Having sailed the Baltic Sea on the Constellation last summer, our first Celebrity cruise, we had very high expectations for our 12th cruise, the Western Mediterranean on the Century. The Constellation was the best cruise we've taken, sadly the Century hit the other end of the spectrum, i.e. the worst.

First the ship. The Century is showing significant wear and tear. In far too many areas of the ship we saw stained, torn carpeting, worn brass fixtures, wood, trim, etc. Most disturbing was the pervasive smell of raw sewage in many of the ships corridors and our cabin's bathroom. I've never experienced this on any other ship we've sailed. The ship was also the rockiest of all cruises we've done. Even on very calm seas there was a lot pitching and rolling. Many guests were green around the gills for several days.

The cruise ship director had to be the blandest ever. He was minimally visible throughout the cruise and when on stage gave very short, curt introductions to the acts. I confess we are spoiled by Richard Spacey on Freedom of Seas - this guy was incredibly manic, interacted with cruisers to the nth degree, and was everywhere, all the time. Cruise staff, if there were any, were invisible - minimal activities on sea days. Read more