Visited some lovely places but came home ill
Azura Cruise Review
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 42
Review summary
I started feeling unwell during the second week of the cruise and am still ill now. I've had flu like symptoms for well over a week which I picked up on the cruise. This is not the cruise liners fault but some passengers were not gelling their hands etc when they should. All in all we had a lovely cruise. We are not regular cruisers and we wont be regular cruisers as we like to do our own thing but it's great for older people who wouldn't necessarily visit these places without a cruise. On an environmental theme; Please sort out the plastic straws...people dont need straws! Theres also alot of paper printed every day per cabin. This is ridiculous and there needs to be an alternative.Embarkation
Very smooth and well organised.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Could not fault the food or drink. Staff work very hard to provide everything you need. Could not believe a few people were complaining (cant please some people)! There was always plenty of choice, it was well presented and tasty.
Onboard Activities
Plenty of activities if you wanted to get involved. Staff worked hard to keep people entertained. The programme always had something on somewhere.
Entertainment
Most of the entertainment was good. There were some acts that were awful. Triptronic were dreadful and alot of people walked out during this performance. Joamofarc the rock band were also horrendous. My husband loves his rock but he said they gave him a headache. The comedian Jack (cant remember last name) was not funny at all and it was embarrassing. I felt for him because no one was laughing. On the plus side Verity Paris (I think that's her name), Horizon, the Elton John tribute and Terra cotta the comedian were all great. The Whitney Houston tribute was fabulous too as was Zoe Tyler. The headliners worked hard and some of their sets were better than others. Their west end stuff was better than when they sing pop.
Service and Staff
The staff are a real credit. They work long days and always smile and are very polite. I cringe at the way some passengers spoke to the staff...disgusting. The staff spend months not seeing their family and have barely any free time. P & O give them a bit more free time!
Ship Quality
No issues apart from getting lost! Cleanliness was great again staff amazing.
Cabin / Stateroom
No issues with our inside cabin. The cleaner was fantastic and everything was always well stocked. Provided with shower gel and other toiletries. Coffee making facilities also provided. The bed was comfortable and plenty of room for clothes etc.
Ship tip
Take a lanyard for your cruise card.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Another lovely place. We took a trip in the morning and went to a rainforest tour with a local driver. The tour was fab as we were shown local fruits and allowed to try them. The guide was really informative and it was a nice way to spend some time. Just off port there is the infamous rum karaoke bar where alot of people congregate and get drunk. We went here after lunch on the ship and a bit of local shopping. The bar was busy with a few cruisers a but worse for ware!
There isnt much on this island. We took a taxi tour around with a local but theres not much to see. We went to the lighthouse bit didnt bother going inside as it was 3 dollars entry and there was nothing to see. We did see the pink flamingos inland which was nice. I would use this stop for a beach day as the sunbeds with green umbrellas are free. The ship docks directly onto a lovely beach where the free sunbeds are. There is also a free outdoor pool area with sunbeds.
Love this place! We took a trip with a local Kareem Nicholas from Salt life tours. He took 3 of us snorkelling, to the Stingrays, to his home to chop coconuts for us to drink from, fed us the most gorgeous local cuisine and provided great commentary throughout the day. It was a lovely day and well worth the 100 dollars each. He provides bespoke trips for you.
Tortola, British Virgin Islands
We took a tour around with a local which was ok. The island is nice and very hilly. They charged more than other islands and didnt provide much commentary so was a bit disappointed.
There is nothing in port so we took a taxi to the nearby beach for 5 dollar each way per person. We paid 20 dollars each at the Harbour Inn for sunbed and turtle snorkeling trip which was great. You dont go out on the boat very far and you could swim it but you cant due to boat traffic. The Friday night market near port is not big but nice to have a walk off ship of an evening.
We took a local taxi to a beach for a snorkel and relax. The beach was really nice and clean. You can pay for beds but we found some shade under a tree and put our towels on the sand.
We took a local taxi/guide around the island for about 20 dollars each. It was a nice 2 to 3 hours and much cheaper than paying for the P & O trips. They take you to all the nice viewpoints and tourist areas.
One of my favourite islands of them all. Very clean, friendly island. Wish we had longer to explore. We took a tour round with a local at a cost of around 25 dollars each for about 3 hours.
St Kitts is a lovely place. We took a local taxi/guide around the island at around 25 dollars per person. Well worth it.
Disembarkation
Again well organised. No issues. Well communicated.
5 Comments
rob87 4 years ago
Love cruising & I'm a young person. Think if you plan ahead you can still do your own thing if not more. Do agree with you some people are so lazy at washing there hands. But to be fear some passengers are not even in the write health before they travel but choose to ignore there doctor.
gigcruiser 4 years ago
Hope you complete the P&O review re paper and straws, not sure they or any cruise line would read these reviews, and they are no different to all other cruise lines, they expect their staff to work for the full time of their contract, different jobs might mean more time off than others though. Hope you feel better soon.