Jim_Iain - 9/5 and 9/17 Equinox B2B - Come along for a Live Blog

[Jim_Iain]

St Kitts -

 

Guests without tours are permitted to go to the Pier "for a shopping opportunity"     To leave the port you must be on either a Celebrity Tour or a Government  approved private tour available at the  end of the  pier (Non-Celebrity).

 

[Jim_Iain]

23 hours ago, fstuff1 said:

Wished we could also explore the pier at st kitts.

(Been to st maarten and st kitts so not taking any excursions.

But getting off the ship for just a little while is nice)

 

Your Wish is MY command.... You are free to go ashore today for a shopping opportunity at the port. 

 

[Jim_Iain]

17 hours ago, durangokid said:

Yikes!  On our November 7 cruise we are on the 6th deck...unless they move us between now and then.  

I think you should be ok.    They have new staff coming aboard shortly and should bring the staffing up to about 95% by November.     New crew are put into isolation for I believe 14 days upon joining the ship thus the reason they have the rooms prepped and tables outside the doors.    Meals are left there so there is not contact. 

 

By Mid to Late November they hope to start increasing passenger load.

[fstuff1]

14 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

Grandeur of the Sea (looking like a ghost ship) was parked next to us all day and about 5:30 it departed turned around and then redocked about 2 piers away.  

 We had to wait for them to get docked before we could leave.

 

The sun finally broke through, just in time for our sail away.

 

 

 

Another strange thing:

There was another cruise ship in the harbor all afternoon.

Why didn't it dock?

[Jim_Iain]

16 hours ago, Arzeena said:

Jim,

What port is next?

 

St Kitts which is our last port of the cruise.

[Jim_Iain]

16 hours ago, taylortime05 said:

Thank you!  I'll feel great when we are onboard with our 1st cocktail.  It does sound nice not to have a full ship.  I have 2 ship excursions booked for Aruba and Curaca. For Bonaire we have a cruise & snorkel with Woodwinds.   

I haven't heard of port cancellations for the next cruise.   Lets hit we get the full ABC

[Jim_Iain]

3 hours ago, peony1 said:

Hi, can you just refresh my memory.  We are going on the Septemeber 26 cruise, which was suppose to be the same.  How many days prior did they change your itinerary.  Thanks for all your information!

It varied.    We had our first change of Nassau being cut and replaced with a sea day about a week prior to sailing.   Antigua was cancelled the evening prior to arrival.   The cause of the cancellation was  Antigua put in a 24 hour quarantine for all visitors.

 

When Antigua was cancelled they put us into St Thomas and switched a couple ports causing all excursion on those to be cancelled.

[Jim_Iain]

St Kitts today.   Predicting 50% chance of showers today 

 

 

 

 

[Jim_Iain]

3 hours ago, fstuff1 said:

Another strange thing:

There was another cruise ship in the harbor all afternoon.

Why didn't it dock?

Actually 2 ships out there  - Vision  of the Sea and Rhapsody of the Sea.   It appears they are here until sailing again in January.

 

[hcat]

Hope weather holds..St Kitts is one of our favorite ports...beautiful place , great views, lots of history..love the old buildings in Basseterre . 

 

( avoid photos with monkeys!)

 

St Kitts is one of the ports listed on our  Reflection cruise itinerary in January.  We have 3 sea days,  St Lucia, Barbados, Antigua and St Kitts, 2 sea days and Port Ev. If we make it off the ship in more than one we will be pleased!

 

We have toured most of them quite extensively, visited private resorts, etc,  but we will look for the Private Journey for St Lucia.

 

Jim... Should we let the Retreat Concierge ( or Excursions Manager) know as as soon as we board..St lucia is our 1st port after the 3 sea days.? Can you re post company you used and name of your guide.( too lazy to scroll back) .thanks,..no rush,

[taylortime05]

2 hours ago, MartinsCruise said:

 

We'll be having our first drink at the Sunset Bar so stop by if you see us. 

Yes, we will for sure!  Look forward to meeting you both.  

 

Rick & sue

[cantstopingcruising]

I don't know if anyone addressed this issue, but I am very concerned about the elevators. 

Are they crowded?

And do people wear masks in the elevators?

Thanks

[Arzeena]

.

Edited September 14, 2021 by Arzeena

[Arzeena]

Just now, Arzeena said:

In August when we on the Equinox, we found that that the elevators were not crowded most of the time. Our cabin was on deck 8 right by the elevators. The few times (when we were in an elevator) and it started to feel that more people were getting on, we got out and used the stairs. We cannot ask people to get off, so we thought it was best to just get out ourselves if we felt uncomfortable.

Everytime going down we used the stairs, unless there was a filled coffee mug involved.

And yes, we wore our masks in the elevators.

 

[cantstopingcruising]

15 minutes ago, Arzeena said:

 

Thank you for replying.

Did the others wear masks in the elevators, too?

[Islandhop9]

3 hours ago, Jim_Iain said:

I think you should be ok.    They have new staff coming aboard shortly and should bring the staffing up to about 95% by November.     New crew are put into isolation for I believe 14 days upon joining the ship thus the reason they have the rooms prepped and tables outside the doors.    Meals are left there so there is not contact. 

 

By Mid to Late November they hope to start increasing passenger load.

Hoping they don't fill our cruise up. 

Seems like the buffet may get clogged up if the ship gets very full without self serve?

[upwarduk]

1 hour ago, cantstopingcruising said:

I don't know if anyone addressed this issue, but I am very concerned about the elevators. 

Are they crowded?

And do people wear masks in the elevators?

Thanks

On Silhouette , there were 4 circles in each corner of the lift.

Everyone stuck to their circle, unless they were in a wheelchair.

All passengers that I saw wore masks, but we were supposed to inside the ship. 

[cangelmd]

42 minutes ago, cantstopingcruising said:

Thank you for replying.

Did the others wear masks in the elevators, too?

On our August cruise, the elevators were rarely crowded, but after the first couple of days I started masking when I got on an elevator with someone else, I just felt more comfortable.

Honestly though, given the short period of time you are on an elevator, I’m not sure what the risk is, and may not matter if the other people are actually on with you, vs just got off the elevator.

[Danny&Gary]

Jim, I am a Real Estate Broker in Dallas, TX.  One of my agents, George Durstine, gave me your info when I told him that my husband and I would be on the Equinox this weekend.  He said that he and his friend Trish had met you on a previous cruise, that you were currently on the Equinox, and would be on our cruise as well. 

 

Since then, two more couples of friends have booked and will be joining us as well, so we will have a Dallas contingent of six!  We hope to meet up with you onboard!  

 

Any advice you can give us as we prepare and pack will be greatly appreciated!

[Arzeena]

1 hour ago, cantstopingcruising said:

Thank you for replying.

Did the others wear masks in the elevators, too?

Specific to our sailing : Very few that I observed in the beginning, but more wore masks as the cruise progressed.

Edited September 14, 2021 by Arzeena

[Arzeena]

1 hour ago, cangelmd said:

On our August cruise, the elevators were rarely crowded, but after the first couple of days I started masking when I got on an elevator with someone else, I just felt more comfortable.

Honestly though, given the short period of time you are on an elevator, I’m not sure what the risk is, and may not matter if the other people are actually on with you, vs just got off the elevator.

In red is my reason too
And in blue.....just felt better to walk out and avoid any potential situaton.

I think you were on the same cruise as I was 8/15?

[Jim_Iain]

6 hours ago, hcat said:

Hope weather holds..St Kitts is one of our favorite ports...beautiful place , great views, lots of history..love the old buildings in Basseterre . 

 

( avoid photos with monkeys!)

 

St Kitts is one of the ports listed on our  Reflection cruise itinerary in January.  We have 3 sea days,  St Lucia, Barbados, Antigua and St Kitts, 2 sea days and Port Ev. If we make it off the ship in more than one we will be pleased!

 

We have toured most of them quite extensively, visited private resorts, etc,  but we will look for the Private Journey for St Lucia.

 

Jim... Should we let the Retreat Concierge ( or Excursions Manager) know as as soon as we board..St lucia is our 1st port after the 3 sea days.? Can you re post company you used and name of your guide.( too lazy to scroll back) .thanks,..no rush,

You can contact Retreat Concierge and they will coordinate with Jenifer the  Excursions Manager.

 

We had a great day.  

[Jim_Iain]

5 hours ago, cantstopingcruising said:

I don't know if anyone addressed this issue, but I am very concerned about the elevators. 

Are they crowded?

And do people wear masks in the elevators?

Thanks

 

We have tried to avoid except when  we see an empty.   No most people do not wear masks and most do not in  elevator.    I've seen  some with as many as 8-10 people in it and chose to walk instead.

 

We each have our tolerance levels and do what you feel safe doing.    I find most  times if you take the far aft elevators they are usually empty. 

 

Being on a B2B we are all super cautious so we don't get contract traced and forced to leave the ship at the  end  of  cruise 1.

 

[Jim_Iain]

5 hours ago, Islandhop9 said:

Hoping they don't fill our cruise up. 

Seems like the buffet may get clogged up if the ship gets very full without self serve?

there are lots of options for dining besides the buffet or avoid at the  prime times.   We have enjoyed Aqua Spa Cafe

[Jim_Iain]

4 hours ago, upwarduk said:

On Silhouette , there were 4 circles in each corner of the lift.

Everyone stuck to their circle, unless they were in a wheelchair.

All passengers that I saw wore masks, but we were supposed to inside the ship. 

Unfortunately on Equinox people pretty much ignore the floor markings.