Live from Azura with Sue Kersh

[Dennis The Menace]

Sue's first updates

Boarding and first sea Day. 16 June

We travelled down to the Hilton at Newbury on Saturday. First time at this hotel and we had been upgraded to the Deluxe package. The hotel was a little dated and the bed creaked and groaned every time I turned over. It was adequate for an overnight stay to break the journey up. Nice indoor pool with sauna and steam room facilities, a good choice of dinner menu at a reasonable cost. The full English breakfast was included in the package, this was a buffet with plenty of choice. The hotel charges £3.00 for guests to use the car park, although not a lot of money I think this should be waived for overnight guests.

We left the hotel just before 10am and it was a very easy drive to the docks. Quite busy but no hold ups and we were at the port at approx 10:45. The port was busy and many pax had already arrived so we were directed to a holding area for about 5 minutes. CPS were as usual very efficient, the porters took our luggage, car checked in and we were in the priority boarding area well before 11am. We had only been sat down for a few minutes when suite pax and Ligurian members of the peninsular club were asked to check in. Some problems with the computer system and all info had to be inputted by hand. The poor ladies checking us in were in for a long day if they couldn't get this fixed.
After checking in we were directed to another waiting area where coffee, tea, biscuits and cake were being served. There were only 3 couples in this area and once again another short wait before we were told that we could go to security and board the Azura.

We were on board and sat in the Meridian restaurant drinking champagne well before 12 noon. We took the opportunity to book an evening in Sindhu on Tuesday which is a jacket required night and menu A.

Arriving early was certainly a good move as our friends who were just joining the car park queue whilst we were enjoying the champagne took over an hour to join us in the Meridian restaurant. We changed tables to sit with them and the champagne flowed again. They booked Sindhu for another night and Menu B so 2 select dining nights to look forward to. Our cabins were ready for 1 pm but we continued enjoying the hospitality and the catch up with our cruising friends. James Cussak the purser saw us and welcomed us back on board. He explained that the titles had changed for the first time this cruise. He is now the Executive Hotel Manager, the cruise directors are now Entertainment Managers.

Eventually we got to the cabin to find 2 of our 4 bags delivered.

As we had booked a saver fare we had to wait until we go to the cabin to find out our seating and restaurant allocation. We were hoping for freedom dining or 1 st sitting on a table for 4. We were very pleased to find we had indeed been allocated 1 st sitting and a table for 4 in the aft restaurant with our friends.

We unpacked the 2 cases and by this time the other 2 had arrived and our cabin steward Franke had introduced himself and taken notes of our very few requirements. Mainly ice each day at 12 noon.

Muster drills were at 4 pm followed by drinks on our balcony as sailaway commenced. Very low key now compared to when the band played and streamers were thrown but with aG & T in hand and our friends with us we didn't miss it at all. One or two people waving the ship off as we slowly pulled away and Aurora followed us.

First evening meal and our table for 4 is well placed towards the aft with plenty of natural night is this dark wood restaurant. Our table waiters are Wellington and his able assistant Napoleon (only joking but as we can't pronounce his name yet …..). We will try harder tonight after less champagne and G & T but saying that it is the Welcome on board party so may be tomorrow night before we get to grips with Napoleons real name which begins with Sand…..

After dinner we discussed the entertainment options but decided on a quiet night and headed to the planet bar and of course the cocktail of the day which was Planters Punch. I could only manage one and we were tucked up in bed by 11 pm. A great start to our Azura cruise. We do lose an hour tonight as ships clocks go forward at 2 am.

Monday 16 June.
We woke early at 6 am and the sun was just rising on the aft of the ship. Our balcony cabin is only 8 cabins from the front. Room service arrived promptly at 7 am and by that time it was warm enough to eat our muesli on the balcony.
This put me on until the MDR opened for breakfast at 8 am where Eggs Benedict was being served. Garry does not do MDR breakfast so he went for a walk around the prom decks whilst I joined a table for 6 at breakfast.

I was the 2 nd person to join the table and instead of leaving a spare seat I sat next to an elderly gentleman and said Good morning. This was greeted by good morning but I have to tell you my wife is still in bed. He obviously thought I was a single woman on the the lookout for a man. The waiter laughed and winked at me as I told the elderly gentlemen that I thought my luck had changed. We were soon joined by a couple on their first cruise and an elderly lady and a single man. It took a while for the conservation to flow but the man regaled us with stories about the notorious 1st Ventura Christmas cruise. I explained to the newbies that the experience he had on Ventura was rare and unlikely to happen again.

By the time I got back to the cabin the sun was fully on the balcony and Garry was enjoying the unexpected sunny morning. Franke our cabin steward collected our formal night wear and took it for pressing with the promise that it would be back with us in the afternoon.

Mid morning and unfortunately our toilet suddenly erupted and flooded the shower room. Our cabin steward moved very quickly to turn the water off and mop up the thankfully clean water. He reported it to the maintenance dept. but it took another call from the deck supervisor and yet another call to reception from us before the plumber arrived to fix it. Bonus points to reception as they telephoned us ½ hour later to check that the work had been completed and later on the deck steward came to check that everything was okay.

We had lunch with a bottle of nicely chilled Rosé wine on the balcony enjoying the calm seas of the Bay of Biscay and the heat of the sun.

We managed to get a prime spot close to the bar area on deck 7 for the Captains Welcome on board party and our first formal night of the cruise.
The drinks waiters were in short supply but as we were close by they kept us in drinks during the short speech by the very young looking Captain.

Dinner was Marco Pierre Whites menu of Lobster Mornay. Very nice meal and our waiters were a little more relaxed with us and even managed a smile.

The entertainment choice was Manuel Martinez in the Manhatten show lounge and the Headliners performing Destination dance in the theatre. I swear Manuel Martinez is a stalker or maybe he thinks we are. He has been on every one of our recent cruises and I do wonder if he is a permanent feature on PO ships and just flies from port to port to get on the different ships. Needless to say we chose Destination Dance, a show which we always enjoy.

After the show we went to the Dance in the Atrium. At least now P & O no longer call it a Ball on this ship. We miss Peters Band who ran the Atrium for 3 years before the money men decided others could do it at less expense.

The group in there this cruise are called Catch 22 and I felt so sorry for them as they had no idea of music to dance to. They could sing covers to popular songs but their timing was no where near the right tempo for the dances the instructors were calling. It was such a relief when they went off for a break and the instructors played CDs. When they came back on we decided to call it a night and decided against the syndicate quiz in favour of another early night.

[Dennis The Menace]

Sea day en route to Cadiz. 17 June

Another beautiful sunny day which we spent relaxing and reading on the balcony.

It was the first of our planned visits to Sindhu and menu A which is the lobster followed by the 5 spiced chocolate pudding. It was busier than normal and the service slightly slower because if this. It didn't matter as we were enjoying the ambiance and the food is so rich and filling it was good have a gap between courses.

After dinner we had missed the shows which were Peter Piper in the theatre and David Kidd as Tom Jones in Manhattan, we had seen both these entertainers on previous cruises so went to the planet bar for a drink. Again this bar was very busy but we managed to get a seat with a forward view.

It is amazing the difference in how busy the bars and entertainment venues are between the World cruise on Arcadia and this 2 week cruise in the Med on Azura.

[GillD46]

Enjoying your reports so far, Sue. Thank you.

[JenniC]

Keep them coming Sue..

[oldbluefox]

Thanks for your reports Sue -enjoyed them.

[Dennis The Menace]

Cadiz - 18 June

The sea was like a mill pond but on arrival in Cadiz the sun was nowhere to be seen as covered in thick cloud. Some rain spots but the temperature is approx 20 degrees although it doesn't feel it yet. We are going to disembark late morning and hope the sun has broken through by then.

It was still cloudy but warm when we set off to have to a wander around Cadiz. We had visited here a few times so knew which direction we were heading to.

We felt some drizzle so a good excuse to head for a local coffee bar and done free Wi Fi to pass the time before the sun made a very late appearance.

We found the Supermarket to stock up on cabin supplies and then a Tapas bar for lunch. We always head were the locals are eating and we were not disappointed.

After a few beers enough tapas to feed a small army we made our way back to Azura. Aurora had followed us into port and had the dock the furthest away from the port entrance and security.

Franke had left me a present of a towel dog. He must have had some time on his hands whilst waiting for other pax to vacate their cabin so that he could clean them.

By this time our balcony was in full sun so another afternoon spent dozing and people watching. Azura departed first and it was a noisy sailaway party on both ships as the Captains were blasting their horns, passengers on Azura had been provided with flags to wave and there was much competition between the ships as to who could make the most noise. A bit unfair really as Azura has an extra 1000 pax.

Entertainment was Blame it on the Boogie by the headliners and Manuel Martinez in Manhattan. I just hope he is disembarking in Barcelona.

Another sea day tomorrow.

[Dennis The Menace]

Sea day to Barcelona 19 June

We knew from the direction we were sailing that we would not see any sun on our balcony until late afternoon or early evening. I planned a day involving a sun bed close to the Oasis pool and my kindle. I got up there at just after 9 am and was back by 9:10. It was freezing despite the captain announcing that it was 20 degrees. The wind factor must have brought it down to about 5 degrees. The stalwarts were fleeced up and wrapped in towels but definitely not for the faint hearted.

We lunched in the MDR and it did look like the sun was breaking up the thick cloud. By 3 pm our balcony was in full sun so just spent the remainder of the afternoon there.

It was the Indian Buffet in the Venezia and after pre dinner drinks sat in the sun we headed up there. It was heaving and we had to go to the very back of the Verona before we found a table for 4. Excellent food and washed down with the Cobra beer.

For a non football fan the Evening entertainment was dire. Peter Piper was in the theatre, with the England football match being shown in Brodies, Manhattan, Malabar and the sea screen.

We went to the theatre to see if Peter Piper was as bad as we remembered him but he was actually worse, other than the first 60 seconds of his show in which he impersonated John Cleese in Faulty Towers. Our hopes rose for a new show but were sadly disappointed.

We finished the evening in the Atrium then headed back to the cabin to watch the final half of the match.

Tomorrow is Barcelona.

[Dennis The Menace]

Barcelona 20 June

We woke to a fabulous sunny day and the heat even early morning was intense. Such a difference to yesterday. We breakfasted on the balcony as we watched the ship enter the port area. It was a very busy day with 4 other cruise ships and the Thomson dream on the other side of the harbour.

We disembarked at 20:30 and caught the shuttle to the bottom of the Ramblas. As there were 4 of us we had intended to get a taxi but there were no e around. The shuttle was £3 per person one way for a 5 minute journey.

We sauntered up the Ramblas and got a drink in the square before we visited the very colourful indoor market. We continued up the Ramblas bad arrived at our favourite tapas restaurant just before it got full. It is very popular with the Spanish so we planned our arrival for 12:30 and got an outside table. The food here is wonderful and a great choice of tapas dishes. A little on the expensive side for tapas but so worth it.

We got a taxi back to the ship which with tip cost 15 euros which saved us walking back down the Ramblas in the afternoon heat. We did some shopping at the port, then back on board to sleep off the food & drink whilst sat in the sun.

The entertainment was the Headliners performing My Generation and David Kidd in the Manhattan.

Tomorrow is Cannes and our first of two tender ports. Unusually for a port day it is also our 2nd formal night.

[Gill W]

Thanks to Sue for the reports and Dennis posting them

Interesting that the Purser and Cruise Director are now Executive Hotels Manager and Entertainment Manager. It's almost as if they want us to forget we are on a ship!

[david63]

Thanks to Sue for the reports and Dennis posting them

Interesting that the Purser and Cruise Director are now Executive Hotels Manager and Entertainment Manager. It's almost as if they want us to forget we are on a ship!

I suspect that it is more indicative of the dilution of the role - after all the "Cruise Director" has not being doing that job for several years since shore based operations took control.

[hopefultraveller]

Isn't it amazing, Sue, how people's tastes differ? We loved Peter Piper in May, as seemingly did the audience at both shows. in fact, over half an hour before the second show the theatre was full. Of course we wouldn't want to see the same routines again. We are really enjoying your reports.

Val

[Dennis The Menace]

Cannes

Our first tender port of the cruise and it all went very smoothly. Just after 9:30am the announcement was made that there was no wait for tenders. It was approx 10 minute tender ride into the dock area and they had 8 tender boats on the go all morning.

We walked around town and heard that that there was a train strike so those planning on catching the train to Monaco were disappointed. There were masses of very expensive yachts both berthed in the port and anchored nearby, the shops and bars were very busy. It has a lovely feeling this small town, with narrow streets and interesting buildings. It was very hot and sunny so we made a beer stop at a local bar and stayed there for longer than we had intended as our friends joined us. It would have been rude not to have another drink with them.

We noticed that there was an ambulance at the port and a medical evacuation was taking place. We later found out that it was one of the female Headliners who needed her appendix removing urgently. Fingers crossed that all goes
well for her.

The evening entertainment was the headliners performing Curtain Up. Although we had seen this show many times this had a different spin on it and different songs from the musicals. They are a very talented group and the men in particularly have very strong singing voices.

The Orchestra were playing dance music in the Atrium and it was lovely to dance to a live band who kept strict tempo for dancing to. The orchestra did take up some of the already small dance floor but as there are not a lot of dancers on board it was fine.

Laura Benneson is the Entertainment manager for this cruise and she came down to the atrium to see us and catch up on the few months since we last saw her. She looked stunning in one of the Strictly Come Dancing outfits, although she would look stunning in a Black bin Bag.

Tomorrow we are in Civitavecchia which is the Port of Rome.

[Dennis The Menace]

Rome Sunday 22nd June

We docked in Civitavecchia which is the nearest port to Rome. We decided against the long journey to Rome as we had been there many times in the past. Rome is extremely busy on a Sunday.
The shuttle now drops off at an area a long hike from the train station. I don't know if this is a permanent location or if it is because of the roadworks which are ongoing. There is a bus to the train station but with 4 ships in dock the queue was horrific. We decided to walk as we were heading for the bus station which is close to the train station.

We had researched Civitavecchia and found that there were some Roman baths Ruins being excavated just outside town. They are obviously the towns best kept secret or one no one wanted to share. After asking at the local tourist bus kiosk we were told that the bus stopped there but that you could not get off as it was not a hop on hop off service. She did not know anything about the ruins at all. The main information centre was closed because it was a Sunday. Finally we managed to find the only taxi driver who didn't want to take us to Rome and we agreed a fee of 30 euros to take us to the Parco Terme Taurine ruins. A real gem and one they need to advertise more. Beautiful grounds and very well explained in English by the information boards at frequent intervals along the route. It costs 5 euros each to enter and must be being subsidised by the government as whilst we were there only one other couple arrived. The people running it were very friendly and offered to make us a coffee as there was no bar or anywhere to buy refreshments. It could be a real money earner if run right as we met many pax who did not want to go to Rome and had just wandered around the shops instead.

We had decided to eat our evening meal in the Verona Trattoria so that we could see the sailaway due at 7 pm. It was a lovely evening and we all enjoyed our choice of food. I had the mixed seafood speciality whilst the others chose the lava rock steak. The evening entertainment was Clem Curtis who was a member of the Foundations. He proudly announced that he was 74 years old and was still working as he had been married 5 times and his ex wives had taken all of his money. We have seen him before but just love the music he sings.

Tomorrow is Ajaccio in Corsica and a new port of call for us.

[Dennis The Menace]

Ajaccio - Corsica 23 June

We woke to a beautiful morning and a stunning view of the harbour from our balcony. The Captain announced our arrival and promised a sunny day with temperatures of 30 degrees. We had arranged to meet our friends after breakfast and have a beach day.

We wandered through a local market on the way to the beach. On arrival the sun disappeared behind cloud, so we decided on a coffee until it came out again. It didn't and the weather worsened although still hot and muggy. We gave up on the idea of the beach and headed back to the market to purchase some local cheese for lunch. We ate on the balcony with some salad and bread from the buffet area, washed down with a nicely chilled bottle of rosé.

The sun finally came out again mid afternoon but not before raining for a short time and we could hear thunder in the distance.

It was a glorious afternoon and evening just as the Captain had promised. We were due to depart at 4:30 pm and the Captain announced we were all on board and would depart shortly. By 5 pm we realised there was some problem as there was no engine sound and surely enough another announcement was made that there were thruster problems caused by an electrical fault. It was almost 8 pm before we actually departed. Luckily it is a sea day tomorrow so plenty of time to catch up before we reach Cartagena on Thursday.

The entertainment was Gareth Oliver a ventriloquist in the Playhouse and a vocalist in Malabar. The Tropical party was planned to be on deck but the Manhattan was kept free as an alternative.

On Benne's recommendation (and because there was nothing else on) we reluctantly went to the playhouse. I have to say he was absolutely hilarious. A very funny comedian as well as an extremely talented ventriloquist.

We had a few dances in the Atrium before venturing up to the a Tropical party. This was in full swing when we got there and remarkably it was a fantastic evening for an outside deck party. In our experience these deck party's are usually spoiled by the wind on deck. Not so this time as it was a calm warm evening.

Tomorrow is a sea day and the Ligurian luncheon.

[oldbluefox]

Interesting what you say about the Roman ruins near Civitavecchia Sue. The Google images make them look quite substantial and worthy of further investigation. I had never heard of them before but would enjoy going to see them.

[stocktonmackem]

Loving the review Sue, we are doing virtually the same itinerary at the end of August. Enjoy the rest of your cruise

[JenniC]

Have to say Sue, we too saw Gareth Oliver in Feb and only went for the same reason as you.. I hurt with laughing so much, absolutely brilliant act

[Dennis The Menace]

Sea day en route to Cartagena. 24 June

Ligurian lunch Day and although only a lunch it does seem to take up most of the day. We spent the morning in the sun reading on the balcony. There was a Macmillan Coffee morning being held in the Atrium area followed by an audience with the Headliners at 11 am.

The table for lunch was a long oblong one and unfortunately these are the worst tables for hearing conversations. There was a good mix if passengers and our table was hosted by Prakash who is the Hotel Operations Manager. A new title and a new job for Prakash. He was very informative and kept the conversation going as much as he could but he had chosen to sit at the top of table which meant many couldn't hear him clearly.

The captain signed menus for anyone who wanted them signed which we
The lunch was excellent and a new menu. I had the lobster starter, followed by Sea Bass and the cheese and biscuits. The champagne flowed well as did the wine during the meal.

The afternoon was spent sleeping off the wine and food.

It was our third formal night and we all ate very sparingly at dinner. The Headliners performed when Swing was King.

Even though I had slept most of the afternoon I found I was still very tired and we went back to the cabin rather than go to he Manhattan to see the comedian.

Tomorrow we are in Cartagena.

50.8923° N, 1.40015° W

[Dennis The Menace]

Cartagena 25 June

This is another one of my favourite ports of call in the Med. Lots of Historic sites dotted around the town. Very clean, great shopping and a multitude of bars and restaurants to choose from. What is there not to like.

We shopped for a while wandering around getting our bearings through the narrow Spanish streets. It was baking hot but plenty of shady areas to walk in.

We stopped for a couple of beers and free Wi Fi in a bar we had visited last year, then met our friends at our favourite tapas bar El Barril. Very Spanish here and the owners speak less English than I do Spanish and that is muy poco.

We managed to order our choice of tapas and spent a leisurely couple of hours soaking up the sun and sampling the local Spanish food.

Once again dinner was in the MDR but none if us had much appetite.

The evening entertainment was Gareth Oliver the ventriloquist comedian. If anything he was funnier than his last show and the theatre was packed to capacity with pax watching from the stairs.

Tobias the best male singer in the headliners group performed a solo act in the Malabar. Another packed house and an excellent performance. The rest of the headliners and Clem Curtis were in the audience to cheer him on.

Tomorrow is our final port of call at Gibraltar.

[GillD46]

It sounds as though you're having a great time. It's years since we have been to the Med, so maybe another trip is on the cards, whenever we are able to go abroad again.

[Suekersh]

Hi all
Thanks for all of the comments. We are back home now and I will finish the report this week.

Sue

[Suekersh]

Just finished my ramblings on the cruise. Thanks DTM for posting the early reports for me.

Gibraltar
This was a morning call and we had to be back on board for 13:30.

It was extremely hot and we paid for the return shuttle to the town gates. It was only £3 return trip but many set off walking. We arrived before many of the shops had opened so had a coffee and made use of the free WI FI to catch up on e mails etc.

We had finished the shopping by 11:30 so decided to head back but we were accosted by our friends who had just stopped for a drink. It would have been rude to refuse so we didn't.

We arrived back on ship and decided to eat the rest of the cheese we had purchased in Cannes on the balcony with a bottle of Rosé. Very nice and afterwards we went up for the sailaway party. This was not such a good idea. There was a buffet on and the smell from that, plus the hot sun and loud music soon meant we gave up in search of relative peace and quiet at the sea screen.

The Captain announced that unfortunately 2 pax had not arrived back on ship and we could not wait any longer for them to arrive. Such a shame but everyone else made it on board in time and there was enough information both verbally and written in the Horizon and displayed at the gangway when disembarking the ship.

We ate in Sindhu for the second time this cruise. The food was excellent but the coffee arrived cold. We asked them to change it which they did but the service was not very good. It was not a busy evening but it took 3 hours for our meal. This is the first time we have experienced dissatisfaction with Sindhu and we must have eaten there at least 10 times on past cruises.

Sea days back to Southampton and disembarkation
We had two sea days back to Southampton. The first one was sunny on deck but breezy and chilly out of the sun.

We went to see Benne interview our very young Captain. He only learned to speak English in his twenties and he isn't yet forty. He explained that the couple left behind in Gibraltar did not arrive back at the port until 4 pm. He said that they were transported from Gib for an overnight stay in Malaga and were on a plane to Liverpool at that moment.

In the afternoon it was the Crew show. Hilarious as usual with some very talented crew members on board.

It was our last formal night and also the Peninsular party. Prakash kept us entertained again during the evening. He has lots of interesting stories about life at sea.

The last formal dinner was another Marco menu with Beef Wellington as the main course. The Beef was excellent. One thing I have really missed on this cruise is the Port Marinated Stilton. We mentioned it to the Head waiter when it wasn't on the menu on the first formal night and he told us it would be on at some point during the cruise. It wasn't and the head waiter never did come and explain why it was not available. Our waiters apologised but of course it was not their fault. The cheese generally was disappointing as it is served far too cold but apparently this is for Health and Safety reasons. Obviously on Arcadia they do not have the same Health and Safety rules as on Azura as on our recent Arcadia cruise the cheese was served at room temperature.

Clem Curtis performed his 2 nd show in the theatre to a Full House, and in Manhattan it was George Michael and Phil Collins acts. Very good but the band who accompanied them were far too loud. It is normally Jet set who are very talented but this was a different group called Sound Wave.

The final sea day and the weather was decidedly cooler and we had some rain in the morning. Surprisingly there was not a lot going on around the ship during the day. We sorted out the packing and had lunch in the MDR. I went to the last session of the Bingo, the jackpot was over £1500 and there was one lucky winner but not me.

We had our final meal in the MDR and said goodbye to our lovely waiters. We didn't go to the final headliners show which was New York City Rhythm. We had seen it many times so went for a final drink with our friends in the Planet bar. It has been a great cruise and lovely to see them again after almost 2 years. We had to cancel the cruise we were supposed to meet up on last year due to ill health, but we will be cruising with them again in 8 weeks on Adonia.

Disembarkation was a breeze. We had priority so after a breakfast in the MDR to set us up for the journey home, we vacated our cabin at 8 am and sat in the Costa coffee bar in the Atrium until disembarkation commenced at 08:30.

We immediately found 3 of our 4 cases in the priority area but searched for a long time for our final case. We checked the B deck cases to no avail but eventually found it under A deck. We can only presume the baggage handler had read the cruise number A417 as the cabin number and ignored the priority label and the label with the cabin number highlighted in a Pink.

We finally drove out of the car park at 9am. The journey home was relatively quiet as it was a Sunday and with a short comfort break we were back home just after 13:00.

Our overall view of Azura is that there have been some changes which had we not cruised on her previously we probably would not have noticed.

No pizzas served in the Franke Pizzeria, No Port Marinated Cheese served on any night. Cheese served very cold but I think I remember having this issue on Azura previously. Dancing in the Atrium has gone seriously downhill since the demise of Peters Band but we now find other entertainment. We will still book and look forward to future cruises on Azura but will probably only book them in the Caribbean and cruise to the Med on Arcadia, Oriana or Adonia.

Finally - Saver fares. We booked this late as an extra holiday and saved about £600 per person including the OBC or free parking we would have got if we had booked select fare. Our cabin was a B deck balcony close to the front of the ship and we were allocated 1 st sitting in the Aft restaurant on a table for 4 with our friends. We had linked our bookings so this worked fine.

If we had been booking select we would have chosen a C deck balcony towards the aft of the ship and 1 st sitting or freedom dining in the mid ships restaurant. For our must do cruises we will always book early and choose our cabin, dinner sitting etc but would not hesitate to book a saver fare again for the extra holidays, when work and family commitments allow. The only shuttle we had to pay for was the one in Barcelona which was £3 per person each way. We only used it one way as we took a taxi back to the ship. The shuttle in Gib is a private company and PO do not provide a shuttle there. The one in Rome is free as it is provided by the port authority. No shuttle was required at any of the other ports of call.

Back to reality now and work tomorrow. 8 weeks today we will be cruising on Adonia. Serious dieting to be done before then.

Thanks for reading and your comments.

Sue

[GillD46]

Welcome back home and thanks for sharing your cruise with us.

[oldbluefox]

Welcome back Sue. I enjoyed your reports.

[JenniC]

Welcome home Sue, great reports, has made me look forward to being on Azura again on Jan 10,especially as last two Caribbean cruises on Ventura!!