Australia is the third biggest
market for Azamara Club
Cruises and the top choice of
destination if a third ship is
added to the fleet.
THE growth in local sales for the upmarket
Azamara Club has been “monumental”, according
to Edie Bornstein, the company’s Senior Vice
President, who visited Sydney last week.
“Azamara is really resonating with Aussies,”
she said in an interview with Cruise Weekly.
“On the recent Singapore to Shanghai cruise,
over 200 guests were Australian – about onethird
of the capacity of the ship.”
Asia is our favourite choice, she said, but
there is also “a high number” of Australians on
all sailings in Europe and South America.
However, there are no solid plans to base a
vessel in Australia in the near future – not until
a third ship is ordered.
“We would certainly love to be here but we
would need to grow beyond the two vessels,
and as we grow the fleet, Australia would be
the number-one goal,” Bornstein said.
Azamara is Royal Caribbean’s premium line
and operates “destination-immersive” voyages
aboard the 694-passenger Quest and Journey.
Although not priced as a top-level luxury
cruise, Azamara’s perks include complimentary
wine with lunch and dinner, overnight port
stays, and 50% off shore excursions if booked
online at least four days prior to departure.
“It’s tremendous value,” Bornstein said.
Many passengers are first-timers, she added,
as “just under 22% have never cruised before,
and many of them are seasoned travellers who
thought they’d never cruise.”
Bornstein said Azamara competes with
boutique hotels rather than other cruise lines
“because our distinction is that we have longer
stays, more overnights and night touring.”
A recent overnight ‘Land Discovery’ took
cruise passengers from Bangkok to Angkor Wat
in Cambodia.
The company also offers charters for group
bookings of a minimum 250 couples.
“We would love to do an Australian charter,”
Bornstein said.
The biggest markets for Azamara are the US
(about 50% of passengers), UK and Australia,
followed by Canada and Germany.
For details, see your travel agent or visit
www.azamaraclubcruises.com.
