Med 2014- Celebrity Equinox or Serenade of the Seas?

[mjcooks201]

Ohhh...you are sailing for a month?....I am NOT jealous:D:);)

 

As for the weather, it can be very hot in the summertime. Wear

a hat and I agree with the previous poster...drink plenty of water.

I went to the Med last year in May and the tourguides actually

had bottles of water in his van for us! But I did take a bottle with

me when leaving the ship as well.

 

 

Thanks for the responses...so it sounds like it is doable, if we can tolerate the heat. I checked for other cruises in Sept/Oct. but none do what this one does. It is on the Equinox, and starts in Barcelona, and you don't return to Barcelona for 28 days. All the other cruises start and end in same place, then pick up another itinerary, still not hitting the same ports.

 

Bad side is very port intensive. I think that there are only 2 sea days the whole trip, which makes me sad. We are still trying to decide if we should keep this cruise or do Equinox Sept. 7 and Sept 20.

[Lois R]

Thanks for the responses...so it sounds like it is doable, if we can tolerate the heat. I checked for other cruises in Sept/Oct. but none do what this one does. It is on the Equinox, and starts in Barcelona, and you don't return to Barcelona for 28 days. All the other cruises start and end in same place, then pick up another itinerary, still not hitting the same ports.

 

Bad side is very port intensive. I think that there are only 2 sea days the whole trip, which makes me sad. We are still trying to decide if we should keep this cruise or do Equinox Sept. 7 and Sept 20.

 

There are only 2 sea days in the entire 28? So every itinerary is

ALL PORTS? 26 port days? WOW........

 

I went on Equinox and it was a 10 nighter...there were 2 sea days.

So how can you have only 2 in 28?:eek:

[Waihekean]

Thanks for the responses...so it sounds like it is doable, if we can tolerate the heat. I checked for other cruises in Sept/Oct. but none do what this one does. It is on the Equinox, and starts in Barcelona, and you don't return to Barcelona for 28 days. All the other cruises start and end in same place, then pick up another itinerary, still not hitting the same ports.

 

Bad side is very port intensive. I think that there are only 2 sea days the whole trip, which makes me sad. We are still trying to decide if we should keep this cruise or do Equinox Sept. 7 and Sept 20.

 

Ooohh You do need your seadays! I went last year in August with my mother (very young at hart, but still 79) and it was very hot. Our cruise had couple of seadays, but we sacrificed a morning in Istanbul and the day at Athens to made them into seadays and stayed on the ship.

It was not too bad for me as I knew I was going to do the same itinerary again this year:D.

 

But for a Med cruise of 28 days =especially in mid summer= I would definitely schedule in rest time every few days. If you visit same port again, could make that a seaday. Another alternative is to do only half day excursions. Or like say if go to Mykonos, just spend the day at the St. Johns Resort at their fabulous pool for 30 euro (includes pick up from ship and drop off, plus a towel).

 

My other alternative would be to do a shorter cruise, but stay in some of the fabulous cities (and/or Amalfi Coast) before and after the cruise. That way you can really get to experience the Med way of life, no rush to sightsee and spend evenings in the Med. Then the cruise would be a nice mixture of relaxing and further sightseeing. Book your accommodation about a year out for good prices.

 

Anyway, you are going to have an amazing trip. Enjoy:).

[mjcooks201]

Ooohh You do need your seadays! I went last year in August with my mother (very young at hart, but still 79) and it was very hot. Our cruise had couple of seadays, but we sacrificed a morning in Istanbul and the day at Athens to made them into seadays and stayed on the ship.

It was not too bad for me as I knew I was going to do the same itinerary again this year:D.

 

But for a Med cruise of 28 days =especially in mid summer= I would definitely schedule in rest time every few days. If you visit same port again, could make that a seaday. Another alternative is to do only half day excursions. Or like say if go to Mykonos, just spend the day at the St. Johns Resort at their fabulous pool for 30 euro (includes pick up from ship and drop off, plus a towel).

 

I went back and counted....mistake, three sea days.'

 

Barcelona, Cannes, Genoa, Rome, sea, Kotor, Zadar, Venice, Venice, Dubrovnik, Corfu, Katakolon, Santorini, Ephesus, Istanbul, Istanbul, Istanbul, Mykonos, Athens, sea, Valletta, Catania, Naples, Rome, Rome, Florence, Nice, Ajaccio, Porto Torres, sea, Palma de Mallorca, end Barcelona. WHEW!

 

I HAVE JUST SPENT TWO HOURS TRYING TO PUT DIFFERENT SEPT. OCT. CRUISES AND THEY JUST DON'T COMPARE TO WHAT WE SEE ABOVE.

 

Hubby and I talked and he said he will just have to suck it up with the heat, which he hates. Because of the extra days in a few ports, we may take your advice and stay on board. We did a Med cruise in Oct. 2009 and we had horrible rain and we unable to enjoy quite a few ports. I don't want to go through that again.

 

Thanks for all the help! I just love cruise critic!!!

[cyprus0_3]

I'm new to cruising, did our first this September Greek Islands & Italy on equinox, we are in our 40's there were all ages on board, we had the most amazing time. Loved the equinox, highly recommend, :)

[bz]

13 cruises, 4 different lines, it's the most beautiful ship I've ever been on, including the new Reflection. I'd choose her over any RC ship in the fleet. We also loved Aqua class, but that's yet another decision you'll have to make. Much prefer the smaller dining room for breakfast and dinner, then more attentive service, and the - in my opinion - better food.

[SoBe2010]

Hi All,

 

This will be DH and I first Med cruise. I have narrowed it down to the Serenade of the Seas June 4, 2014 or Celebrity Equinox Sept 20,2014. It will be the Western Med.

 

I have not sailed with Celebrity. The itinerary and price are about the same. Which ship would you choose and why? Anyone sailed on both cruise lines?

 

I have posted the same question on the RC board too.

 

Thank you in advance for all your opinions.

__________________

 

Have been on both ships past 12 months. If the route is similar I would always choose Equinox over Serenade. It´s way more upscale in every way. Especially Staterooms but also food quality and Crew performance.

 

Serenade was nice and had some great entertainment.

 

However, with Equinox you are simply getting more for your money.

[govie]

We r booked on that b2b as well but starting inRome on June 28 , very excited, it's for our anniversary 40 yrs! We like the heat :) 28 days will be amazing!!

Edited January 14, 2014 by govie
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[rebeccalouiseagain]

I have sailed both ships in Europe and had an good time on both ships. I thought the Serenade of the Seas was lovely. The Equinox is a tad more upscale and is newer and larger. I was on the Equinox's first voyage, which was to Norway and had a great time. It is a very low key interior. Some people say there is no Wow factor and there isn't. It's a nice ship and I do like the S-class ships but it is decorated in blues and browns and I found that a bit dull. Everything is very sophisticated and understated. The service is a bit more formal on Celebrity than Royal

 

The food is a little better on Celebrity and I love Bistro on Five and Qsine especially. The Italian specialty restaurant on Serenade of the Seas was good but nothing memorable.

 

The deal breaker for me on Serenade of the Seas would be the outdoor pool area. Here I am in the Mediterranean and I didn't want to watch American football! Give me at least an Italian movie or something. The movie screen overwhelms this area with loud music and or sports games blaring. I couldn't enjoy sitting in the outdoor hot tubs day or night without being bothered by this. I tried Enchantment of the Seas in December and it was the same way there. I am not a sports fan and don't appreciate it blaring constantly by the pool.

Edited January 14, 2014 by rebeccalouiseagain

[swmichigan cruiser]

We did the 12 night med cruise on the Equinox this past October and had a really great time. We were treated very well and really enjoyed the itinerary. This coming July we will be on the Serenade with pretty much the same itinerary. Only change will be instead of going to Croatia will be going to Ravenna,Italy. And we have been on the Serenade before but it has been awhile. If the Equinox was doing the 12 night cruise again from Barcelona in July we would be going on the Equinox again but they aren't so that is why we are doing the Serenade. We are taking two of our grandkids and we have to follow a schedule that works best for them. I really think you would enjoy both ships but our cruise on the Equinox was special.

[govie]

Has anyone used smartcruisetours instead of ship tours?

[rebeccalouiseagain]

woops duplicate post.

Edited January 24, 2014 by rebeccalouiseagain

[Chazteach1]

Wow! I keep hearing about the beauty of Equinox. I can't wait to see her in person. I have to wait until September.

 

All the s class ships on celebrity are great. We've been on equinox and silhouette and loved them both. This summer we will be back on equinox for Italy and Spain! Will so silhouette again I'm sure too,,

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Forums mobile app - My next cruise - Equinox - B2B 6/2014

[kissmeyoufool]

Thanks to everyone for the replies. My DH and I are not party goers anymore. We pretty much work hard and rest on the weekends. We are in our mid 40s so we will be fine with an older demographic. I dont believe we will have much time for ship activities.

 

Sooo, Celebrity Equinox is the winner! I am glad some of you agree with cruising the Med in September. We are free to travel any month of the year but I heard the Spring and the Fall are the best.

 

Any suggestions for cabin location? I would like a balcony. I want to be able to see Venice on the way to the dock. Should I be on the port or starboard side?

 

Also, can anyone book the "your time or anytime" dining? Not sure if Celebrity calls it this.

 

Thanks again.

Why not come join us Celebrity Equinox Oct 14 take a look at our roll call we would love to add you to our group.

Yes you can book any time dining thats what we booked because it's so convienient.

we book cabin # 9237 on the hump huge balcony hope this helps you out some :)

[Pushka]

We are on part of the 28 Barcelona cruise. There is an overnight in Istanbul and a couple of the ports are a lunchtime arrival. We were in the med in July and were fine. In fact June was much hotter. Love July in the Med.