http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/ 163-194 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/cruise-reviews/holland-america/prinsendam.html This cruise was a great way for us to unwind. The passengers onboard the Prinsendam are generally a lot older than we are with the average being 60's. They also cater to these type of people which means you won't have loud music around the pool or lively entertainment. Instead what you find is relaxation and good service. The staff did an excellent job and we just enjoyed the peace and quiet. The food onboard was excellent as well as the service. With so many other cruise lines quality of food going down it is nice to see that some still offer good food. The ship itself isnt new but they keep it in good shape and everthing is clean. The cabins were comfortable and we slept well on the great pillows and soft linen. The shows we watched onboard were good and we enjoyed them. There are lots of different things to do in the evening and we kept busy. Overall the Prinsendam is a nice ship and we will sail with Holland America again. ]]> Tue, 06 Jul 2010 19:35:16 -0500 83-102 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html When we arrived at the pier the baggage porters were quick to greet us and get our bags. Checkin was fast and in 6 minutes we were onboard the ship. We quickly went to the buffet and had a good lunch and the toured the ship. Versus other cruise lines this ship is small and you can get everywhere really quickly. Our cabin was very nice and spacious and our bags arrived around 2pm. We then started unpacking and getting settled in our new accomodation. The dinner was good and we really did enjoy the food. The casino wasn't that impressive and I found it fairly small. The specialty restaurants were good and we really liked both Primce C and Aquilina. The ports were really good and we had a lot of fun with the new friends we met onboard. The entertainment was hit or miss and a lot of times it was a miss. Though there are always alot of other things to do which for us was the casino. All in all a good cruise but if you go on the Azamara Journey you have to expect a much more laid back cruise. The food and service are great but the entertainment is average. ]]> Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:51:44 -0600 83-101 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html Me and my Husband have done a lot of travelling through the years. It was only when a friend came back from their sailing on the Azamara Journey that we decided to give crusing a try. I can say now that this was one of our best trips we had. When we arrived at the pier we were quickly onboard the ship and having a nice buffet lunch. Our luggage arrived around 4pm so we unpacked and settled in. There is lots of storage space onboard so we were happy with that. When the weather was bad it was okay because there were so many activities onboard. We went to the casino, wine tasting, bingo and different demonstrations and lectures. All very enjoyable. The specialty restaurant food was really good and we also enjoyed the main dining room. Overall a great cruise and I would sail on the Journey again but I would want a different destination. ]]> Sat, 06 Feb 2010 18:40:36 -0600 83-100 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html I went on a cruise on the Journey January 2010. I can say that I wasn't overally impressed. What I did like was that the crew was friendly and helpfull and made you feel welcome. There was lots of food and it was excellent. The speciality restaurants were good and we enjoyed them both. The ports were interesting and we enjoyed all of them. The things I didn't like is first the Journey is an old ship. You would think they would keep it in better condition. The butler didn't do much and I found our room wasn't kept very clean. Especially the bathroom. Our toilet plugged up continously which made it frustrating. The air conditioner failed also while we were onboard which made it very warm very quickly. The entertainment was just unwatchable and I ended up reading my book most of the time. Overall not what I was expecting from a Luxury cruise ship and back to Celebrity or RCCL I will go. ]]> Mon, 01 Feb 2010 18:31:27 -0600 83-99 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html As me and my wife have sailed before with Azamara and liked it we decided to take a Caribbean cruise with them. As soon as we got onboard we recognized crew from previous cruises on the Journey. Well they actually recognized us first and welcomed us back. It kind of felt like a family reuninon. We ate mostly in the main dining area and enjoyed the food. For a treat we did eat at Prime C one night which we enjoyed. The ship is very clean and well taken care of. The entertainment was okay but not our most favourite. We have better entertainment on other cruises on the Journey. The ports were good and I liked that there are only 700 people onboard as that makes getting into port much easier. Overall a great cruise and we look forward to seeing everyone again onboard the Journey. ]]> Fri, 29 Jan 2010 18:23:04 -0600 83-98 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html I came back from my cruise on the Journey and reading some other reviews I was nervous. Well I wanted to say not to worry as it is a great ship. The food is excellent, we never had a bad meal onboard. There were lots of activities onboard to keep us entertained and the staff works so hard. The specialty restaurants are a must and you have to try them at least once on your cruise. The only negative I can think of was the ports weren't very interesting and we were wanting to be back on the ship. Maybe if we booked some excursions we would have had more fun. ]]> Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:14:59 -0600 83-97 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html We haven't cruises much in the last few years but decided to try Azamara. The reason is our last cruise was with Renaissance and the ships were bought by Azamara. As soon as we got onboard we were welcomed and given great service. I found though that our butler just didn't do a lot for us but that was the only bad service we received. the balcony was nice but I didn't like that you can see your neighbor through the divider. I like having a more private balcony. The cabin itself I found small and the shower was hard to move around in. If you get sea sick don't take a cabin in the front like we did. I was feeling a little quesy in rough weather. Expect an older crowd onboard as the average age seemed to be 60. Food overall was good and the specialty restaurants were excellent. I especially love Prime C. The ship itself is very clean and well maintained. Entertainment wasn't anything wonderfull was it was still watchable. I would recommend Azamara to anybody and we are looking forward to our next cruise with them. ]]> Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:09:20 -0600 83-96 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html We just got back a week ago and I am still wishing we were onboard the Journey still. The staff onboard are so accomodating and courteous. They were always asking what they could do for us. We splurged and got a balcony cabin which was wonderfull. I loved being able to open the door and get the sea air in my cabin. The rooms are a little small but we made do and there is lots of storage room. The food can be summed up with one word, excellent. No complaints about anything. All the meals of the day were above what we expected. The ports were good and we booked a lot of shore excursions on the trip. All of them were very professional we had a great time. I especially loved the snorkeling in St Lucia. Overall it was a fantastic cruise that we really enjoyed. Though as they are changing this brand to Azamara Club Cruises I am sure the price will go up as well. ]]> Sat, 16 Jan 2010 17:58:44 -0600 83-95 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html We booked this sailing while we were on the Azamara Quest and got some great ship board credit. The sailing went through the Panama Canal which neither of us had done before. We went for a balcony cabin which we enjoyed. Nothing nicer than sitting on your balcony going through the Panama Canal, drink in hand. Our butler and assistant did a great job throughout the cruise and attended to our every need. The food onboard is a step above Celebrity and I always thought Celebrity food was good. In the evening I did prefer eating in the speciality restaurants they really are worth it. I did like Aquilina vs. Prime C but maybe because I am not a steak person. You really notice the difference in having less people onboard the ship as embarkation and disembarkation go very smoothly. The entertainment onboard was wonderfull and there were always things to do. We meet alot of really nice people some we became good friends with. Given a choice I might prefer taking a larger newer ship as I like the added amenities they offer. I would definitely take an Azamara cruise again but only if they do an exotic itinerary that I haven't done before. ]]> Sun, 10 Jan 2010 17:52:16 -0600 83-94 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html Back in February 2010 I took a cruise on the Azamara Journey through the Panama Canal. This is different than my usual cruise lines of Holland America and Princess. When we got to the pier everything went smoothly and soon we were onboard the ship. I found out that Captains Club is no longer affiliated with Azamara Club Cruises. As we wanted to get changed it took until 3pm for us to get our luggage. Wish we had taken them onboard ourselves. The food and service was average to not good. We found the meals were bla and the waiters didn't even care about good service. This was the common theme throughout the cruise. Our balcony cabin needed to be reworked and looked old and tired. Overall for a luxury cruise line we were not impressed. However I did learn that as they switch to Azamara Club Cruises they will be changing things. Hopefully for the better. ]]> Sat, 09 Jan 2010 17:42:37 -0600 82-37 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-quest.html We just came back from our Azamara cruise and though we always cruised with Celebrity we were glad we gava Azamara a chance. Now Azamara has smaller ships which made us nervous as we often like the new big ships. Though it was nice to not have so many floors to climb from our stateroom. It helped us to stay in shape. If you want the specialty dining be sure to make your reservation early as space goes quickly for the popular dates. The food onboard was excellent and I really enjoyed the dinner and buffets. The ship has all the same amenities as the big ships but they are just smaller and less people. The ports were excellent and we enjoyed them all. Overall we really enjoyed our cruise on the Azamara Quest and will be looking forward to another cruise on her in the fall. ]]> Tue, 21 Apr 2009 22:38:01 -0500 152-59 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/crystal-cruises/crystal-symphony.html I have cruised for a long time with Crystal cruises so when I saw a cruise going from Dubai - Athens I knew I had to go with them. The ship itself is older and was rennovated once around 2006. I had seen it before and after the rennovations and I must say that for the most part the ship looks a lot better. Especially the rooms which look more like a boutique hotel now. The ports we went too were amazing and I really enjoyed them all. Especially our trip to Alexandria and seeing the Pyramids. This definitely was a highlight. Service wasn't as good as other cruises with Crystal. I found that the staff was much more overwhellmed. Maybe even Crystal is doing cut backs these days. I found the people in the stores were also really pushy which I didnt appreciate. Overall a good cruise but not great cruise on the Crystal Symphony. ]]> Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:31:04 -0500 83-80 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-journey.html Me and my wife have taken over 30 different cruises. From short cruise to longer world cruises. It is our preferred way to travel. As we have sailed on a lot of cruise lines and alot of ships we have become quite picky in what we expect from a ship. We however really enjoyed the Azamara Journey. As soon as our plane arrived we were met by an Azamara rep and brought to our ship. We were onboard the ship within 10 minutes and then sipping our complimentary Champagne on our balcony. Our balcony room had enough room for all our bags and was very clean. The table on the balcony was nice and allowed us to enjoy our mealsunder the stars. Room service was good and the attendants do work really hard. This is not a big ship with only 700 passengers onboard. The staff was very friendly and helpfull. The food was all cooked to order and my steak was done perfectly. They have 2 alternate restaurants onboard and we really enjoyed the meal in there. Overall we enjoyed our cruise to south america and would take this ship again wherever it cruises ]]> Sun, 08 Jun 2008 00:18:40 -0500 82-79 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/azamara-club-cruises/azamara-quest.html Well I have been on a lot of cruises over the years and so I was curious to try Azamara as I love Celebrity and thought they would be even better. The room itself was nice and my wife did like the fresh flowers. The bathroom was a bit on the small side but okay. Our attendant was wonderfull and really deserved a raise. Though we found service through the ship to be spotty at best. Some of the servers remembered our names and went out of their way to help us. Others just went out of the way and avoided helping anyone. Unfortunately there were more that avoided than helped. The Dining room was a bit of a mess. It took forever for our order to be taken and when we got our food it just was plopped down as the waiter was off in a hurry. I don't think it was just our waiter I think there were too few waiters for the number of tables that they had to serve. Azamara hire some more waiters. The activities were good and my wife enjoyed the trivia contests. Drinks are expensive onboard especially with their 18% gratuity added on. I found I had less drinks then I normally would. The nice part about a small ship is that there are fewer people getting on and off in each port. Not like the big ships where 3000 people are all pushing to leave and get on. It was much more relaxing and we found we enjoyed our excursions much more. Would I sail with Azamara or recommend this ship, no. I would go back to Celebrity or Princess anyday over Azamara. ]]> Sun, 08 Jun 2008 00:16:51 -0500 151-84 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/crystal-cruises/crystal-serenity.html This is the first time that we have sailed with Crystal cruises though we have sailed with different cruise lines. We went on a cruise from Hong Kong to Singapore because we had family along the way we wanted to visit. Before the cruise we spent several days in Hong Kong which we really enjoyed. 125 of the people on board we doing the entire World Cruise and most of them were definitely older and wealthy professionals. The ship is smaller which makes it easier to get where you are going. We enjoyed some of the lectures they offered onboard from music lessons to computer courses. We really enjoyed the shore excursions and even got to stay at the famed Oriental hotel. Overall this was a great cruise and we really enjoyed it and I would gladly sail on the Serenity again. ]]> Tue, 03 Jun 2008 00:25:39 -0500 154-86 http://www.cruisereviews4u.com/luxury-cruise-reviews/cunard/queen-mary-2.html I was surprised that I really liked this cruise. It wasn't long as we were only going for four nights. We found that the ship has a sophisticated, cultured atmosphere. Though this was a very short cruise and for that reason there were a lot of Americans and young families. Normally this ship caters to seniors and British people. This ships spends most of her days doing transatlantic crossings and for that reason has a lot of facilities for the long sea days. Like the largest spa afloat, an indoor pool, a golf simulator, and a fitness center. However, what is more impressive is the enrichment program. Disembarkation in Brooklyn ran very smoothly. In the end everyone seemed really happy with their experience and I know I look forward to my next cruise on the QM2. ]]> Sun, 25 May 2008 00:29:13 -0500