Equinox review

[Responder]

Were on the Equinox this past week  and will record some of our experiences...4th cruise with Celebrity and the last.

We have been cruising for 50+ years..all over the world so we're not exactly novices.

 

We booked Aqua class on this cruise because we like to eat in Blu. MDR is too hectic and noisy for us. In the past, the food was very good and we liked the comfortable venue.

This time, the food was bad. Mostly overcooked and dry no matter what and how we ordered it. Never again.

Service however, was outstanding.

 

What's interesting is that the suite(?) choices that come with Aqua are quite small and uncomfortable.

Concierge costs more and comes with a larger suite but can't eat in Blu...only if available.

Once we tried concierge class and was assigned to Luminae. For us it was pretty bad. Again the venue was nice but not the food or service.

 

Ordered room service for lunch twice. Took a little over an hour to arrive..no problem.

But had to call 3 times each time to ask for the tray to be picked up. Ended up putting it into hall where I saw other trays on the hall floor .

 

On day one, our room phone stopped working. No calls in or out. Took 8 hours and 3 trips down to find a supervisor(Sasha) who said would move our room if they can't fix it now.

20 minutes later he called our room...they simply switched the phone to a working line.

Equally annoying were the recorded calls every afternoon from Captain or Cruise Director always selling something. If no answer, they left a message.

 

For obvious reasons all the cruise lines are looking to appeal to a younger crowd . As a result, every event or music is so loud that the only peace and quiet is in the cabin..

The events were so loud that I couldn't talk on my phone outside the cabin.

 

We tried to see some shows and movies, but left after the first 10 minutes, as did others

Years ago we had real lectures...now a lecture is advice on where to shop.

 

I suppose it's us, as the ships seem to be sailing full.

This time, we couldn't wait to get home.

[mom says]

Thanks for the review, but I feel I must point out a couple of things.  Perhaps you were confusing things from previous cruises, but Aqua are not suites. On Solstice class ships they are the very same verandah cabins as regular or Concierge cabins. The only diffrences are some of the in room amenities. Concierge cabins are the exact same size, and are not suites either. And no one in a Concierge cabin can eat in either Blu or Luminae.

 

I'm sorry you felt the cruise was a disappointment. It appears that you are ready to move on to another line.

[chemmo]

We love the S class Celebrity ships. To us they have a good balance between ‘lively’ and ‘quiet’ venues. We tend to dine mainly in the speciality restaurants and Luminae so cannot comment on your views on Blu.

 

You seem confused about room categories...If you had Luminae on a previous cruise you must have been in a suite. Perhaps you missed on this cruise the other perks that came with your suite including access to the suite areas and a concierge and butler to look after you? 

 

It also sounds like you did encounter a few issues. In all our X cruises we have never waited more than 10/15 minutes for room service, never had a broken phone and never been bothered by phone calls trying to sell us something. By using the ‘Today’ we have managed to avoid talks that are simply sales based and managed to attend some really interesting lectures and demonstrations. We also choose where to spend our evenings carefully. I don’t think the shows are the biggest strength on Celebrity but we enjoy some of the live music performances and simply chatting to fellow cruisers in quieter bars and lounge areas.

 

No cruise line can suit everyone. With 50 cruises behind you I am sure you will make a better choice for your next vacation.

 

We board Equinox in a couple of weeks, can’t wait...

[CruisesRMe]

My sister and brother in law boarded yesterday.  I have been on over 100 ships in my lifetime, but we still haven't tried Celebrity, we cruise mostly Royal, Princess and a few others.  They have sent me tons of photos yesterday and the ship looked quite pleasing and they said the food in the MDR is much better than RC and so is the buffet lunch.  They sent me photos of the prime rib they had last night...medium rare perfectly cooked.  Maybe your waiter did not go out of his way to ensure you get your food the way you like? I realize it was only day my sister/brother in law are on this ship so I will wait for today for their report as we are considering trying Celebrity for January or February.  They were impressed with the multiple music venues aboard the ship, they did see a show, but shows aren't on our top of the list on cruises but it sure has to beat what Carnival offers lol.  I need to make up my mind today, I think I need to put a post of questions to help us decide which ship.

 

OP, thank you for this review...I am sure you will find another ship or cruise line, there are many to consider, perhaps you like to try Princess, Oceania, Seabourne.

[oneputt18]

wow, we have sailed the Equinox 6 times in the last four years and it is one of our favorite ships. 

 

[wrk2cruise]

We were on Equinox the week before in a concierge class cabin.  There were recorded messages from the concierge pretty frequently but rarely trying to sell anything.  We actually commented that he was providing useful port info etc.  We have also been on the Equinox multiple times in the last 3 years and found some things a bit "off" on this sailing.  The buffet area was very crowded and many days never saw a drink server.  It seems they want you to do self service (not interested).  Food and service in MDR was very good.  Overall a good cruise, just not a great one.

[Georgia_Peaches]

We sailed Equinox in a RS.  Service on our cruise was mostly excellent.  There were a few things that I didn't care for, like the recorded messages on the phone...mainly because I couldn't figure out how to get the blinking light to stop flashing.  The other issue we had was with our A/C in the bedroom.  It just didn't seem very cool.  The butler did go out of his way to try and cool things off by setting up a fan.  I remember the food being good with the exception of Tuscan Grill.  Service was very slow and food was just OK that night.  I really wanted to do the glass blowing but could never get an appointment slot.  Other than those minor issues, our cruise was lovely.  While I'm not really interested in the Equinox again, we have a November cruise on Silhouette and I am counting down the days.  OP, I hope you find what you're looking for on your next sailing.

[Hypo]

9 minutes ago, Georgia_Peaches said:

We sailed Equinox in a RS.  Service on our cruise was mostly excellent.  There were a few things that I didn't care for, like the recorded messages on the phone...mainly because I couldn't figure out how to get the blinking light to stop flashing.  The other issue we had was with our A/C in the bedroom.  It just didn't seem very cool.  The butler did go out of his way to try and cool things off by setting up a fan.  I remember the food being good with the exception of Tuscan Grill.  Service was very slow and food was just OK that night.  I really wanted to do the glass blowing but could never get an appointment slot.  Other than those minor issues, our cruise was lovely.  While I'm not really interested in the Equinox again, we have a November cruise on Silhouette and I am counting down the days.  OP, I hope you find what you're looking for on your next sailing.

Which RS did you have?  We are in 1241 in a few weeks.

 

[Husky61]

We have sailed in 1241 the last two cruises and found nothing wrong with the cabin.  It was great!😃

[cruisingagentone]

Is luggage valet still available on the Equinox?

Thank You

[JennJohnNYC]

20 minutes ago, cruisingagentone said:

Is luggage valet still available on the Equinox?

Thank You

We did luggage valet yesterday for the first time and it was great.  25pp

 

[cruisingagentone]

JennJohnNYC

Thank you for the info appreciate it

[Georgia_Peaches]

2 hours ago, Hypo said:

Which RS did you have?  We are in 1241 in a few weeks.

We were in 1118...same deck as 1241.  Loved the location.  Was a little concerned about noise/traffic because it was do close to the elevators but the location was very quiet and so convenient.  Additionally, if memory serves, I believe there are doors that separate the elevator area from the hallway leading to the staterooms.  I hope you enjoy!

[Hypo]

1 hour ago, Husky61 said:

We have sailed in 1241 the last two cruises and found nothing wrong with the cabin.  It was great!😃

Thank you for the information.

 

[Nitnoi]

I was on the cruise.  The ship is great but his time the food was not that great. This is not a complaint, just my feelings.   Sailed celebrity many times and this was the worst food yet.  that being said, Celebrity donated over 7000 meals and tons of cases of water to the people of the Bahamas on this cruise.  We stopped there on Friday and they tendered in donations, food and water.  because of this, who cares what the food was like. I am so thankful that we were on a cruise line that responded immediately to people in need.  if the food was a miss, Celebrity made up for it a million times over by their humanitarian efforts.  Still my favorite line.  Thanks Celebrity

[cruising diva]

We got off the Equinox yesterday and my husband and I had a fabulous cruise. We are close to 100 cruises. We were in a suite and ate in Luminae for most dinners which were very good with outstanding service. Our state room attendant did an excellent job. We thought Tuscan’s food has gone downhill over the past year. We tried Tuscan on 3 different ships with the same result. Murano’s was superb. We are returning to the Equinox in 5 weeks and just booked another cruise with this ship for December.

[MISTER 67]

We were also on this cruise and never had a bad meal for dinner in the MDR. The service was exceptional. We ate breakfast and lunch in the OVC and found the food and the amount of choices outstanding. This was our 61st cruise and without a doubt the OVC is the best buffet we have ever experienced on a cruise ship.

Only gripe was with a couple of the shows in the Equinox Theater, didn't care for Elysium and Life, Topper was OK. Really liked the comedian and the vocalist. The Broadway Cabaret show was excellent. The musical groups that performed in the Grand Foyer were also very good.

 

One other note, after our June cruise on the Equinox I started a thread on the horrible loud Electronic Dance Music that we experienced on that cruise. Happy to report that someone from Celebrity must have read the thread as there was hardly any EDM and all music in the public rooms were played at a level where you could talk to another person. Either that or maybe Captain Kate is a fan of EDM and Captain Demetrios is not.

 

Edited September 8, 2019 by MISTER 67

[mrsg00fy]

We are just back from b2b sailings on equinox.  First week started 8/24 in aqua class and second week started 8/31 in concierge.  The two weeks were night and day. The week in aqua was a dream. It all came together.  The excellent cabin steward and the insanely attentive service in blu.  Second week we went to mdr and it was not good.  Clearly the servers had too many tables.  They tried.  But the service was not good and frenzied.  The food was pretty good.  But the close togetherness of the tables and the lack of attention to detail was not good.  We spent the last three nights in Tuscan grille and experienced what we remembered from cruising ten years ago. 

 

First week was probably the best cruise weve we’ve ever had.  Second week left something to be desired. But both weeks were great overall. 

 

In both sailings inhave  have to say that the common element was excellent service at the buffet. Both weeks I noticed every single time the staff going out of their way to help those who required assistance.  They repeatedly came around with drink refills etc.  this was at busy lunch and breakfast. I was particularly impressed on debarkation morning yesterday that the staff continued this very high level of service. Typically on debarkation morning they just want us out. Lol.  

[nimiq]

6 hours ago, MISTER 67 said:

We were also on this cruise and never had a bad meal for dinner in the MDR. The service was exceptional. We ate breakfast and lunch in the OVC and found the food and the amount of choices outstanding. This was our 61st cruise and without a doubt the OVC is the best buffet we have ever experienced on a cruise ship.

Only gripe was with a couple of the shows in the Equinox Theater, didn't care for Elysium and Life, Topper was OK. Really liked the comedian and the vocalist. The Broadway Cabaret show was excellent. The musical groups that performed in the Grand Foyer were also very good.

 

One other note, after our June cruise on the Equinox I started a thread on the horrible loud Electronic Dance Music that we experienced on that cruise. Happy to report that someone from Celebrity must have read the thread as there was hardly any EDM and all music in the public rooms were played at a level where you could talk to another person. Either that or maybe Captain Kate is a fan of EDM and Captain Demetrios is not.

 

If you remember what days were the theatre shows done ?

 

sea ya 

Eric

[MISTER 67]

14 hours ago, nimiq said:

If you remember what days were the theatre shows done ?

 

sea ya 

Eric

IIRC Elysium was on Sunday, Topper on Tuesday, Life on Thursday and Broadway Caberet on Friday.

There was a matinee of Broadway Cabaret early in the week.

[Pickels]

On ‎9‎/‎7‎/‎2019 at 10:34 PM, Responder said:

Were on the Equinox this past week  and will record some of our experiences...4th cruise with Celebrity and the last.

We have been cruising for 50+ years..all over the world so we're not exactly novices.

 

We booked Aqua class on this cruise because we like to eat in Blu. MDR is too hectic and noisy for us. In the past, the food was very good and we liked the comfortable venue.

This time, the food was bad. Mostly overcooked and dry no matter what and how we ordered it. Never again.

Service however, was outstanding.

 

What's interesting is that the suite(?) choices that come with Aqua are quite small and uncomfortable.

Concierge costs more and comes with a larger suite but can't eat in Blu...only if available.

Once we tried concierge class and was assigned to Luminae. For us it was pretty bad. Again the venue was nice but not the food or service.

 

Ordered room service for lunch twice. Took a little over an hour to arrive..no problem.

But had to call 3 times each time to ask for the tray to be picked up. Ended up putting it into hall where I saw other trays on the hall floor .

 

On day one, our room phone stopped working. No calls in or out. Took 8 hours and 3 trips down to find a supervisor(Sasha) who said would move our room if they can't fix it now.

20 minutes later he called our room...they simply switched the phone to a working line.

Equally annoying were the recorded calls every afternoon from Captain or Cruise Director always selling something. If no answer, they left a message.

 

For obvious reasons all the cruise lines are looking to appeal to a younger crowd . As a result, every event or music is so loud that the only peace and quiet is in the cabin..

The events were so loud that I couldn't talk on my phone outside the cabin.

 

We tried to see some shows and movies, but left after the first 10 minutes, as did others

Years ago we had real lectures...now a lecture is advice on where to shop.

 

I suppose it's us, as the ships seem to be sailing full.

This time, we couldn't wait to get home.

We sailed on the Equinox once and twice on her sister ship the Silhouette; we'll be on the Equinox again next March...Can't wait!