guard.^[4] . Bob Dylan told Rolling Stone in a 1969 interview that it was his favorite song of

the year.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bayou_Country_(album)

 

[Bimmer09]

THE MOST BEAUTIFUL LIBRARY AT SEA?

I PREFER A HARDCOVER BOOK TO A KINDLE/E READER

 There is a great place to find and read books on the Azamara ships.

Deck 10 aft, overlooking the swimming pool. Opposite the 2 specialty restaurants.

 

Annie, this will remind you of the Pacific Princess (now Azamara Onward)

It is called the Drawing Room

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Case Closed

 

[ChucktownSteve]

On 11/10/2021 at 7:01 PM, Bimmer09 said:

You'd have to ask Carol about apps. She uses a phone. I have one but have no idea what its for. If a call comes in I just bury the phone under a cushion until it goes silent.

Have you seen the Azamara app? Good grief! It only works for the Pursuit last time I looked and it isn't even at sea yet as I understand from the Future Cruise man on Quest.

Norris

PS-the pleasure is all mine maggieq

 

Bimmer09, I know why the app hasn't been update for the other ships yet.  When I filed feedback about a useless app, I received an email reply from RCL's customer service.  They still maintain Azamara's IT.   They're not going to put any effort into the APP until the new owners take control of IT.

 

BTW great review. Thankx!  I'll be on quest in less than 3 weeks.

[LT Hambone]

1 hour ago, Bimmer09 said:

In this pic of the lovely staircase from deck 5 down to 4, LT Hambone spotters can see the great man trying to decide which yummy pastry to try at the Mosaic Cafe. I just noticed him. I think he said "I'll just have one of everything". Wise choice.

 

Why yes, yes we did have one of everything!

 

And the best part? Even if you just said one cookie, you still received multiple cookies! I believe we also ordered some hot chocolate to go with our cookies, and another wise choice!

 

Since Norris has an affinity for taking the least flattering pictures of us, allow me to correct this oversight -

 

 

 

As you were, Mr. Norris!

 

 

[Bimmer09]

THE BUFFET

 

What I haven't shown you so far is the Buffet's warm weather bonus...

The Sunset Bar

AJ

AJ

 

No self service during Covid

 

Did I mention that there is a free gelato bar in the buffet? Well there is! Delicious!

[Bimmer09]

15 minutes ago, ChucktownSteve said:

 

Bimmer09, I know why the app hasn't been update for the other ships yet.  When I filed feedback about a useless app, I received an email reply from RCL's customer service.  They still maintain Azamara's IT.   They're not going to put any effort into the APP until the new owners take control of IT.

 

BTW great review. Thankx!  I'll be on quest in less than 3 weeks.

Steve, thanks for the feedback and for reading along. 

I am looking forward to RCL being out of the picture and Az growing their brand under the new ownership.

Quest in the Caribbean! Sounds good to me! Which itinerary? - I was just looking at the offerings yesterday but also have Princess to consider.

Cheers

Norris

[Bimmer09]

OK, I've taken care of showing more handsome ship pictures and can now continue with my tale. We are up at 5.30 again today and Carol is having her Room Service feast and I'm in the buffet. Covid test in the Card Room by appointment as we are off on an excursion at 8.15, up to the mountains for some amazing eye-candy.

 

The extra nurses who were brought on to do Covid tests are in position. We are there at 7.30. A couple of nose swipes and we are done. All pax are being tested today with zero being found Positive. 

 

I'll be back with photos soon...

Norris

[Mackdogmolly]

23 minutes ago, Bimmer09 said:

Quest in the Caribbean! Sounds good to me! Which itinerary? - I was just looking at the offerings yesterday but also have Princess to consider.

Not that you asked me - lol, but my DH, Andrew, and I will be on the 12/23 Quest Holiday cruise and just can’t wait! You should join and do another travelogue, so I don’t have too!

Betsey

[ChucktownSteve]

1 hour ago, Bimmer09 said:

Steve, thanks for the feedback and for reading along. 

I am looking forward to RCL being out of the picture and Az growing their brand under the new ownership.

Quest in the Caribbean! Sounds good to me! Which itinerary? - I was just looking at the offerings yesterday but also have Princess to consider.

Cheers

Norris

 

I'm still trying to catch up. I found this thread late. You have a good eye for framing.

 

We're on the 2/10 13 night. There's not many good cabins left unless they're holding them back or have some cancellations.

 

I've gotten the nod from DW to book the 12/23/23 Onward over Christmas and New Years out of Ft. Lauderdale while on board this coming cruise.  My cabin on Quest is like ours; the aft facing P1 which is what I plan to book for the holiday cruise.

 

We sailed the Journey to the Baltics in 2017. The best cruise we've sailed to date.  I presume that was pretty much the same configuration as Quest?

[Bimmer09]

5 minutes ago, ChucktownSteve said:

 

I'm still trying to catch up. I found this thread late. You have a good eye for framing.

 

We're on the 2/10 13 night. There's not many good cabins left unless they're holding them back or have some cancellations.

 

I've gotten the nod from DW to book the 12/23/23 Onward over Christmas and New Years out of Ft. Lauderdale while on board this coming cruise.  My cabin on Quest is like ours; the aft facing P1 which is what I plan to book for the holiday cruise.

 

We sailed the Journey to the Baltics in 2017. The best cruise we've sailed to date.  I presume that was pretty much the same configuration as Quest?

Steve, you've got some good sailings lined up there.

Quest showed few empty cabins (8 I think  before we joined her) and yet sailed less than half capacity.

Journey had the casino in 2019 but now has a Den so just like Quest I would imagine.

Norris

[LT Hambone]

2 hours ago, Bimmer09 said:

Did I mention that there is a free gelato bar in the buffet?

 

Gelato bar ?!?!?!??! How the...... never mind.

 

 

Norris - this is why I am enjoying your report so much, you're showing me everything we missed! Guess we'll have to take another Azamara cruise!

 

 

 

[ChucktownSteve]

1 hour ago, Bimmer09 said:

Steve, you've got some good sailings lined up there.

Quest showed few empty cabins (8 I think  before we joined her) and yet sailed less than half capacity.

Journey had the casino in 2019 but now has a Den so just like Quest I would imagine.

Norris

 

I didn't mention we're also booked on the Onward to the Greek Islands 5/13/23. We bit the bullet in a CW. We're spending the Kid's inheritance.  Ha!  Your musings have increased my salivating for more AZ cruising.

 

You should look at that one.

Edited November 21, 2021 by ChucktownSteve

[Walt fan]

Gorgeous ship. So many spots to just sit and let the world go by. Azamara should pay you for the amazing pics and all of us wanting to go visit her. 

 

Can't wait for Barcelona!

[Bimmer09]

4 hours ago, ChucktownSteve said:

 

I didn't mention we're also booked on the Onward to the Greek Islands 5/13/23. We bit the bullet in a CW. We're spending the Kid's inheritance.  Ha!  Your musings have increased my salivating for more AZ cruising.

 

You should look at that one.

Steve, 5/21/23 we are in Alaska with Princess otherwise....

Norris

[Bimmer09]

WE SAILED INTO BARCELONA BEFORE 7 A.M ON NOVEMBER 3

MSC Seaside was already there

 

We passed her and moved to our waiting berth

 

Morning sunlight on Montjuic-the mountain that has stood here for thousands of years. Couldn't move to somewhere else, come to think of it. It's a mountain!

 

By 8 a.m we had both had breakfast and a successful Covid test and had to make our way off the ship, into the terminal...

 

and to a waiting coach on the dock