Azamara doubles down on destination-focused cruising

Azamara Club Cruises plans to deepen its brand identity as
an immersive, destination-oriented cruise line by adding more opportunities for
passengers to connect locally on shore excursions and by offering even more
overnight and late-night port stays.

Azamara said its brand promise still includes its signature
longer stays and more overnights “but will now go well beyond that.” New
marketing will be built around the phrase “Stay Longer. Experience More.”

The two-ship line (Azamara operates the 700-passenger Quest
and Journey) said it will offer over 1,000 destination experiences in more than
70 countries. The line will include over 250 overnight and late night stays (8
p.m. or later) in port, which is roughly 50% of all its port calls, Azamara
said. It also said that over 50% of the ports on its itineraries are ones where
larger ships can’t dock.

Azamara’s immersive program includes Country Intensive
Voyages, a product that will allow guests to travel deeper and experience more
of a given country, as the majority of the destinations are concentrated in one
country such as Japan, Italy, Spain, Norway, New Zealand, Australia, Greece or
Croatia.

Another new point of emphasis will be “Cruise Global,
Connect Local,” a series of land programs that are designed to deliver
personalized and authentic experiences. Programs are built around biking, golf,
food, local celebrations and site-specific wildlife and wilderness tours, as
well as overland tours either during the voyage or pre- and post-cruise.

There will also be a program called Meet Local, involving
immersive cultural experiences that offer people-to-people connections at the
homes, farms and villas of local families, Azamara said.

“Our land product will be curated to ensure guests get
to connect in a personalized and unique way with the people in the destinations
they visit,” Azamara CEO Larry Pimentel said.

Onboard programming will also be augmented to present more
information than ever on local destinations ranging from local culinary and
beverage selections, to travel movies, lecturers and panel discussions on
destinations and other relevant topics, as well as entertainment.