Due to the fear of getting COVID, many people stayed away which made our cruise very easy to manage. Only over 450 people onboard. Staff very happy to see us all. Ship need some more work and the food quality and choices could have been better. The ship is small but so was the cabin, very small. Spent a lot of time on the balcony...
Embarkation
2 out of 5
The Istanbul Cruise Terminal is absolutely terrible. It is new, beautiful but total chaos. We went from waiting in one line to waiting in another line and nobody knew what to do or where we should go. Even when we got inside to check in with Azamara, they were having us sit in chairs while other passengers were checking in and going aboard/. It was stressful and time consuming. Very poorly done.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
The food was good but should have been much better. The choices on some nights were slim to none unless you ate the same thing as a few days before. The quality of the buffet was okay. I could compare it to any lesser ship like Celebrity or Holland America but should have been much better. The PrimeC was very good and the service in all of the restaurants was excellent.
Onboard Activities
4 out of 5
Very disappointed that there was NO casino as it wasn't stated anywhere that there would not be one. The pool deck was very slippery and for someone with a torn meniscus , getting in and out was impossible.
Entertainment
3 out of 5
The entertainment from the singers and dancers on staff was like very good high school students. The Singers and magician were much better but they were only on a few nights. When you don't have a casino, you need great nightly entertainment.
Service and Staff
5 out of 5
The waiters were amazing. They were all on their A game, friendly, attentive, and went out of their way to make all our needs met. Our waiter, Linus went out of his way to make sure my dietary needs were covered and if he wasn't sure, he went to the kitchen and asked. We couldn't have asked for a better waiter. So, we asked for his station every night. Our room Stewart was never around and had very little to do with him. However I want it to be known, our sheets were not changed for over a week. How I know is that there was sand on the sheets from our day at the beach, day 3 but for many days after that...
Ship Quality
3 out of 5
Many things on the ship need work. The carpets are new and everything looks surface nice. However, there were toilets in ill repair. Our sink in our cabin had a rusty stopper, there was a wall in the men's restroom with tissue stuck into the tiles to hold them in place and this was supposed to be brand newly renovated.
Cabin / Stateroom
3 out of 5
TOO SMALL. IF you are renovating a ship, make sure people who have a Veranda Plus Stateroom have enough room to move. We didn't
Ship tip
Must be able to move around in a very small space and not need a casino.
Took a tour and went to makranitza, which was quaint and cute but then were taken to the beach where we had 20 year old lounges that were very low and couldn't sit straight up. Where we had to argue for our free drinks and were never told it was all rocks and needed beach shoes to go into the water. Very sad experience
We are sailing on 10/21 out of Civitavecchia. It will be our first cruise on Azamara and I chose it solely for the itinerary. I was hoping that the reviews would be better for a newly renovated ship as far as overall condition, but it’s a very port-intensive cruise, so we probably won’t spend much time in our tiny accommodations. We generally sail on Celebrity but have enjoyed our cruises dating back to our first in 1971 on the Homeric Lines !
Thanks for your review. You had a lovely itinerary. Glad you mostly enjoyed your cruise. The food should have been outstanding with fresh local items on offer, because that's what Azamara is known for. Hope things improve before we sail in December. 🤞 I am prepared for a small cabin, small bathroom, and possibly a shower curtain 😵💫.
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