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SHIP: Equinox

CABIN #: 2131

DECK #: 12

CLASS: Sky Suite S2

AREA: Port Aft

BED NEAR: Bath

QUIET?: Yes

BALCONY VIEW: No obstructions

BALCONY SIZE: Normal for its class

WIND A PROBLEM?:No

SOOT A PROBLEM?: No

PROBLEMS/COMMENTS:Fantastic location midway in hall. Close enough to elevators to be convenient but far enough away to be quiet. No atrium noise whatsoever. We occasionally heard carts rolling up above but not often enough to be annoying. Only flaw in cabin is that in rough seas the walls and ceilings creak a lot. Maybe because of high location in ship? We would definitely book this cabin again.

We are sailing on the eclipse NYE, concierge class. We had a tough time deciding between aqua and concierge and in the end concierge won. I am contemplating changing for Blu and Persian gardens. The price difference is over $1000.00 and we figure we can eat at a lot of specialty restaurants for the difference. My question... I think I have read that you can buy a weekly pass for the persian garden even if you are not Aqua. Is that true?

Yes you can buy a pass, either a day pass or for the length of the voyage. I'm not sure of the exact price but somewhere between $20-30? Our last few cruises we've been sailing Aqua class because much to my surprise, my husband fell in love with the Persian Gardens. Honestly he's the last person on earth I'd ever peg for liking saunas and heated seats and aromatherapy! So please do try it out for at least a day. The other thing is that you might do well to keep your eye out for price drops. It's not uncommon for Aqua to dip in price. You never know as it all depends on how well the cruise is selling.

Happy birthday, Gambee. Although I think we're the ones who are getting the best present to tell you the truth! My husband and I sat down together last night and read all the updates on your review and laughed so hard. You're so comical. I hope one of these days we'll be lucky enough to have you on a future sailing!

Can you do us a favor, too? Could you post this review in the sticky at the top of the page, where it says "Back from your Celebrity sailing?" That way your story will be easy to find no matter how much time goes by. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=839874

thank you all for the support, I can't believe how many comments I have already :).

 

I brought my computer to work and I am kicking it to full gear to try to get all the day 1 pictures edited by the end of the of the day. That should allow me to work on the actual review tomorrow and get as much done as possible.

 

I will also address all the comments tonight or tomorrow.

 

Once again thank you all :)

Gambee, there are many reviews that are wonderful and helpful. Yours is different because you're just so cheerful and enthusiastic. No one can read your posts without smiling from ear to ear. THAT's why you have so many comments! Cruises are about being happy and reading your cruise reviews brings that feeling to life. ;)

Gambee, a cruise report from you is better than a visit from the Easter Bunny. :D

Thank you so much for sharing your cruise with us. I took my daughter on the Brilliance last May and I have such a soft spot in my heart for her. I share your opinion that it's going to be sad saying goodbye to the SeaView Cafe. We had the best little lunches there and the staff was always so nice.

I've read here on CC that people have smoked on their balconies but I've never personally come across it, not on any of my cruises.

Thank you for your photo essay! We too had a marvelous dinner at Qsine on the Summit. I thought it was a ton of fun.

We got off the Equinox on New Years Eve and went to the Bimini Boat Yard for lunch. I got two of those big souvenir cocktail glasses and managed to get them home to Indiana only to break both of them within the month! When we sail on the Equinox next month, we're visiting my parents in Naples first. They're dropping us off at the pier but this time we're making a beeline to Southport Raw Bar, which, like you, is our first love seafood-wise. Nice send off for our transatlantic!

I am so happy that you and your DH had such a wonderful cruise on the Equinox and I look forward to reading about your adventures. And seeing your photos too. :D

Joanna! Still hopelessly hooked on the tales, travails, and adventures of these three Alabama girls. If we have half as much fun this October as y'all did, we'll count ourselves blessed. :D

Ben ... I forget his last name. IMHO I didn't think he was very good.

You're right. It is Ben (and that's pretty much what he goes by, just "Ben") but if I remember correctly he is staying on the Equinox only until the end of the Caribbean season. He won't be on the transatlantic next month. He's actually a very nice man but he doesn't have the Umphh! of some other CDs we've come across.

Just wonderful, Joanna. You're bringing an amazing country to life with your narrative and photos. It's clear that you love Italy and she loves you back. I think your three tossed coins into the fountain will definitely bring you back!!

I've read your cruise reports on the RCI forum and it's great to see you here too! Excellent and funny as all-get-out, just like we expect from you. :D

What a lovely review. You pretty well summed up how my husband and I feel about our cruises with Celebrity, and why we sail with them. And we love Aqua class too!;)

Joanna, you girls are just too cute for words! I love your bus story. My husband and daughter and I were on the same bus route to/from Sienna. You know how the bus has curtains? I was happily enjoying the view and some other passenger decided it was too much sun on his face and he CLOSED THE CURTAINS. :eek::eek::eek: Nooooooo! You should have heard me yell. My view!!! He was quickly persuaded to open the curtains again. Ahhhhh, glorious Tuscan countryside once more... ;)

We are in reserved and paid in full for a March cruise Cat. A1- I want to upgrade to Aqua Suite if prices drop- but if I do, you are stating that I might not get my promotion. So I guess I will not consider the move as the promotion is worthwhile, and we already upgraded to the premium beverage packages and paid a little more. Thanks for the information.

Don't automatically assume that you won't be eligible! In our case, I wanted to upgrade to a suite but it was a suite guarantee. That has a different price code. If you see a price drop that interests you, call Celebrity and ask about it. They'll let you know right away if you have to forgo the promotion in order to get the upgrade.

Hi!

 

 

Has anyone tried to upgrade after final payment and after 123 go-promotion to a better stateroom and be able to keep the perks from Celebrity; beverage package and 300$ OBC? I mean upgrading by paying the difference...

 

 

Thanks for your help!

Yes, we did. We were already past final payment for our April transatlantic and I upgraded us from A2 to A1, no problem at all. HOWEVER...yesterday I noticed that our TA has a suite guarantee for not that much more than Aqua so I called about it. The 123 Go! promotion does not cover guarantee fares so it was a no-go for us. You have to be very careful about upgrading because only certain fare schedules, as Host Andy noted, are eligible.

Thanks everyone for all of the nice comments. It really does give me motivation to continue . I had a battle with CC and Photobucket today, but I am so glad I got through Venice.

 

All of you that are doing this cruise, I think you are going to LOVE it! All that are just thinking about it, BOOK IT!

I am really happy that you are fighting your battles and winning! My husband and I are taking our two kids--son age 26 and daughter 24--on this exact same itinerary at the end of October. This is going to be our first family cruise and I am so excited about it that I will probably drive everyone crazy until then!!! In the meantime, I am gobbling up everything you have to say and I'm cluing in the kids about your review as I know they'll like the perspective, as a young person, that you have to offer. Keep it coming please! (oh, as a side note, we're Amazing Race fans too; we even applied one season on the advice of a friend who was a contestant. Remember the "Glamazons?")

Are there daily trivia sessions on Summit like on RCCL?

Yes, there are. Just look in your Celebrity Today newsletter that's delivered daily to your cabin.

I just wanted to send all of you a quick follow-up to my original post regarding the difficulties I encountered using my Celebrity passages certificate. After contacting a number of TA's (including Celebrity agents), I was able to get a really good deal on an upcoming cruise on Celebrity's Silhouette.

 

As I feared, my passages certificate was not combinable with the rate I booked. However, I've allowed my initial frustration to subside and decided to forgo using the passages deposit. After getting all of your great feedback, I know that I can potentially use it in the future (and if necessary, I will simply use the deposit I already paid on a future cruise). So, I'm going to put my passages certificate back into its' folder with the hopes of finding an opportunity to use it in the future.

 

I want to thank all of you again for your help :)

 

Adam

Adam, that's really sweet of you to come back and wind up the storyline. I"m guessing you like Celebrity enough to book another cruise using your certificate. I do too, which is why having two certs languishing in my safe box doesn't cause me too much lost sleep. ;)

The only thing I can say is "Misery loves company." There are lots of us out there who have run into the same situation with benefits not being combinable. The one good thing is that you actually haven't thrown out your $100. Eventually (I hope) you'll come across an X cruise that you want to go on that doesn't have a promo attached to it and you'll be able to use your certificate.

You absolutely cannot rely on a travel agent to give you the correct information all the time! The sixth deck on all the S Class ships (of which the Reflection is the newest member) is full of obstructed view cabins. Looking at any photo would tell you that. The lifeboats and tenders are there. Your cabin IS obstructed when you're seated. Standing at the railing your view will be clear out. #6242 has one of the oversized balconies that are significantly larger, however, so you may not want to change it after all.

There's a sticky post in this forum that will give you information on all the S Class cabins. You may want to look into it to make an informed decision about what you want to do.This post might be of use to you, too. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1784191

Some tables for two are a little more spacious than others but even still, most people are very respectful of others' privacy. You sit down, say a quick hello to whomever you're seated nearest to, and then you ignore them for the rest of the dinner if you so choose. It's not discourteous to do that.

Thanks again everyone! I am glad this review has been enjoyed by so many of you. Inspires me to take another cruise (Scott says writing a review is not a reason to take a cruise, however;)

You could always join us on the Equinox transatlantic, you know. I counted all the drink concoctions at the Molecular Bar and there are as many of them to try as there are nights on board. Cosmic coincidence? I think not! :D

ok lead me where we can continue to help celebrity get this right. I sail in two weeks and my opinion will be heard ... lol at least they are trying

The fight for good beer & good hours on an X ship is a good fight! If you too would like to argue the point, write to Michael Bayley like I did. (Sandi and I talked about this and she doesn't mind that I share what I said to him. We're all beer lovers together! :D:D )

contactmichael@celebrity.com

Dear Mr. Bayley,

I wish you a very happy new year and heaps of success with your new position at our favorite cruise line, Celebrity. I know you get plenty of advice and queries about Celebrity so I will just have to fall into the "if you can't beat 'em join 'em" category. I'm writing to you about Michael's Club.

My husband and I love craft beer and are delighted with the craft beer concept in several of the Michael's Clubs. But yikes! The hours stink. Very often it's not open until 5 or even 7 pm. What about us poor souls who want a decent beer with our lunch or at Happy Hour? No other bar/lounge on board serves a decent beer; only Michael's Club will do. Surely as a native born Englishman you will have pity on those of us who like a pint before 7 pm on our holiday? You addressed the question of hours when you (graciously) did the Q&A session on the cruise forum Cruise Critic, but could you push the issue along and get our beers to us earlier?

I'm asking for a selfish reason--my own taste buds--but I think you would be very pleased with the results if you were to give Michael's Club hours more consistent with the other bar/lounges on board. Look at this response that I got from your Craft Beer Cruises Dept. when I wrote them a few months back. As follows:

Good afternoon Deirdre. Thank you for sailing Celebrity Cruises and for your interest in our 2013 Craft Beer Cruises. Here are the six Brewery hosted Craft Beer Cruises we have lined up for 2013. You need to book with the agency indicated next to each, in order to be included in the group and participate in the craft beer tasting events: Welcome Aboard Craft Beer Reception Two one-hour Craft Beer Tasting Seminars Four-Course Craft Beer Pairing Luncheon Two onboard, behind the scenes tours 2013 Craft Beer Groups: Boulder Beer Company 7 Night Eastern Caribbean Celebrity Reflection 3/09/13 Groups@Cruisefox.com www.cruisefox.com BJ's Brewhouse 7 Night Eastern Caribbean Celebrity Reflection 3/16/13 www.worldviewtravel.com/craftbeercruise Samuel Adams 7 Night Eastern Caribbean Celebrity Reflection 4/06/13 CostcoTravel.com http://ctrv.us/SamuelAdamsCruise California Beer Festival at Sea (featuring several different breweries) 9 night Pacific Coastal (opportunities to visit breweries in each port of call) Celebrity Solstice 5/06/13 www.CruiseSpecialists.com/CBF Dry Dock Brewing Company 7 night Alaska Celebrity Millennium 7/23/13 Highlands Ranch Travel 888-702-4727 Karl Strauss Brewing Company 11 night Hawaii Celebrity Solstice 9/23/13 www.carefreevacations.com/brewscruise Cheers!

So you can see, there's an interest out there for fine craft beer. You already have the customers! Make them happy by opening Michael's Club to coincide with Happy Hour! More happy Celebrity cruisers = more happy Celebrity executives. And shareholders, too (we're one of them too ).

Another item for your consideration. When the initial press release came out when Celebrity introduced the concept, the description included several fun activities such as food and beer pairings. The Craft Beer Cruises offer events like this, but why not offer to everyone as promised when Celebrity planned Michael's Club? People are more than willing to pay a nominal fee for the food and wine pairing courses and I bet they'd do the same for Craft Beer courses too. The microbrewery/craft beer movement is hot, hot, hot in the US. Take advantage of people's interest! You at Celebrity have a great opportunity here to differentiate yourselves from other cruise lines and grab an audience that is well-educated, well-off, and crazy about craft beer. I wish you'd have more confidence in Michael's Club. Take it and run with it!

MICHAEL'S CLUB

Celebrity's history and future will converge in Michael's Club - a venue found on every Celebrity ship - where the line will present on Celebrity Silhouette and Celebrity Reflection a restyled, casually elegant bar where vacationers can sit back and enjoy the comfortably sophisticated atmosphere while watching the World Cup games and sipping a Chimay Blue.

Across the Celebrity fleet, Michael's Club offers an impressive selection of rare malts, whiskies and scotches. Building on that tradition, the "new" Michael's Club on CelebritySilhouette and Celebrity Reflection will add an equally impressive selection of more than 50 beers, including flavorful craft beers, and will allow guests to participate in engaging experiences such as ideal food and beer pairings, how to pour the perfect draft, or how to select the proper beer glass, all while snacking on homemade, gourmet potato chips and bread sticks, and fresh, lightly-spiced caramel popcorn, amidst a vibe of live music and cool playlists, or major international sporting events airing on the venue's large, 46" TV screens.

Thanks for listening.

Sincerely,

Deirdre N.

PS Forgot to mention but with the current 123 Go! promo, you are going to have a lot of people who will go into Michael's Club and try a beer because it presents no risk to them. I wonder how many of these people will enjoy the beverage package so much that they will refuse to sail without buying one? See? Another potential group that will make your revenue department very happy! As they say, "reach out and touch them."