Azamara is doubling down on the idea that a destination does not switch off after sunset. The line’s 2026 expansion of AzAmazing Evenings adds fresh, thoughtfully curated programmes that bring guests into landmark venues, living traditions, and local performance scenes. If you enjoy a glass of wine in one hand and a sense of place in the other, these evenings are designed to be the moment your voyage tilts from sightseeing to connection.
In 2026, Azamara expands AzAmazing Evenings with 35 new experiences. Nearly every sailing of nine nights or longer includes one complimentary evening ashore, while seven and eight night cruises feature an onboard version. Exceptions apply to some transoceanic crossings and charters. Highlights include Guayaquil’s Palacio de Cristal, Hiroshima’s Kagura performances, and a Shanghai cultural showcase, giving guests seamless, after-dark access to local culture.
Azamara’s goal for next year is simple, broaden the calendar and deepen the cultural lens, without complicating your planning. The promise is a memorable evening that feels special, yet is easy to join because the logistics are handled by the ship and the partners ashore. That combination keeps the experience relaxed, not rushed.
Sailings of nine nights or more are scheduled to include one complimentary AzAmazing Evening ashore. That word, complimentary, matters because it shifts your budget from ticket logistics to personal choices, perhaps a pre-show snack in a nearby plaza or a keepsake after the curtain call. The experience is anchored by real venues and local partners, so the night feels native rather than staged for visitors.
Shorter seven and eight night itineraries have their own tailored onboard versions of the programme. Rather than skip the concept entirely, Azamara distils the spirit of the destination into the ship’s theatre and lounges, bringing expert performers or cultural showcases onboard. This preserves the rhythm of the evening for guests who chose a compact itinerary, while still keeping the night simple to navigate.
The 2026 calendar adds 35 new events, which is a healthy lift in variety. Importantly, these are not just new names in a brochure, they are anchored to real spaces with their own stories, from restored glass domes in South America to waterfront hotels in Japan and city-centre theatres in China. For guests, that means your evening carries the texture of place, not just a title.
A few of the newly announced experiences are easy to picture, which helps you test whether this style resonates with your travel preferences. Each one pairs a distinctive venue with a performance tradition that belongs to that city.
“Viva la Costa: Ecuadorian Rhythms Under the Glass Domes” turns Guayaquil’s Palacio de Cristal into a lantern of sound and movement. The restored iron-and-glass hall sets the stage for Orquesta de Mates y Bambues Macolla, a local ensemble that fuses indigenous craftsmanship with musical heritage using instruments fashioned from mate gourds and bamboo.
Coastal dancers thread the space with colour and cadence, so you feel the shoreline inside the building. The joy of this evening is how it layers craft, community, and contemporary expression in one sweep.
“Traditions of Hiroshima: An Evening of Kagura, Myth & Dance” opens with a sake barrel ceremony at the Grand Prince Hotel Hiroshima, then settles into a programme that includes the dramatic Yamata-no-Orochi myth and the lively Mihara Yassa Festival Dance. Kagura is a living tradition, not a museum piece, so you watch ritual, story, music, and movement connect in real time. The setting gives you comfort and sightlines, while the performances pull you into the region’s narrative, respectfully and without hurry.
“Faces of Tradition: Dance, Acrobatics & Magic at Shanghai Centre” starts sociably, with cocktails and a meet-and-greet with performers, then moves into a cultural show that blends acrobatics, dance, folk music, and the famed Sichuan Opera face-changing magic. The experience is built to be welcoming, a guided glide from introductions to spectacle. By the last sequence, you have a sense of the calibre required to keep centuries of performance alive while speaking to travellers today.
The evenings are a highlight, yet they sit inside the shape of your day. A little planning makes the experience feel effortless. Think about your preferred pace, the way you like to move from day to night, and the cabin location that supports easy transitions.
If you want the full ashore experience included, a nine night or longer itinerary is your target. That length also gives you more daylight hours to balance port time with sea-day recovery. If you prefer a shorter trip, seven or eight nights with the onboard edition keeps the idea intact and the logistics even simpler. Both paths deliver the spirit of AzAmazing Evenings, so choose based on your calendar and energy.
Where your stateroom sits can make a good evening great. Midships on a lower deck often feels steadier if you are motion-sensitive on late returns, while higher decks near lifts keep you a few steps from the theatre when curtain time approaches. If balcony sunsets are part of your ritual, stepping up a category turns pre-show moments into part of the event.
On days with an AzAmazing programme, treat the afternoon kindly. A lighter lunch, a short rest, and a simple early snack onboard can keep you fresh for a late finish. If you love photos, set aside a few minutes during golden hour to capture the venue’s exterior before the performance. The best evenings feel unhurried because you created a small cushion of time.
These programmes are designed to be inclusive, not niche. Whether you travel for food, music, architecture, or stories, the evenings gather those threads into something you can enjoy together without prior knowledge.
If museums and markets anchor your days, an AzAmazing night deepens the arc. You move from learning about a tradition in daylight to feeling it live after dark. That shift from analysis to atmosphere is often where a destination sinks in, and it is exactly what the programme is built to create.
Shared evenings create shared references. The walk back to the ship is full of little moments to replay, a solo on stage, a dancer’s flourish, the way light sat on a building’s façade. For groups that span generations, these nights make it easy to be together without compromising anyone’s pace, since seating, sound, and sightlines are handled for you.
If you travel solo or in a small cluster of like-minded friends, the evenings are conversation starters. You will find yourselves comparing notes with fellow guests who were moved by the same passage for different reasons. That mix of intimacy and community is an Azamara signature, and it shines here.
Azamara’s 2026 calendar is broad, so the smartest next step is narrowing to the regions and months that appeal most. Start by prioritising itineraries where the evening that caught your eye appears, then look at shoulder periods if you prefer gentler crowds and comfortable temperatures.
When you are ready to compare dates and stateroom options at a glance, head to our Cruise Finder. You can filter by region, month, length, and ship, then save a shortlist that aligns with your calendar and travel style:
If you are planning with a partner, family, or friends across time zones, a tidy shortlist reduces back-and-forth. Use Cruise Finder to line up two or three departures that genuinely fit, then share the set and gather feedback quickly. Seeing real dates and cabin categories on one screen turns fuzzy interest into a confident choice.
If one of these evenings has your name on it, now is the time to match dates, cabins, and regions to the way you like to travel. For tailored guidance on itineraries and stateroom positioning that keeps evenings seamless, talk to an adviser to get personalised cruise advice. We will translate the 2026 programme into a plan that feels easy from the first day onboard to the last toast after the curtain call.