P&O Azura Canaries Cruise Review: What did we think?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 19 มิ.ย. 2024
- Join us as we review our recent 7 night cruise around the Canaries.
Discover what we experienced and thought about the Ship, Itinerary and experience; before then rating our experience at the end.
Do, let us know in the comments your thoughts on what we have to say, as well as any experience you have of Azura
Sources:
Drinks Package Calculator: www.cruisemummy.co.uk
Just love your content...thank you so much for all these videos. Look forward to more in 2024 🙂
Great review !
Thought it was good value for money
Love your channel
Thanks for sharing.
Keep up the good work !
Great review thank you for your help we set sail in a month, can't wait - you have made us even more excited!! xxx
Thank you for your kind comment. Hope you have a fantastic cruise. I love the excitement and anticipation before a trip.
Riding on her next year so excited thank you for the great explanation! 😊
Thank you for the positive feedback. I'm sure you will love your time on her too
Just come back from a week on azura, cannot find fault with the food, entertainment, cleanliness etc. especially loved the silent disco-hilarious 🥂
Great video guys and thanks for the insights. Cruising on the Azura in November so this was helpful
Thank you for your kind words. Hope you enjoy your cruise as much as we did
Thanks for a balanced review, off on this cruise in a few weeks your video has helped to answer my concerns about vegetarian options in the restaurants. I was a little apprehensive about a fly cruise but it seems a breeze. Looking forward to my cruise thanks to your video
Thoroughly enjoyed your descriptive content.
Boarding the Azura 27th October.
Thank you for your kind words. Hope you have a fantastic time on Azura. We are joining Arvia on 27th for our first cruise on her. Enjoy 🛳🥂
Thanks for your input my husband and myself will be on board Azura in late November.will remember you when on board.thanks
You're more than welcome Roque...We hope the video helped familiairise you with the ship and that you have a fabulous time in November!
Very comprehensive and well structured review Thanks! We are doing two weeks round Canaries next year on her (have previously done this several times on Marella Explorer but fancied a change). She looks similar to Ventura which we have sailed on before.
Thats very kind of you @sharon, we're so glad it's been of help; we hope you have a fab time!😊
Going on this ship on Friday so great to have a heads up. Thanks
Have fun!
This is the best cruise review channel I’ve ever seen. A fantastic review of the Azura. We are doing this cruise in February. Thank you for sharing
lol, and this is quite possibly the best 'comment' we've had to date. Glad you are enjoying the vlogs Benjaim...look out for lots more to come.😀
I’m also watching this video as I’m planning to go on February as well 😉
@@karennajoyce thats fantastic...we hope the video helped you.
We're also going in February though visiting Tenerife and La Palma. Have sailed with P&O 3 times now and though their ships are dated I think their customer experience trumps the other cruise companies. Congratulations on your fabulous video, told us everything we needed to know! Thank you 🎉
I'm.going on a cruise for first time ever in September from Malta around crotia and corfu on the azura, looking forward to it,thanks for great video,so helpful
Hi Paul, thanks for the kind words. We're excited for you as we're sure you'll enjoy Azura, she really surprised us and with the itinerary was a fabulous cruise. Let us know how it goes and if it inspires you to try ither cruise lines and itineraries in the future....
@@AgelessCuriosity I will,and keep up great vids,absolutely enjoyed the azura vid
This was just the video I was looking for! We are considering P and O having cruised with Marella a number of times in the past and this has given us a great onsite into the exact cruise we are looking at. The price is selling it for March! What always put us off was the formal night situation but you have put our minds at rest. Inside cabin seems fine for us, hate shower curtains but what can you do! Just gonna check out your other Azura videos now but thanks for such an informative review!
@wendyb4154 Thank you so much for the kind words...it makes the effort worthwhile....we're sure you'll enjoy it if you book....let us know what you think of the rest of the videos as well!
Enjoyed your video. Was on Azura in march ( Tenerife, Maderia, La Palma, fuertaventura, Tenerife) also inside cabin and agree with everything you stated in your review. Flew out on the Saturday and struggled to get reservations in speciality restaurants, glass house no problem as a virtual queue, beach house fully booked, but we went and spoke to the maiter de and got a table. We felt some of the little touches were missing, turn down service, and we did have to ask for tea/ coffee in cabin to be replenished. Wasn't sure if we would book again, but for the price, you got what you paid for, so we have booked again for next year to do the opposite itinerary, and it's a week of winter sun. Will be looking at your other videos for inspiration 😄
Hi Elaine, thank you for your kind comments. Really pleased you're getting to go on her again. Hope you enjoy the videos and that they give you some inspiration 🙂
Great video that brought back many memories. I agree with everything you say......we were on the Azura Canaries cruise from Tenerife in Dec last year and whilst some of the itinerary was a little repetitive we did enjoy it. This Christmas we intend to try P&O Britannia from Barbados for a change. We've just returned from cruising on Azura in the Med only 2 weeks ago so many familiar sites in your video. Thanks. I've just subscribed too.
Many thanks for subscribing. Much appreciated. Our first cruise was on Brittania. She is a lovely ship. Not too big but still has a great atmosphere. Enjoy your experience.
We are going on this cruise in October, thanks for your views on the ship etc, given in a very friendly manner. I hope i wont be disappointed by P & O. I have been on Royal Caribean before and found it excellent. Very good review though .
Hi and thank you so much for the kind words. We're sure you will enjoy it and the itinerary as well. At least you know what to expect now 😄 We'd love to hear how it went when you get back. Alsion & Ian
We had a great 12 night Med cruise in 2014 on Azura with plenty of great memories. It's interesting how ships are described as 'dated' when compared to a land-based hotel of similar or even older age... The fixed head shower/curtain combo was the only thing we weren't so keen on, otherwise no probs, fantastic crew with plenty to entertain you all day. We love the formal nights too. Cheers.
Hi @davidhinks8384 Thanks for watching our video. Glad to hear you had a great Med trip back in 2014. We have our eye on some of the Azura Med itineraries. We have just come back from a Med Cruise with Princess. We love both P&O and Princess for different reasons. Hope you have some plans to cruise again.
Hi Loved the video, great insight to cruising we've booked yesterday for 2025 for our 10th wedding anniversary on the Azura we booked an inside cabin on the Riviera deck
Thanks for the kind words Tracey, glad you enjoyed the video and we're sure you'll have a lovely time on her.
We book inside cabins and enjoy them as sleep so well. We’ve also been on Aurora when Neil Turnbull was the captain and can vouch he is great! Currently booked to do this cruise in November and really looking forward to it.
I dont think this will be our last Inside Cabin either Linda. I also know we'll be back on Azura as well. We hope you enjoyed the video. :)
We have been on Azura 3 times this year . Ok not the most modern ship and yes she is a little dated , however the quality of entertainment is superb , the food is certainly acceptable ,the organisation is excellent. We always go for a balcony cabin which costs around £599 including flights . That really is amazing value for money . We did Iona earlier in the year and that fantastic . Cost about £100 more per person but an amazing ship. We have done a lot of cruising including some of the high end cruise lines , however you just can’t beat PO at the moment for value.
Just been on Azura in the Med and I agree with all the points in this review. We had a great time and would give Azura a high rating and say it's good value for money. Niel Turnbull the Captain was very entertaining with his daily updates and made the cruise special.
Hi Gary. Glad you also felt your cruise was good value for money. We would love to cruise on her again sometime
EXCELLENT video , nice and slow so it sinks in . 9 of us doing the med cruise.
Thank you for your kind comments. Hope you have a fabulous cruise. Sounds fun with 9 of you🎉🍾🏖
Compared with hotel prices in the UK, P&O cruises are great value. Even Premier Inn's prices in some locations are astoundingly expensive and there is no food included in the price. You even have to ask for your room to be cleaned and bed made if staying more than one night. P&O has gone down market and so has the quality of the food on offer, but they are trying to attract us into the premium restaurants. Thirteen years is no age for a ship. There are passenger aircraft in operation today that are more than 20 years old.
Hi MJC1124, thanks for the comments you make some great points, we completely agree.
Socket behind TV as well. No problem having an inside cabin. You can always have an extra course or in fact two starters or desserts or indeed ask for more in main meal. You have to ask! I think your overall assessment is right. Vey enjoyable and good value for money. If you are lucky enough to be in Tenerife at Carnival time it's a bonus. Did one week in February and one week in June around Greece and Croatia. After the success of February we are going for two weeks next year.
Hi Jim. Thanks for your comments. We didn't know there was an extra socket behind the tv. Hope you enjoy your cruise second time around. No doubt we will be back on Azura in the Canaries another year as it is such great value.
We were on it in February in the canaries for a week. We have been on the ship before about 6 years ago. We thought it needed updating. We noticed only one side of the buffet room open and smaller portions for the evening meals and put it down to costs etc. It definitely felt different on there from the last time. Has not put us off p and o as going on another next year.
Hi Linda, thanks for the comment. Yep, we'd agree you can't judge a line based on one ship, as they're all different and the itinerary also makes a difference as well. pleased you booked another one, hope you have fun on that one 🙂
Best azura video I've seen so far. Thank you. How much would a pint of beer be or a vodka and lemonade be for example?
Thank you for your kind words. At the time of our cruise in March a beer was around £5 and a large glass of wine £6-£7. We didn't have any spirits but on the whole drinks were typical uk pub prices. Hope this helps
Really balanced and clear review thank you. I have been worried about booking Azura due to the dire reviews on cruise critic and other sites. I would be interested to see what parents of Upper Primary/ Secondary school kids think as that’s where I worry it will fit us anymore, given what’s on board other lines.
Hi. Thank you for your feedback. We travelled in term time so there were few children and were mostly pre school age. There are certainly other cruise lines that provide a range of activities for children other than kids club, pool and sports deck. Our itinerary was port heavy with late on board times so you could really explore the ports and excursions. It may depend on needs of the children. If they are seeking fun filled activities every day then Azura may not be the best ship. Arvia is the ship with most activities for children in our observations. Hope you enjoy your cruise whichever one you decide.
We had a fabulously cruise on this ship
Pleased to hear it Julie
We book inside cabins - really enjoyed Britannia in the Caribbean. Have an inside cabin booked on Arvia for this December in the Caribbean for our honeymoon. Doing a Mediterranean cruise May ‘24 and a Canary’s Christmas/new year cruise in ‘24 both on Azura. Our first time on Azura so fingers crossed we enjoy!🤞🏻
Thanks Sally..hopefully the video has helped with Azura...though it sounds like you have a lot to look forward to in the next 18months! We're on Ariva for a Transatlantic in Sept so look out for the video when it comes out. :)
@@AgelessCuriosity look forward to! Seen so many complaints on social media so will be interesting to see. Hope you have a lovely time.
I loved the Azura when I cruised on her in 2017 ,I’m sure things have changed since then ,as I have found that P&O standards are way below to what they were . Cleanliness was an issue on my recent cruise last week on Britannia ,balcony and cabin wasn’t very clean ,especially the shower tray ,which looked about 50 years old.Pulse on the Arvia maiden voyage were poor . Although the entertainment when I was on Azura was excellent.
Thanks for the comment. We have fond memories of Britannia I hope they give her a spruce up sometime soon. I think as a whole standards have dropped on the majority of lines due to the debt most now find themselves in, in order to survive the dreaded 'C'; hopefully things will start to pick up in teh near future though. 🙂
Being honest I just can back from a cruise in sky princess (2019) and prior to that I did a Southampton 2 week canary’s in Ventura (2008) and I really enjoyed the grand class ships, easily as much as sky princess.
Hello new sub here, doing that exact cruise in December, would do a inside cabin if it was say a winter cruise to Norway but where there is sun then its a balcony for us.
Thanks for the review ive seen alot of different cruise reviews and your right up there so keep it up and no doubt the subs will come.
Thank you!!!
Wow...we honestly don't know what to say Marc...apart from many thanks for the kind words...it makes all the effort in taking and editing the footage worthwhile...thank you...and look out for the next video on Kotor which is spectacular...we've already left 90mins of footage out to squeeze it in to a sensible length!
I don't mind inside but definitely a balcony in Norway
I am. Going end of November 2024, never been on P&O. Not to keen of the formal nights, but will survived 😂. In the MDR, on other cruises we order 2 mains or 2 starters as we normally don't do lunch or snacks at all, guess it will be possible there too.. If not, still the option of the buffet. Been last year on the old RC enchantment of the seas, which I did enjoy, not so much the food though, but it was a very personal touch. I always book inside cabins, it doesn't bother me as I hardly be in the cabin as I like to be out and about anyway, but that's a personal choice, everyone is different. So, yes, excited to experience P&O, hope the food will be OK, but for the price I paid, I don't think I can complain 😊. Thank you for your great review!
Hi Ramona, firstly we hope you enjoy the cruise, as its a lovely part of the world. Ordering 2 mians and 2 starters each isnt something we've done ourselves, however we're sure that they will be happy to accommmodate, but as you say...if not then there's always the buffet!! 😄 We agree with your final point...its fabulous value for money so you have to pragmatic and accept it won't be as polished/high level as other ships which are newer. If you can get your head around that, we're sure you'll enjoy it. Have fun and thanks for the kind words re the video...it makes the effort worth while. Alison & Ian
Thank you for the quick reply! I got my head screwed on. Knowing to go on a 14 y old ship...which is not even that old though. I am sure me and my friends will have a great time 😊
I can't book an inside cabin as I'm very claustrophobic. It sounds like you can get real bargains on cruising in England. It's always quite expensive here in Australia so we haven't done very many. Great review.
Hi Joan, many thanks for your kind words. Thats such a shame about your claustrophobia, however at least you can enjoy the balcony cabins. There are certainly bargins to be had, for sure, but prices are certainly going up across the board as the cruise lines attempt to claw back the debts they've racked up in the last 3 years or so.
We have booked this cruise for the end of January next year 😊
Hi Lisa. I hope you have a wonderful time. Let us know what you think of the cruise
Great review! We did the opposite itinerary to you. Totally agree that the fly cruise is brilliantly organised! 😊
Thanks ladies. Yep we were pleasantly surprised, would happily do another one (tomorrow if possible!) 😀
Did a Carribbean cruise and doing a tennerife cruise 2024 on the azura
Going back on this ship Feb this yer love this ship
Great stuff Eric...hope you have a fantastic and relaxing time on her!
Thank you for a great review, we are going on Azura to the Canaries in November, it will be our first cruise looking forward to it, would you recommend P&O excusions, unfortunley i have to use a wheelchair so not sure how we will get on but i am not letting this stopping us from enjoying ourselves, keep up the good work and enjoy yourselves
Hi. Thank you so much for your kind comment. You will have a wonderful time on Azura. We feel that P&O excursions are not over priced compared to other cruise lines so you don't save much by booking privately. They usually advertise excursions that are suitable for wheelchairs. We didn't have any tender ports on our itinerary so it is easy to leave the ship. Do check if there are different decks you can disembark from and choose one that is shallow. Have a great cruise and do let us know what you thought of Azura.
Excellent video. This looks so similar to the Ventura, where I had an inside cabin last month. You mentioned embarking on Friday or Saturday, but are there advantages for picking one day over the other? Thanks.
HI Paul, thanks for the kind words. Re the best day it depends on (if you work) using a days leave to get on board early or not...if you do you have a greater chance of booking the Speciality restaraunts, and you have a day to explore Tenerife before departing on the Saturday evening. On the otherhand if you arrrive on Saturday, your options for the restaraunts are more limited, but you do enjoy the day in port at Tenerife before you disembark, and the ship is quieter...so its very much 'swings and roundabouts' and all depends on what you want. Hope that helps (?)
@@AgelessCuriosity Good point about holiday leave- always annoying to use up 6 days. I didn't like the Beach House on the Ventura, so speciality dining isn't important for me. P&O do some amazing prices for solos, so your video definitely inspires me to look at the canaries.
Best value cruise out there,2K for midships balcony, flights &transfers, £160.00 free credit and drinks less than most London pubs.
I’ve just returned from a cruise on Arvia. All I can say is that I much prefer Azura. Lovely ship and lovely crew.
Hi, we may well have been on the same cruise, as we also have just come off Arvia. We also love Azura...we had such a great time on her..
@@AgelessCuriosity for me Arvia was just too big with too many people. Embarkation At Southampton was smooth but Barbados Airport seemed completely unprepared for so many people. I couldn’t help but keep comparing Arvia to Azura. Azura always came out top !
Great video, well filmed showing the ship up very well. As an old cu narder of a few voyages I was pleaseantly surprised how good the ship was. A lot of bright colours so very different to queen Victoria and twice the passengers on board. The central lobby no Compared to QV but cheaper? Overall very informative and fair.
Thanks for the kind words Steven... much appreciated. Alison & Ian
@@AgelessCuriosity you welcome I'm just being honest and your film was really good
On land this dump of a room would cost £50 . As it’s on a ship you end up paying 7-8 times that per night. Yes meals are included and travel but if done by other means and meals eaten in a Michelin star restaurant would still be cheaper
HI Sasha, this only cost us £75pppn, so not too bad and we got to see some lovely places as well.
We cruised on azura feb 23 i would give it 6 out of 10 ,buffet was rediculously busy couldnt get anywhere near the food ,other options were good tho sindhu was epic .they messed our flight seating up had myself and wife in opposite side of plane had to pay for seats to sit together.entertainment was good stayed in the strathmore suite which had noise from machinery .jury is out on if we would go on again
Thanks for the comments Kevin. Such a shame that your experience was a mixed bag. If cruising has taught us one thing though...it's that they're all different...so we hope that if you have another one booked that you both have a better experience.
@@AgelessCuriosity havent been put off we are going on QM2 in june will be a totally different experience like you say they are all different
Im on Azura later this year so youtube is giving me a lot of suggestions. But the one thing that keeps bothering me. Everyone seems to go on about the age of this ship, but the reality is she is quite young compared so so many others out there. I was on MSC Musica last week and she is from 2004 and nobody ever mentions that on her reviews
She's a great ship, hopefully you watched to the end where we said how much we loved the cruise. We're certainly aware that different people like different ships...which is the beauty of cruising at the moment.🙂
@@AgelessCuriosity Yeah, thats all good, I'm really looking forward to going on her 🙂 It was just more that I've seen around 10 videos all going on about her age and I was just confused as she is a baby really🙂
When we were on Ruby Princess (same class of ship) recently, the officer said that they were built to last 25yrs, whereas all the new ships are expected to have a lifespan of 15years...which pretty much says it all.
@@AgelessCuriosity Yeah, they do look very well made for long life! the first in class just got a very nice refit for P&O Australia I saw, even has waterslides on top level!
P&O Azura cruises are good value for money especially if you've chosen her mainly for the itinerary, yes she's getting on a bit but is clean and tidy. Having sailed on her three times post covid and another two booked on her we have no issues apart from the buffet which can be and mostly is a shambles so we always use the MDR or speciality restaurants, P&O should rip this out and follow TUI Marella Voyager's example of the 'Kitchens' which is a great alternative to a buffet, it's more hygienic and the food is better.
The buffet was definitely the worst feature of Azura. Let's hope there is a complete refit sometime soon. We look forward to another cruise on her again
What site did you book off?
We booked directly with P&O. It was just at the point that full payment was due so there were great deals on several cruises.
must be a different azura to the one we were on.
What was your experience Julie?
@@AgelessCuriosity very poor standards have been dropped all round they promote the cruises very well but when you get there dont live up compares to other lines we have cruised on p and o are poor if you like them good but look at the reviews and both types are similar the bad ones have been on p and o before so know the changes and the good ones have yet to find out what they could get on other lines if you like them good but for me they are crap and will never go with them again.
@@juliemcmeekin2095 Interesting, I guess it comes down to expectations, all of ours are different..we weren't sure before we went on her, but as we said...for £75pppn we couldn't really fault it. It doesnt match with teh experience we've had on Princess, but we didnt expect it to; however it was on a par with our Celebrity cruise in Alaska...which was a surprise (like you with this one, we were disapointed with that one). I hope you have better luck on your next cruise that's for sure and thanks for the comment, which is appreciated for 'balance'. 🙂
£75 per night is very good value...cheaper than Butlins
Yep, its hard to think of anywhere else where you can get the same value for money
I would never book an inside cabin - always a balcony. There are times you want to chill out without other people and being stuck in a cupboard with no natural light
We were surprised we didn't miss a balcony too much and it meant we slipped in an extra cruise at a bargain price.
I drive an older car, so why not.
Agreed...she's a great ship
God they are still showing 'ASTONISHED'...thats about 6 years now!!!! doesnt really attract repeat business does it?
and 'PULSE' are not a band...it is the name given to the resident house band on every P&O cruise
your description of formal night shows a man walking around in shorts & tshirt!!! its such a shame people cant respect the traditions
For us it was the first time we had seen Astonishing despite being our 5th P&O cruise. I can see it would loose its appeal once seen a couple of times.
Absolutely. We felt this particular group were the best version of Pulse we had seen. I'm sure the band members change frequently even on the same ship.
I suppose not everyone wants to dress up but will still be seen around the ship heading to venues with more realxed dress code. P&O seem more formal than many other cruise lines.
There’s nothing wrong with P&O Azura
Too right. We would love to sail on her again
Oh dear, so wrong!
Hi Simonn, what was it that you thought was so wrong?
Mr doesn'time formal and it showed! Do not go on cunard
We'll be going on Queen Anne shortly..so i need to up my game, thats for sure 😆
Gee God’s it was like listening to a cheap holiday rep reading from a script. I could almost hear the script rustling. Maybe take a term at RADA. Video good but had to turn off after half way through!!!
Thanks so much for the constructive comment, its appreciated......