An Azamazing Journey!

A two night cruise is short by any standards but my trip from Gibraltar to Barcelona on the lovely Azamara Journey was so worth it! The sun shone all the time, needed much cooler clothing than I took with me, the sea was a little choppy at times, the ship was lovely, the food excellent and the company was good too!

I have a client who always sails on Azamara, loves both Journey and Quest, and she had told me repeatedly that I would love the ship and she was so right. From the minute we saw her moored right next to the luxury Eurostars Grand Marina Hotel in Barcelona I knew we were in for a memorable few days. The ship is small, around 700 passengers,  and very like an English Country House Hotel with lots of fireplaces which give her a really warm, cosy feeling. The reception area is spacious and welcoming with lots of comfy sofas and a huge staircase leading up through the centre of the ship.

We had an outside cabin on deck 4, not massive but loads of storage space, a flat screen TV and, oh joy, plugs by the mirrors. The bathroom was small but with plenty of large towels and nice toiletries, along with massive dressing gowns and slippers too. The only downfall really was the nasty plastic shower curtain.

The thing that makes this ship so special is the atmosphere and friendliness throughout, the staff are lovely and smiling, the other guests were very friendly too, a bit like a family which is born out  by the fact that the repeat guest rate on this particular cruise was 57%. The Captain was a small Norwegian man who was always around the ship and very approachable, as were all the officers and crew.

Food, of course, is one of the main parts of any cruise and on Azamara the food is very, very good. We ate in the main restaurant on the first evening, four courses beautifully presented and every thing was delicious. There are 2 speciality restaurants, Aqualina serving Mediterranean and seafood specialities and Prime C, the steakhouse.

We dined in prime C on the second evening and it was excellent. I had Chicken Lollipops, Apple and Lobster Salad, a lovely Filet Mignon perfectly cooked followed by a selection of deserts to die for! The wine is very good too, included in the price and free flowing. A little tip if you don`t happen to like the choice of wine on any particular day just ask for tomorrow`s wine  ( or yesterday`s) and it will appear as if by magic.I could go on and on about food and breakfast and lunch were equally good, buffet style with loads of choice. We were on board on Thanksgiving Day and the American Buffet Brunch was great.

One of the good things about Azamara is that it is “More Inclusive” and the choice of drinks and cocktails is very good, but if you want to upgrade to the next drinks level the cost is just $10 per day which is very reasonable. I can`t honestly say the cocktails were the best I`ve ever tasted but the Gin & Tonic more than made up for it! Gratuities are also included as are port shuttle buses where needed and complimentary use of the laundry.

Entertainment is typical, what I would call slightly old fashioned, cruise shows. Singers, dancers etc., all put together by the excellent Cruise Director Eric, who jokes that he and the Captain are brothers ! Everyone seems to enjoy it and the ship is very lively in the evening. Azamara aim to have more overnight port stays than any other cruise line and, as the ships are small, this means they can dock right in the centre of many cities so that you can wander off in the evenings if you wish. The other exclusive is the Azamazing Experience, one on every cruise except transatlantic, where every passenger on board gets the chance to take part in an exclusive excursion in the evening. This can be anything from a private concert at Palma Cathedral to a special meal in a local restaurant.

Two nights really is not long enough on this lovely ship, I wished we could have stayed on for the whole voyage to Miami but sadly we reached Gibraltar and finally had to fly home. Hopefully I will get chance to sail on her again in the not too distant future.

Oh and one last thing – the sunbeds are the most comfortable I have ever sat on !