We wanted to cruise but I was looking for something a little different, we finally decided that we would try Azamara. I had sailed onboard a few much larger ships, but my husband had only sailed on one larger ship, so he was a bit anxious to move to a smaller ship. After much convincing, I told him it would be fine. We sailed on the Azamara Journey on the ‘West Indies Hideaways’ cruise, for 10 days.
Well, it was better than fine. It was Azamazing! From the moment we arrived at the pier and checked in to being welcomed on board. The crew and staff were very happy to greet us with big smiles and of course a glass of bubbles. The crew went out of their way to learn what you preferred during the cruise. We met many friends that cruise and still talk about them.
I also was skeptical because of the ‘smallness’, but after only a day, I thought the Journey was just right. Our stateroom was pleasantly decorated. The food was delicious and lots of fresh fruit and veggies throughout the entire cruise. We had a few themed buffet lunches in the restaurant. We even had a ‘white night’ party around the pool. Everyone and everything was decorated in white. They had set up a hot/cold buffet and food stations so we had SO much to choose from, it was hard to decide what to indulge in.
Our itinerary was also very good with the Journey being able to visit many ports the larger ships cannot and also we stayed overnight in port once or twice. The scenery, the islands we visited, we will never forget.
The following year we found another cruise on the Azamara Journey and I really wanted to go this time because she had just come out of dry dock, so I wanted to see what was new. The Journey was even better this time. She had many upgrades all around the ship. This, however did not take away from her charm and elegance. The crew once again outdid themselves with their fantastic service and attention to detail. Our itinerary ‘Temples, Jungles and Beaches’ explored more of the western Caribbean. We tried the specialty restaurants. The service and food wonderful again. We had an Azamazing evening in St. Maarten with a steel drum band set up not far from the ship. The music and entertainment was great and when we returned to the ship (late), they escorted us to the observation lounge for cherries jubilee!
I also would like to say that the crew (captain, cruise director etc) were visible many times on both cruises we sailed on. They were very approachable and friendly, sat with us for some meals and attended events. This makes such a big difference when you sail on a smaller ship. It is refreshing. It is more intimate. You meet many nice people and learn more about them too.
I am looking for us to go on another Azamara cruise in the future, especially on the Journey OR maybe the Quest. Now there will be even more to see around the world with the addition the Azamara Pursuit.
