After cruising Regent and Seabourn we were looking for a more casual experience coupled with an in-depth itinerary of New Zealand, and Azamara fit the bill. Itinerary included Melbourne,Tasmania and the North and South Islands in New Zealand. We were lucky enough to have great weather in Milford Sound and Captain Magnus did a great job navigating the ship.

We loved the genuinely friendly crew, no formal nights or snootiness, wonderful food and late night/overnight port stays. Passengers ranged from 40s to 70s mainly from Australia, USA and NZ with 60s the average.The ship is immaculate and nicely appointed with modern art, and elevators were never crowded despite a fully booked cruise. Embarkation was fairly smooth although luggage delivery was slow. Our butler Xavier was friendly and helpful throughout. As suite guests we were entitled to dine at Prime C and Aqualina free of charge. We dined at both and they were wonderful, although the food in the main dining room Discoveries was delicious too. However spacing between tables at Windows and Discoveries was extremely tight which felt claustrophobic when fully booked. We really enjoyed the Patio for casual outdoor lunches and dinners as well.

Shore excursions were generally very good but Azamara didn't offer everything we wanted to do so we arranged several tours on our own as well. Entertainment was just OK, although the comedian Simon Palomares was an unexpectedly hilarious treat. Azamara brought on a local high school group to perform a spirited haka dance, a highlight of the trip for us. Read more