B2B on the Equinox and the Eclipse - February in paradise

[chamima]

We recently returned from B2B cruises on the Equinox and then the Eclipse.

I'm glad we did them in that order because, while the Equinox cruise was wonderful the cruise on the Eclipse was phenomenal and one of our most fun.

The ports we sailed on the Equinox (11 days) were Grand Cayman, Cartegena, Colon, Limon, Belize and Cozumel.

The ports on the Eclipse (14 days) were Aruba, Curacao, Bonaire, Barbados, St. Lucia, Antigua, St. Kitts and St. Maarten.

We have been to all of the ports before and tend to prefer the Eclipse itinerary but, unless someone asks a specific question, this review will ONLY be about the 2 ships and the differences we experienced.

 

Again, both ships were wonderful.

 

We sailed in Aqua class and ate exclusively in Blu for breakfasts and dinners on both ships.

 

We are vegetarians and found the selection in the buffet for lunch , while tasting good, very limited and repetitive on both ships so ate most lunches in the Aqua Spa Cafe or had the delicious veggy burgers from the Mast Grill

We normally order room service coffee and danish to start the day. Room service is the only area that Eclipse fell down. They were ALWAYS late, once an hour and once 45 minutes but always at least 15 minutes after the estimated time. (I got used to their schedule and adjusted when I ordered accordingly).

The coffee on the Equinox was absolutely awful (in room service and in Blu) but the coffee on the Eclipse was actually good. Go figure????

Our waitstaff on both ships were wonderful. Donovan on the Equinox welcomes you into his "family" and he means it. He is the consummate professional!

Vinod on the Eclipse was sweet and caring!

On both ships we felt the hostess (Oana on the Equinox and Anita on the Eclipse) had much more input in running the dining room, welcoming passengers and making sure everything ran smoothly with waitstaff and table turnover at busy times than the people that introduced themselves as Maitre D'.

Our sea days on both ships were relaxing and we enjoyed finding different areas to sit in the sun, the shade, attend lectures or the Hot Glass Show (which I LOVE!)

I found the pool bartenders wonderful on both ships and the music was at an appropriate volume . The Eclipse even had a young man playing steel drum!!! There seemed to be more live music during the day on the Eclipse. (This will become a theme)

 

Our evenings usually consisted of starting at the Molecular Bar and Jelena, Barbara and Luca on the Equinox were just as wonderful as George and Irena on the Eclipse.

After dinner we stopped by there again but on the Equinox we usually spent the rest of the evening there. That will be explained below.

 

After dinner was where the difference in the 2 ships became the most apparent.

Both ships had pretty much the same entertainers - a jazz band, a party band, a guitarist, a string duo (down from the quartet 2 years ago and the trio last year) a DJ and the specialty entertainers in the theater.

The scheduling of these people was glaringly different on the 2 ships.

I should probably add here that Sue Denning is the CD on the Eclipse and maybe it's not fair to compare anyone else to her. Not only does she schedule CONSTANT entertainment but she herself has the energy of 10 people and is always all over the ship interacting with passengers!

. We ate at different times and on the Equinox never heard any music being played in the Ensemble Lounge when we walked through it either before or after dinner.

On the Eclipse there was always someone playing and we often sat down to listen. Most nights the music lasted at least till midnight - again not so on the Equinox - everything seemed to end by 10 or 11. I often wandered the ship at that time and I won't write what I nicknamed late evenings.

On the Equinox there were hours where nothing was going on and then 2 things scheduled at the same time. The worst example of this was one evening when we went to hear the guitarist in the Gastrobar (which BTW looked a LOT like Cellarmasters with some walls missing) but the Miami DJ with the drums (which were great on their own) was playing in the foyer so we couldn't hear the guitarist and he gave up after one song. An hour or so later - NO entertainment scheduled! All or nothing - that was the theme of entertainment on this cruise.

On the Eclipse things were scheduled one after the other and we often found ourselves hurrying from one venue to another to enjoy as much as we could!

(This included constant activities in the court area we passed on the way to or from the theater - there was ALWAYS music or an activity going on there on the Eclipse. On the Equinox - silence)

 

Another big difference in evening entertainment were the outdoor pool parties. There was one pretty boring one on the Equinox and three fun, lively, well attended fabulous parties on the Eclipse. Again, what seemed to be the same resources utilized so much better!

As I write this I can think of example after example where the differences in scheduling performers was SO different but I hope I've made my point.

 

In summary, both ships were clean and beautiful with wonderful, warm, engaging crew members. But we look forward to sailing on the Eclipse again because the sense of "life" and activity on there was so much more full and fun.

 

(I suggested on the ship, in my post cruise survey and will reiterate here that Celebrity should think about having Sue Denning train all of their CDs! She is a treasure!)

[Jem 12]

Thanks for the comparison we have never been on the Equinox, we agree completely about Sue Denning, she is our favourite CD on Celebrity. We sail again on Eclipse In August I just hope Sue is on board and our entertainment experience is as good as yours.

 

 

We love Silhouette but just wish they would use the Sky bar for more activities rather the ridiculous Lobby dance floor, complete with statues, photographers steps and people coming down the stairs to go to guest relations etc.

 

 

Thanks again for taking the time.

 

 

 

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[Happy Cruiser 6143]

I once asked Sue when she sleeps! She is everywhere. She said--not much.

 

I'm sure both CDs have the same resources available to them. Good on Sue for making better use of what she was given. I agree, she should train the other CDs. That's an area in which I think Celebrity is slipping markedly. My friend had a brand new butler who was just thrown into the job to sink or swim. He served our dinner all at once--including the sorbet! He was such a sweetie we didn't have the heart to say anything, but that's a disservice both to the butler and the guest.

 

[wallie5446]

Very nice Karen!

 

We spent our after dinner time in the Ensemble Lounge last Nov when on the Equinox. Great entertainment, makes me wonder what changed :confused:

 

EW

[jerseygirl3]

Very nice Karen!

 

We spent our after dinner time in the Ensemble Lounge last Nov when on the Equinox. Great entertainment, makes me wonder what changed :confused:

 

EW

 

We were on the 2/13/15 Equinox sailing, and there was almost always a singer or a string quartet playing in the Ensemble Lounge around dinner time.

[chamima]

Very nice Karen!

 

We spent our after dinner time in the Ensemble Lounge last Nov when on the Equinox. Great entertainment, makes me wonder what changed :confused:

 

EW

 

Thanks Wallie!

I think what changed was the person doing the scheduling.

As I said - the entertainers seemed to be similar but they they were scheduled MUCH better on the Eclipse (they were also scheduled more often so you work a lot harder when you work for Sue) and they were all scheduled all over the ship at different times.

I was worried that I didn't describe enough things about the ship for you because I know I promised I would do a review.

The Gastrobar was ok. My husband tried a couple of the beers but thought they were just ok and overpriced. As we are vegetarians the food didn't interest us at all. And, as I've said, the decor looked really similar to Cellarmasters. I think Celebrity could easily (and a lot less expensively) add a couple of TVs, add the beers and just change the name if they're looking for a new venue. I couldn't get any decent wines in the Gastrobar . Don't know why they can't have good wine AND good beer in one venue. :confused: So based on our experience and likes - I'd stick with Cellarmasters.

 

I also tried Slush a few times. I never finished a single drink I got there. I was happy I had the drink package so I hadn't paid individually for them.

[chamima]

We were on the 2/13/15 Equinox sailing, and there was almost always a singer or a string quartet playing in the Ensemble Lounge around dinner time.

 

We ate in Blu so dinner was at a different time every night. We usually ate around 7:30 - maybe the music was scheduled to be before and after early and late traditional dining (6 and 8:30). :confused: :confused: :confused:

 

(Or maybe whoever scheduled the entertainment read our comments when leaving the ship)

Edited March 9, 2015 by chamima

[hotlipss]

We sail on Equinox in April and would love to see the "celebrity life"I think that's what it's called if you kept them...thanks

 

 

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[cem]

We ate in Blu so dinner was at a different time every night. We usually ate around 7:30 - maybe the music was scheduled to be before and after early and late traditional dining (6 and 8:30). :confused: :confused: :confused:

 

(Or maybe whoever scheduled the entertainment read our comments when leaving the ship)

 

We just got off the Equinox 02/23/2015 sailing, and we agree with you 100% regarding the entertainment and missed more continuous scheduling. We too, ate in Blu at different times and also never seemed to catch the entertainment. We also missed having late afternoon/sailaway entertainment in the Sunset Bar which we had previously enjoyed on the Eclipse. I had commented many times during the cruise regarding the lack of entertainment options and how quiet it was-

[chamima]

We ate in Blu so dinner was at a different time every night. We usually ate around 7:30 - maybe the music was scheduled to be before and after early and late traditional dining (6 and 8:30). :confused: :confused: :confused:

 

(Or maybe whoever scheduled the entertainment read our comments when leaving the ship)

 

We just got off the Equinox 02/23/2015 sailing, and we agree with you 100% regarding the entertainment and missed more continuous scheduling. We too, ate in Blu at different times and also never seemed to catch the entertainment. We also missed having late afternoon/sailaway entertainment in the Sunset Bar which we had previously enjoyed on the Eclipse. I had commented many times during the cruise regarding the lack of entertainment options and how quiet it was-

 

 

During the cruise we got a "How are we doing" type form from the wonderful Hotel Director, Christophe.

I mostly filled it out to give credit to a few FABULOUS crew we wanted to make sure got recognized for the great job they were doing. (And they subsequently told us their managers did get notice , so fill out those forms when you get them.)

I complemented almost everything but criticized the lack of variation in the lunch buffet and the lack of entertainment.

I got a really nice phone call from the buffet manager and a really defensive one from the CD. :rolleyes:

[Eva 51]

Thanks for your review. We found it very helpful

[Oskial]

During the cruise we got a "How are we doing" type form from the wonderful Hotel Director, Christophe.

I mostly filled it out to give credit to a few FABULOUS crew we wanted to make sure got recognized for the great job they were doing. (And they subsequently told us their managers did get notice , so fill out those forms when you get them.)

I complemented almost everything but criticized the lack of variation in the lunch buffet and the lack of entertainment.

I got a really nice phone call from the buffet manager and a really defensive one from the CD. :rolleyes:

 

We're on the Equinox in April too. Thanks for the review. What was the name of the cruise director? Just curious if that's who we will be getting in April.

[maddie36]

A Cruise Director who knows the guests can make the difference between a so-so cruise and an excellent one. Sue and Patti have the whole thing sewn up.

 

We, too, were unfortunate to sail on Equinox last summer in the Med where the Cruise Director put the guitarist in the foyer each evening and the party band up in Sky. There was almost a riot but he stood his ground and said he had to respect the other guests who didn't like the noise. At the end of the trip, probably after the 'how are we doing' comment forms were gathered in, he relented and for two nights the place buzzed with people hanging over the atrium rails at all levels to join in the fun. There are many quiet areas on these ships and the Atrium needn't be one of them.

[nngardener]

We ate in Blu so dinner was at a different time every night. We usually ate around 7:30 - maybe the music was scheduled to be before and after early and late traditional dining (6 and 8:30). :confused: :confused: :confused:

 

(Or maybe whoever scheduled the entertainment read our comments when leaving the ship)

We were on the 2/2 and 2/13 sailings of the Equinox. The timing of music in the Ensemble Lounge was from 5:00 to 5:45, 6:15 to 7:00 and 7:45 to 8:45. The type of music varied from having a "the cello chics" to a guitarist. That was on the 2/2 sailing but on the 2/23 sailing the Auburn Duo took over for the cello players. It was a viola and guitar group and they were excellent. In fact they were so enjoyable we went many times just to listen to them play. If the guitar player was in there, we didn't. We didn't like what he was playing. It was too loud and not enjoyable.

[miched]

Your comment about the Maitre D' is the same thing that we notice when we sailed on the Eclipse in Nov. We also dined in Blu and I thought that Anita was the Maitre D' and my wife reminded me that she was the hostess. Honestly I don't remember who the Maitre D' was or were ever introduced to.

 

I think the reason for the little interaction now is that the Maitre D doesn't "solicit" for TIPS as they had to in the past, it is now part of the daily recommended gratuity. In some ways it is good as sometimes it got very annoying when dining and the Maitre D' would make their obligatory rounds to be recognized and then the very obvious one on the last night. Hopefully it gives them more time to now run the restaurant more efficiently and properly.

 

happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌞

[chamima]

Your comment about the Maitre D' is the same thing that we notice when we sailed on the Eclipse in Nov. We also dined in Blu and I thought that Anita was the Maitre D' and my wife reminded me that she was the hostess. Honestly I don't remember who the Maitre D' was or were ever introduced to.

 

I think the reason for the little interaction now is that the Maitre D doesn't "solicit" for TIPS as they had to in the past, it is now part of the daily recommended gratuity. In some ways it is good as sometimes it got very annoying when dining and the Maitre D' would make their obligatory rounds to be recognized and then the very obvious one on the last night. Hopefully it gives them more time to now run the restaurant more efficiently and properly.

 

happy cruising

 

Except that we also watched interaction with the staff in there and , while the Maitre D' kind of stood around looking a little lost , Anita was watching and helping to keep things moving smoothly.

In all fairness, the young man on the Eclipse (whose name I still don't know) seemed to "get it" as the cruise progressed and interacted with passengers and crew more and more while the young woman on the Equinox (Aleita) never did get it and seemed to mostly be in the way.

 

We might have more interaction with the Maitre D' than most people (in this case , the Hostesses) because of my husband's restricted diet.

Edited March 10, 2015 by chamima

[chamima]

We were on the 2/2 and 2/13 sailings of the Equinox. The timing of music in the Ensemble Lounge was from 5:00 to 5:45, 6:15 to 7:00 and 7:45 to 8:45. The type of music varied from having a "the cello chics" to a guitarist. That was on the 2/2 sailing but on the 2/23 sailing the Auburn Duo took over for the cello players. It was a viola and guitar group and they were excellent. In fact they were so enjoyable we went many times just to listen to them play. If the guitar player was in there, we didn't. We didn't like what he was playing. It was too loud and not enjoyable.

 

Unfortunately, you've made my point.

I have a daily in front of me from the Eclipse.

I won't list all of evening entertainment but this is the schedule for the Ensemble for one night.

The musicians changed on different nights but there was ALWAYS someone playing!

 

 

5:30 - 6:30 pianist

6:45-7:30 guitarist (Bear Stevens, who was FABULOUS!!)

7:45 - 8:45 jazz quartet

(9:00 Malt tasting)

9:30 - 10:30 guitar

10:45 - 12:30 jazz quartet

[Jane2357]

Hi Karen!!! So happy that you had such a nice time on Eclipse - so wishing we were there this year. You mentioned the Hot Glass Show - so it begs the question - did you add to your collection this year?

 

You'll be laughing to know that we are now in an aft Aqua cabin for next years Alaska cruise - you know what a fan I am of Blu. ;) Perhaps they will convert me.

Edited March 10, 2015 by Jane2357

[chamima]

Hi Karen!!! So happy that you had such a nice time on Eclipse - so wishing we were there this year. You mentioned the Hot Glass Show - so it begs the question - did you add to your collection this year?

 

You'll be laughing to know that we are now in an aft Aqua cabin for next years Alaska cruise - you know what a fan I am of Blu. ;) Perhaps they will convert me.

 

 

Unfortunately, ;) yes, we did!

Blu was TOTALLY different this year than last year. I kept hoping last year was an anomaly and I think it was. We've had 5 great experiences in Blu and just that one bad one.

 

The pictures show upside down but when I look at my downloads they're right side up.

What happened!!!!!

Edited March 10, 2015 by chamima

[Jane2357]

LOVE IT! Now that we are in the new house ours are displayed - what great memories they bring back!!!