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Published: January 27th 2015
Leaving Key Largo - Up early - car packed and on the road by
7.30am. We headed to Gator Land Holiday Park for our air boat tour. We needed to complete the airboat tour early enough so we could drop the car back to Alamo Car Rental and then head over to Port Everglades to start our Cruising part of the holiday.We arrived at Gator Land just after
9am and managed to get the first airboat tour of the day. We had a Travelzoo voucher for this tour $30 for both of us. Normal admission prices are $26 each. To be honest we were disappointed with the tour - the tour was more about the history of the everglades than seeing heaps of wild alligators. Tour went for 45 minutes and travelled through many canals. Plenty of birds sighted and 1 female alligator who was in the water protecting her nearby nest.<br style="color:
#000000; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" />The admission also includes a visit into the alligator pool at the park - made famous by the Gator Boys who are known for saving troublesome alligators. The Gator Boy - Chris - did a 10 minute show handling one of the Gators. Once again this was a little disappointing. There was limited spots to actually enjoy the show - no seating - just standing room only - so if you didn't make it in first to get a position in the front you had no chance of actually seeing any of the show.After the show you have the option of having your photo taken with a baby alligator - you take your own photo with your camera and pay $5 for the privilege. We didn't bother with that instead we made an exit - driving back to the rental depot.<br style="color:� font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961);
-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" />Dropped the car off just after midday - quick and easy - the rental agency - Alamo provides a free shuttle bus to the Port so that made life a bit easier. The bus was packed - 4 major cruise lines in port that day.We are cruising with Celebrity on their Soltice ship named Equinox. Check in was easy and very quick. We were on the ship before
2.30pm after arriving at the Port
at 1.30pm. The ship is magnificent. 16 levels of superb luxury. We departed Fort Lauderdale on time
at 4.30pm.Spent the first couple of hours exploring the ship - checking out every nook and cranny! There are more than 1200 staff on board to attend to 2,850
passengers. Our stateroom 7160 - is an inside cabin - we we were more than happy with it. We never plan on spending much time in the room anyway. Once our bags were delivered we got everything sorted and settled in for the next 11 nights.Decided we would splurge and purchase a speciality dining experience. For $99 each we were able to experience 3 different restaurants that are not included as part of the general cruise price. First night on board and we tried "Silks Harvest" - which has cuisines from Vietnam, Thailand, Japan and China. Our server at the restaurant - James - was from Indonesia and clearly had a love for his job. His recommendations were spot on - the food was amazing. Meals here are served family style making them perfect for sharing.
We got to taste so much delicious food - so glad we paid the extra to have the experience.After dinner we walked around looking at the speciality shops and did some liquor tasting. Amazing prices - we bought 2 bottles of Sheridan liquor for under $35 along with with 2 x 1 litre bottles of Bacardi- 1 gold and 1 white - complete with pourers for $20.
10.30pm saw us at the Equinox Theatre for the first night performance. A 1 hour show which included a stand up comedian and then a short introduction into some of the musicals we will see on upcoming nights.<br style="color:� font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;"
/>Day 1 - we were up bright and early - in time to see the sunrise from the top deck. There is a jogging track up on Deck 14 and early morning risers are on full force on the track and in the Gym. Today is an "at sea" day so it was time to take full advantage of relaxing and enjoying all the benefits of cruising. After our morning walk/jog we went to a stretch class which was beneficial - we both realised just how inflexible we had become over the recent years. Breakfast was in the "oceanview cafe" where there was a remarkable variety of both hot and cold dishes to chose from. After breakfast we headed down to the "Solarium" area on deck 12 - this area is for adults only and is very quiet. There is a pool along with 2 whirlpools (hot tubs), plenty of deck chairs, cabanas, outdoor living couches and hammocks. This was one of our favourite hang outs on sea
days.We found a space in a cabana and totally chilled. It was wonderful. The seas were so calm today - just perfect sailing weather - especially for someone like me who suffers from motion sickness. It was days like this that make you wish life could be this way everyday. We enjoyed the whirlpool a couple of times and also went to the glass blowing show on the top deck. The top deck also has a grassed section - very unique - people were sun baking on the grassed areas soaking up every minute of the Suns rays. You can also play golf and bocce here too.That evening was a formal night and it was great to dress up and see everyone else in their formal wear. We enjoyed dinner in the 'signature" dining room where
we tried a couple of new foods - frogs legs and escargot (snails). My main meal was rack of lamb and Geoff chose Black salmon. Service and food was impeccable - I think we could really get used to this! After dinner we went to The "Equinox Theatre". It was jam packed for the
8.30pm session and all the seating was full - the Ships Captain was on stage and introduced himself and his crew to the audience. The show
tonight was "Broadway Dreams" - a musical which was top notch as far as we were concerned. A fantastic way to finish off a perfect day of sailing. Day 2 - ordered room service for breakfast so we could eat and be ready to catch the first tender over to Grand Cayman. No boats are able
to anchor in port - no worries though the tender was quick and easy - no long lines of people like we have heard about on other cruise lines.Once over on Grand Cayman it was a short walk from the port to locate our tour operator - Captain Marvin's tours. We did a tour called Cayman in a Nutshell. We had read excellent reviews about this operator and the price was excellent. For $79US we were able to do a land and sea tour. Grand Cayman is nestled in the calm, turquoise waters of the Western Caribbean and and lies in the peaceful British Overseas Territory know as the Cayman Islands. Consisting of three islands just 480 miles south of Miami, Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman are a true piece of paradise. <br style="color:
#000000; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" />We drove along past the famous 7 mile beach - which is now actually only 5 1/2 miles long due to 2 hurricanes that passed through this area.We travelled in an air conditioned small bus along with only 6 other guests. Tour guide Jonathan took us to the far side of Grand Cayman. Jonathan had a fantastic sense of humour and gave a very informative tour. We drove to a place called "Hell". Here you can buy postcards and have them post marked "hell". There is a small souvenir shop here and the guy working in the store walks around dressed as the devil. If you want to take a photo of him you have to leave a tip.<br style="color:� font-family:
UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto;" />Next stop was the Turtle Farm. It was amazing to see all the different pools they have set up for turtles at different stages of their lives. You were actually able to enter one of the pools and hold a small turtle - one of the highlights of the tour. I was straight in to take advantage of this! Our next stop was to the Canal where we boarded a snorkel vessel to take us out to Stingray City about 1/2 hours boat ride from the canal. We were blown away by the beautiful waters here in the Caribbean. We really didn't know what to expect from this part of the world - but take my word for it - it is so, so beautiful! <br style="color:� font-family: UICTFontTextStyleBody; font-size: 17px; line-height: normal; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust:
auto;" />Sting Ray city was pretty amazing. Out in the middle of the ocean where the water was only 3 foot deep. Legend says if you kiss a sting ray you get 7 years good luck. Well many people were in the water with the stingrays having their photos taken while kissing them. We didn't swim - maybe the Steve Irwin incident had something to do with it! We had another snorkelling stop before returning back to the port area. The boat stopped at a beautiful area for around 30 minutes. The water everywhere was crystal clear - actually just looked like a picture postcard. Weather today was perfect with a high of 28c.On return back to the Port we had a walk around and visited the local Hard Rock Cafe and also a local Harley
Davidson retail store. Now they say the Cayman Islands are tax free and you also don't pay any income tax here so you would think shopping would be cheap - think again - really expensive! Everything needs to be imported onto the island so even with no taxes the prices were ridiculously high.On return back to the Equinox we jumped into the Whirlpool and enjoyed chatting along with other guests. We've some great folk on this cruise from all over the place - we have been invited to join a group of 3 other couples at the
8.30pm dinner services in the Silhouette Restaurant so this we did and we very much enjoyed the company of these other well travelled couples.Absolutely everything on board the Equinox has been top class. It is a beautiful ship and
all the staff are fantastic. We have no complaints whatsoever. This has been an amazing trip through the Caribbean, south and Central America. Worth every dollar and overall a relatively inexpensive way to discover this paradise while being pampered and totally relaxing.
Day 3 - another day at Sea. I never ever imagined I would enjoy this cruising so much but it has been fantastic. Sea days are especially good as you get to totally relax all day. Everything you could ever want is here - the most you have to worry about is securing your spot by the pool or in the Solarium. That was our day today - watching the world go by while we sailed across these amazingly calm seas with nothing but ocean surrounding us.
That evening we visited the second of our Speciality Dining Restaurants - The Tuscan Grille is an Italian steakhouse restaurant with many familiar favorites like Caesar salad, cioppino, many pasta dishes, and veal. Geoff had a seafood stew which was totally delectable. I also chose a fish dish that was just as delightful.
The atmosphere here I. Tuscan Grille is not formal, but the service is still exceptional, and the menu is varied enough to want to return more than once! We enjoyed 4 superb courses here and savoured every bite.
Day 4 - arrived in Cartegena, Columbia 7am. Today we were doing a historic tour of Cartegena on a Segway Tour with only 2 other couples. We all received training on how to use the Segway before venturing out into the walled city. Our guide Caeser was very patient - I didn't think I would ever master using the Segway especially since we were riding through the busy one way streets but I eventually gained confidence and had a great time. Cost of the tour was $170 which included the taxi fare of $30 per couple.
Some of the places we visited were:
Heredia TheatreSanto Domingo SquareCustoms PlazaSanta Teresa Convent<li style="margin: 0px;
padding: 0px;">San Pedro SquareBaluarte San IgnacioNaval MuseumClock TowerInquisition PalaceGold MuseumSanta Catalina CathedralFernandez Square
Cartegena is also known as Cartegena de Indias (Cartegena of the West Indies)and was founded in 1553 and named by Don Pedro de Heredia and named after the port of Cartegena in Spain's Murcia region. It was a major settlement in the America's and continues to be an economic hub as well as a popular tourist destination. Today the city looks more like a modern metropolis than one of the oldest cities of the New World.
History is present throughout the city in its walls, colonial architectue and in numerous military and religious monuments. These all come together harmoniously with clear-water beaches, exotic nearby islands and with lively bars, cafes, restaurants and night clubs.
Weather in Cartegena was hOT and rather humid. After the Segway tour we went to a local restaurant where we had a beer before heading back to the port area which in itself was a visitors dream. Exotic animals and
birds surround the port in a zoo like environment except no cages were present - they wander freely - monkeys, deer, flamingo, black swans and macaws, just to name a few. Took the chance to down a couple more $2 beers before boarding the ship for a 4pm departure.
Celebrity Showtime this evening was "Remix" a high energy tribute to pop, rock and international music starring the Equinox production cast - fabulous show. After we dined in the Silhoutte dining room for the 8.30pm service - then off to bed as another big day ahead in the Port of Colon.
Day 5 - arrived in Colon 8am. We had a full day here with the ship departing Port at 6pm. Today we had a small group tour organised by a company "my friend Mario" - an all day excursion costing $85 each. The tour was comprehensive and began with a tour of the Gatun Locks at the Panama Canal. We were lucky enough to see a large ship passing through one section of the locks.
The Panama Canal is a lock system that lifts a ship up 85 feet (26 metres) to the main elevation of the
Panama Canal and down again. It has a total of six steps (three up, three down) for a ship's passage. The total length of the lock structures, including the approach walls, is over 1.9 miles (3 km). The locks were one of the greatest engineering works ever to be undertaken when they opened in 1914. No other concrete construction of comparable size was undertaken until the Hoover Dam in the 1930s.
There are two independent transit lanes, since each lock is built double. The size of the locks limits the maximum size of ships that can transit the canal; this size is known as Panamax.
It certainly was amazing to be standing here watching such an event. You learn so much by travelling - the Canals never made much sense to me before I stood there before them and saw how they actually worked.
The weather in Panama was not so great today. It is the rainy season here and that's how it was all day - liquid sunshine. It didn't bother us much while we were touring around in the mini bus but once we arrived at our next destination it was not so comfortable.
Here we were in the rain boarding a traditional wooden canoe for a ride up the river to a traditional village for lunch and a look around at village life here. 45 minutes in the canoe - in the rain...at this stage I was thinking to myself "what are we in for - this is crazy"!
By the time we reached the village everyone was absolutely soaked through but it was so worth it. The people who live in this small village ( the Embera tribe) in the middle of a national park cooked lunch for us - fresh fish and plantation wrapped in banana leaf along with the sweetest fresh fruit we have ever tasted. One of the Embera Elders gave us a talk about their lives and culture and then performed some traditional dancing for us. It was such a treat watching the youngsters in the village - happy to be playing in the mud and rain - so different from children back home.
By the time we left the village the rain had stopped so we set off in the canoe to have a look at a local waterfall not far from the village. Geoff
and I didn't leave the canoe to visit the waterfall as it meant a walk through mud and water up to your knees. Our shoes were soaking wet from the ride up the river so by this time we were just looking forward to getting back onboard the ship, having a hot shower and changing into dry clothes.
It was 5.30pm by the time we were back in our room...that hot shower never felt so dam good. Geoff and I were both totally exhausted - there was no possible way we could manage dinner in the dining room so we grabbed a quick bite from the oceanview cafe and were in bed by 8.30pm. Tomorrow was another port day!
Day 6 - Puerto Limon, Costa Rica and another wet day in Central America. Costa Rica is a small country covering just 0.1% of the planets land mass But is home to around 5% of the world's biodiversity. This country is the ultimate nature paradise. Most of its treasures are found within the twenty six national parks and protected zones spread across the country. Costa Rica has a staggering amount of flora and fauna In their rainforests, cloud forests
and tropical dry forests. Here is home to a spectacular assortment of not only birds but also monkeys, lizards, snakes, sloths, butterflies and frogs. The port of Puerto Limo lies about 100 miles east of the capital city of San Jose which was founded in 1870 as a port city to export bananas and grains from Costa Rica to varrious parts of the world
Today's tour was with a company "riverboat Francesco" $75 each and certainly our best tour so far on the cruise. From the Limon Port, we took a taxi to Moin where we boarded a boat at 8:30 a.m. We cruised slowly up the natural rivers and canals to Pacuare, a village along the riverside where an authentic Caribbean lunch was served. We returned by boat to Moin around 2 p.m.
The jungle wildlife we saw while on tour included crocodiles, sloths (2 and 3 fingered), monkeys, iguanas, basilisk lizards, and innumerable shore and tropical birds.
There is a ride in Disneyland called "Jungle Cruise" and that's just what this tour felt like. There have been so many times on this holiday when it's hard to comprehend what we are seeing is actually real
and this was another one of those times. Truly it felt like we could have been in the Amazon Jungle - seeing all this wildlife before our eyes - just so awesome.
Day 7 - At Sea day - a chance to catch up on some relaxation after a few hectic days of shore excursions. We took the opportunity to attend a few ilearn classes onboard the Equinox. Deck 6 has an Apple Mac lounge where you can buy products, use the Mac computers and learn how to use all the technology. This has been a fabulous addition to on shore excursions. The technology guy - Richard - has a fabulous sense of humour - totally a great choice of staff for the job. Geoff took the opportunity to purchase a Go Pro 4 - a new release - sold duty free on the ship.
This evening after dinner we were lucky enough to make it to the Equinox Theatre to see the production "the show". This was a European style circus featuring the stars of the Equinox Production Cast. This show was spectacular - along the lines of a Cirque de Soleil presentation. The choreography and manoeuvres
performed on a stage that is moving was totally awesome.
We enjoyed all the shows on board this ship - a great variety of shows and all equally worth watching. Celebrity cruise lines does attract an older age group which suits us fine. It is definitely not a party ship - more of a conservative crowd. There were a few children on board but nowhere near what you would find on other ships such as the Carnival line.
Day 8 - At Port in Belize City - Central America. Belize is a tropical port sitting smack in the heart of the Caribbean Coast and offers a variety of activities focused on nautical fun such as fishing, snorkelling, sailing, diving as well as duty free shopping and sight seeing tours. Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the main spoken language.
This is a tender port with travel time of around 45 minutes from the ship to land. The tender service was quite slow in the morning and we didn't exactly help by sleeping in so we didn't make it to Belize until 11.30am meaning that we missed our scheduled tour which was meant
to be cave tubing.
Instead we took a horse and carriage tour around the city $25 for an hour ride then did some shopping followed by chilling out in a local bar "the wet lizard" where you can pick up local beers - 2 for $5. It was a hot, humid day in Belize with temperatures reaching 29c. There were quite a number of other large cruise lines in Belize - tourism is the main money spinner with most cruise lines making a stop here on any of the Caribbean cruises.
Back on board around 3 pm where we settled in one of our favourite hang outs - aft on deck 14. You get the best of everything sitting out here - sea breeze, comfy chairs, close to the cafe and overall pretty quite. Every afternoon around 4pm they had a trivia game going on out on the deck - it's great fun and another way to meet more interesting people from all over the world.
Geoff went along to the ilounge again for some more computer classes while I hung out on deck 14. That evening we left Belize and set sail for Cozumel Mexico.
Day 9 - Cozumel Mexico - South America. Ship docked 7am - Taxi ride from international Pier. We shared a taxi with 3 other couples so cost for each couple was $4 to downtown. Here we hired a convertible VW for the cost of $35. Now it certainly wasn't not anything flash but we had a fun time touring around the island by ourselves.
Took Geoff only a few minutes to get hold of driving through the narrow one way streets. The trip around the whole island is not very long around 45 kms. We made a stop at the San Gervasio ancient Mayan Ruins $19 admission for both of us. For an extra $18 we could have hired a private tour guide but we didn't bother with this. Walked around these ancient ruins for around 45 minutes but it really wasn't our style - but others who had a tour guide said the history of the place was really amazing.
We headed off for a drive to the local beaches and it certainly didn't disappoint. Amazingly beautiful Coastal drive with many fantastic beaches along the way. We stopped at several beaches to grab photos and take a
few short walks along the beach. Local beers can be purchased from the local shops for a mere $1 a bottle. With the heat and humidity here it would certainly not be hard to knock back quite a few while enjoying the local beaches.
Currency here was US$ or Pesos with souvenirs, restaurant food and drinks being very very cheap. I think Cozumel was the best place for shopping during this cruise. We found the local Harley Davidson stores both here and in Belize City - prices in both places were the same as everywhere - no bargains to be found! Still we picked up our memorabilia from both places - can't even begin to remember how many Harley stores we have visited during this holiday.
In the evening we went to the Equinox Theatre for a Motown show featuring a band "Horizon". Another great night followed by a casual dinner at the Oceanview Cafe and then the usual catch up with our dinner mates at the Silhouette dining room.
Day 10 - sadly our last full sea day before arriving back at Fort Lauderdale. The day spent resting, talking to other guests and preparing for our
departure tomorrow morning at 8am. Absolutely everything on the cruise has been perfect. The staff are so super - nothing is too much trouble.
We felt like we were treated like royalty. Now that we are in love with cruising I think a cruise will be on the travel agenda on a regular basis. Everything about Celebrity Cruise lines was top notch from the very beginning right to the end.
We finished off our final night by dining in our 3rd speciality dining restaurant - Murano - french restaurant. Wow what a way to finish the cruise! Absolutely superb 5 star dining experience. Our food was prepared at our table flambé style - once again we were treated so special. Certainly a Memorable experience!
We said our final goodbyes this evening to our new found cruise friends....who knows maybe we will meet again one day soon. In any case their company and friendship during our time together will never be forgotten.
Day 10 - Disembarkation day - ????. Ready to leave this remarkable vessel at 8am...everyone in the breakfast room was a little solemn including us. Another part of this adventure has come to an end!
Leaving the ship we needed to pass through customs and this was a total nightmare - it took nearly 3 hours to leave the terminal. Apparently any cruise ship returning from Central and South America requires customs to ensure each passengers passport is correctly processed due to high incidences of people smuggling.
After final departing the cruise terminal we picked up a rental vehicle from SIXT for our one way ride up to Orlando. It was midday by the the time this was all finalised and we were ready to hit the road so we had to change our plans of having a relaxing trip along the coastal road to driving up the toll road to ensure we made our destination in time to collect our RV before 5pm.
We made it to "cruise america" depot in Kissimmee by 3.30pm - just in time to finish all the paperwork and then return the rental car back to SIXT. Our original contract was for a 19ft RV but there was a lack of space to hold all our luggage. The RV company kindly upgraded us to a 25ft RV at no extra cost - so all ended good.
We will have the RV until 7 February - total hire cost $1,500.
Next stop Disneyworld - Fort Wilderness campgrounds where we will stay until 2 February.
Will update blog about these adventures as soon as we have spare time.
Till then - Cheers from Orlando! ?
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D MJ Binkley
Dave and Merry Jo Binkley
Everglades and Celebrity Cruisin
Sorry the trip to the everglades was disappointing. There are other trips available that are really nice...next time. Cruises offer top notch customer service. You look very nice dressed up. Glad you embraced the trip and all of the ports. Sounds like the perfect balance of relaxing and exploring. I can see you now doing an internet search of one of those around the world cruises. (not a bad idea)...and the desserts! Cruise ships are like small cities but you can always find a quiet place to be alone.