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In July 2009 the Celebrity Equinox was introduced at the port of Southampton. This new Solstice class ship (sister ship to the Celebrity Solstice launched in 2008) is second in the series of five. The two week launch event celebrated the start of its service and culminated in its maiden cruise to the Norwegian Fjords on 31st July. The brand new $750 million, 122,000 grt vessel has 13 guest decks and can accommodate 2,850 passengers with a crew of 1,255 to look after them. The third vessel in the Solstice class, the Celebrity Eclipse, is due to be launched in 2010 and will be UK-based. HotelDesigns visited the vessel for a day to examine the staterooms and the public areas.
The foremast carries teh tachnology arrays that keep her internet, Global satellite positioning, radar and transmission systems working
Embarkation is through deck five (the Entertainment deck), and this led into the Cafe Al Bacio and Gelateria on the starboard side and Bistro on Five (a creperie) on the port side. The 12 deck Atrium is the central focus of the ship. A suspended Ficus/fig tree in a large pot decorated with sparkling Swarovski crystal beads is in turn the atrium centrepiece. The atrium is equipped with two banks of four rapid glass elevators on each side, which can traverse between decks in seconds. The ship’s theme, ‘Here Comes the Sun’, is written in Swarovski crystal on the atrium wall. The glass elevators give views of the activities on each deck as you pass through the atrium; there is the multi-level library and media centre as well as the card/games room and several bars with seating areas.
The ship has over 500 pieces of modern art displayed, including some by Roy Lichtenstein. In some areas (for example outside the Ocean View Café) there were also constantly changing digital wall displays.
The Cafe Al Bacio used high back leather chairs upholstered in yellow leather as well as a round central bench seating installation and tub chairs (upholstered in beige cloth) with round beige marble tables on a brown carpet with leaf designs in beige. The highlights of the decoration were gold cut outs on the ceiling and gold trim along with a large gold mirror. The higher traffic areas of flooring on this deck used cream and beige marble tiles.
Forward on deck five was the galleria shopping mall and also the art gallery and photo gallery. There was another shopping area on deck 4 (the Promenade deck), opposite the very glitzy Fortunes Casino, called ‘Shops on the Boulevard’.
First published in the DesignClub on 9th Oct 2009This and other advance news articles, together with our ‘Ask the Experts’ column and our photo Gallery of hotel interiors, are available for an annual subscription of less than £1 a week. Sign up here for immediate access.
Swimming pools in the Resort Deck
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Moored alongside the Equinox looks like the floating resort hotel she is. Her 1.426 bedrooms make her larger than any on-shore UK Hotel
Atrium is the centre of the guest experience, with glass lift giving views over the twelve floor into all the ships attractions
'Here comes the Sun' in Swarovski Crystal tastefully delineated on the sides of the atrium
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