Celebrity Equinox - Norwegian Fjords Cruise

Dinah Alonso-Wilkes on 31 July 2009
Towering over Southampton was the first view of this amazing ship. Suitcases handed over to the porters, the car was duly parked and into the cruise terminal we proceeded; all very efficiently done.

The crew greets you onboard with a glass of champagne, very civilized. Our cabin wasn’t quite ready so it was time to investigate the ship. First stop was the Lawn Club, deck 15, ½ an acre of grass, yes proper growing grass. And next to it the Corning Glass Museum with its hot glass shows. The sun was shining and it was warm - the whicker seats right at the back of the ship looked very inviting - but it wasn’t long before the cabins were available.

Our obligatory muster station drill was in the Tuscan Grille with no life jackets - this is the new way and I prefer it. Quick dash back to the cabin, change and time for pre-dinner drinks in the Martini bar, with its frosted bar top; don’t leave your glass too long as it freezes to the top, but do try the ‘summer solstice’ cocktail. Onto the theatre for the evening show which was followed by our evening meal. This was a late sitting at 2145hrs; the family decided it was too late and the following day we changed to the first sitting, joining a table with a lovely couple from Germany and another from the Midlands.

If there is one thing I can say on this cruise it would be that the food was of the highest quality and none of the dishes were repeated. On a couple of the evenings we tried the speciality restaurants, Tuscan Grille; they do a mean Steak and delicious Italian anti-pasti. My favorite meal took place in the Silk Harvest (Asian Fusian) which was outstanding.

One of the highlights of the cruise was eating our evening meal sailing along Sognefjord, the sun setting creating an orange glow on the mountain tops, highlighting the glaciers. What restaurant in the world has a view like that!

And after all that food we needed exercise in the form of walking. We walked for 3 hours around Stavanger, with its pretty white wooden houses and colourful gardens. We walked around the lake Breiavatnet, past the cathedral and down toward Verksalmenningen. As it was Sunday the shops were shut, pity as there are many interesting looking ones.

In Flam we caught the train from the portside, travelling 21kms to Myrdal, where we alighted for the beautiful hike back to port. Towering snow capped mountains, thunderous waterfalls and clean fresh air…the scenery defies words really.

Geiranger was the next port, where the hiking boots were put on again. The countryside has numerous well marked trails. We followed the easier ones which involved scrambling over rocks and balancing on what seem to be rickety bridges over fierce rivers, following the red markers hunting for the elusive troll. Don’t miss the octagonal wooden church built in 1842; I got some fantastic photos of the ship from here. At the bottom of the hill next to the port we found a number of tourist shops and cafes, which we perused before catching one of the tenders, all clutching our holiday souvenirs. After leaving Geiranger, the ship slowed down so that we could all appreciate the ‘Seven Sister’s Waterfall.

The last port of call was Oslo. It was a wonderful hot sunny day, so we jumped ship and hopped onto one of the city sightseeing buses that run in a large circuit, every 30 mins. The buses pick up next to the ship and with 20 different stops, it’s a great way to see the city. We chose to do the circuit and then stop at the Viking Ship Museum.

My conclusion of this holiday - it should have been longer…Celebrity Equinox is an outstanding ship with an excellent crew. It is sophisticated, elegant and welcoming with something for everyone. The children loved the “Fun Factory” including my teenage daughter who was amazed to find another 70 teenagers on board.