Let me say first that we enjoyed the cruise and are glad we went. Been there, done that, don't have to do it again. I'll explain:

We first sailed with Celebrity in 2012, went to Alaska on the Century (smallest ship in the fleet). We LOVED it! The ship, the crew, the service, the everything!! Most amazing experience we ever had was that cruise. When we decided to cruise again, Celebrity was our first and only choice. Our travel agent enthusiastically informed us that the Reflection is her favorite ship and she just knew we were going to love it. We liked the Reflection, a lot in fact, but not enough to want to sail on her again any time soon.

This is a BIG ship. That is obvious. What didn't occur to us is how that would make this experience so much different from our little ship experience. First, more people, and we are not ones who enjoy crowds. Finding a place that wasn't over crowded each evening to enjoy a beverage before dinner was a challenge; after dinner, forget about it! Second, seating in the main dining room. On our first cruise we were seated with 6 other people and by the end of the cruise we had gotten to know each other and enjoyed our evening visits. This time, we were seated by ourselves, close to a table with 2 other people. Yes, we chatted with them and we did enjoy our visits but it wasn't the same as having a small group of people together discussing the day. Third, the shopping. Bigger ship = more shopping, right? Nope. There may have been more actual "shops" but there wasn't the selection or variety that I found during our small ship cruise. Fourth, the food. Same cruise line should equal same quality and variety of food, as well as chefs producing the same outstanding meals. No, in fact, we found the food bland and repetitive in the buffet restaurant (same dishes being served every day with little change in options from day to day). The meals in the main dining room weren't much better. Yes the menu changed everyday, but the food wasn't nearly as good as it was on the Century. Read more