I booked my cruise back in May, 2012. The price didn't really go down between that time and departure. I also purchased Allianz Insurance. I'm from New England and winter weather is very changeable. This was 2nd cruise for my mid 20's daughter and I. We had enjoyable Bahamas cruise on Norwegian Sky last year.
We ended up getting Northeaster 2 days before cruise. Luckily Delta was able to fly us out on Friday before they closed Boston's Logan airport. We had an unexpected Miami hotel stay but were glad to be rested and on ship early. We used hotels transfer. Boarding was hassle free since we did everything online. We were able to go right to nice buffet and relax by pools. Our rooms were ready approximately 2pm with luggage arriving later. The layout of ship was very nice. We especially loved the solarium with adult thalassotherapy pool. Neither of us wanted a cruise full of kids - leave that to Carnival or Disney.
Celebrity exceeded our expectations. We liked the staff, stateroom, entertainment and variety of areas on ship - the library and gym were nice. Spa was too expensive. The pools and hot tubs were clean and so was the restaurants and staterooms. Neither of us felt the need to pay extra for the specialty restaurants and were quite happy with buffet selections along with pizzeria, panini, and Aqua spa selections plus delicious selection of ice cream, yogurt and sorbet daily. This was very popular with passengers. My daughter is vegetarian (not vegan) and doesn't care for Indian food. The dining director was very accommodating. There was plenty of towel stations and seating. I don't think our cruise had fully booked up. There were lots of quiet areas too. To read, relax and just find your own quiet nook.