Equinox LIVE Solo Review 11/19-11/28

[GenerationX]

21 hours ago, jules27556 said:

Loving your Live report!

 

I am taking my first cruise in 12 years in April. Silhouette TA.

Retired Flight Attendant so travelled the world at 35,000. Time off

was being home in my own bed!

Solo now.

Suggestions? Dining solo?  

Thanks, Julie

 

PS Love your cruise wardrobe!!

 

Congratulations on retirement!  I’m very jealous! Silhouette is my favorite ship and a TA is on my bucket list.  My vacation reading book this trip is actually a historical fiction novel about a TA cruise.

 

As far as dining suggestions, if you want to be social and you’ll be eating in the main dining room, I’d suggest talking to the maitre d first day of the cruise and and asking to be seated at a large table. Like at least a 6 top. More people to get to know and less risk you’ll be sitting there all alone if a couple is at specialty or buffet one night.

 

Ive been dining solo in the specialty restaurants and I haven’t felt uncomfortable at all.  In fact I usually get assigned one of the better tables and all the service staff make a point of spending extra time with me and being very attentive.

 

Honestly I think one of the hardest parts for me when I first started solo travel was figuring out how to politely decline offers of company when I didn’t want it.  It’s a good problem to have really because so many people when they find out you’re by yourself will invite you to join them for a meal, excursion, etc.  I LOVE meeting new people so there were times when I accepted so many invitations that I looked up and found myself with no solo time on a day of my solo trip! 
 

My recommendation would be if you’re looking for alone time at the moment but still would like to hang out with people at some other point, when you decline the invite proactively propose that you would love to do a specific different day/meal/event with them so they know that you’re open for company, just not at that time.

 

I’m also going to do a post at some point in my review going through some of my tips and extra safety practices that I follow as a woman traveling solo.

 

Thank you for following along!

[tampadee]

Really enjoying your posts!

[jules27556]

30 minutes ago, GenerationX said:

Congratulations on retirement!  I’m very jealous! Silhouette is my favorite ship and a TA is on my bucket list.  My vacation reading book this trip is actually a historical fiction novel about a TA cruise.

 

As far as dining suggestions, if you want to be social and you’ll be eating in the main dining room, I’d suggest talking to the maitre d first day of the cruise and and asking to be seated at a large table. Like at least a 6 top. More people to get to know and less risk you’ll be sitting there all alone if a couple is at specialty or buffet one night.

 

Ive been dining solo in the specialty restaurants and I haven’t felt uncomfortable at all.  In fact I usually get assigned one of the better tables and all the service staff make a point of spending extra time with me and being very attentive.

 

Honestly I think one of the hardest parts for me when I first started solo travel was figuring out how to politely decline offers of company when I didn’t want it.  It’s a good problem to have really because so many people when they find out you’re by yourself will invite you to join them for a meal, excursion, etc.  I LOVE meeting new people so there were times when I accepted so many invitations that I looked up and found myself with no solo time on a day of my solo trip! 
 

My recommendation would be if you’re looking for alone time at the moment but still would like to hang out with people at some other point, when you decline the invite proactively propose that you would love to do a specific different day/meal/event with them so they know that you’re open for company, just not at that time.

 

I’m also going to do a post at some point in my review going through some of my tips and extra safety practices that I follow as a woman traveling solo.

 

Thank you for following along!

Exceptional insight!  Thank you for spending the time to share! Your dinner suggestion sounds perfect.  Probably was my only real concern. I had no idea you could dine solo in a specialty restaurant!  I will continue to follow your postings and look forward to your continued adventure, tips and safety practices.  Thanks again!  Julie

[GenerationX]

It’s a beautiful morning in Curaçao!  I woke up today just in time to go out on my veranda and watch the captain and local pilot dock us in port.   To give an idea of how big/heavy the Equinox is, each of the 20 or so lines tying our ship to the pier is so strong and heavy that they take 3 grown men to lift.

 

The rest of my day in Aruba yesterday was fantastic.  We had great wind for our catamaran sail and lucked out with some rare weather conditions like a sun halo and visibility so good on the way back to port that on the horizon we could just barely see the Andes mountains in Venezuela!

 

We stopped at 2 snorkeling sites: one was a sunken German battle ship and the other a natural reef.  There were some scuba divers below us at the wreck site who were diving inside the ship and they startled up some beautiful fish and even a small sea turtle!  The second site was a lot shallower and there wasn’t much color to the reef, but we did see some cool fish.  Overall I’d say the snorkeling was kind of meh compared to other sites I’ve visited but I’ve heard the snorkeling will be much better in Bonaire tomorrow, and it was still good to get out in the ocean.
 

After snorkeling the crew served a barbecue lunch and there was an open bar and free swimming time.  I thought the chicken was pretty good but the ribs and corn were both over cooked and tough.  Nothing to write home about from a culinary perspective but it was a decent post swim snack.  The crew of the catamaran were very friendly and engaging and it seemed like they were genuinely happy to have cruisers back on their island.

 

One of the lessons I’ve learned (sometimes the hard way) over the course of my cruising adventures is that trying to go hard and do it all every day of the trip is usually a situation of short term gain, long term loss.  9 times out of 10 if I try to do that, it ultimately results in complete burnout and an inability to really appreciate what I’m doing/experiencing out of sheer exhaustion.

 

Last night my original plan was to go to the 7pm show followed by a MDR dinner and the full moon pool deck white party.  But after I got back to the ship and took care of a couple of work emergencies, I could feel my body telling me You. Need. Rest.

 

So, instead, I just took a quick shower to get the salt water out of my hair, went to the buffet for an al fresco dinner and then came back to the room to spend the rest of the night reading with a glass of wine.

 

My only regret is that the ship was deprived of the sight of my FABULOUS White House Black Market off shoulder high low white cocktail dress that I brought along for the occasion.

 

This was my first time ever going to the buffet for dinner and I was pleasantly surprised.  Those skinny little strip steaks they offer are surprisingly well seasoned and delicious and the Bolognese sauce on the custom made pasta station rivals the meat sauce I’ve had on the pasta in Luminae.  The tossed to order Caesar salad station was a nice treat too.

 

I’ve gotten into a habit of having a glass of wine or 2 at the aft bar outside OVC and Abel and Ifran behind the bar welcomed me by name when I sat down for dinner and brought my usual glass of Cabernet and an Evian as soon as I sat down.  They took turns coming over and refilling my glass so I wouldn’t be troubled to walk the oh so imposing 10 steps to the bar.  I really am getting spoiled.

 

I put myself to bed about 10:30 and woke up briefly around midnight when the ship’s horn sounded to announce our departure from Aruba.

 

I just finished a late breakfast in the buffet and I’m relaxing at the Sunset Bar for an hour (pro tip: try their aperol spritz sangria as a nice refreshing way to start your cocktail day) before it’s time for me to head into Curaçao for my city tour and beach excursion.

 

I gotta say, this sure beats spending today brining a turkey!
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[lola2013]

My Equinox 2023 cruise will visit the ABCs...so far there are no excursions listed.  Could you please tell me the name of the catamarran excursion you did in Aruba.  Sounds great!

I agree about the buffet...it's actually one of my favorite places and I look forward to eating there several times when I sail solo.  Just me, my meal and a good book.

Enjoy the rest of your trip.

Susan

[Kandtcruisers]

I hardly ever reply on CC but I love your review, writing style, fashion and radiant personality. Thank you for lighting up my day. Went on cupshe.com and Venus.com for cruise attire - loaded up the cart, now I just have to ask, WWGD?  What Would Gen-X Do?  ☺️  Safe and fun wishes for the rest of your cruise. 

[GenerationX]

I just finished a much anticipated dinner and Tuscan Grille after going to the second production show of the cruise, Life, and am settled into Ensemble Lounge listening to a string duo.

 

While I’m sipping my cosmo, let me share about my day in Curaçao.  In this port I booked the Curaçao Highlights & Mambo Beach excursion.

 

This excursion was billed as a city tour with visits to various neighborhoods and a tour of the famous Curaçao liqueur distillery followed by 2 hours on Mambo Beach.  

 

I really had 2 goals for this island visit: go to the beach and to grab some curaçao liqueur to take home for people for Christmas gifts, and this excursion allowed me to do both those things for about what I would have paid for taxis to do it independently (if that wouldn’t have given my mom a heart attack) and I learned a few fun facts along the way, so other than a couple of glitches (I’ll explain more below) I was satisfied with it.  However, if you’re looking for an actual sightseeing and/or distillery tour with any more than a bare minimal amount of depth, this is not the one for you.

 

As we were driving through town, a guide  did share facts about the island and things we were passing, but the bus driver was driving so fast it was often tough to get pictures of the points of interest.  At one point, the guide even told the driver sharply in the local language to slow down so people could actually see the sights she was talking about.  At least I think that’s what she said. The local language is based on a blend of Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch and I can understand a fair bit of 2 of the 3.  Try and guess which one I have zero clue on!

 

As far as the distillery stop…Remember earlier in my review when I mentioned the distillery tours that are 10% information and 90% a tourist trap money grab?  This was one of those.  When we pulled up our driver told us we’d only have 20 minutes TOTAL there. Our guide took us into the museum and rushed through approximately 3 minutes worth of presentation about the curaçao making process then we were ushered into a courtyard where we got tiny free samples of 3 types of liquor on offer (and I mean TINY, like maybe an eighth of a standard shot glass if that) and we had a chance to buy cocktails at an outdoor bar. Our guide let us know that we could take any bar drinks we purchased on the bus with us (thank goodness, no way could we have finished them in time to make it back to the bus in the 15 minutes remaining without slamming them like frat boys in Vegas) and then pointed us towards the gift shop.

 

In the U.S. I think we’re most familiar with only the blue curaçao varietal, but the distillery actually makes several other flavors I’d never seen before.  I tried the coffee and tamarind flavors and both were so good I bought small bottles to take home (I’m getting close to my customs alcohol allowance limit so I gotta keep the millimeters down).

 

When we got to the beach the set up was…interesting.  We were guided to a roped off area of the beach that was allegedly a cruise ship “bubble”.

 

The thing is, we were told to use the general public bathrooms and no one was stopping anyone from going to the beach bars, shops  or restaurants outside the “bubble” area.  Additionally, passengers weren’t required to be on a ship excursion in this port, so I saw quite a few people from our ship who’d just taken taxis to the beach hanging out in general areas.  It kind of felt like we were pushed into a center stage leper colony with minimal actual benefit as far as preventing those from our ship from exposing non-cruisers to COVID risk.

 

There was in seat food and beverage service on our “bubble” beach (for additional charge).  I had a reasonably priced patron margarita and a Dutch snack called bitterballen that was a delicious deep fried ball of ground meat and potatoes (G-d bless the Dutch!)

 

We were told by our guide to start packing up on the beach and be back at the parking lot where we were dropped off no later than 3:30.  When we all arrived at that spot on time, an excursion rep told us that due to a need to take our bus to pick up passengers from the Carnival ship that came in port after us, our bus wouldn’t be back to get us until 4:15! 

 

As you can imagine folks were not crazy about waiting an extra 45 minutes especially given that some were also booked on evening excursions that were scheduled to leave by 5. I also didn’t know how I felt about jumping right on a bus that hadn’t been cleaned right after passengers from another ship got off of it.  Then I remembered the bus hadn’t been very clean before I got on it in the first place (someone’s dirty drink cup was still in the seat back pocket) so that ship may have sailed already (pun intended). 

 

Fortunately once they heard some were in danger of missing another excursion if they weren’t back in time, the tour company sent another bus for us and we were only 10 minutes late getting back.

 

When I got back to the pier,  I walked back up to town to see a few sights and take a few photos I really wanted but couldn’t get on the speeding tour bus then came back to the ship and spent some time reading on my veranda then took a little pre-dinner nap.
 

Next report:  Tuscan Grille dinner and a show on Equinox!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[GenerationX]

9 hours ago, Kandtcruisers said:

I hardly ever reply on CC but I love your review, writing style, fashion and radiant personality. Thank you for lighting up my day. Went on cupshe.com and Venus.com for cruise attire - loaded up the cart, now I just have to ask, WWGD?  What Would Gen-X Do?  ☺️  Safe and fun wishes for the rest of your cruise. 

Thank you so much!!!! I’m so happy you’re loving the review!  So what Gen X would do is head to Google and see if there’s any active coupon codes out their for my full carts that I haven’t heard about that can drop my price then click buy! 😁

[chefchick]

Gen X….thank you for taking the time to once again on your vacation to give us a detailed review.  As a fellow “solo traveler” I know how wonderful these trips can be.  I always find it interesting how often I will be meeting say a couple, at one of the ship’s bars, and they are absolutely fascinated by the idea of a woman traveling alone…well, I should say, it’s often the man who is giving me the side eye and the woman who I can clearly see is thinking how incredible it would be to spend seven or more days at sea…with no one to answer to but herself.  Cruising with others is always great, but cruising alone…well, you just have to do it once to really get it.  Cheers 🥂

[jules27556]

6 hours ago, chefchick said:

Gen X….thank you for taking the time to once again on your vacation to give us a detailed review.  As a fellow “solo traveler” I know how wonderful these trips can be.  I always find it interesting how often I will be meeting say a couple, at one of the ship’s bars, and they are absolutely fascinated by the idea of a woman traveling alone…well, I should say, it’s often the man who is giving me the side eye and the woman who I can clearly see is thinking how incredible it would be to spend seven or more days at sea…with no one to answer to but herself.  Cruising with others is always great, but cruising alone…well, you just have to do it once to really get it.  Cheers 🥂

Hi, I am going on my first cruise in 12 years April 8 TA Silhouette.  Also going Solo!  GenX's reviews are terrific.  She has given me some wonderful suggestions/personal experiences as a Solo.  Your review also is  encouraging!  Thanks, Julie 

[GenerationX]

21 hours ago, lola2013 said:

My Equinox 2023 cruise will visit the ABCs...so far there are no excursions listed.  Could you please tell me the name of the catamarran excursion you did in Aruba.  Sounds great!

I agree about the buffet...it's actually one of my favorite places and I look forward to eating there several times when I sail solo.  Just me, my meal and a good book.

Enjoy the rest of your trip.

Susan

Thank you Susan! The name of the Aruba excursion is Sailaway Snorkel Cruise with BBQ Lunch.  If I recall correctly, the catamaran crew were with a company called Pelican Adventures (just in case Celebrity stops offering it and you want to look into booking it independently).

[GenerationX]

Good morning from breakfast in Bonaire and happy Thanksgiving to the Americans following along!

 

Last night after my nap I showered and dressed in something flowing and forgiving. BTW that will be par for the course for my wardrobe for the remainder of the cruise. I find that no matter how much I exercise the unlimited drinks and 3 course meals always seem to catch up with me by day 5 at the latest.

 

Then I went to the production show, Life.  This one was heavily singing and dancing focused and the choreography was fantastic.

 

After the show I went to dinner at Tuscan Grille where I was given one of the best tables right by the window overlooking the wake and a very attentive and friendly server named Pamela.  

 

I had the calamari, a Caesar salad and a medium rare ribeye with a half order of the spaghetti and meatballs on the side.  Inspired by the great one I drank in Le Petit Chef, I washed it all down with a Valpolicella that I enjoyed just as much.  In my opinion that ribeye in Tuscan is one of the best hunks of meat you can get on a Celebrity ship. Perfectly seasoned and seared and it practically melts in your mouth.  The only let down in the whole meal was my salad.  I’m thinking it may have sat somewhere made for a while before it came to the table.  It was room temperature and most of the lettuce wasn’t crisp anymore.  It didn’t hold a candle to the fresh made Caesar I had in the buffet the night before.

 

We ended up leaving Curaçao early so I was lucky enough to get to watch sail away as I was digging into my delicious fig gelato dessert and sipping a double espresso and a 10 year tawny port (both included in the premium beverage package).

 

After dinner I finished out the night in Ensemble Lounge listening to live music while the guys behind the bar made sure my cosmopolitans and Evian bottles were never left empty.

 

I feel bad, the live music acts in Ensemble have been so great this cruise I’ve really been neglecting my favorites the Martini Bar and World Class Bar. I’m going to make it a point to get back to them tonight.

 

When I got back to my room around midnight I went out on my veranda and was treated to the most amazing spotlight show from the moon on the ocean!

 

Next stop is my room to grab my snorkel gear and then I’m headed out for a marine park sail and snorkel excursion. 

 

Have a great day my friends!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[jemttill]

Hello GenX!  I just found your review and have been enjoying it soooo very, very much.  I started laughing right away when I saw the pic of the champagne vending machine.  This got my DHs attention.  He stayed and read along with me for the rest of your review.  He pointed out, and I agree, that you and I are soulmates.  Other than the pea soup (my mother made me eat that stuff), our taste is quite similar. Champagne, escargot, mimosas, dancing, cosmos, eggs benedict, martini bar, grand marnier souffle, silent disco, enjoying the balcony late at night (alone, because he is already sleeping), lobster and a little bit of the casino thrown in, too. We will be on the Equinox December 10th to January 3rd for B2B 12 night cruises.  These were "lift & shift" cruises that became B2B.  This is a bit longer than our longest cruise and our first B2B.  We can't wait and your review has helped in so many ways!  Your comment about the demographics is spot on.  We are 71 and 73 and still enjoy all (mostly) the fun things that a cruise has to offer. Happy Thanksgiving and enjoy the rest of your cruise!

[mchell810]

That fig gelato looks heavenly! 😋

[jules27556]

Happy Thanksgiving GenX!! 

 

I can't tell you how outstanding your reviews are!  You include everything!

Dining, venues, excursions, and the forgiving wardrobe!  The last terrific!  I am looking in my closet and

planning accordingly! LOL  The photos are wonderful and add reality to my imagination.

 

You have made these so important and informative to so many, and especially me the "newbie" cruiser!

 

Thank you for taking your time to do them.  You are going "above and beyond"!

 

Julie

 

   

[helen haywood]

Your comment on the bag o’ frozen mixed veggies reminds me of a time the vegetable pizza on Celebrity had only…wait for it…peas and square cubes of carrots!!

[GenerationX]

1 hour ago, mchell810 said:

That fig gelato looks heavenly! 😋

 
It was DIVINE! My server told me it is made from scratch by the dessert team on board and it 100% tastes like that’s true!

[GenerationX]

QUICK UPDATE FROM BONAIRE:

 

In case anyone is thinking of being late back to the ship on your upcoming Equinox sailing, I wouldn’t recommend it.

 

I’m on my veranda having a post-excursion Evian and at 10 minutes before the required All Aboard time, Captain Tasos was already standing up in the bridge looking back at the gangway pacing with his hand on his hip waiting impatiently for the last guests to come back onboard so he could get out of dodge.

 

By 5 till all aboard he’d already pulled half the lines and he literally just honked his horn at someone strolling leisurely back to the ship 3 minutes late to get them to hustle. 
 

I get the sense that this man is not playing, and if you dawdle, he will leave you on an island real quick and throw up duces in that window as he sails off without you.

 

I’m just sayin.

 

 

 

[GenerationX]

Ok so this is too funny.  

You know what I just said about Captain Tasos would probably throw up duces in the window and leave you if you’re late?  Well, it turns out my assessment wasn’t too far off. We actually just had a couple who showed up 35 minutes past all aboard! 

 

We did wait for them but they narrowly made it sprinting up to the pier before Captain T lost his patience.  He had an officer on the bridge holding this at the ready.
😂😂😂😂

 

Edited November 25, 2021 by GenerationX

[GenerationX]

Dear Neighbors in Stateroom 7153,

 

Two Things if You’re Following:

 

1) FYI, your Back-to-Back instructions have been delivered.

 

2) I have no words for how jealous I am of you right now.

 

 

Bon Voyage You Lucky Ducks,

 

Charla

 

[disfan123]

On 11/23/2021 at 3:34 PM, GenerationX said:

 

 

GenerationX so awesome to meet you in the Sky Lounge, we've been busy the last couple of days with the port days but hope we see you during the last two sea days! Once again, fantastic review!

[stephensfamily5]

Generation X,

 

Could you tell me if you had to show any Covid test results at Bonaire? 

 

The information online says this:  Fully vaccinated travelers (12 years and older) must show proof of full vaccination and a negative PCR test not older than 24 hours before departure from home port. Non (fully) vaccinated travelers are required to show, apart from a negative PCR test, an antigen test not older than 24 hours before arrival to Bonaire.

 

I am hoping to confirm that they are not really requiring this.  It would seem very difficult to complete this requirement.  Second question- the cruise ship didn't test you with an antigen test themselves, did they?

 

Thanks so much!

[PeterGavin]

Every ship has a Godmother ... we gentle readers here have the FUN mother ! Cheers.

[GenerationX]

34 minutes ago, stephensfamily5 said:

Generation X,

 

Could you tell me if you had to show any Covid test results at Bonaire? 

 

The information online says this:  Fully vaccinated travelers (12 years and older) must show proof of full vaccination and a negative PCR test not older than 24 hours before departure from home port. Non (fully) vaccinated travelers are required to show, apart from a negative PCR test, an antigen test not older than 24 hours before arrival to Bonaire.

 

I am hoping to confirm that they are not really requiring this.  It would seem very difficult to complete this requirement.  Second question- the cruise ship didn't test you with an antigen test themselves, did they?

 

Thanks so much!

No, we were not required to show a test in Bonaire.

 

 The local authorities just looked at my vaccine card then waved me on out of the port.

 

Thus far the ship has not tested us for COVID. I have talked to a couple of cruisers from Canada who said they’re getting their PCR tests tomorrow onboard but my understanding is that this is due to Canadian re-entry requirements and does not apply to US citizens.

[stephensfamily5]

Thanks!