This was our second time on Azamara but it was the itinerary that attracted us to the Black Sea - although Azamara's standards sealed the deal. We particularly wanted to see the Crimea and an itinerary taking in Odessa, Sevastopol and Yalta was too good to miss. An added bonus was that after returning through the Bosphorous we then called into Canakkale on the Dardanelles and were able to visit the battlefields of Gallipoli.
The cruise had started in Istanbul and calls at Varna (Bulgaria) and Constanta (Roumania) were tolerable. The cruise ended at Piraeus having had Santorini and Paros as Greek island calls - the only tendering on the cruise.
We used Azamara's tours for all the ports where we toured - Varna, Odessa, Sevastopol and Yalta. The tour guide fro the Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava was exceptionally good and the online early booking prices good value.