Equinox - Southern Caribbean - September 3, 2018

[charlielinda]

Others have posted blogs of their travels and I always love reading them and thought it was a great way to remember your travels. So I’ve decided to try for our upcoming Equinox Cruise of the Southern Caribbean.

 

A bit about us ... I’m Linda, a retired legal secretary, and Charlie is an attorney with the Federal Government and we live in Northern Virginia. We have cruised many times on Royal Caribbean, Holland, Princess and Celebrity — Caribbean (many times), Alaska, Transatlantic and Panama Canal. Celebrity is by far our favorite and we have Elite status with them. The majority of our cruises were over ten years ago with the exception of a Transatlantic on Celebrity in November of 2016.

 

We had booked the same Transatlantic for 2017 but had to cancel because we had had a house fire in the Spring and didn’t move back home until December. I immediately booked a Transatlantic for October of this year but due to Charlie’s upcoming hip replacement needed to cancel. That’s when I came up with the brilliant plan for a Caribbean cruise in September.

 

We are looking forward to spending time with each other and relaxing. We have vacationed or cruised to many of the ports and plan on taking it easy.

 

PreCruise with Celebrity

 

We booked our 1A Verandah cabin without any perks but did purchase:

 

— internet package for one with our Elite discount ($188)

— six night Specialty Dining ($384)

— bar set-up with Knob Creek ($130)

 

We never purchase a drinks package because I don’t drink alcohol and Charlie just enjoys a glass of wine or bourbon. We’ll bring two bottles of wine aboard and have the bar set-up for him to enjoy on the balcony and just purchase drinks here and there as we go.

 

September 1 — Saturday

 

Flew from Washington Dulles to Fort Lauderdale on Southwest. Easy flight and most importantly no baggage charges. Upon arrival we jumped in a taxi for a quick trip to the Pier 66 Hotel and Marina. Our cruise is leaning from Miami but decided to stay in Fort Lauderdale.

 

Pier One Hotel and Marina

 

Room — We paid $149 for a garden room with breakfast. The room is dated with the most uncomfortable chair but a very comfortable bed and shower.

 

Doormen — Beyond amazing! Friendly and helpful. Next time we will be sure to get a room with a balcony facing the pools.

 

We decided to go to Pelican’s Landing for dinner on the property and we were taken by the amazing doormen by golf cart to and from. The view is beautiful over-looking the Intercostal and there would have been a wonderful sunset had the clouds not interfered. We had the peel and eat shrimp as an appetizer and split the fish tacos that had a great slaw on them. It was a casual fun restaurant.

 

 

September 2 — Sunday

 

We woke up to terrible storms but that’s o.k. — we’re in Florida. We headed out to the lobby restaurant for a nice breakfast buffet and then called for an Uber to take us to a local Publix. There we stocked up on Diet Coke (Charlie), Water (me), two bottles of wine and a few other items to bring along with us on the our cruise.

 

The weather cleared and we headed to the beautiful pools for the afternoon to read and relax. Plus had my first non-alcoholic fruity drink of our vacation.

 

We went to 15th Street Fisheries, by Uber, for dinner and sat downstairs. I had fabulous shrimp tacos.

 

Tomorrow is the day we have been waiting for. Cruise Day!

 

 

 

 

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[Spiritedcharm]

We are on the same cruise in three weeks! Thank you for taking the time to blog your cruise. I'm looking forward to following along with you! We too have a 1A cabin - 7219. What cabin are you in?

[KikisDad]

Looking forward to following your trip. Bon voyage!

[nicksmom67]

We are doing the same cruise in 3 weeks. Looking forward to following you and previewing our trip. Do you have any excursions planned? Which specialty dining will you do?

[Hatteras51]

Good morning fellow Virginians. We live in the Richmond suburbs. We did this cruise last September, and loved every minute of it. We especially love Aruba. We have a timeshare there and spend several weeks there every year. Equinox is our favorite ship. I look forward to hearing about your adventures.

[Holey]

Hello!

Very much looking forward to your blog we are on the cruise in three weeks cant wait.

We are from great Britain.:cool:

[cheeseheads4ever]

Cant wait to read about your cruise. Been on Equinox a couple times and is a fabulous ship. Enjoy your cruise!

[chicagopaul]

Hi Linda - Well, since I just got off I will be following along your blog to help with my cruise withdrawls. Sorry that the weather today isn't the best for sale away and neither was ours, but the rest of our trip was fantastic. Be sure to say hello to Taz at the Sunset Bar for me and Boon at the Martini Bar.

 

Wishing you a wonderful cruise and calm seas!

[chicagopaul]

Also if you end up in Murano with your package Nenad (the Maitri D) and Star, the Sommelier will take excellent care of you.

[charlielinda]

We will be at Murano three times and Tuscan three times. Had lots oh hiccups today with Celebrity but know it will be a great adventure.

 

 

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[charlielinda]

Embarkation Day -- We woke to terrible weather and heavy rain all day. No problem — we are on vacation! We had a nice breakfast buffet at Pier 66 and then headed to Miami at 9:30 am.

 

We used Angel of South Florida Transportation for our transfer to the Port of Miami for $100. We decided to book a private transfer instead of a shuttle for the convenience and it was worth it. We dropped our luggage off at 10:30 and were on the ship by 11:15.

 

First stop was Murano to make our Specialty Dining reservations for our cruise. The Ensemble Lounge was quiet so we decided to wait there until the cabins were ready.

 

Charlie headed to the Spa to purchase a cruise long pass for the Persian Garden (one of his favorite places). I had been told by Canyon Ranch that it would be $120 for the cruise but they said it was actually $160. He went ahead and purchased; the manager said he would check on it but I'm not expecting it to change. The good news is Charlie entered the raffle and won a gift certificate for $75 -- the bad news is that it has to be used on a $250+ facial. I'll decide on that later in the week. Right now I'm thinking ... hot glass or a facial.

 

We are in a 1A cabin -- 7159. It has a slanted verandah which is great. To my surprise there are two foot stools which was a nice surprise. We were able to figure out a place for everything; thank goodness for the shoe rack for over the door. The cabin is great and our steward very nice.

 

We had purchased a Bar Set-Up for Charlie to enjoy a drink on the verandah but it wasn't in the cabin. We called and were to told they no longer carried Knob Creek but would refund the charge. We replied, "No, we would like to speak with a supervisor. We spoke with the Front Desk Manager and the situation was solved quickly. Thank you, Jack.

 

Then the "rice cooker" episode started. I posted it earlier and you can find it ... but just think of a episode of I Love Lucy -- Ricky going to the Naughty Room and being told that Lucy had brought a rice cooker aboard. I think we'll be laughing about this for years to come.

 

Just then we received a bottle of wine, shrimp, cheese and crackers and chocolate dipped strawberries. When I made our reservation I mentioned to the reservation agent that we were celebrating my finishing breast cancer treatment and it was from Celebrity. What a treat and gracious gift.

 

Dinner at the Tuscan Grill was marvelous as always. After dinner we headed back to our cabin. All in all a busy first day and enjoying every minute.

 

 

 

 

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[Hatteras51]

I just had to find the other post and read about the rice cooker incident. I can't believe that anyone would actually bring one on a ship, with all of that food available. I was called to the naughty room a few years ago, on an Alaska cruise. I found the note in my luggage. No one could figure out what the issue was, so I pretty much forgot about it. When we leaving the ship, my sea pass made a special alert sound when they entered it, and they had to check around to see what contraband I had brought on the ship. They still couldn't locate anything, so I went on my merry way.

 

I'm glad that you were able to fix all of the issues that you had to deal with. I know how frustrating it is to have all of that worked out in advance, to only have it fall apart when you get there.

 

Tuscan on Equinox is excellent. Their steaks are so good that we went several times.

 

Congratulations on finishing your treatment. Now you can relax and enjoy your cruise. What a class act Celebrity is to recognize you in such a special way. Enjoy your day.

[oskarNZ]

Great start. Enjoying reading along.

[charlielinda]

First Day at Sea. I actually don’t have much to report today. As I mentioned we planned on a relaxing cruise and that’s exactly what’s happening. In the past I’ve run around to every lecture, bingo and trivia game. This time I’m going to stop and smell the roses (aka sea air).

 

We slept late today and just made it to the dining room for breakfast and immediately headed off to the Cruise Critic party in the Gastro Bar. Captain Kate was there and spoke about her husband, cat and introduced many of the officers. I have never sailed with Captain Kate and have to say she lives up to her billing here on Cruise Critic. She was delightful.

 

I then headed to my favorite place — my baloney — to read and relax. I was so relaxed I took a nap while Charlie explored the ship and went to a presentation on feet!

 

We then headed to pool and hot tubs for about an hour and then I came back to my balcony while Charlie went to his favorite place — the Persian Garden.

 

We relaxed and headed to Murano for a lovely dinner. A great day.

 

It was an evening chic night and we were dressed up for the evening. Walking to and from dinner we saw all sorts of dress — gowns and tuxes, shorts and tee shirts, sun dresses and slacks. There was music playing in the lounges and the main foyer, and the bars were hopping. All looked like they were having a good time.

 

I know I had a wonderful day.

 

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[hcat]

Posted by OP

"Just then we received a bottle of wine, shrimp, cheese and crackers and chocolate dipped strawberries. When I made our reservation I mentioned to the reservation agent that we were celebrating my finishing breast cancer treatment and it was from Celebrity. What a treat and gracious gift."

 

 

CONGRATULATIONS.......Hope you have a wonderful cruise!

[MisterMet]

Embarkation Day -- We woke to terrible weather and heavy rain all day. No problem — we are on vacation! We had a nice breakfast buffet at Pier 66 and then headed to Miami at 9:30 am.

 

We used Angel of South Florida Transportation for our transfer to the Port of Miami for $100. We decided to book a private transfer instead of a shuttle for the convenience and it was worth it. We dropped our luggage off at 10:30 and were on the ship by 11:15.

 

First stop was Murano to make our Specialty Dining reservations for our cruise. The Ensemble Lounge was quiet so we decided to wait there until the cabins were ready.

 

Charlie headed to the Spa to purchase a cruise long pass for the Persian Garden (one of his favorite places). I had been told by Canyon Ranch that it would be $120 for the cruise but they said it was actually $160. He went ahead and purchased; the manager said he would check on it but I'm not expecting it to change. The good news is Charlie entered the raffle and won a gift certificate for $75 -- the bad news is that it has to be used on a $250+ facial. I'll decide on that later in the week. Right now I'm thinking ... hot glass or a facial.

 

We are in a 1A cabin -- 7159. It has a slanted verandah which is great. To my surprise there are two foot stools which was a nice surprise. We were able to figure out a place for everything; thank goodness for the shoe rack for over the door. The cabin is great and our steward very nice.

 

We had purchased a Bar Set-Up for Charlie to enjoy a drink on the verandah but it wasn't in the cabin. We called and were to told they no longer carried Knob Creek but would refund the charge. We replied, "No, we would like to speak with a supervisor. We spoke with the Front Desk Manager and the situation was solved quickly. Thank you, Jack.

 

Then the "rice cooker" episode started. I posted it earlier and you can find it ... but just think of a episode of I Love Lucy -- Ricky going to the Naughty Room and being told that Lucy had brought a rice cooker aboard. I think we'll be laughing about this for years to come.

 

Just then we received a bottle of wine, shrimp, cheese and crackers and chocolate dipped strawberries. When I made our reservation I mentioned to the reservation agent that we were celebrating my finishing breast cancer treatment and it was from Celebrity. What a treat and gracious gift.

 

Dinner at the Tuscan Grill was marvelous as always. After dinner we headed back to our cabin. All in all a busy first day and enjoying every minute.

 

 

 

 

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Finishing your treatment is DEFINITELY something to celebrate. Enjoy your cruise. We'll board on 9/14 and we are looking forward to what you have to say about your cruise. Again, congratulations!