We set sail on the spring equinox on the Celebrity Equinox. My sexy-senior citizen husband, myself, and our two traveling companions (the remaining three of us are in our 50s) set sail on what was billed "The Ultimate Caribbean". We are veterans of Royal Caribbean but wanted to try Celebrity after our traveling companions noticed a decline in service on RC.With very few exceptions the Equinox provided outstanding personal service (the Celebrity employees directing people to the lines on the dock were the only exception to this). The captain was very visible, mingling with the passengers as was the remainder of the officers on board. A few special requests were quickly met (we had the balcony divider removed between our cabins), requested ice tea each night at dinner and morning coffee on our balcony, extra towels for the romm etc. The cabin staff was extremely attentive. One of our companions wanted a certain drink made a certain way--I think they made 6 or 7 attempts to get it the way he liked it.This particular sailing had an abundance of older passengers. A few of these were definitely demanding and the staff dealt with them graciously. Most of the activities seemed geared towards the older demographic.The food was on the par with Royal Caribbean. Much better than anything we make at home but not exceptional. As usual a few of the descriptions bore little resemblance to our dishes--I feel this maybe the fault of translators.The actual ship exceed our expectations. Never did we feel like we were crowded or on one of those mega-ships. Plenty of quiet spaces to read or play cards. Deck chairs by the pool were at a premium but not unobtainable. They were quite proud of their art work but it was not to my taste, especially the photographs in our cabin. The couches in the room and a few of the venues were very uncomfortable. But the chairs on the veranda made up for them. We were also pleased that the cabin TV did allow for free movies on demand. My husband loves to unwind watching TV and on most ships he has had very limited selection.Getting connected through a personal laptop from the room was difficult. I finally managed it by the second week. Our traveling companions gave up and just went to the computer room.The ports were interesting but only Cozumel and Georgetown were typical "beach" ports. Puerto Costa Maya is a cruise ship port--sun swim in a pool and shop in a very controlled environment or use a golf cart and adventure out, which we did. Unfortunately there wasn't much to see. The sea's were too choppy for jet ski's and kayaks. The area was depressed to begin with and hurricanes of the last few years damaged it further. However the people we met were very gracious. In Puerto Limon we toured the banana plantations, the town, the canals and visited a local beach--this was the only place where there was a curious lack of the omnipresent vendors (and of course we were looking to rent chairs and umbrellas!). In Panama we did a private excursion where we saw the locks and then went in a dugout canoe to an Indian Village, the water levels did not permit a much anticipated trek to a waterfall for swimming. The eco-tourism of the Indian village was interesting and disturbing at the same time--The tribe turned to "eco-tourism" after their government made their traditional form of agriculture illegal. Cartegena was our true taste of what a major South American city was like. The vendors were very aggressive and did not care if they separated you from your tour or blocked your vision of where you were walking. The old city was beautiful, our guide had excellent English and truly loved her city. The shops in the old Dungeons were great and had unusual merchandise. We were grateful to our guide for steering us to shops she thought we would enjoy.Our last port was George Town, Grand Cayman and it was here that those seeking the ultimate Caribbean found it. Bright colors, a fantastic beach, all the traditional water sports and vendors that were not aggressive.All of the stops were very hot and very humid--we went just enough further south on this cruise to really be bothered by heat and humidity. It gave me a much greater appreciation of what the workers on the Panama Canal had to deal with.As with all vacations the attitude you approach the ship, the crew and the ports with is the essential element. Those who looked at it with a sense of adventure and an open-mind had a great time, those who complained about the heat, the poverty had a miserable time. My advice for travelers would be to research your ports and be clear in your mind what type of vacation you are seeking. If you crave a sense of adventure and a chance to experience other cultures then this is a great cruise. If you are looking for the "Ultimate Caribbean" with lots of beaches and water sports then I would suggest you select other itineraries.