Azamara Journey

This was our first time cruising and as a young English couple in our twenties we were slightly hesitant as to what we might expect as a holiday - any reservations we had soon faded as we boarded the Azmara. We were absolutely captivated by how stylish the boat was the décor, furniture, layout, lighting – everything was well thought out and presented to such a high standard, we really no idea that we were on a boat and felt more like a high end hotel.

The three stand out areas for us were firstly the staff, for every two guests there is one member of staff so the service you receive throughout is world class, they can not do enough for you and they even think of things to do for you that you don’t even think about yourself. Every staff member is smart, engaging, friendly, and helpful and they really help to make your holiday a relaxing, indulgent delightful experience.

The second impressive feature is the amount of activities that the boat offers you, you can get as involved as you want with what they have planned throughout the day and into the evening, and if you don’t fancy it then they don’t make you feel awkward. We were surprised at the mixture of ages, we thought we’d be the youngest by miles however there were lots of groups of young Americans our age and younger in the mix as well as older couples. The amenities are tremendous considering it is a smaller cruise ship compared to others, they really have everything you could need on board and again everything is clean, tidy and thoroughly presentable.

The last area which we really enjoyed were all the bars and restaurants, everyday you can have breakfast on your balcony over looking the new country you have arrived in over night – look out for hungry seagulls! Lunch is an enormous yet elegant selection, foods from around the world, we ate sushi everyday, they will make you any kind of sandwich and the hot food selection was always really impressive and to a high standard considering the scale. For dinner you had so many options, something for everyone and any occasion. We loved the steak and seafood restaurants – definitely worth a visit for a special dinner whilst you’re on holiday.

We visited 6 places in our 7 day cruise and it really felt like such a longer time away from home, we really unwound from daily life and completely relaxed in sailing life. We would definitely recommend this cruise line to any of our friends for a holiday with a difference, with refinement and with first class service.