After sailing on more than 33 cruises across 12 different cruise lines, I decided to try Azamara based on the many comments about its “pre-luxury” experience and supposedly superior service due to its boutique-style ships.However, the food did not feel pre-luxury at all. In fact, lines like Princess, Celebrity, and Holland America offer similar or even better quality—and Virgin Voyages surpasses Azamara by a wide margin in both service and dining.I sailed on the Azamara Quest from San Juan to Barbados in November 2025. In the main dining room we waited an average of 20 minutes or more every night to be seated. Several members of the restaurant staff seemed rushed, uninterested, and at times even rude.There were many small issues that added up. For example, a baked potato would arrive completely plain—no butter, no toppings. When we asked for butter, it took more than 10 minutes to arrive, by which time we had already finished most of the meal. The WiFi only worked in port; while at sea, it was either unavailable or extremely slow.What did not meet our expectations?The service, the food, the entertainmentIf what you want is a classic, intimate cruise with good food, Holland America provides a better experience for less money. And if you want excellent food, Virgin Voyages easily surpasses Azamara’s dining quality.✔️ What did we enjoy?The small size of the ship, the chance to make friends,the overall peaceful atmosphereFor what we paid, we could have almost sailed on Explora, Seabourn, or certainly Viking, all of which offer far superior service.
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Go deeper, explore new depths, and gain new perspectives with an immersive, intimate voyage that takes you beyond the initial layers of a city. Experience luxury on your next holiday with Azamara cruises and travel further by exploring the world with a...