Our Product Manager, Michaela, boarded Azamara Onward for a 6 night cruise from Adelaide to Perth. As this was part of a longer itinerary travelling from Sydney to Singapore and she was doing a small portion, the boarding was a bit different than your usual experience. It didn’t take long at all and I didn’t have to complete the safety briefing.
At 592 feet long, 84 feet wide, and weighing in at 30,277 tons it is quite a small ship. The ship caters for 684 guests with 408 crew, and includes 278 staterooms. It has 5 restaurants and 8 bars / lounges. This made it easy to find space on the ship to spend some time alone.
Read all about Michaela’s time onboard below.
Azamara Onward Welcome and First Impressions
I spent the afternoon familiarising myself with the ship. Although the ship itself was built in 1999, and has been owned by Azamara since 2022, it is still quite a nice traditional-looking cruise ship. It has undergone a soft refurbishment since 2022, but some areas including the Interior and Oceanview cabins are starting to look a bit tired.
I was located in an Oceanview cabin on Deck 4 at the front of the ship which was not ideal when the seas got a bit rough, as I ended up getting seasick! The cabins themselves are quite small in this category. I would definitely recommend nothing lower than a Verandah Suite, and if you want extra amenities, I would recommend upgrading to a Verandah Plus Suite.
It’s worth noting that all pricing onboard is in USD. Shore Excursions aren’t included and are also priced in USD so if you haven’t got any Onboard Credit, then they can be quite expensive. WiFi is also not included, and is also priced in USD. It is quite expensive for 1 device for the whole cruise!
Myself and the other Product Managers onboard had a welcome chat in the Cabaret Lounge at the front of the ship on deck 5. This is where all of the safety briefings and shore excursions tend to depart from during the day, but at night it comes alive with various cabaret shows, dance performances, guitar players and singers.
Azamara Onward Cabin Types
The Azamara Onward has 8 different cabins / suites: Interior, Oceanview, Verandah, Verandah Plus, Continent Suite, Spa Suite, Ocean Suite and World Owner’s Suite. I was staying in the Oceanview cabin, which featured a small window and a sitting area. Other key features of the suite included:
- Two lower beds convertible to one Queen size bed
- Some staterooms feature sofa bed
- 40” flat-screen TV
- Refrigerator with mini-bar
- Thermostat-controlled air conditioner
- Direct-dial telephone with voicemail
- Writing desk
- In-room safe
- Hand-held hairdryer
- USB ports under bedside reading lamps
- 143 sq. ft. (13.3 sq m)
As one of the smaller cabins, it is also a lead-in suite. The lead-in suites such as the Oceanview and the Interior cabin are very small and felt a little claustrophobic. As mentioned above, I would suggest booking nothing less than the Verandah suite for these reasons, plus you get an added space with the balcony.
Keep in mind that if you currently book higher than a Continent Suite, you’ll receive a dedicated butler, in-suite afternoon tea & complimentary in-room spirits, as well as other exclusive amenities. Chat with a Tour + Cruise specialist to learn more about the individual cabin types.
Azamara Onward Dining
On this ship, I was impressed by the variety of tasty options available for dining. With specialty dining, main dining restaurants, casual dining and a variety of bars and lounges available, I was glad to see so much choice. Drinks were also included all day which is a great bonus for those wanting that all-inclusive luxury! The dining experience was overall really great, as passengers were also really friendly and wanted to mingle.
Specialty Dining
Aqualina: Italian-inspired restaurant located at the back corner of the ship. We ate here one of the evenings and I decided to try a variety of their appetizers which were all delicious. The decor is a very traditional style, but the service from the staff was excellent. You could drink the standard wine or cocktail package in here, or choose to pay extra for a nicer bottle of wine or premium cocktails.
Prime C: This was the ship’s steak restaurant. We also ate here one night and the food was fabulous. The steak was cooked to perfection and again the staff were impeccable. You could drink the standard wine or cocktail package in here, or choose to pay extra for a nicer bottle of wine or premium cocktails.
Main Dining
Discoveries Restaurant: A la carte dining is available for lunch and dinner each day in this restaurant. The food varies every day, and I found the food here quite nice. Again, the staff were friendly and very accommodating.
Casual Dining & Snacks
Windows Cafe: Buffet-style restaurant open for breakfast, lunch and dinner which had themed dinners each night from different regions. To be honest, I got a bit sick of the buffet food as I would have preferred some more fresh and healthy options.
Mosaic Cafe: Casual seating with coffee and snacks available throughout the day. If you didn’t feel like eating at one of the restaurants, you could always grab a small bread roll or croissant from here. It was one of my favourite areas to sit and do some work or have a chat with the staff or other passengers.
The Patio and Swirl & Top: Casual pool grill by day serving burgers and hotdogs and a sit down al-fresco dining at night. We enjoyed a sailaway party here one night with dinner on the pool deck. Also features a self-serve yoghurt station.
Bars & Lounges
Atlas Lounge: This is only on Azamara Onward and is a cosy cocktail bar located outside the specialty dining restaurants. It feels like an exclusive area, however anyone is able to enjoy a drink in this bar.
Discoveries Lounge: This bar is located at the entry to the main restaurant and is great for grabbing a cocktail on the way into dinner.
Cabaret Lounge: Every night there is a show to attend around 9.30pm after dinner. The only downfall is that it doesn’t quite fit all the passengers in there at one time, so if you get there late you’ll be standing!
The Living Room: This is a bar / cafe located at the front of the ship and is a really great gathering place to catch up with friends with drinks / nibbles available all day. They run quizzes and bingo here during the day and then in the evening there is an opportunity to do karaoke or dance to the DJ / singers.
The Den / Drawing Room: This is another cosy bar which livens up in the evenings with piano players and singers until 10.30pm before everyone moves into the Living Room for dancing!
Sanctum Spa & Fitness Centre on the Azamara Onward
The spa is located at the front of the ship and offers various packages which are priced in USD and are quite expensive! They do have daily specials and offer cheaper services early in the morning and in the evenings. I did have a 60 minute massage which was quite nice. The actual treatment rooms are quite old and no music was played! This space also features salon services as well. They do have a change room and a sauna that anyone can use even if not having a treatment. There is a private spa bath located outside the Sanctum Spa for suite guests only.
The fitness centre was next door with lots of machines and a fitness room where they run complimentary stretching and yoga classes every morning. You are also able to pay for a personal trainer to assist you in reaching your fitness goals.
The main pool is located mid ship on Deck 10. The pool itself is quite small and has two spa tubs on either side. It’s quite a nice area to sit on the day beds during the day either facing inward toward the pool or facing outward looking at the views.
Who Would Enjoy an Azamara Cruise?
I would suggest that guests over 60+ and who enjoy being social would enjoy Azamara the most. More specifically, those looking to get off at more unique ports that only smaller ships can get into will love Azamara and the Azamara Onward. Guests wanting to explore the port area later into the night will enjoy the immersive country itineraries that Azamara provides.
Final thoughts
I quite enjoyed my time on the Azamara Onward. The crew and other passengers were so friendly and always up for a chat. There are many dining options available and an array of amenities. Keep in mind it is not family-friendly as there is nothing for children to do. Adult travellers seeking immersive itineraries and personalized service would enjoy Azamara. They have more late-night and overnight itineraries than any other cruise line which means passengers can totally immerse themselves in destinations.
I found the overall feel of the clients on the ship to be over 60+ and generally were people who enjoyed mingling with other guests and getting involved in the activities and late-night festivities onboard. Some of them were still drinking and dancing well after midnight!
View all our Azamara cruise deals here, or discuss with a Tour + Cruise specialist for more information.
