LIVE Norwaylady escape the winter on Equinox B2B 23.03-11.04.24

[mauimary]

I can only imagine how tired the two of you are and just want to arrive in FL and head to bed!  If there is anything we definitely understand well it’s all about airplane doors!  The door that fell off the Alaska flight happened here in Portland.  When we flew to FL for our cruise all the aircraft of that  model were taken out of service and our flight was canceled with two days notice!  That left many of us scrambling to get FL.  I hope you get there tonight so you get a day to rest. 

[DaKahuna]

3 hours ago, wrk2cruise said:

Probably their Gold status got them lounge access.  I don't think any US airline gives lounge access for PE.

 

 Star Alliance Gold does not get you access to the Polaris lounge.  It will get you in the Star Alliance Gold Lounge or the United Club (over seas).  

 

[bjahil47]

Safe travels!  Will be following along!  We also love Equinox!  We will be getting off Beyond tomorrow in Ft. Lauderdale!

[Salt Lifer]

1 hour ago, Norwaylady said:

Final stretch before going to bed! 

 

Boarding started around 20.00. 

Flight is completely fully booked. Lots of big carry-on luggage🫠🫣 

Flight is operating on a B757-200. 

We are seated on 8AB, it’s in United Economy Plus. 

Lots of legroom, nothing more to say about that😂🙌🏻

Departure time 20.29.

 

What now?🫣(I just want to go to bed😂)

Captain announced that the aircraft had 3 notifications for technical support incoming and that they needed to be solved… 

2/3 was a quick fix. 

But we had to expect a 15.min delay out of EWR… 

20.50 and we can finally close the door and technical issues solved…. (We thought)

 

4- Strike, you’re out!

The aircraft got grounded🫣🤪🫡🫠 at 21.20

Nr 1 for airlines! 

Safety, safety, safety and then passenger service. 

 

Definitely not what we hoped and wished for😔

The door lock function was not working properly. We sat just by the door and I heard asap that this sound and failure on the door is not a good thing…. 

I was hoping for the best, but you know the answer…. It needs a bigger service😩🥺☹️

 

So now we are de boarding the aircraft and waiting for what will happen…

The captain and flight deck was hoping for a new aircraft as soon as possible. 

Fingers crossed for that! 

Thank goodness they caught the door issue before you took off!  With what happened to the Alaska flight recently, not to mention all the other odd plane issues with cargo doors opening and other door issues, I am a bit nervous about flying these days!

[upwarduk]

4 hours ago, Salt Lifer said:

I am a bit nervous about flying these days!

Us too and my husband used to love it, so it’s out of Southampton only now for us.😱

[hcat]

Hope it worked out. By now you should be at your pre cruise hotel...

 

. We had a door issue in Bermuda once.. We were 'deplaned"  after the door would not close &  could not be fixed. But having already cleared customs,  we  had to sit in a small lounge area for a few hours...no food, while a new plane was flown over..Not our most pleasant trvl day!

[maggieq]

9 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 Star Alliance Gold does not get you access to the Polaris lounge.  It will get you in the Star Alliance Gold Lounge or the United Club (over seas).  

 

@DaKahuna that’s what I thought….so did they get into Polaris or just the United lounges.  I’m confused. 😊 

Edited March 22 by maggieq

[depplep]

I followed along on your wonderful Edge cruise so I'm excited to follow you on Equinox. Have a great cruise. Welcome to Florida.

[mahdnc]

2 hours ago, hcat said:

Hope it worked out. By now you should be at your pre cruise hotel...

 

. We had a door issue in Bermuda once.. We were 'deplaned"  after the door would not close &  could not be fixed. But having already cleared customs,  we  had to sit in a small lounge area for a few hours...no food, while a new plane was flown over..Not our most pleasant trvl day!

The last time I flew in a plane with a door issue was in 2016. Our United Airlines 767 aircraft had a problem with one of its rear emergency exit doors which had to be repaired in the USA. The door was not operational but the plane was still considered air worthy.  So before the plane was loaded with passengers at Amsterdam, the plane’s carrying capacity was cut in half by declaring a huge section of economy seats in the back nearest the problem door as no longer “usable”. The affected seats were taped off and no one was allowed to sit there during our transatlantic flight to Chicago. Yeah, a lot of passengers had to be assigned to different flights. I was one of the unaffected passengers. 
 

Edited March 22 by mahdnc

[Martha1974]

Following, and really looking forward to this Live - we're on our first Celebrity cruise on Equinox in October so trying to find out as much as I can about the ship ahead of time. 

[Norwaylady]

Good Morning from FLL🤩

 

A little recap of last night’s adventure🤪

We received a text message from United around 21.45. New aircraft was decided and it was already standing at a gate in EWR🙌🏻

But… it was not cleaned and it needed to be serviced before we could go to FLL. 

Luckily it was at C83 and we were in C79, so just across from our original flight😊

 

The aircraft was ready loaded and cleaned up for boarding around 22.40. 

So a little after 23 ish, we taxied out to the runway✈️

It was an identical B757-200 aircraft, same seats/configuration. 

So everything was the same.

Luckily no downsizing of aircraft or different seat maps. (I know this can makes lots of problems🫠) 

 

Flight was uneventful🤣🤣🤣 

I can not say if the did a safety demonstration or what type of beverage service they served😝 I was sleeping from the second my body touched the seat and until we had roofing “touch” close up in the window on landing in FLL😅😴😴😴

 

Our bags were already in FLL. Since connection went smoothly in EWR, they loaded our bags on the aircraft that took off from EWR earlier. (We are not allowed to book that flight, simply due to not enough minimum connection time) But yesterday we could have made it easy🤓 

I got a text the second we landed about it. So they were waiting at United luggage service😌 

 

We went straight to Lyft pick up zone and a car arrived for us after 5.minutes. 

We arrived at our hotel at 02.45.

 

All ready for bed😴😴😴

[hcat]

Hope u wake up  rested & refreshed

[Norwaylady]

10 hours ago, DaKahuna said:

 

 Star Alliance Gold does not get you access to the Polaris lounge.  It will get you in the Star Alliance Gold Lounge or the United Club (over seas).  

 

Yes, to make it clear. 
Im star alliance Gold member and have access to Star Alliance Gold Lounges around the world. This applies due to my status. So it doesn’t matter what class my ticket is for. 
 

In EWR we used the United Club lounge by C70-Gates. It’s on the second floor/mezzamin floor. 
At LHR we used the United Club also. We could have used all of the star alliance locations (SQ Singapore Airlines etc) but we just used the one closest to boarding gate. 
As a frequent flyer, it’s something I really appreciate. 
If you don’t have status in Star Alliance or any of the other options, SkyTeam,OneWorld.
 

you can often either buy access in some way, by a single entry fee or via priority pass, Amex card etc. 

[Lena11033]

I'm glad you made it safely and got some sleep - that's a long day but you are there now

[Beachlover1989]

I’m so excited to follow along with your Live! I adore your writing style and ability to see the positives in sometimes negative situations. We love Equinox, it’s probably our favorite!

[ecslady]

So glad you made it to FLL safely.  United has been having lots of issues lately and I'm glad to see them taking it seriously and double checking everything. It is getting scary to fly.

 

Looking forward to following you along again as I always enjoy your reports.  Have a great cruise!

[Norwaylady]

My sleep on the flight down to FLL gave me some hours of rest and now I have gotten another 4,5-5h in bed😊

So I’m feeling good and ready to get up😇 

 

We are staying at GalleryOne Fort Lauderdale. It’s located by the channel and have a great walking distance to the beach and a publix 5.minutes on foot away. 

Our neighbour is Galleria Mall. (So last minute shopping is not a problem😅) 

 

We have stayed here before several times. It’s not a hotel room, it’s a hotel apartment style hotel. So it’s a separate bedroom, balcony, living room with a kitchen and a bathroom. Containing a dining table area and a sofa area. 

 

The kitchen has a fully sized dishwasher, fridge, microwave oven and table ware. 

 

Outside you have a swimming pool, fitness Center, restaurant and a water taxi station. 

[mahdnc]

You won't have to look at a kitchen again for a while.

[Josie201]

You know I love your live reviews when I wake up in the morning and my first thought is "did Mr. and Mrs Norway make it to FLL last night".  HaHa   Love to read your reviews.  Rest up today. 

[Norwaylady]

6 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

You won't have to look at a kitchen again for a while.

Shhhh! It’s my secret 🤫

 

But I tell loud and clear to everyone asking at home: 

a cruise is the perfect wife vacation🩷🤩😍 

and there’s one cruise line for everyone! You just need to pick the correct line for you😇

 

[Lena11033]

14 minutes ago, Norwaylady said:

Shhhh! It’s my secret 🤫

 

But I tell loud and clear to everyone asking at home: 

a cruise is the perfect wife vacation🩷🤩😍 

and there’s one cruise line for everyone! You just need to pick the correct line for you😇

 

 

lol I'm lucky my husband likes to cook and clean (actually I think he has OCD). But I like a lot of chicken and fish for food, normally when I'm away he lives a bachelors diet with pizza, hot dogs and burgers for food

[chemmo]

So pleased your journey wasn’t as disrupted as many of us feared and that you are refreshed and able to enjoy your pre cruise days…

 

Must confess we tend to more and more look for rooms that are ‘apartment style’. Not only are they often more practical for a pre/post cruise stay they are often very competitively priced…

 

Sincere best wishes for a wonderful cruise!

[Norwaylady]

We have seen this before……..

 

Oh, 🙌🏻 yes! 

Didn’t Ft.Lauderdale get the memo?🤔

I asked for blue sky, a little breeze and sunshine ☀️ 

But your not tackling me😜

We are armed and ready for a walk to Publix🥳

Rain jacket is definitely in our suitcase 🧳 

 

After a shower and change of clothes, it was time to go for breakfast and dinner shopping 🛒 

 

Mr was over the hill and long gone in Publix🤣 (I will give you a trick to ease the search of him🙃 go to the beer section😉) So when you’re ready for checkout, swing by and bring him to the cashier😁 (and the best, he can pay😆) 

 

We picked up some fruit, yogurt and OJ for breakfast. And then we decided for today’s dinner menu. 

Tuna Poke bowl and strawberries for dessert. Easy and delicious😋 

My guilty pleasure and weak spot was definitely in my grocery bag😂😂

Nachos and guacamole 🥑 is today’s snacking option🥹 

I’m on holiday😍 

 

And a very important thing, some magazines for reading 📖 (sometimes you just need something completely different than you usually read) Time & National Geographic has always different special editions we find nice to read and enjoy onboard ships. ( remember the cat edition🐈🐈‍⬛🐈😎😁) 

[Beachlover1989]

Looks like Mr. Norwaylady is enjoying the warmer weather already! Depite the rain!

[depplep]

Wow, I just looked at the Port Everglades cam, you are getting quite a nice storm down there!