Celebrity Equinox Review - Ultimate Caribbean Cruise, January 30th - February 10th

Hi All,

I'm just off the Celebrity Equinox after an 11-night Ultimate Caribbean Cruise and this is my review with photos. Here is the itinerary:

Day 1 Mon, Jan 30 Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Day 2 Tue, Jan 31 At Sea

Day 3 Wed, Feb 01 George Town, Grand Cayman

Day 4 Thu, Feb 02 At Sea

Day 5 Fri, Feb 03 Cartagena, Colombia

Day 6 Sat, Feb 04 Colon, Panama

Day 7 Sun, Feb 05 Puerto Limon, Costa Rica

Day 8 Mon, Feb 06 At Sea

Day 9 Tue, Feb 07 Cozumel, Mexico

Day 10 Wed, Feb 08 Cozumel, Mexico

Day 11 Thu, Feb 09 At Sea

Day 12 Fri, Feb 10 Fort Lauderdale, Florida

I traveled with my mom and two sisters. All of us have cruised with Celebrity at least a few times before. Three of us have been on the Equinox for a Mediterranean cruise. We arrived from Texas and Massachusetts the day before the cruise and stayed at the Crowne Plaza Fort Lauderdale Airport. I highly recommend this hotel for a pre-cruise stay. It is small and nothing fancy but very clean and nicely decorated. Unfortunately, I didn't remember to take any photos of the hotel. It was pouring rain when we arrived so we ate dinner at the hotel restaurant and turned in early.

The next day, we took the 10:00am shuttle to the cruise port. Check-in was the easiest process it has ever been. Since we arrived pretty early, there was no line to drop off luggage, go through security or to check-in. We had two Concierge Class staterooms. Concierge Class (in my opinion) isn't really worth it on the Equinox, though it seems like they are making an effort to add some benefits. We only signed up for Concierge Class cabins because we were cancelled off of the Celebrity Summit and got a good deal. My older sister and I stayed in aft cabin 9305. My very first aft cabin! The other cabin was mid-ship on deck 10. After check-in, we had to wait about 25 minutes before they started letting us on the ship. It was probably around 11:30 by the time we boarded. One of the few benefits to Concierge Class on the Equinox is the lunch in the main dining room on embarkation day. It was really nice to not have to fight the crowd at the buffet. It was due to start at 11:30am but was delayed until about noon because the inspections were still taking place. No complaints from me on that. Especially since they received a 100 on the inspection, which the dining room staff was quite proud of (rightfully so). The menu for lunch was limited but even a picky eater like myself was able to find something to eat. I'm a big fan of the caesar salad on the ship and that was on the lunch menu as a starter.

After lunch, we signed up for a specialty dining package. Originally, we signed up for 3 dinners but then we decided to add a dinner at Sushi on Five and switched to the 4 dinner package. The specialty dining packages are a a pretty good deal for what you get.

The staterooms were ready around 1:30pm, so we went to drop off our carry on bags and meet our stateroom attendants. I only managed to take one photo of the stateroom and that was because the beds were together instead of apart.

More to come soon! I am working on figuring out how to post photos.

Following! Sailing in her in April

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Okay, I think I've worked out the pictures. This is stateroom 9305:

This is an aft cabin on Deck 9. I really enjoyed having an aft cabin and a view of the wake:

However, it was a pretty long walk from the mid-ship elevators. I would definitely book another aft cabin despite the long walk. Our cabin attendant was Damion and he was fantastic. Not overbearing but still very attentive. The cabin itself needs a refresh. It wasn't dirty at all, just worn. The other issue is that there are only two plugs in the whole room which just isn't enough since everyone now has phones, tablets, computers, hairdryers, flatirons, etc. These are minor issues and in general, I was very happy with the cabin and the service by the cabin attendant.

Our muster station was in the Tuscan Grill and then it was time to get ready for dinner and unpack. Our luggage arrived before muster began. Damion offered us additional hangers but since we brought some from home, we didn't need any.

For sail away, we went up to the Sunset Bar. The classic drink package was included in our purchase. We ordered a drink that was pina colada and strawberry daiquiri in the same glass and it was included in the package. It had a fun name but it is escaping me at the moment.

Dinner was in the main dining room. I believe I had the prime rib which was good. Overall, the food in the main dining room was pretty good with some hits and misses. I'm a pretty picky eater and I always found things to eat. Our head waiter was Pedro and his assistant was Albert. They provided great service and were friendly and wonderful. Ines was the sommelier but we only ordered one bottle of wine. Despite our lack of wine ordering, she still came over and said hello just about every night. Sam was the maitre'd and it seemed like he was a great manager. Here is dessert:

On the left is chocolate mousse with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, on the right is a piece of chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream.

Our first day was at sea and we did the usual things that one does on a sea day. One minor glitch was a problem with my sea pass card. It would not allow me to make any purchases. I went down to guest relations and Callie was the guest relations person to help me. I don't know what was wrong with it but fixing needed IT involvement. It seemed like other people were having similar issues but for some reason, mine was more difficult to fix. Callie kindly sent me along on my way to continue having fun while she worked it out. She left me a message to let me know it was all set and then sent up chocolate covered strawberries for the trouble:

Day 3 - Grand Cayman

Our first port was Grand Cayman. This is a tender port and it was a bit harrowing for some of our fellow passengers getting on and off the tender boats. We had priority tender tickets either because we were Concierge class or because one of the people in each stateroom was Elite. I'm not sure. In this port, my mom and I just got off the ship to see if there was a little tour or something we could take. In the port, we signed up for a glass bottom boat tour that leaves out of the Atlantis submarine dock. It was $40 and completely worth it. The tour guide was knowledgeable

This was a shipwreck we saw. One of my sisters did the Snuba excursion through the ship and really enjoyed it. It was really busy in port that day as there were five or six other ships. Next time, I would like to check out the beach if it isn't so crowded. We were all back on the ship by about 1pm and went to lunch in the extremely busy buffet.

Day 4 - At Sea

We enjoy eating in the main dining room for breakfast as it is much less busy than the buffet. At sea days usually also involve spending some time in Cafe Al Bacio reading and playing trivia. On this sea day, one of my sisters and I also participated in "The Heart of the Operation" presentation in the main dining room. The executive chef and his team answered questions and then took people in smaller groups on a tour of the kitchen.

It was a very interesting tour. I recommend getting there early as it was quite popular.

This is the lunch menu for this day:

Please excuse my poor photography skills. We also played plenty of trivia on the sea days. Mark was the activity staff who handled most of the trivia events and he was hilarious.

We went to lunch at Sushi on Five on one of the sea days, I think maybe the first one. I do not eat sushi so I'm not the best judge but my sister who does like sushi wasn't very impressed. The service though, was excellent. Our waiter was Jasper and he knew his sushi.

No apologies needed. You're doing a great job. Thank you for posting. We will be on Equinox in Oct, a while to wait yet. Did you find you had to wait to have your room made up or was it done when you returned from breakfast?

No apologies needed. You're doing a great job. Thank you for posting. We will be on Equinox in Oct, a while to wait yet. Did you find you had to wait to have your room made up or was it done when you returned from breakfast?

It was always made up when we returned to it regardless of the time of day. Either after breakfast or after dinner. I don't know how he did it but I don't recall one time that I came back and it wasn't freshened up.

Day 5 - Cartagena, Colombia

This was one of my favorite stops on the trip. We signed up for a non-ship tour through the message boards here at CC. Our tour guide was named Ben Torres and I recommend him to anyone going to Cartagena. He knew so much history about the city and could answer any question he was asked. The tour took us to the top of the hill and then down to the fort and through the old town.

We went up to the top of the hill to a church and this was the view.

Shoes outside of the fort

The old town

The old town was beautiful so if you only do one thing in Cartagena, make sure you walk around there.

Colombia is known for emeralds so we all ended up buying emerald jewelry through Ben's recommended shop. He did say that particular shop donates money from his referrals to schools that he works with to help students (if I understood correctly).

A little tip about this port - it is a long walk from the ship to the exit, however, there is a port run shuttle that will take you door to door. One sister figured out about the shuttle and waved to us from the air conditioned bus while the rest of us walked back to the ship.

It does get very hot in Cartagena so I would also recommend getting out early for a tour.

Day 5 continued - Helipad and Tuscan Grille

Concierge Class passengers were invited to the helipad for sail away on two occasions during this sailing. I went with one of my sister's to check it out. It was a fun event with champagne and a bunch of officers showed up. We had a lovely chat with the Guest Relations Director and enjoyed a great view of Colombia.

That evening, we went to the Tuscan Grille for dinner. It was delicious and the service was excellent as always. I had the filet mignon and mashed potatoes.

Thanks for the review.

Wonderful review and pictures so far Jen. Looking forward to more. Mom and I will be on the Equinox in October and so excited!

Think that drink is Miami Vice.

Day 5 continued - Helipad and Tuscan Grille

 

Concierge Class passengers were invited to the helipad for sail away on two occasions during this sailing. I went with one of my sister's to check it out. It was a fun event with champagne and a bunch of officers showed up. We had a lovely chat with the Guest Relations Director and enjoyed a great view of Colombia.

 

 

 

That evening, we went to the Tuscan Grille for dinner. It was delicious and the service was excellent as always. I had the filet mignon and mashed potatoes.

 

How did they invite you to the helipad? Is this common for sail aways? We are concierge in April and wondering if this will be offered .....

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Day 5 continued - Helipad and Tuscan Grille

 

Concierge Class passengers were invited to the helipad for sail away on two occasions during this sailing. I went with one of my sister's to check it out. It was a fun event with champagne and a bunch of officers showed up. We had a lovely chat with the Guest Relations Director and enjoyed a great view of Colombia.

 

 

 

That evening, we went to the Tuscan Grille for dinner. It was delicious and the service was excellent as always. I had the filet mignon and mashed potatoes.

 

How did they invite you to the helipad? Is this common for sail aways? We are concierge in April and wondering if this will be offered ....

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Thanks for the review JenGtravels . We are booked on the Equinox for New Years Eve 2017. ! :)

Loving the review we are on board in a little over two weeks, with the same itinerary but our overnight is in Cartagena

Hi JenGTravels,

You mentioned you changed your dinner package to the 4 night one to include sushi on 5? Was there a set limit of $ you could spend or was the sushi/dishes unlimited?

The reason I ask is on a previous ship we were told if dining there as part of a package there was a $30 limit per person... we weren't charged any extra but have read mixed reports how sushi on 5 is handled as to being part of the dinner package, and in some cases it not being offered as part of the package...

Just looking for some further clarification on this option [emoji106]

Great review by the way [emoji106][emoji4]

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Thanks for the nice comments!

poffles - It was a Miami Vice! Thank you! I knew it had a fun name.

Pier290 - Our stateroom attendants left invitations in our rooms for the helipad event.

Day 6 - Colon, Panama

We signed up for the ship excursion to Portabelo and the Gatun Locks. I have to say, this was one of the most disorganized ship excursion departures that I have seen with Celebrity. Some of the excursions met in locations on the ship and then disembarked together to get on a bus. However, a bunch of the excursions just had instructions to meet on the pier. Adding to the confusion was that the ticket didn't have a number on it and the tour guides were all standing around with paddles that had numbers. It was also raining which added to the chaos. Eventually, after a lot of standing around, we did get on a bus and were on our way to Portabelo.

This is the inside of the bus:

Portabelo is a town with an old fort:

It was about an hour and twenty minutes away from the port. It was interesting but probably not something I would want to do again. There is a very small museum and video to watch. There are stray dogs everywhere in the town and there is a trash pick-up dispute happening so there are piles of trash everywhere you look. Our tour guide was great though and he brought us all banana cakes that his girlfriend made. They were delicious and since there was no stop for lunch, a good way to hold us over until we returned to the ship. The restroom at the fort had no soap or running water so keep that in mind when packing for the day.

Here is another picture of the fort:

After the fort, we hopped back on the groovy bus for the ride to Gatun Locks. It took about an hour.

You can drive over these locks which is pretty cool. We got to see a couple of big container ships go through. There is an observation deck. It is up quite a few flights of stairs and there is no elevator. There is also one on the ground level if you don't feel like climbing the stairs. There are restrooms with running water there as well.

After the Gatun Locks, it was time to return to the ship for some tea and cookies at Cafe Al Bacio. Here is the evening's dinner menu:

I had the Beef Bourguignon and it was pretty good. I've mentioned before that I'm a pretty picky eater but I only ended up ordering from the "everyday" menu once during the whole trip. They have a good variety in the dining room of choices for everyone.

Hi JenGTravels,

 

You mentioned you changed your dinner package to the 4 night one to include sushi on 5? Was there a set limit of $ you could spend or was the sushi/dishes unlimited?

 

The reason I ask is on a previous ship we were told if dining there as part of a package there was a $30 limit per person... we weren't charged any extra but have read mixed reports how sushi on 5 is handled as to being part of the dinner package, and in some cases it not being offered as part of the package...

 

Just looking for some further clarification on this option [emoji106]

 

Great review by the way [emoji106][emoji4]

 

 

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Hello! No, there was no set limit on sushi we could order with the package. We just ordered a bunch of stuff and then there was no bill or anything to sign at the end. We tried a lot of things and definitely would have gone over the $30pp limit if there had been one.

Also, there is wine included in the specialty dining package which we didn't realize until we ordered wine that was above our drink package and weren't charged for it at the Tuscan Grille.

Day 7 - Puerto Limón, Costa Rica

I organized a tour with Oscar Brown Tours for this port. There were five of us and it was $45pp for the tour and it lasted about 4 hours. Definitely worth it.

Our first stop was at the side of the road to see a monkey in a tree:

He also showed us a lipstick plant:

Our next stop was a farm stand where he explained a lot of the plants to us that were growing around the stand and then we got to try some fruit.

I had the best banana of my life at this farm stand and bought some coffee and chocolate to give out back home.

We then went on a boat ride on the river. It was raining so I was glad I had my poncho. We saw a lot of different birds, some sloths, howler monkeys, a baby alligator and a Jesus Christ Lizard:

Sloth:

After that, he took us to the top of a hill that had a view of the ship in port before bringing us back. This is another port with a very long walk from the entrance to the ship and there is not a shuttle for this one.

Day 8 - At Sea

An at sea day means crosswords and coffee at Cafe Al Bacio

This is one of my favorite spots to hang out on the ship. The blended iced mochas were delicious and were included in the classic drink package. I started my day here almost every morning since I tend to wake up pretty early. They open at 6 or 6:30am depending on if the ship is in port or not.

We played more trivia and visited the casino. I don't recall which day but I did go in the solarium pool once while we were at sea. The ship was rolling a little bit so it was a little like a wave pool and I enjoyed it.

Before dinner at Murano, we had drinks at the World Class Bar:

Dinner at Murano was excellent.

I had the salad with melon to start and it was so good.

Two of us had the lobster which is cooked table side:

And two of us had the Châteaubriand for Two which is sliced table side:

One sister ordered the crepe for dessert which is also prepared table side:

All of the food was delicious and the service was impeccable. I definitely recommend spending an evening here for this dining experience.

Do they always invite concierge to helipad??

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Day 9 - Cozumel, Mexico

The overnight on this trip was in Cozumel, Mexico. We have all been to Cozumel at least twice before so we might have liked to have an overnight elsewhere. We arrived around 1:00pm. We got off the ship and took a taxi downtown to do a little shopping. This port is easy to navigate as there is a well organized taxi stand right outside the exit with fares posted. Beware of fake jewelry sellers. If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. After shopping, we headed back to the ship for dinner.

Here is the evening's dinner menu:

I had the chicken and it was very good but a huge portion:

The dining room wasn't that busy since many people decided to dine off the ship.

Day 10 - Cozumel, Mexico

We went to the beach at Nachi Cocom. You need to make reservations in advance as they only allow a certain number of people. It was pretty busy in port that day but the beach didn't feel that busy. It is all inclusive with drinks and food for $55. There are lounge chairs and a pool with swim up bar. We did rent rafts for an additional $7. The taxi each way was less than $20. We did bring our own towels from the ship because it didn't seem like they provided them there but I also didn't ask.

The Silhouette was also in port that day:

I asked security as I was getting back on the Equinox if anyone tried to get on the wrong ship and he said it had been happening all day.

Dinner that night was Beef Wellington. I did not care for it which I think comes down to personal taste rather than cooking.

Baked Alaska was on the dessert menu:

I do miss the napkin waving and whole presentation they used to do but the dessert was still delicious.

Enjoying your review. Have sailed the Equinox a couple of times and considering another one at the moment. Did you happen to catch the Hot Glass show? How's the entertainment these days?

Hello! No, there was no set limit on sushi we could order with the package. We just ordered a bunch of stuff and then there was no bill or anything to sign at the end. We tried a lot of things and definitely would have gone over the $30pp limit if there had been one.

 

Also, there is wine included in the specialty dining package which we didn't realize until we ordered wine that was above our drink package and weren't charged for it at the Tuscan Grille.

Thanks for the response [emoji106]

Think we will add a couple more nights to our planned dining package to include 2 x sushi visits [emoji39]

We're on the Equinox again soon so you're review is making it all seem so real and not far away at all [emoji483][emoji41]

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Are helipad invites typical on all sailings for concierge? ?

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