Nov 6 Apex B2B East-West Caribbean Cruise

[Ken the cruiser]

I tried posting this picture last night of when we were leaving Cozumel. However, after many attempts I finally gave up around 11:30pm. There were a Carnival and Aida ships in port as will as a Disney ship (not in the picture) while we were there yesterday.

 

Edited November 18, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

Looks like the rain has left and there is a better internet speed this morning. Yay! 
 

For a Canadian PCR test update, as it seems to be a hot topic as of late, I went down to talk with CS. Here is what they said the policy is for THIS cruise only, which is different than the last cruise.
 

If you are flying to a country, such as Canada, that requires a PCR test to fly to, you will be able to get a complimentary PCR test onboard the Apex the day before disembarkation and it will be good for 72 hours. There is no requirement for you to show you have a flight scheduled to fly back to Canada within 24 hours of disembarkation. But again, they are saying this guidance is only good for this cruise. CS has not heard yet what the policy will be for the applicable passengers on the Nov 20 cruise. 
 

Edited November 18, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[Ken the cruiser]

Friday, November 19, last day at sea. 
 

[Ken the cruiser]

For those that want to get a good seat to watch Caravan in The Club, you need to arrive at least 45 minutes before showtime or at least 15 minutes before the doors open. 
 

[toddmanka]

19 minutes ago, Ken the cruiser said:

For those that want to get a good seat to watch Caravan in The Club, you need to arrive at least 45 minutes before showtime or at least 15 minutes before the doors open. 
 

I really enjoyed your two weeks of your cruise on the Apex  I will be getting on when you are getting off but there is no way I could do what you did  Thanks for taking the time out of your cruise. Safe travels home and will be looking for your next cruise.

[Ken the cruiser]

1 hour ago, Ken the cruiser said:

For those that want to get a good seat to watch Caravan in The Club, you need to arrive at least 45 minutes before showtime or at least 15 minutes before the doors open. 
 

Just in case you don’t get to the Caravan show in The Club early enough, some folks were able to find places to sit on the floor as well as the stairs. 
 

[Ken the cruiser]

I took about 30 pictures with my iPhone, but these were a couple of my favorites. 😎

 

[Ken the cruiser]

45 minutes ago, toddmanka said:

I really enjoyed your two weeks of your cruise on the Apex  I will be getting on when you are getting off but there is no way I could do what you did  Thanks for taking the time out of your cruise. Safe travels home and will be looking for your next cruise.

Thanks! I definitely have had fun sharing our wonderful experiences on this ship with everyone as it has been by far the most entertaining cruise we have ever been on when it comes to onboard experiences!! You are going to have such a great cruise!! 😎

 

[Jim_Iain]

On 11/16/2021 at 5:26 PM, Nva said:

What’s been the attire on evening chic nights?  We’re sailing on Apex in a few weeks and this is our first Celebrity cruise.

Evening Chic is a personal decision of how you enjoy to dress or not.   

 

Maybe we are old school but I enjoy dressing for the evening.   I no longer bring 2 tuxedos or even 1 but we usually wear a nice dinner jacket and a self tie bow tie.   Incredible how many complements we receive.

 

My experience on recent cruises is that European cruises and Asian cruises guests have a tendency to dress more formal with sports jackets or suites on men and cocktail dress for ladies to be in larger numbers.     On Caribbean cruises I would say 15-20% of men wear at least a tie or jacket with out a tie.

 

More women on all cruises dress up for Chic night.   I love to see some of the beautiful outfits they choose to wear.  Makes it very festive for all. 

 

Be comfortable to dress within guidelines as you choose you will be comfortable.

 

 

[terrydtx]

12 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

Evening Chic is a personal decision of how you enjoy to dress or not.   

 

Maybe we are old school but I enjoy dressing for the evening.   I no longer bring 2 tuxedos or even 1 but we usually wear a nice dinner jacket and a self tie bow tie.   Incredible how many complements we receive.

 

My experience on recent cruises is that European cruises and Asian cruises guests have a tendency to dress more formal with sports jackets or suites on men and cocktail dress for ladies to be in larger numbers.     On Caribbean cruises I would say 15-20% of men wear at least a tie or jacket with out a tie.

 

More women on all cruises dress up for Chic night.   I love to see some of the beautiful outfits they choose to wear.  Makes it very festive for all. 

 

Be comfortable to dress within guidelines as you choose you will be comfortable.

 

 

Jim, well said, anyone can make their personal choice of how much to dress up or like us, just do the suggested dress guidelines for the night. When I retired last year all of my suits and sport coats went to Goodwill, I now wear a pair of slacks and a nice button up Tommy Bahama shirt which costs as much as some coats.  We are never judgmental on what others wear or really even notice others. I will say on the Equinox in August I do not remember seeing any tuxes, maybe for the first time on a cruise. 

[Nva]

41 minutes ago, Jim_Iain said:

Evening Chic is a personal decision of how you enjoy to dress or not.   

 

Maybe we are old school but I enjoy dressing for the evening.   I no longer bring 2 tuxedos or even 1 but we usually wear a nice dinner jacket and a self tie bow tie.   Incredible how many complements we receive.

 

My experience on recent cruises is that European cruises and Asian cruises guests have a tendency to dress more formal with sports jackets or suites on men and cocktail dress for ladies to be in larger numbers.     On Caribbean cruises I would say 15-20% of men wear at least a tie or jacket with out a tie.

 

More women on all cruises dress up for Chic night.   I love to see some of the beautiful outfits they choose to wear.  Makes it very festive for all. 

 

Be comfortable to dress within guidelines as you choose you will be comfortable.

 

 

Appreciate the perspective.  I’ll probably bring a blazer in the event I want to wear it.  But will likely keep it to dress pants / chinos and a button up.

 

What’s the nightlife like on the Apex?  Is the Club busy at night?

[Ken the cruiser]

And then we finished the evening with Divas3! We first saw them on the Edge back in August and they were great then and then we even better this evening! 😎

 

[Ken the cruiser]

39 minutes ago, Nva said:

Appreciate the perspective.  I’ll probably bring a blazer in the event I want to wear it.  But will likely keep it to dress pants / chinos and a button up.

 

What’s the nightlife like on the Apex?  Is the Club busy at night?

The Club is pretty much busy every night with game shows between the theater shows at 7:30 and 9:30 with music and dancing from around 9 pm on. As far as the night life in other areas around the ship other than the evening shows in the Main Theater and in Eden and game shows in The Club, you may want to check out the Designed For You section from the Daily I post every day.

Edited November 19, 2021 by Ken the cruiser

[Mrs_Tiki]

Ken, at the risk of being repetitive, I want to also express my thanks for the time and effort you have put into posting about your experiences and answering questions. After being away from big ships for the past several years, I was second-guessing our decision to book APEX, but your thread has made us excited to board tomorrow!

[prish]

1 hour ago, Mrs_Tiki said:

Ken, at the risk of being repetitive, I want to also express my thanks for the time and effort you have put into posting about your experiences and answering questions. After being away from big ships for the past several years, I was second-guessing our decision to book APEX, but your thread has made us excited to board tomorrow!

Have a fantastic cruise Mrs Tiki, we’re also so looking forward to our December 11 Apex sailing…! And thanks again Ken 👍

[misslab]

A couple of random questions...I noticed on the daily a "golf challenge".  What exactly is that?  My husband is a big golfer.

 

Also...does anyone know how much the Caymus wine tasting is?

 

Thanks!

[Ken the cruiser]

59 minutes ago, misslab said:

A couple of random questions...I noticed on the daily a "golf challenge".  What exactly is that?  My husband is a big golfer.

 

Also...does anyone know how much the Caymus wine tasting is?

 

Thanks!

All I know is the golf “putting” challenge is in Eden. As far as the Caymus wine tasting, all they said on the App was there was a fee. I went to the free one, with just 4 glasses of wine, so I never bothered to check out the price. You would think if you had a beverage package it would be free. But probably not. 

[Ken the cruiser]

BTW ever been on a cruise where the wake at the back of the ship looked like this for 2 days? I think they’re trying to make up the day when they had to cancel the Grand Cayman Island stop a few months ago. 

 

[jagoffee]

On 11/17/2021 at 7:23 PM, tiller said:

20 minute tender ride sounds a lot better! 40 minutes in one of those boats is not my idea of fun. 

We did not do any tendering during our Apex TA, but we looked inside some of the tenders.  They look very comfortable and unlike any others that I have ever experienced.  

[Ken the cruiser]

And now we’ve pretty much come to a dead stop out in the middle of nowhere! 😎

 

I take it back. There is someone in a raft.

 

 

[phabric]

1 minute ago, Ken the cruiser said:

And now we’ve pretty much come to a dead stop out in the middle of nowhere! 😎

 

I take it back. There is someone in a raft.

 

 

Maybe you are going to rescue someone?

[Ken the cruiser]

Update: there are 16 people in the raft and they are not requiring assistance. However, we’re going to stay here near them for 3 hours until the US Coast Guard gets here. 

[ETHTrader]

1 minute ago, Ken the cruiser said:

Update: there are 16 people in the raft and they are not requiring assistance. However, we’re going to stay here near them for 3 hours until the US Coast Guard gets here. 

 

Yes. Apparently they kept waving us away as we got close to their raft.

 

Everyone is out on the Retreat Deck with binoculars to watch this little drama at the sea and lots of people speculating. I think the most important thing is the safety of those people on the raft

[Ken the cruiser]

Here’s our current location. 
 

[Ken the cruiser]

The USCG has arrived, so we’re back on our way to Ft Lauderdale.

 

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by Ken the cruiser