22 June 9 Nights RET

9 nights departing June 22, 2024
Azamara ❘ Azamara Quest
Brochure Oceanview $12,156
Our Oceanview $1,918
Brochure Balcony $13,756
Our Balcony $2,211
Even cheaper fur interline. 
 
Vibe:
It is intimate but never crowded, stylish but relaxed, and has no formal dress codes.
 
What’s Included:
All meals
All tips paid
Standard beer/wine/spirits
White Nights - Signature Deck Party
Signature cultural events ashore on select itineraries
 
What’s Not Included:
Taxes
Shore Excursions
Specialty restaurants 
 
VERANDAH PLUS additional amenities:
Complimentary Internet (120 minutes or 25% off the unlimited Internet package) per guest
One free bag of laundry service per stateroom every seven days
One night of complimentary specialty dining for two, every seven days
Priority embarkation and debarkation
Complimentary in-room spirits
 
Signatures:
Small fleet, only 4 ships, small ships only 700 pax, big on inclusions.
A signature of Azamara itineraries is that they always try to stay longer in ports, often with an overnight stay. This is a huge point of difference in small ports like Dubrovnik or Santorini, which can be overrun if many ships are in port. 
 
Azamara offers great itineraries with a heavy focus on the Med, Greek Islands, and Croatia.  Any voyage that sails to or from Venice will invariably include Croatia and Dubrovnik.
 
Demographic Best Suited To:
Azamara is a great introduction to small ship cruising for those who have sailed with the larger mid-range ships of Royal, Celebrity, and Princess.
At 5.5 stars, they are the bridge between mid-range and top-end 6-star lines, with much lower price points.
Invariably, once people experience small ship cruising, they find they can't ever go back to bigger ships.
The demographic tends to be younger than the high-end 6-star lines.
Although lacking the kid's clubs of bigger ships, Azamara may be worth considering if your kids enjoy high-end hotels and resort pools—especially with port-intensive itineraries around the Med, where you will often be off the ship. 
 
Bigger bang for your buck
As they include standard drinks and tips, which run approximately $100 per day on other mid-range lines, they are $700-1000 better value on 7- and 10-day voyages.
 
Closest Competition and How They Differ:
The closest in terms of product, size, and pricing is Windstar.
They, too, have small ships, up to 300 pax, and offer similar itineraries.
The biggest difference is that Windstar does not include standard drinks and gratuities in its fares. However, Windstar offers an ALL-IN option of drinks/tips/wini/mini-bar for $89 extra per day.
This makes Azamara a better value proposition than a comparable Windstar fare, which equates to an added value of $623 over 7 nights and $890 over 10.
Likewise, if you compare Azamara against mid-range lines, you would need to find a cruise-only fare at $1100 to equate to the value of a $2000 fare on Azamara that includes drinks and tips.
 
Cabin selection notes/tips.
Inside - same size as other cabins without the balcony
Ocean view - avoid Category 8 which are obscured cabins, these can be almost totally obscured by lifeboats.
Avoid Ocean View Guarantee cabins as you will end up with cabins no one else wants, and these will invariably be Category 8, Obscured.
Balcony - V3, V2, V1 - standard balcony cabins, all the same size and all but identical.
There are no obscured balcony cabins.
V3 will be forward, aft, on lower decks
V2 are better-positioned 
V1 will have the best position but, again, are the same.
Avoid the cabins that look out over the bow, they can be noisy as these have a closed metal instead of glass balcony railing. 
The best PLUS cabins are the aft-facing V1 cabins, which look out over the wake.
 
But the biggest advantage is these are wider and have larger footprints. Hence, the bathrooms are much bigger than standard cabins, which have very small cabins and shower curtains, that cause some consternation, but seriously you are only in your shower a few minutes a day.
 
Entertainment
Being a small ship, entertainment is limited. However, as they run very port-intensive trips with late-night or overnight stays, I'd rather be ashore in Dubrovnik and Santorini than watching a show onboard.
 
Dining:
Specialty restaurants
There are two, at a small additional charge of about $50
Aqualina - Italian
Prime C - Steak House
These are great, but if your budget is tight, the food in the main dining room, the deck grill, and the buffet is really great, and you won't feel you are missing out.
They also run a chef's table for about $99 per person.
Afternoon Tea
It was a nice surprise and something many overlooked.
 
The Fleet:
Click through to view photos and videos of all cabin categories, restaurants, public areas, and deck plans.
 
Journey
Onward
Pursuit 
Quest
 
Dining
Bars
Entertainment
 
Review/Photos
Pursuit Norway