Azamara Quest Mediterranean Cruise

Our flight on July 25, 2014 , left right on time.  We quickly went through security at JFK and into the Concierge lounge as we had upgraded our airline tickets to business class.  Business class has lie flat seats and the minute you are seated, the flight attendant comes over and serves a glass of champagne.  Each seat has their own tablet with an assortment of Movies, TV shows, audio and internet.

You are given your own pillow and comforter as well as an overnight pouch which includes socks, toothbrush, toothpaste, ear plugs, eye mask, hand cream and lotions, and hand sanitizers.  Meals were served on glass plates, with drinks of your choice, as well as an ice cream sundaes for dessert.  When you are taking an overnight transatlantic flight, this is the only way to travel.

We arrived in Barcelona and had no wait to go through customs.  Our bags were one of the first off the plane, and our driver was at the baggage area waiting for us.  We arrived at the hotel at about 8:45am local time and I figured that we would have to wait until 3pm for check in.  Amazingly, our room was ready for us.  We checked in and took a nice long nap for about 3 hours. The Avenida Palace hotel is at the beginning of La Ramblas (the pedestrian street).  It is in a nice section and relatively quiet compared to staying right on La Ramblas.  The room was spacious and had a king size bed as well as a big bathroom with his and her sinks, toilet and bidet.  I thought I would check out the bidet but couldn't figure out how I was supposed to sit and I turned the water on and got myself soaked.  So much for learning something new.

La Ramblas

We walked along the Ramblas and had a pizza in a local bistro and started running out of steam.  Time to head back to the hotel to take another nap.  The 6 hours time difference and overnight flight is really confusing to the system.

Sidewalk Café in Barcelona

For dinner we walked a couple of blocks to an outdoor restaurant and had a bottle of wine at a perfect place to people  watch.  It was a beautiful evening and so far all aspects of our trip has been perfect.

The Avenida Palace staff have been very friendly, the rooms are clean and we had a buffet breakfast included in our hotel price.  The hotel used to be a theatre and years ago the Beatles stayed here.

Day 1, Time to board the Azamara Quest.  Our car service was waiting for us right on time and it was only a 15 minute ride to the pier.

 

Azamara Quest

Some of the initial  differences I have noticed on a luxury cruise ship compared to a premium cruise ship are as soon as you board the ship, you are given a glass of champagne.  The buffet lunch is served to you.  You do not help yourself and the tables have linen table clothes and linen napkins.  In the ladies bathroom, when you wash your hands, instead of paper towels there are clothe towels.  Lunch had a wide assortment of hot and cold food, meats and cheeses as well as salads.  For dessert there is a dessert station with an assortment of pastries and homemade gelato. After lunch, we are now waiting for our room to be ready.  I am sitting on a lounge chair where the towel is folded on the chair and the lounge chair has a comfortable pillow cushion. I am ready to fall asleep on it.  Ready to take another nap.

Our cabin steward, Girlie is efficient. Plenty of pillows on the bed, bathrobes in the closet and chilled champagne ready for our bon voyage.  Dinner in the main dining room is delicious and the wine is plentiful. Once again the staff has been more than attentive.   The staff is 2 to 1 so there is always someone around to serve your every need.  Although this is considered a small ship, there are still 700 people on board as well as 400 crew.  However, the ship never feels crowded and there is never a line.  The staff members are friendly as well as the people on board.  They are a well traveled group of people.

Roses, Spain

Day 2.  We arrived in Roses, Spain a quaint little town.   
We ordered room service for breakfast and sat on our veranda watching the tender service.  On other ships, the tenders were crowded and there is a wait.  On this ship, you decide what time to go ashore, and just go down to the tender at the time you want.  No lines, no fuss no muss.    We walked along the water front.  One side is beaches, the other side are shops.  Plenty of sidewalk cafes.  We stopped and had a cappuccino and used the free wi-fi to stay connected.  Back on board for a much need massage.   Tonight there was a get together in the looking glass lounge.  Just as the name says, the lounge has floor to ceiling windows and as we were sitting there having a cocktail, a school of dolphins went past.   It was truly breathtaking.


Day 3. Today we arrived in Marseille, France.  We are docked right across from the Largest Cathedral in France and the 6th largest cathedral in the world.  The cathedral floor was made from mosaic tile and there was beautiful stained glass.  We took a city tour and saw the island that is written about in the book, the count of Monte Cristo.  The port of Marseille is a bustling port with lots of little sidewalk bistro's situated around the fishing harbor.  We didn't have to much time here today but luckily on Azamara Club cruises, you get to overnight in this port so we will have another full day to wander around. 

  

Largest Cathedral in France, 6th Largest in the World

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Tonight we went to Azamazing evenings.  We were taken to an 18th century private estate, at Chateau Dalpheran, where local folklore dances were done, while sipping champagne.  We were priviledged to have a private show by Ms. Dominique Mezin, an international renowned soprano singer, performing pieces from Puccini, Vedi and Bellini.  After the completion of her songs as we walked to the bus, they had fire blowers.

Fire Breather

Dominique Mezin

When we arrived back to the ship there was the staff, including the captain, pouring glasses of hot chocholate with a splash of creme de Menthe.  All and all a memorable day. 

So far my impression is the Azamara is a first class operation.  The staff could not be more friendly and helpful,  Since local wines are included for lunch and dinner, the wine is always flowing.  'We have been having room service delivered for breakfast and even that has been wonderful with the wide variety of choices.  I thought I would be bored with a smaller ship but truthfully I am meeting well traveled and well educated people. 

Mistral (High winds)

Day 4.  Today we were supposed to sail to

to Sanury Del Mer and arrive by noon.  The captain made a decision not to go as there is a Mistral that is passing through.  A mistral is a front with high winds.  Since the next port would have been tendered, the captain did not want to risk anyone falling down.  We stayed in Marseille which gave us another opportunity to walk to the old port which is a beautiful fishing village.  There are little restaurants and shops around the harbor.  We were in a group of 8 and we sat at one of the sidewalk cafes.  Some ordered the bouillubase (fish soup) and I ordered Gambas Flambe which is shrimp.  The shrimp was delicious accept for the fact the heads were still attached.  The plate came with homemade French Fries.  Although the weather at the port was windy, the harbour was protected and the weather was sunny and warm.

Paella

Day 5.  Today we arrived in Bastia,  Corsico, a beautiful little seaside village.

 

Corsica, France

 

Our ship is docked right in the middle of town and we were able to catch a bus for 7 euros which took us all over the island on a little tour.  We stopped in a beautiful old Church built in the 1800's.  Inside the church is a huge staircase going up to an alter area. 

I asked our guide what the meaning of the stairs are and she told me that the staircase is a replica of the staircase in Jerusalem in which Jesus Christ had walked.

After the tour we wandered the cobblestone streets and ended up in a seaside cafe with a view of the harbor.  I ordered a calzone but it was different than the ones that you would get in the U.S. and it had ham and cheese but it also had something that looked like a runny egg.  However, I thought it was delicious.  I remember the last time I was in Europe that when we order something that we think are getting we often end up with something completely different but delectable just the same.  Every little bistro has intenet connection and they let you sit there as long as you would like having a drink or something to eat.  There is never any hurry.

Day 6.  Today we are in Portofino, Italy which is a quaint little village with a beautiful harbor and little shops.  We took the bus to Santa Margherita which is supposed to be a larger town.  The shore excursion guide told us there is one road in and one road out.  It was only a 15 minute bus ride on the edge of a mountain.  The whole way there, the bus driver was honking to let the car around the corner know he was coming as there was not enough room for two cars to pass.  If the bus came, the cars would have to back up.  It was truly breathtaking scenery.  We wandered around Santa Margherita and I dipped my toes into the Mediterranean sea. 

 

 

The water was warm.  The beaches are very different from the sandy ones that we are used to.  The beaches are made of stones so when you walked into the water you walked in on stones.  A little hard on the feet.  We then went to a little sidewalk cafe where we ordered Santa Margherita Pizza in the town it originated from. That and a glass of wine, free wi-fi made it a perfect day.  Yes, it was perfect until we took the bus back to portofino.  As she said there is one road in and one road out.  However, we got on the bus that continued on the road up the mountain in the wrong direction. After about 10 to 15 minutes we realized that we were on the wrong bus and got off.  Luckily we only had to wait about 15 minutes and we took the bus back to Santa Margherita and then had to transfer to Portofino.   It is always something.  Back on board the ship, we had dinner in the Discovery restaurant and every night the service and the food has been fantastic.  It is the best food I have had on board a ship in over 75 cruises as well as the best service.   The captain of the ship has made himself very visable and greets people during dinner and at the shows.  He is very accessible.  Tonight is "white Night" and everyone has dressed in a white outfit.

White Night on Azamara Quest

There is entertainment and food all around the pool area under a Mediterranean balmy breeze  The night was perfect for sailaway which wasn't until 10pm.  It is so nice staying in a port later than 5 or 6pm.

Day 7. Today we are in Monte Carlo.  We booked a private excursion and it was just us and another couple.  First we went to Fragonard which is the perfume factory.  We had been to this factory 22 years before on our honeymoon and they still are producing the perfume I bought all those years ago.  After the perfume factory we drove to the medieval town of EZE which is a town built up in the hills of France and you can only get there by foot.  There are lots of little stores built right into the stone on the side of the mountain. 




Casino in Monte Carlo

 

 





Yachts in Monte Carol



 



In front of the Palace in Monaco

 



From Eze we drove back to Monte Carlo for the changing of the guards at the Palace in Monte Carlo. Prince Albert was in residence as the flag was hanging high when he is in.  We also went to visit the chapel where Princess Grace is buried beside her husband.  From there we visited the Grand Casino and took pictures in the same location we had taken 22 years before.  We took a rook ride to Cannes where they have the film festival every year and took pictures where the stars walk on the red carpet.  The scenery again was breathtaking and the beaches were crowded with summer vacationers and weekenders.  We visited the town of St Paul which was another medieval town that is known for its artists and writers before we headed back to our ship. 

The flight home was not so great.  We missed our connection in Heathrow Airport, ran through the airport like maniacs, had to rebook our flight, chase down our baggage and get to the new gate which was miles away. 

The trip was fantastic but the return flight...... Not so good.



In front of the Casino in Monte Carlo.  Same pose as 22  years before on our honeymoon