Need helpful opinions...Azamara
 

Looking to replace our Regent Seven Seas cruise which did UAE to Cape Town (Oct 30, 2021) and was 3 weeks or so. They cancelled it. We were willing to give up Madagascar, and take RSS Lisbon to Cape Town (CT) (Nov 12, 2022), but it is waitlisted. We are not interested in the 10-14 days CT to west, CT to east, return CT. Our most used other line is Holland America, but it does not do this route, except at part of a 71 day cruise.

So I went looking. Silverseas has two cruises on the Shadow, both in 2023. The brochure system was not working last night, and it was too late to call. Now it is Sunday. We like the ports of the 23 day (3/21/23), but don't know if it is available and not so sure about air SAN to Mahe Seychelles (will be seeking Business). The alternative on this ship is 18 day west coast CT-Senegal (4/13/23). Will be able to do some more work and data collection next week.

Then I stumbled on Azamara Journey and Pursuit. I have seen one of their ships in port once, but otherwise know nothing about them. Of their voyages, we found the 11/29/2022 21 day Lisbon-CT okay as well as the reverse cruise 3/4/2023 CT-Lisbon. They offer flights thru Choice Air? Not sure of their reputation. Why do they have so many cabins available, when I am having trouble elsewhere?

Just to toss into the ring other we tossed out: 30 night Seabourn Sojourn, CT-Barcelona (4/27/2023) another line we have no experience with, and a bit long for us; Oceania Nautica has a couple, one ending in India, and another with 3-4 stops in India...not our interest; lots of choices on Norwegian Jade, but way too big a ship, lots of children, a bit downscale.

We have done countries in Africa on land, and more that a dozen safaris, vehicle and boat. We saw, up close and personal, the big five and so much more. Now we are ready to get a bit of diversity of Africa on a cruise and several days in Cape Town. We prefer a smaller ship, with some upscale service. One that caters to seniors. We are not much interested in the shows and night time discos. We do not do casinos or art auctions. Our idea of tours is medium to easy. We would like to include the Lemurs in Madagascar, but it is not a deal breaker. Some how we would like to have an easy flight there and back, but know that is not likely. We have had our shots. I am a bit of a gimpy walker, having muscular atrophy. We have another cruise on Regent 7 Seas in Jun 2022, so we are looking to keep about 6 mos or more away from it. We have also given up on putting something together in 2021, and are headed to wine country here in Calif. instead.

Thanks for your input. I tried the search engine on FT, but Azamara data is very sparse and dated.

I was looking as a Azamara TATL for spring last year but fortunately never got past the had-a-look-at-the-prices stage.

The older ships are from the Renaissance fleet. Most had been acquired by Oceania and Azamara with the one of the missing sister being the Pacific Princess which was recently sold to Azamara so Azamara and Oceania now both have 4 each. Standard cabins seem to be a little small as it was not build to be a suite class ship.

It's not "all-inclusive" like RSSC but better than even a premium mass-market line (at least pre-COVID). Maybe like Oceania where you are not nickeled 'n dimed.

Is the nicest line Azamara in the Royal Caribbean family. Holland America would be similar to Celebrity and Amazra would be nicer than that.

Choice Air is just what they call cruiseline air. It’s not a separate company.

I have taken a couple cruises on Azamara, but both were a few years ago. Tips are included in the fare, along with wine, beer, and spirits at dinner. I found the crews to be very friendly, and would definitely cruise with them again. Both Pursuit and Journey are former Renaissance ships, as mentioned above - their newest ship (Onward) is a brand new build which will join the fleet in 2022. Azamara was owned by RCCL (and shared its elite program with Celebrity), but private investors bought Azamara from RCCL not long after Covid hit.

I have a lot of experience with Seabourn, whose ships and service fit our needs. We have also been on Silversea Silver Shadow. I would take the Seabourn trip. A good mix of luxury and low-key ambiance.

I have no experience with Azamara, Seabourn or SilverSea, but I do have good experiences using CruiseAir. I have used the service for Princess, HAL, and Celebrity sailings. The part I like the best is being able to secure airfare for a discount, and adjusting the airfare if the price drops before flying. One can reserve the airfare, and not pay for it until final cruise payment, too. Their rates are very competitive, often better than airline direct, and one can still get loyalty points, along with all the perks if one has status with the airline. Of course, this is clearly a YMMV, and may not be something you are interested in. Overall, I have had positive outcomes. Best of luck deciding on which cruise works for you. They all sound very nice.

Thank you for all your input.

Looks like a cruise on Azamara is a "crap shoot". No cruises since the change of hands. Now in the hands of who? Not a cruise line. It would be a question who they kept on the payroll all this time without revenue. Past cruises may not have much to do with the future.

Then, again, it may be an "adventure". Perhaps they will try to upgrade the experience. A purchase, given the situation at the time, would suggest they would be prepared to "weather" perhaps 2 years of no revenue (ex deposits), holding costs, partial payroll, and a great deal of start up costs.

Still older ships, with tiny cabins.

The Seabourn Sojourn cruise is well off, and stretches our time frame for being gone (post office will only hold our mail for 30 days, although we could try begging). Also have a mother, 102 in facility that provides her some assisted living. They take care of her well, but things do come up. Perhaps we could rent a PO box? I do have an older brother that can cover some when we are gone.

The Silversea cruises, in early 2023, work better, but the price does jump..

Celebrity is unconditionally better than Holland America in every aspect.

Depends on your class of service. Suite or at the very minimum, Aqua/spa class. Food in the MDR was pretty poor compared to Holland America (though the latter could have gone downhill too0. Increasingly more space not available to on-suite pax.

What is your objective experience and evidence for this blanket statement? As I have heard the EXACT opposite from several sources...

Dozens of friends (actual personal friends, not just random Internet posts) who have cruised both lines. Every one of them has said they will not sail Holland America again after experiencing Celebrity.

Opinion is useless w/o class of service/accommodation and whether the Celebrity ship had been Revolutionized at time of sailing or not. It'd be like sailing on a MSC ship if you're in Yacht Club or not, or more to do with Flyertlak, whether you're in International First (or Business) vs. int he back cabin.

Azamara are genuinely great in every sense. The main let down after Seabourn etc will be the stateroom size. Comfortable options for a longer duration would begin at Club Continent level and above. Butler service and complementary speciality dining in Aquafina and Prime C are included. Otherwise cover charge of $30. Food is very good in Discoveries MDR.
All staterooms under Club Continent are a little on the smaller side. Balconies are small, yet, adequate and the bathrooms are very small.
Even on a full sailing there is never a sense of overcrowding in the public rooms or deck.
Windows cafe is the only dining space that ever feels like being a little close to capacity and often find the tables are a touch close together, especially at breakfast. Suspect this will have changed, given the current situation.
White Night buffet dinner on deck can feel busy, always a very pleasant evening.
I would pay the additional supplement of $29.95/nightly to upgrade from the standard inclusive package of drinks. Lots of people don’t and are quite happy with the inclusive standard drinks.
RCCL sold Azamara to Sycamore Partners this year with many regular pax are seeing as a good thing for the Azamara brand going forward.
if you look into the financial commitment Sycamore have made and the additional Aegean cruises added in the six weeks prior to the initial resumption announcement, all appears to be positive.
Choice Air isn’t always the cheapest option, however, does add a little more protection. That said, most if not all carriers are offering refunds/credits for cancelled bookings into next year. Personally, I would not book choice air or the Azamara options for hotels pre and post cruise.
I may question whether the South African itineraries will happen given the vaccinated pax stipulation (may preclude a large amount of local bookings) and possibly travel to South Africa remaining more restricted.
Any specific Azamara questions, please ask.

So it took awhile, but we waitlisted 1 RSS and 3 Silverseas cruises. We also booked a shorter RSS cruise and added a 4 day land package. It is very late in 2022. Today, we put the deposit on the Cape Town-Cape Town 15 day. We have been very happy with our two long trips on RSS. This gets up back to South Africa (a few ports) and adds Namibia, and Mozambique, but misses our secondary target of Madagascar. We may still may try a waitlist for an early 2023 Silverseas cruise that includes Madagascar. We can drop our current cruise up to 161 days in advance for only $100PP. We just need to think of it as an option on a cruise! The current waitlists die by them self tomorrow if we do not put up a deposit. A week ago, I did not even know you could waitlist more that one cruise (they price it when it clears, not when you waitlist). I also never thought about booking and then cancelling on purpose to do a different cruise. Covid threat has done funny things to me! I post this information for anyone who may benefit (we have over a dozen cruises and are still learning).

Thanks all.

We did Azamara Singapore to Hong Kong in 2016 (I think) and loved it. We really love the small R class ships (neither of us will sail with more than 1000 passengers now, 2000 is the largest I've been on and I do not like more people - our last cruise was Oceania and as much as I loved it, still too many people at 1300 ;-) But we sailed Seabourn in 2018 and after that, woo, they're my favorite ;-) (still want to try Silversea but they're always more expensive, so....And Regent gives too much - I want more a la carte) Now I look back and think - I'm not going to pay Oceania prices to sail on an R class ship, I might not pay Azamara prices for that either! (for a few years, they were quite reasonable - but the most recent fares I saw seemed to want to position the company in the luxury price range, and the cabins just aren't there). Good luck finding the right itineraries to get what you want!