Amazing Azamara Quest

This summer, Panache Cruises' Admin Manager Lyndsay Cuddy spent a week on board Azamara Quest sailing around the Greek Islands. She was the first of the Panache Cruises team to get away and we were all extremely jealous - although as you may have seen, we all followed suit! Lyndsay has written all about her experience on board Quest on one of its first cruises back at sea.

"The boarding and testing process at Athens was extremely well organised. We arrived at the port to be greeted by many Azamara staff who showed us exactly where we needed to go. We firstly went through the Covid testing area; there was quite a lengthy queue as the Azamara staff completed the health questionnaire with us and checked our vaccination status. The final stage was the Antigen test which only took a couple of minutes, we were then given a number and asked to wait in the seating area until our results had been processed, which only took about 20 mins, and we were provided with water and cool towels whilst we waited. Once we had our results we were free to check in.

The rules for entry back to the UK was that we had a negative PCR test within 3 days of arrival back to the UK. This was provided free of charge by Azamara whilst on board, the process was seamless and very well organised. The evening prior to testing we received information in our stateroom with an exact time of our test and where it would be taking place on board – we arrived for testing which took 5 minutes at most. We received our results in our cabin the day before we disembarked ready to show at check-in at Athens airport on our return. We were really impressed with this and it took away any worries we may have had.

We were lucky enough to be allocated a Club Veranda Plus Stateroom; the room was lovely and beautifully decorated in hues of taupes and creams. The extras we received in having the ‘plus’ stateroom was a selection of full-size bottled spirits on our mini bar as well as a bottle of champagne on arrival and daily canapes in our room, a lovely touch when you're getting ready for the evening, nothing nicer than a little pre-dinner aperitif on your balcony while you sail away!

Our stateroom had a separate seating area, and the veranda was a good size with two lounge chairs and a table. The room overall was a good size and had everything we needed for a wonderful trip. Room service was available 24 hours a day, including breakfast in your room if you so wished. Nothing was too much trouble for them and whatever we asked for was delivered promptly.

For a small ship, and a capacity of 690 passengers, the restaurant choice was really good. The main dining room is called ‘Discoveries’ and has a real traditional feel. The menu changed each evening and there were fabulous choices. The crew were very attentive and always remembered your name, advising you on the menu and their recommendations each evening, they always took the time to ask about your day and took a genuine interest, they really are a credit to Azamara.

There were two specialty restaurants onboard: Prime C, a high-end steak restaurant, and Aqualina, a wonderful Italian restaurant. Both restaurants carry a cover charge of just $30 per head, which is very reasonable as the food and ambience were superb!

We dined in Prime C one evening, and ordered the Chateau Briand for two, and we weren’t disappointed! This was carved to us at our table which was a nice little touch. We ordered quite a few different selection of sides as we couldn’t decide and for a couple who love their food and nice restaurants we loved it! This is another perk of having the Plus Staterooms as you receive one complimentary specialty dining for every 7-night duration.

There was a good selection of bars on board too, we loved having pre-dinner drinks in ‘The Den’. This was at the top of the ship and had floor to ceiling glass windows with sumptuous velvet chairs and sofas where we enjoyed our cocktails whilst looking out to sea – perfect. After dinner this spot turned into a more lively ‘private club’ style atmosphere with live music each evening where on a few occasions we were known to dance into the early hours!

There was always a choice of shore excursions for you to choose from, but we didn’t feel we needed to use them this time, as the joy of sailing on a smaller ship means you can get right into the ports and the Greek islands we visited were small enough to explore independently on foot. Our favourite islands were Patmos, a beautiful small island with lovely small boutiques and restaurants surrounding a main square with stunning white and blue washed buildings (a picture perfect Greek island, we will be back!) and also Mykonos.

Azamara ships really are little gems, they are stylish yet comfortable and you easily feel at home. The crew were fabulous, and you could tell they genuinely enjoyed talking to us and all the guests. Our Captain Johannes was great too, he was very present on board, you could always see him around the ship, and he came and spoke to us during dinner one night to ensure we were enjoying our trip.

The pool areas and deck spaces were spacious and inviting, and a highlight of any Azamara cruise must be the ‘White Night’ where they turn the pool area into a party atmosphere with canapes and champagne being served whilst listening to live music from the entertainment crew, and of course all guests are dressed up in white!

We really enjoyed our trip and hope to be sailing back on Azamara very soon."

To find out more about Azamara, .

To watch Lyndsay's video, click below: 

Want to experience this? Give the Panache Cruises team a call on 0161 513 8200 and they'd be happy to help!