The Azura cruise ship is a firm favourite with many cruisers. But in 2023 it was our YouTube Cruise channel number one!
The Grand Class of ships have always been a hit and will be tomorrow’s classic. Thank you for all of those who watched the film, shared it (IMPORTANT) and came to see us on stage as lecturers. We hope to be back on the Azura in 2024.
The Chat Group uCruise Azura Darcey Bussell is the Godmother of this ship.
Azura is the fly-cruise of the two Grand Class ships. It home-ports in Barbados in the winter, and Valletta in the summer. This means that with just a short break, you can holiday in some fantastic places. We have always been huge fans of the Grand Class ships and have some great memories.
The Azura has eleven restaurants and eating areas, twelve bars and places to drink, four pools, a gym, two spas, outdoor cinema, a theatre and two show lounges. She is 290m long and has a beam of 36m. Its 24-knot speed is achieved by two 21 MW electric motors with fixed propellers driven by 6 Wärtsilä diesel generators. It also has three bow thrusters, and three stern thrusters which may not be enough when trying to berth as seen on our film where 3 tugs pushed her into Chania (Souda Bay)
It has four pools. The Terrace pool at the back is the one with steps and a handrail for those who are a little unsteady. It has a hoist with a chair on the Aqua pool. The Coral pool is the one with the pizza, grill, and sea screen. Then, there is the quiet pool, where no children are expected to be, that is the Oasis pool at the bow near the gym. The Oasis pool is the only one that does not have a bar.
The ship has five main entertainment venues. The Manhattan is a nightclub venue which normally has a comedian, a DJ or the occasional floor show from the Headliners. The middle club is called Malabar and now has a singer working to backing tracks, making it more like a club venue. However, the big act is often put in there for their second performance which I feel is such a waste. I have seen both Andrew Browning as George Michael in there, and Owen James as Sting, two of the best tribute acts we have ever seen. The main theatre, the Playhouse Theatre is where all the big acts do at least one of their shows, and the Headliners put on their extravaganzas and shows like ‘Astonishing’. The fourth venue is the atrium, which has a dance floor by the Java Cafe. A singer can use this, like the Busker, the resident act that sings around the ship and at some sail-aways. It can also be used for ballroom dancing, line dancing and Fitsteps. Last but certainly not least is the stage in Brodies, where all manner of entertainment happens from quizzes to karaoke, from the Busker to video game competitions. It is also the sports bar and screen. I would not suggest that either the Blue Bar on Deck 7 or the Planet Bar on Deck 18 are entertainment venues, but they can have a pianist playing. The Planet might have the busker or a trio but that seems rare now.
Entertainment can also happen around the pool areas, especially when the weather is good.
There are very few port talks now, so we strongly suggest you look at our filmed port guides and lists of tours which are ideal for research, all listed in the menu.
Start with the award winning and Amazon chart topping Cruise Ship Heist
Or purchase the box set – 6 books for under £10
Restaurants are many. The three main dining halls are the Oriental, the Peninsular and the Meridian. We enjoy a mixed shared table there most nights we are on, for a three-course meal. On gala or celebration nights, these are normally the black-tie formal nights, the meal steps up a notch and is four courses and amuse-bouche. One of the two weeks might be the Macro Pierre White lobster meal, which is lobster pieces in a choux-pastry shell.
The Premium restaurants have become the place to dine out, and on all our recent cruises they were booked to capacity every night, and even the Glass House which does not take reservations is full early doors. The Epicurean is a more formal restaurant with a great meal, meat or fish. The Sindhu is an Asian restaurant with Indian-style food that is quite mild unless you advise them you prefer it more spicey. The Beach House is half the buffet with the tables laid, lights lowered and waiter service. Here the nachos and fish skewers are as much a favourite as steak still cooking on a stone. The buffet is always a good and easy option. The dress code applies to the main dining area, and the Epicurean is smart.
A silly thing that probably won’t affect you – there is a net on the top of the basketball court so you can’t shoot hoops. Silly thing that may affect you, the shops always have a discount day on most times. It can be a different item discounted on different days or a vast 40% off on the last day. They will normally tell you, but you risk missing something as items do go. There is no deck 13, and you cannot walk through on decks 5 & 6, so have to go up to 7 and come back down.
If you wish to return home without masses of laundry, we recommend using the laundrette early evening the day before the day before you leave. It will be empty as everyone is getting ready for dinner. Dump your washing. Go back shower etc then return and use the tumble drier. You can pick it up just before you go out to dinner. So lovely not to have to face a case full of washing when you get home.
Our new 2023 Azura ship tour will be loaded this weekend, it is far superior to the one we currently show, so we are excited. Here is what to expect when our poor 4Mbps finally loads it. So far it has been 5 hours and we have achieved 58%. That’s rural London for you, anywhere in the world would be faster.
My prediction for the long term. I can see the main dining becoming less and less important, and deck 5 Meridian being looked at as a Limelight Club and cinema. I also think that when the two smaller adult ships are released from the fleet, the two Grand Class ships will see their kids club areas converted into cabins as they did when the Aurora was changed up. But that is just future guessing, I have no actual knowledge.
- 0:00 – Intro Azura
- 0:26 – Glass Lifts
- 0:50 – Cabin Steward’s new routine
- 1:05 – Playhouse Theatre D7
- 1:22 – Glass House D7
- 1:44 – Shops D7
- 2:06 – Malabar D7
- 2:20 – Photogallery D7
- 2:30 Sindhu Indian R D7
- 3:07 – Manhattan D7
- 3:32 – Oriental D6
- 3:42 – Shops D6
- 3:52 – Reception D6
- 4:03 – Casino & Brodies D6
- 4:37 – Kamala Room D6
- 4:47 – Excursions D5
- 4:57 – Library D5
- 5:10 – Meridian Java Cafe D5
- 5:20 – Atrium Dance Floor D5
- 5:38 – Whitewall Gallery D5
- 5:55 – Ivory Suite D16
- 6:08 – The Bridge D14
- 6:19 – Oasis Pool D16
- 6:50 – Gym D16
- 7:07 – Deck 18 Sun
- 7:19 – Coral Pool
- 7:32 – The Grill
- 7:42 – Grab & Go
- 7:52 – Pizza & Ice Cream
- 8:02 – Aqua Pool
- 8:12 – Sea Screen
- 8:20 – Deck Quoits
- 8:30 – Terrace Pool
- 8:45 – Epicurean
- 8:58 – Golf & Sports
- 9:08 – Planet Bar
- 9:22 – Kids Clubs
- 9:50 – Buffet
- 10:09 – Beach House
- 10:30 – Main Dining
- 10:55 – Ship Map
- 11:04 – Split preview
- 11:48 – Kusadasi preview
The Azura is the sister of the Ventura. See our Facebook chat group for the Azura. uCruise Azura is a big friendly group. It has chat rooms within the group for specific cruises – see EVENTS.
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TAKING DRINKS ON BOARD ? CAN I ? HOW MUCH ?
