Celebrity Equinox Review
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Additional details
This was our first cruise on Celebrity; we’ve received enough Royal Caribbean points to be Celebrity Elite. We’re from Florida (we drove to the port), retired, in our mid-60s. We got on-board credit and free gratuities.
As soon as we got on the ship, we could tell it was a higher class than Royal. Throughout the cruise, every staff member acted like they were so happy for us to be there. The extra touches extended to the docks when we returned to the ship. It was hot and humid out and the staff had a tent set up with iced towels and free fruit-infused water. Another extra touch: the pool lounges all have cushions. And they have lots of pool towels, too. The library is quite large and well-stocked. We received a small flower arrangement in the cabin on the second evening and it stayed fresh for the rest of the cruise. Even though they bragged about Internet speeds, we used the I-Lounge to look up Celebrity.com information and it was very slow, even locking up the Apples. Note that looking up Celebrity.com is free.
Embarkation/Debarkation: Embarkation was a breeze. I believe we were in the Oasis/Allure building. As we boarded, we were given a free glass of bubbly wine. Debarkation was also smooth. As Elite, we waited in the Tuscan lounge where there was a continental breakfast. We got off with the first group and the luggage was already there. Customs was a breeze. We used Park n Go for our car and the shuttle was waiting for us.
Cabin Review
Deluxe Veranda 1C
This was the first cabin we’ve had that the thermostat didn’t need to be set at maximum cold. The cabin was very quiet. Even the privacy panels on the balcony were quiet. We had no problem with the interactive TV, although it would have been nice if they had CNN Headline News. They did have Fox and MSNBC, along with BBC News, TNT and ESPN. There are various 4-page newspapers at the Guest Services Desk for many different countries. We rarely saw the two cabin attendants. The cabin was large enough that we didn’t need to use several storage locations. The suitcases fit under the bed. Along with the bathrobes, they also provided an umbrella, safe, stocked lockable fridge and munchies that are quite expensive. Our luggage arrived soon after the muster drill.
We’d been stung before with a cabin that had a connecting door that let the sound of the neighbors through. The Equinox has changed that. All cabin doors to the hallway are actually set back a few feet from the hallway. The connecting cabins have an extra set of doors that are flush with the hallway. If you want connecting, you close those doors. If you don’t want connecting, the flush doors remain open all the time, and you have a cabin like everyone else does.