Check in was speedy, but boarding the ship was delayed slightly as a result of late arrival of the previous cruise. Nonetheless, once the process began, we were quickly on the ship. Luggage arrived promptly. The cabin was clean with ample storage space for clothes and luggage. The bathroom was clean and had a surprisingly large shower. Celebrity's new bedding was comfortable and attractive. Century is an older refurbished ship, and there were a few maintenance items. For example, twice during the cruise our room's plumbing service was shut off for repair during the wee morning hours. Century's staff was good about providing us with advanced warning of the minor inconvenience. Once unpacked, we went to explore the ship. The public areas were spotless and tastefully decorated. The ship has a contemporary art collection worthy of museum status. It is decorated with original works of such artists as Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso. Many of these works are in places you would not ordinarily expect them to be located, such as throughout the lido dining area. For a fully refundable deposit, an audio tour of the ship's art is available for check-out from the front desk. I took the tour, and upon return of the headset, the friendly front desk staff was anxious to get my comments about the tour's quality.

The lifeboat drill was both professionally done and entertaining. Compared to this experience on twelve other cruises, I must say this was the smoothest. The ship then sailed. Century received a special fireboat salute of sprayed water upon departure from Amsterdam (and again later upon sailing from Alesund). This made the sail-away all the more special. About an hour after sailing, the ship passed through the locks and into the North Sea, and we were able to watch this interesting process from our table in the dining room. By the way, we had expected the North Sea to be rough and had brought along seasick pills. They were not needed, as Century easily handled the relatively calm seas throughout the cruise.

In the dining room we were seated at a nice round table for eight - four Americans and four Dutch citizens. We quickly all became friends. The table had a nice view through the large windows at the rear of the dining room. Tables were a bit close together but clearly preferable to the booth seating found in the dining rooms of other cruise lines. Our server Danko and his assistant Imo were gracious and attentive. The food, as expected, was tasty (especially the beef) and plentiful. Menu selections were extensive. Other food venues, like the lido cafeteria and the poolside grill provided food whenever and wherever we wanted it. The AquaSpa cafe was a crowded but great place to find lighter, healthier fare. The almond croissants from the Cova Cafe are to die for. (Note: the croissants are free, but coffee costs extra in the cafe). Read more