Preplanning for our Azamara Quest Cruise – All Things Cruise

We will be going to sea in a few days!  We cannot wait!  Jane and I will be sailing on the Azamara Quest from Southampton to Lisbon. We are fans of transatlantic voyages on Cunard’s Queen Mary 2 because we feel the ship is the destination and the vacation. The Azamara Quest will visit seven ports in ten days. Only one sea day!  We will be seeing plenty of places we have never visited before and might never see again!  This requires research to maximize the value of each port stop.

Azamara has some excellent shore excursions. We will take advantage in some ports and explore on our own in others. The theme of the cruise is a “10 Night Wine and Culture Voyage.”  We are both wine fans. This means we need to get the research right.

1. Southampton, UK. We fly into London a day or so early. Hopefully there will be no flight cancellations or rail strikes. We take the Underground into London.

• Marriott Kensington Hotel. It’s located about two blocks from the Gloucester Road Underground station on the Piccadilly Line, which runs from the airport. It’s a good hotel that is reasonably priced. They have a Concierge Lounge, a Marriott Bonvoy perk.
• Pont de La Tour. We plan to have dinner with friends at our favorite restaurant. It overlooks Tower Bridge, as the name implies. They have a good price fixed menu in addition to a la carte offerings.
• National Express. We will take the bus from Victoria Coach Station to Southampton on Monday morning. The fare is about $7.50.

2. Bordeaux, France. We have an overnight in Bordeaux so everything doesn’t need to fit into one day. Bordeaux is a city famous for the wine of the same name. The most famous chateaus in the region are just outside the city. I am a wine snob. There are 8,500+ wine producing chateaus in Bordeaux. In my opinion, only 87 matter, the chateaus in the original classification of 1855.

• Visit chateaus. The ship has a 5 hour tour, Medoc Discovery. You visit Chateau Beychevelle and Chateau Kirwan. Yes, they are on the 1855 list!  Cost is about $180pp. It will be worth every penny. At this moment it is sold out, but we will join the waiting list upon boarding the ship. We are contacting the major chateaus directly as out backup plan.
• Cite du Vin Wine Museum. It’s relatively new and supposed to be spectacular. Tickets are 21 Euro each. That’s good for a couple of hours.
• Lunch at a sidewalk café or fine restaurant. Friends in the wine trade recommend Les Noialles or Chapon Fin. We can book reservations online.
• Food to discover. Bordeaux is famous for Bordeaux wines. The cheeses are probably numerous too.

3. Jean de Luz, France. We are near or close to Basque Country, but we are also close to Biarritz, the legendary resort town made famous by Empress Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III. Queen Victoria liked the place too. It’s the sort of place the super wealthy of the 1800’s visited and Hercule Poirot or Sherlock Holmes would visit while solving a case. The ship has a 3+ hour tour, priced at $99 but we might explore on our own if we can get there easily. St Jean de Luz seems pretty small. The population is about 14,000. There seems to be one main street running from one side of town to the other. (I am sure there are other streets.) I think I read there is a frisbee throwing contest, but not when we are there.

• Michelin highlights seven restaurants in the town. None get stars, but all are recommended. Usually they have lunch menus that are three courses and price fixed. I am sure we will find something.
• St. Jean de Luz might be small, but there is a hypermarket nearby. Carrefour usually has a great wine selection.
• Market Day. Fortunately we will be in port on market day. Visiting an outdoor market in France is always a treat.
• Apparently, the train from St. Jean de Luz to Biarritz takes ten minutes. Exploring this resort is an option.
• Food to discover. Basque cheese is local to the area. The French wine region Irouleguy is nearby.

4. Bilbao, Spain. I am confident Bilbao has lots going for it, but the Guggenheim Museum is the star attraction for us. Tickets are 16 Euro for adults, 8 Euro for seniors. Age has its privileges. I am assuming finding a good place for tapas should not be difficult.

• Guggenheim Museum – If we have come this far, we must check it out.
• Trams – Bilbao is said to have the best mass transit system in Spain. I am assuming we can ride trams and get a good view of the city.
• Hop on, hop off bus. Apparently Bilbao has several competing companies.
• El Corte Ingles – Spain’s major department store chain has a location on Grand Via. (Where else would you put it?) In addition to a food hall and great wine department, the chain usually has a self service restaurant and depending on the location, a linen tablecloth restaurant. Rioja wines always taste better there!  
• Food to discover. The Rioja wine region is nearby. It’s probably the wine of choice in Bilbao. We are still in the Basque region, on the Spanish side of the border. We will look for Basque sheep’s milk cheese.

5. Gijon, Spain. Here is a city we do not know much about. It is the 15^th largest city in Spain. Maritime industries and the navy are a major part of the city’s heritage. Cimadevilla, the old fisherman’s quarter, is the oldest section of town. I assume we will head there, walk and explore.

• Gijon has seven restaurants recognized by Michelin. Auga is the one meriting a Michelin star. They seem to have a six course tasting menu priced at about 60 Euro.
• Roman settlement. The oldest part of town also has a Roman settlement, possibly the oldest in Spain. We can check that out.
• Yes, they have a branch of El Corte Ingles. Think of it as Spain’s version of Macy’s.
• Yacht club. It’s also located in the fisherman’s quarter. I wonder if they will let us in.
• Food to discover. Can it be true there are 50 cheeses in the area? Penamellera is one example. We love wine, but cider is popular in this area.

6. La Coruna, Spain. This is where you find the Church, Santiago de Compostela, the destination for the pilgrims who do the walk of St. James, the Camino de Santiago. The total journey is 500 miles. Seeing the Church will be great. We will likely find another spot for tapas.

• Santiago de Compostela. There are many reasons to visit this Church. One id the giant censer, a five foot long, 180 pound incense burner swung from ropes and pulleys. It’s the largest in the world.
• Yes, our favorite Spanish retail chain has a location near the Church. It’s our backup plan for lunch.
• Michelin recognizes 16 restaurants in La Coruna. One merits a star, Arbore da Viera. It looks like the most reasonable of their tasting menus is 60 Euro.
• Food to discover. Local chesses include Arzua-Ulloa and Queso Telita. Wine should be from the Galacia region.

7. Porto, Portugal. We are wine fans. We are port collectors. We will want to visit one of the historic port lodges, like Grahams. You can buy tourist passes to include the train, boat and a visit to a port lodge. Lunch will fit in there somewhere. Porto has some Michelin starred restaurants.

• Port lodge. We are wine collectors. We know a bit about port. Ideally, we want to get into the best port lodge possible and take the tour with the best tasting. We realize this will come at a cost.
• Enjoying the tourist pass. If we can tour by rising a bus and a boat, we will give it a try.
• Hop on, hop off bus. The yellow bus costs 18 Euro. That’s another touring option.
• Food to discover. Terrincho and Transmontano goat cheese are two to discover. Although the city is famous for port, the region producing Vinho Verde is nearby.

8. Lisbon, Portugal. Lisbon we have visited several times previously. Our #1 activity will be taking the train to Cascais, a beach town a short ride outside the city. The last time we visited, the train reminded us of vintage NYC subway cars. On that trip, we exited the train, walked into town and asked two police officers where we could find an outdoor restaurant serving platters of cold seafood. They laughed, told us which way to walk and said we would see several! We did and had a splendid afternoon we still talk about today. It was the first and only time we have tried barnacles!

As you can see, we plan to combine ship shore excursions with exploring on our own. We will “go with the flow.” If covid rules say “ship tours only” we will comply. If getting from the pier into town is problematic (ever dock in Monte Carlo?) we will consider a tour. We are looking forward to creating new memories!

Ed. Note: See Azamara sailings: Azamara Quest, Azamara all ships