Equinox June 18 review- western Caribbean

I just returned from the trip and I thought I would give a review while still fresh in my mind. Overall it was a good cruise, not the best but not the worst. There are some positives and negatives. It has been 7 years since I last cruised with celebrity so it was different than I remembered.

Overall the ship is beautiful. It is a nice size, nice pool deck, easy buffet, easy to navigate and kept very clean. There were always attendants in the ladies room so the cleanliness of the ship was very impressive.

Embarkation- we were concierge class so we had no wait. The only problem was the gate agent set up our cards improperly so when we went to board we got sad beeps and had to wait. I looked at the screen and the photos she took were of our ears and not eyes so they had to redo our pictures and then we were on our way. Not tragic, just annoying.

Concierge lunch- this was a nice perk. However they try to get you to leave your luggage in the front and seat you somewhere else. While this is fine for the roller suitcases, they wanted me to leave my large purse with all my cash and passport, so I repeatedly declined and kept it with me. Lunch was tasty, 3 courses, but challenging if you have any dietary restrictions as it is all pre-made. The best part was that we got an invite to the helipad during the sail away that was given out at the end of the lunch.

Muster- surprisingly this was a positive. Now I know you probably think I had already started to drink thinking this way, but we were in the theater and instead of just the same boring drill, Celebrity creates a high production spy vignettes movie that gave the muster drill info. It was entertaining and very well done. I just don't know how this was shown if you were in a non-theatre location like the casino.

Room- this was nice but standard. The one great aspect was that we were an angled balcony, which is double the size of a normal one. This was well worth it! The bathroom was nice but I don't enjoy the setup of the toilet almost in the shower (NCL and Princess are different). My only complaint was that there were no shelves in the closet and storage for 3 people was very tight. We did have our steward empty the fridge so we could use it for our beverages.

Room Service- this was great! We got coffee and pastries delivered every morning and ate on the large balcony( before we went to the main dining room). The best part is that they call you before they arrive so you are ready for them.

Dinning room/food- we ate all dinners except 2 here. For breakfast it was good but were disappointed that there were no changing specials and by the end we were tired of the selections. For lunch and dinner the food was good, nothing extra special. The best part of our meals was the service. We had the most amazing waiter, Marlon, and wine stewardess, Lewelyn (we did anytime dining but they gave us the same crew no matter when we arrived). They were professional, fun, pleasant, and even had what we wanted waiting for us on the table before we could ask for it.

Murano- we did this one night. The decor and ambiance is 5 star and high end. The service is 5 star dining French service so if this is off putting this is not the place for you. They serve the lobster and chateaubriand table side.

Tuscan grill- the service was slow. We watched people arrive after us on dessert while we got our mains ( took 2.5hours). However the best piece of meat I ate the entire trip was the filet here- it was like butter and delicious.

Beverage package- I had the classic alcohol, which was fine but I had trouble with some of the the servers(casino bar) and in the buffet (gave me coke for Coke Zero) thinking it was classic non alcohol. They refused to give me sparkling water, but I could get a $9 cocktail. The casino bar was the worst bar on the ship. They were rude, you could stand at the bar for 10 minutes with no one there and they would ignore you. They even gave us a beer outside of our package, which we didn't order but was their suggestion, which we didn't like or drink but charged our card the $1.18 difference up charge. Also, the ship has the worst bloody Mary's. Mix is all pepper and served with a lime only! Really no celery, olives, lemon. No one would make it for me said it was mix, vodka and lime.

cafe al bacio- great coffee and tea and you could always get it to go.

Casino- nice selection of newer slot machines but the table minimums are crazy. No $5 blackjack and one $10 table at night. I played roulette and some three down 2 $500 chips- too rich for my blood.

Stores- disappointed. The high end jewelry was separated from the lower items that it was off putting to even go into the store. Found not a great selection of souvenirs and staff not friendly or engaging.

Captain club - nice cocktail party but at 7:45 pm could not see a show and not hungry after dinner, should have been at a better time.

Entertainment- this was good. I did like that they had matinees during the sea days. Disappointed in the variety- comedian only once and at 11pm

Activities- this was blah. Bingo twice, hard to catch the 2 movies, no interesting lectures, etc.

So as I started, it was a good cruise overall but nothing I'm screaming to repeat.

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Thanks for letting us know.

I'm looking at the ten dayer in the Fall but holding off. Because of the website issues and also reviews such as yours, I'm thinking of HAL's Koningsdam also because of a similar itinerary.

One thing in Equinox's favor is that cruise would make us Elite, but I wonder if it's worth it.

We were on the same cruise. Had a wonderful time. Not to hijack the OP's review, but my husband had several Bloody Marys at the Passport Bar complete with olives, celery and limes.

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Not wanting to hijack either, we just got off the same cruise. I had the premium package (upgraded from included classic) and had no issue getting what I wanted to drink. Though with that said, unless included, I'm not going to buy a package again. Just not worth it to me. I thought all of the entertainment was good, though I'm not sure I would consider Savannah Jack a headliner versus a show lounge performer. I do think the activities were lacking. When Key West got cancelled and the new Today was put out, I was disappointed that the only added activities were spa things (spend more money), art things (spend more money) and shop things (spend even more money). However, comparing with the normal sea day, that seemed the norm. What does the Celebrity Life team do during the day? The only thing I saw was 3 trivia games, and a game at night. Had no issues with any food. Ate in the dining room all week. Overall a good cruise.

I liked the cruise. I was just disappointed. Maybe because I had such high expectations from my first 2 celebrity cruises. I remembered a champagne brunch on a sea day and elegant tea in the afternoons and only saw that for elite. As to the drinks, then I should have joined you all as I had no luck at the bars. I tried 3 times for the Bloody Mary and when the third time in the casino bar I asked for a good BM as I was disappointed with the others the bartender just slammed the bottle of mix on the bar and said thats all we got. When I mentioned I never got olives or celery he said all the drinks are the same (lime only) so I never bothered again.

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I liked the cruise. I was just disappointed. Maybe because I had such high expectations from my first 2 celebrity cruises. I remembered a champagne brunch on a sea day and elegant tea in the afternoons and only saw that for elite. As to the drinks, then I should have joined you all as I had no luck at the bars. I tried 3 times for the Bloody Mary and when the third time in the casino bar I asked for a good BM as I was disappointed with the others the bartender just slammed the bottle of mix on the bar and said thats all we got. When I mentioned I never got olives or celery he said all the drinks are the same (lime only) so I never bothered again.

 

 

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The bartender obviously didn't realize the bloody mary stuff in the container should be mixed with tomato juice. If it was the Demitris, it's a good (and expensive) mixer but you need more than that and vodka 😧

... when the third time in the casino bar I asked for a good BM as I was disappointed with the others the bartender just slammed the bottle of mix on the bar and said thats all we got. When I mentioned I never got olives or celery he said all the drinks are the same (lime only) so I never bothered again.

 

 

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Oh my, I think this would have triggered something in me ... something not so good :mad: I'm sure he might have been frustrated if that is what they are given to make drinks with, but that move would be a bit over the line aggressive. Wow. Wonder if you had the Premium Package if an alternate drink would have been presented. Those olives can be costly ya know.

Interesting feedback, thanks.

Thanks for your review! Which day was your first Chic night?

Day 2 Monday (would have been Key West but stop was cancelled due to the weather) and 2nd was Thursday (Cozumel)

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Thanks so much for sharing the Chic night info

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Great balanced review! Thanks for the info.

Thank you for your review!

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Thank you for your report and including the muster and casino minimums.