Azamara Quest tendering at St Peter Port, Guernsey

Itinerary
Sunday 19th June	-	Fly to Lisbon, Portugal & embark Azamara Quest
Monday	-	Leixões, Portugal for Porto
Tuesday	-	at sea
Wednesday	-	St Peter Port, Guernsey CI
Thursday	-	Honfleur, France
Friday	-	Zeebrugge, Belgium for Bruges
Saturday/Sunday	-	Amsterdam, Netherlands
Monday	-	Transit Kiel Canal
Tuesday 28th June	-	Copenhagen, Denmark Disembark & fly to UK

Our two previous attempts to travel with Azamara had been frustrated, so this would be 'third time lucky' for Andrew, Angie & me. It was both a new line and a new ship for us; indeed at 30,277grt a much smaller ship, with only 690 passengers. And having booked one of the best suites, there was much to look forward to.

In 2021 however, amidst the worldwide chaos of Covid-19, it was announced that Azamara was being sold to New York private equity firm Sycamore Partners, which initially caused renewed concern, until it was later announced that they were also buying Pacific Princess, an erstwhile sister-ship of the current fleet, thus increasing its fleet to a total of 4 ships.

After beautiful sunshine in Porto & Guernsey, the weather for this 'Summer Solstice Voyage' proved disappointing at times, although it had its moments, as I found out when I overdid the walking (again) on my day out in Bruges! But overall, and with only 310 passengers on board (45% capacity) we loved the ship and the cruise was a successful introduction to Azamara.

Some of the destination highlights included....

Porto, Portugal				Guernsey, Channel Islands
Duoro River Cruise 5 Bridges sightseeing		Port Wine Tasting Burmester Caves		L'Ancresse Bay Napoleonic Loophole Towers		Pleinmont Point German Rangefinder Tower

Honfleur, France				Bruges, Belgium
La Lieutenance Harbour & Medieval Town		The Wooden Church of St Catherine of Alexandria		The Belfry & Canal Cruise		A long walk back via la Coupure (the cut)

Amsterdam, Netherlands				Kiel Canal, Germany
Another Canal Cruise in the rain!		Glennis Grace Destination Celebration Show		Rendsburg Transporter Bridge		Oosterschelde (1918) Dutch Sail-Training Schooner

Formed in 2007 as a spin-off from Celebrity Cruises, Azamara Club Cruises was orginally planned as part of their Celebrity Xpeditions brand but later as a seperate luxury boutique brand under the umbrella of Royal Caribbean. It began with two ships transferred from Pullmantur Cruises, after that line's purchase by Royal Caribbean. Both ships had originally been part of an 8-ship fleet belonging to Rennaissance Cruises, which foundered in 2001. Commonly known as the "R-ships" and numbered, rather than named, R1,R2,R3,etc.,"R6" became Azamara Journey and "R7" became Azamara Quest. Then in 2018, they were joined by Azamara Pursuit, originally "R8" but more recently sailing as P&O's Adonia. In 2019, Royal Caribbean finally dropped the 'Club Cruises' from the name, leaving it simply Azamara.

In 2021 however, amidst the worldwide chaos of Covid-19, it was announced that Azamara was being sold to New York private equity firm Sycamore Partners and that they were also buying Pacific Princess. Built in 1999 as "R3" and being one of the original "R-ships", she was older but identical to Azamara's existing ships and increased its fleet to a total of 4 ships.

Unfortunately, things did not go well on arrival. Unlike with Oceania Cruises earlier in the year, our airport transfer did no sightseeing, instead taking us direct to the Terminal around noon, when we could not check-in until at least 1.30pm. Staff there simply said, 'go away and come back later'. It was a good job it wasn't raining because there was no shelter and no-where to sit down!

Azamara Quest & Saga's Spirit of Adventure at the dreadful new Cruise Terminal		Champagne		Fruit & Cheese Platters		VIP Soirée

Even when check-in commenced, our 'suite priority embarkation' got lost in the shambles. But once aboard, everything improved and at the VIP soirée the following evening, being recognised by amiable Hotel Director Richard Godwin led to a much better impression of Azamara Cruises.

Club World Owners Suite #7114 At 603sqft+215sqft (verandah), these aft suites are the ship's largest and while not the most luxurious we have experienced, ours proved perfect in almost every way. There's a stocked mini-bar and additional storage for 3/4th guests and while there's no 'walk-in closet' in the usual sense, the dressing area is vast and clothes storage is generous, even by our standards.

The bathroom is arranged so that the dual-access toilet can be closed-off and used as a guest toilet if required and while I was disappointed that there was no whirlpool bath, the bathroom is a good size with reasonable shelf and under-sink storage, plus there's also a large walk-in shower.

Living Room champange, fruit and cheeses on boarding		Bedroom with twin Queen or King-size bed(s)		Dressing Area with plenty of space		Verandah with selection of loungers, chairs and tables

The elegant Grand Lobby on deck 4 is the main embarkation point but the main restaurant and lounges are on deck 5. Directly above the Grand Lobby is the Mosaic Café which, though a bit small, has the advantage of The Den almost next door, an all-day bar/lounge where in the evenings, cocktails are accompanied by the ship's pianist - on our trip, the gifted Rob Hart.

Grand Lobby Mosaic Café above		Captain's Coffee from the Mosaic Café		The Den & Rob at the piano		Cabaret Lounge Evening Entertainment

Forward of The Den is the Cabaret Lounge, the main entertainment lounge. Here there are no large-scale production shows of the kind you get on the big ships but the room provides an elegant and more intimate atmosphere ideal for cabaret and small-scale shows of the kind offered.

Aft of the lobby and café is the main Discoveries Restaurant where daily changing menus include 'always available' classic favourities. Meanwhile, the Windows Café on deck 9 offers a more casual style with a simplified menu geared around a daily theme, such as Chinese or Italian etc.

Discoveries Restaurant (deck 5) for daily menus and classic favourites like French Onion Soup and Escargots à la Bourgignonne				Windows Café (deck 9) Themed Casual Dinner but not 'self-service'

Unlike at breakfast and lunch, in the Café it's entirely waiter-service at dinner but every dish is prepared fresh and sample plates are displayed so you can see what you are ordering.

In addition, there are two speciality venues (cover charge $30 or complimentary for suite guests). Prime C is the 'steakhouse' though the menu includes pork, duck, lamb and fish dishes and even though the ship was barely half-full, we found this one very popular.

Prime C (deck 10) Speciality Steakhouse but plenty besides and large portions!				Aqualina (deck 10) Speciality Italian Restaurant but no match for Manfredi's!
A popular venue		Rack of Lamb		Calm elegance		Lobster Ravioli

Meanwhile, Aqualina offers an Italian theme. However, while some dishes were quite good, it's no match for the menu or ambience of Viking's Manfredi's for instance. On the other hand, it's more elegant and a lot less noisy! Also on deck 10 though is the delightful Drawing Room, a beautiful all-day quiet space and the ship's Library. Located adjacent to the two seciality restaurants, it was possibly conceived as a retiring space for after dinner coffee and indeed it still could be, although we never saw it used in this way.

All the way forward on deck 10 is the Living Room, a large multi-purpose observation lounge & bar, with a quiet reading zone to port and a card room/games area to starboard.

Azamara don't seem to make a big thing of 'Afternoon Tea' but there are snacks and drinks available in the Living Room throughout the afternoon as well as tapas in the early evening.

Down on deck 9 midships is The Pool, which though quite small, its part-seawater mix was very pleasant for an early morning swim.

The Pool (deck 9) big enough for one!		The Gym (deck 9) and Fitness Centre		Sanctum Spa Terrace (deck 9) exclusive to suite guests

Around the pool on the deck above, the jogging track requires 13 circuits to make a nautical mile! Meanwhile other fitness facilities are provided in the Gym beyond which there is access to the Sanctum Spa Terrace (exclusive to suite guests).

Aft on deck 9 are the Windows Café and Sunset Terrace where self-service breakfast and lunch are available but with crisp table-cloths, laid tables and complimentary wines and beverages at lunch. The selection of dishes available (especially seafood) is not quite as extensive as on some other ships but we did not have any difficulty finding something to suit our tastes.

Windows Café (deck 9) Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner		Sunset Terrace (deck 9) Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner		The Patio Grill (deck 9) Breakfast & Lunch		White Night Azamara's Deck Party

As mentioned earlier, themed Casual Dinner is also available in the Café and on the Terrace but with waiter-service, while adjacent to the pool, the Patio Grill offers a selection of 'outdoor favourites' at lunch only.

One of Azamara's unique feature offerings is the 'White Night', a themed deck party in all but name but one which cleverly covers the whole ship (thus insuring against inclement weather!). Ours was held off Guernsey while the ship was at anchor and although the entertainment was nothing special, an impressive buffet was provided.

Prior to the 'Covid-19 Shutdown', Azamara were also known for their 'Azamazing Evenings' and while it is promised they will return, for the time being they are holding 'Destination Celebration Evenings' instead. Given the post-covid reduced passenger numbers, these are no doubt a less costly alternative but still special; on our trip they brought local celebrity vocalist Glennis Grace aboard in Amsterdam for a special show.

		In summary, aside from the check-in issues in Lisbon, we liked the ship and our suite very much; both were supremely comfortable without being pretentious or stuffy. The crew and officers were friendly and the latter more visible and engaged than on Oceania. And while the food was not as extravagant as on Oceania, it was still very good - well, it must have been because we booked another cruise while on board!

Cruise Mileage: 1,653 nautical miles
Total Mileage to date: 222,335 n miles