Celebrity Equinox - Have entertainment and sailaway party improved?

[tbmrt]

Last year in early December we cruised on the Equinox to the Caribbean. This year we are headed to the Panama Canal area on same ship.

 

Loved Equinox' food, ambiance, cabins, service, martini bar, etc....

 

Found the entertainment to be quite amateurish and the sailaway dance party on deck almost nonexistent. The band was very low key and there were 2 couples on the dance floor. We were disappointed since we really enjoyed the sailaway ambiance on other ships. Not looking for Carnival ship type atmosphere, but a bit more energy would have been fine.

 

Surely these things weren't dealbreakers for us, but just hoping these things will be better this year.

[Velvetwater]

We got off her on Friday, although we are Carnival fans so maybe all of Celebrity's offerings were a little sedate?

 

Due to a deep clean after Gastro on the previous cruise people boarded at 2 so by the time we sailed people were still unpacking,eating dinner or settling in so sailaway was low key and most people enjoyed the top decks but no-one really at the party.

 

The acts in the main theatre were well attended and ranged from guest acts which were generally good to Equinox cast shows which were mostly average with the main show as an exception.

 

In my opinion there was not enough Trivia/participation type things although the Officers vs guest shows were recieved well and had a good atmosphere. Some evenings it felt like it was the main show and that was it and sea days were packed top deck affairs with lots going on but if you didn't want poolside entertainment there was not much.

[ianmcleod99]

Last year in early December we cruised on the Equinox to the Caribbean. This year we are headed to the Panama Canal area on same ship.

 

Loved Equinox' food, ambiance, cabins, service, martini bar, etc....

 

Found the entertainment to be quite amateurish and the sailaway dance party on deck almost nonexistent. The band was very low key and there were 2 couples on the dance floor. We were disappointed since we really enjoyed the sailaway ambiance on other ships. Not looking for Carnival ship type atmosphere, but a bit more energy would have been fine.

 

Surely these things weren't dealbreakers for us, but just hoping these things will be better this year.

 

Like Velvetwater, I just came off the Equinox last Friday and IMHO, I found the entertainment to be the worse i have encountered, although some disagree, so i guess its each to their own. I have sailed with Celebrity on 4 previous occasions, as well as RC, and I just found the entertainment to be to a very poor standard. The House Band - Air Band only had about 15 songs and every time we heard them, they would just change the order in which they sung them. The Jazz guitarist and jazz quartet were very good, just not my cup of tea. The cruise director was almost invisible, and for a time, I thought it was he who had the Gastro illness, such was the entertainment. I found the guest entertainment to be average, and the production entertainment to be below average, except the Equinox show, which was really good, but once again this is just my opinion. Poolside entertainment was Baggo, the same CD, or a DJ, which isn’t everyone’s idea of entertainment. The Glass Blowing was very good, but there is only so many times you could watch it.

Hopefully the entertainment is not a deal breaker, unless they change something around, I fear you may be disappointed.

All that being said, i love the ship, the food and apart from the entertainment, we had an excellant holiday.

[wallie5446]

The entertainment on Celebrity has been the worst of the 7 lines we have sailed, that said, it is still our line of first choice for everything else involved in a cruise.

 

Get active in your Roll Call and create fun with the group.

[2flacruisers]

We will be sailing on the Equinox as well in November...the entertainment hopefully will be better, but it won't make or break the cruise...it will be our first in almost 2 years...we'll make the best of it :)

[ianmcleod99]

The entertainment on Celebrity has been the worst of the 7 lines we have sailed, that said, it is still our line of first choice for everything else involved in a cruise.

 

Get active in your Roll Call and create fun with the group.

 

I have to agree, entertainment aside, Celebrity is still our first choice as well. We were spoiled on the Freedom of the Seas with entertainment over New Year, so thats why I have probably been so hard on the entertainment this time. All in all, I still think the Equinox, is my #1 ship.

[wallie5446]

We will be sailing on the Equinox as well in November...the entertainment hopefully will be better, but it won't make or break the cruise...it will be our first in almost 2 years...we'll make the best of it :)

 

Which sailing?

We are on for the second yr in a row for the 10 day over Thanksgiving. We did the 11 day last yr.

EW

Edited August 18, 2015 by wallie5446

[iamkingofall]

We have gone two times on Oceana in the past .Much smaller ships .I don't think they have anything over 1300 capacity .very few inside cabins . A little pricier than most ,but the food is awesome . It's an older crowd .If you like a good swimsuit fashion show , you won't likely get it here from what I gathered .So the theatres are smaller , and the cast sizes are smaller .The dancers and singers were okay , worked it each night , but I'm not the best judge of such things .They had a stage band for some of the production shows and had recorded tracks for a night or two .What was good for me ,was the secondary band who played at least 4 sets a night in the lounge , rather than a DJ .Older crowd ,so many didn't bother showing up to hear these guys .It was a band of Ukrainian chaps called "The Most Populars Band " .That's not a misspelling . It's kind of a reflection on the way these guys speak English . Good players .When you see a 5 string bass , you know the player has some expertise .They had a keyboard guy , a good drummer and a decent guitar player who also did vocals .They played a sprinkling of some fairly recent songs like a Police , the Santana / Rob Thomas number that was hot at the time , but did a good deal of older R&R and Blues tunes .Which is my cup of tea .Right up my ally . I don't care about some new ,hip hop , Brittany Spears , drivel . So we go there at night , because the ship is pretty sleepy , have a drink and get some kicks watching these Ukrainian guys work with primarily American roots music . So I start talking to the bassist and guitar player between sets about their act , and they are so pleased to see someone was actually getting what they were playing . Pretty square crowd otherwise . So I ask the guitarist if they do , "Walking By Myself " , an old standard that many would recognize .It's done quite effectively by an Irish guy named Gary Moore ,who is very well known in the world of R&R .

The guitar player fires right back in his rough English , "Yeah , we do" , and I'm thinking , Oh Sure You Do . These guys aren't going to take requests .Two nights later we are sitting 50 feet from the stage and I hear some familiar opening notes . I look at the bass player and blurt out "Oh , your Not ". With a wide grin , he looks back and says "Oh yes We ARE " . I am absolutely blown away .They love playing it .Turns out the guitar player went on the internet , found the lyrics , and it wasn't very tough at all , for these experienced musicians to learn a somewhat simple arrangement . So we went back about three more nights and the bass player would come up and tell me "Stick around for the next set ,We'll do "Walking by Myself" .Sometimes we were pretty beat , and probably would have left , but I opened the can O worms , and couldn't disappoint the boys . After they had gone to the effort .They got a little more flashy with it each night .We got the crowd , which at least one night was up to about 60 people start to sing along .These guys got so pumped up . The hilarious moment though , was when some guy walks up to the stage and says , "can you do ,"Disco Inferno" , the drummer , who appears to be the guy running the band yells back , in his distinctly Ukrainian accent , "NO DISCO , WE ONLY DO AMERICAN R&R" .I'm close to falling off my chair with laughter . True story .Hope you enjoyed it .And if you are ever on a cruise ship and see "The Most Populars Band" , be sure to check them out .:eek: Edited August 19, 2015 by iamkingofall
I like to hear myself talk

[keesar]

The entertainment on Celebrity has been the worst of the 7 lines we have sailed, that said, it is still our line of first choice for everything else involved in a cruise.

 

Get active in your Roll Call and create fun with the group.

 

Good advice. The sailaway party was pretty sad and the entertainment was mediocre. What really bothered me was listening to a DJ playing what he considered to be music by the pool. I missed the live music, even the steel drum bands. The cast production shows were real good.

[2flacruisers]

Which sailing?

We are on for the second yr in a row for the 10 day over Thanksgiving. We did the 11 day last yr.

EW

 

Nov. 30th

[wallie5446]

Nov. 30th

 

Ya'll will be waiting for us to get the heck outta your cabin! We get off on the 30th.

 

I was being a tad young in cheek with my original comment. The entertainment is not terrible. But we never book nor sail based on it. Our roll call sail away parties have always been a blast!

EW

[ginak1112]

Last year in early December we cruised on the Equinox to the Caribbean. This year we are headed to the Panama Canal area on same ship.

 

Loved Equinox' food, ambiance, cabins, service, martini bar, etc....

 

Found the entertainment to be quite amateurish and the sailaway dance party on deck almost nonexistent. The band was very low key and there were 2 couples on the dance floor. We were disappointed since we really enjoyed the sailaway ambiance on other ships. Not looking for Carnival ship type atmosphere, but a bit more energy would have been fine.

 

Surely these things weren't dealbreakers for us, but just hoping these things will be better this year.

 

I hate to say this because I really do like Celebrity... they are not the line to take in the Caribbean. I live in South Florida and sail quite often. I usually sail on RCCL or CCL when sailing to that area. I tried the Regal Princess last November and was really surprised. Everything was fabulous, food, entertainment, cabins, musical acts. I would give them another chance too.

 

I like to sail Celebrity in Europe where I am not looking for so much to be going on just because I am exhausted from all of the ports. We found a nice balance on the Silhouette when doing the Baltics. I wish they would have added a few more activities on the sea days but, all in all, it was a nice cruise. The Liar's Club is a really fun show at night!

 

If you are looking for the fun sailaway party and party like atmosphere I would suggest trying another line. The Panama canal cruise is also geared to a much older crowd who normally sails it and is not the normal "party" crowd. To get that, you need to sail on a 7 day which I assume the one you are booked on is not. As you know, the Equinox is a beautiful ship. I took her in the Med and loved her. Regardless, you will have a wonderful time and see amazing sites!

[2flacruisers]

Ya'll will be waiting for us to get the heck outta your cabin! We get off on the 30th.

 

I was being a tad young in cheek with my original comment. The entertainment is not terrible. But we never book nor sail based on it. Our roll call sail away parties have always been a blast!

EW

 

Don't leave anything behind:D

[wallie5446]

Nov. 30th

 

In Panama the CO26 ship tour of the Cannel is excellent, 8 hours.

[keesar]

Our most memorable sail-away parties have been on RC. A lot depends on the house band and the cruise director.

[RickT]

We were on the Equinox in August and while the entertain wasn't the best, we've also seen/heard worse. The party band (Air Band) had a weird mix of songs, when they played more modern songs they were OK. A femal duo (Limelight Ladies) were OK but tended to get too "loungy" reminding me of a Saturday night live skit. The guitar player was not to my taste.

 

What I noticed most of all, was little to no effort on the part of the Cruise Director to liven things up. Other sailings on S-Class ships often had events in the atrium area which lived up the ship. Other than the last night there was nothing in the atrium except for the bands/dj. Even on the upper deck party, there was nothing but the band, no cruise director/dancers/etc.

 

Good thing we don't cruise for the party atmosphere onboard because there was none on our sailing. Was on the Connie last summer and it was much better even if it did include an act (DJ and Sax player) that I didn't like.

[snowyboy]

On our cruise we have our own sail away so far 101 people attending at sun set bar will there be room I guess so. 20.09.15

[2flacruisers]

In Panama the CO26 ship tour of the Cannel is excellent, 8 hours.

 

thanks...we booked the 4 hour tout for just the locks...DH thought the 8 hour gour would be too much:rolleyes:

[wallie5446]

thanks...we booked the 4 hour tout for just the locks...DH thought the 8 hour gour would be too much:rolleyes:

 

Is it thru Celebrity? Does the 4 hours include the 1 hour+ bus ride to the locks, and the 1 1/2 hour ride back?

EW

[2flacruisers]

Is it thru Celebrity? Does the 4 hours include the 1 hour+ bus ride to the locks, and the 1 1/2 hour ride back?

EW

 

Yes...through Celebrity...not a long time at the locks...but enough time..:)

[Jaxxgent]

In Panama the CO26 ship tour of the Cannel is excellent, 8 hours.

 

Hoping someone might be able to provide a little more info on this excursion. We currently have it booked for our Equinox cruise in November, but my partner has some lung issues and is concerned.

 

How much time is actually spent on the ferryboat?

 

Are there places on the ferryboat that are air conditioned where he might duck in for some relief from the heat & humidity every so often?

 

Is the area where lunch is served air conditioned?

 

Many thanks for any info!

 

Terry

[wallie5446]

Hoping someone might be able to provide a little more info on this excursion. We currently have it booked for our Equinox cruise in November, but my partner has some lung issues and is concerned.

 

How much time is actually spent on the ferryboat?

 

Are there places on the ferryboat that are air conditioned where he might duck in for some relief from the heat & humidity every so often?

 

Is the area where lunch is served air conditioned?

 

Many thanks for any info!

 

Terry

 

Terry I have also commented on the social media site we cant speak of on CC :D

 

It is an hour bus ride to the start of the tour, then an hour and a half bus ride back at the end. Actual time on the ferry is just over 5 hours.

[Jaxxgent]

Terry I have also commented on the social media site we cant speak of on CC :D

 

It is an hour bus ride to the start of the tour, then an hour and a half bus ride back at the end. Actual time on the ferry is just over 5 hours.

 

I can access this site from work (during lunch, of course), but I cannot access that "social media site which must not be named" from work - I'll check that this evening.

 

Many thanks for the info!

 

Terry