Our first cruise with Azamara was the 17-night trip from Athens to Dubai on the Journey. The entire experience was perfect from booking through disembarkation. We chose this voyage specifically for the itinerary as there was an overnight stop for both Luxor and Petra. About two months before we were due to leave we received an email titled “Itinerary Change”. My first reaction was ‘OH NO’. However in this case it turned out to be excellent news. Our ship was to exit the Suez Canal earlier than expected giving us two full days in Luxor. This provided the opportunity to change the long one day excursion I had booked to an overnight trip. Since it was a 3.5 drive each way from Safaga to Luxor, spreading it our over two days was considerably better.

We stayed in Athens on our own 2 nights before the cruise then took a taxi from the hotel to the Port about noon. We were on board within 5 minutes and greeted with champagne. Since the staterooms were not ready yet we relaxed, had lunch, and booked some additional excursions for later in the voyage. About 1:30 an announcement was made and we had access to our cabin.

We were in a balcony cabin off the back of the ship which afforded a 180-degree view. The cabin might have been a litter smaller than other ships but the balcony was considerably larger because of its’ location. It had all the standard stuff including a nice size closet and bathroom. The bed was really comfortable, with very nice sheets and a duvet. One really nice thing that Azamara does is keep your room fridge stocked with soda and ice. It’s really convenient and an excellent amenity. However, most cruise lines, including Azamara should take a lesson from Viking and get rid of the shower curtains. It’s much nicer to have glass doors. Read more