We booked this cruise on the Eclipse as a replacement for the Equinox transatlantic which we were unable to fly to due to the ash cloud. It was nice not to have to worry about flying and luggage allowances cruising out of Southampton as we are from the UK. We booked a pre cruise parking package at the Meon Valley Marriott which worked out to be very convenient as we had a return taxi to the port included so it was nice to be dropped off right at the terminal. There was a slight delay in boarding the ship but we were on-board for about 12.45. Instead of heading up to the buffet with the masses we had lunch at Bistro on 5. It was a lovely relaxing way to start the cruise and well worth the $5 cover charge. The banana crepes are delicious!

We booked this cruise mainly to experience Aqua-class. We were not disappointed. Our cabin came with a few extras like welcome champagne, daily fruit and canapes complimentary bottled water and iced teas. There was a lovely shower with body jets and nice fluffy towels and bathrobes but the best thing about aqua-class is the Blu dining room. The food in there is described as "California clean cuisine" and all the fruit and veg is organic but we never felt deprived, quite the opposite. Our waiters Donovan and Nickolai were excellent and would often bring us extra dishes to try and brought a different veggie curry every night for our vegetarian friend even though it was not on the menu. The breakfast in Blu was a real treat, we enjoyed the table-side muesli prepared to your liking most mornings. There were freshly squeezed fruit juices, smoothies, pancakes omelette's made to order and bacon, eggs beans etc were always available too. So much choice! We dined in Qsine one evening. There were 8 of us and we were glad to be in a large group as there was so much food. It is the most unique dining experience at sea! The innovative menus are on ipads and the food is presented in a quirky style like spring rolls on springs! We also dined in Tuscan Grille at a lovely sunset view table right at the aft of the ship, perfect romantic setting, excellent steaks and the chocolate fondue to die for! We enjoyed most of the entertainment on-board, the Celebrity cruises 20th anniversary party was a nice touch. The Eclipse cirque style show was stunning and Jack Walker very entertaining. It was definitely a step up from the usual Broadway type shows on other Celebrity ships.

As we chose this cruise for the ship and not the itinerary the ports were more of an interruption to enjoying the on-board facilities! We did take a shore excursion to Mount Teide and Las Canadas national park in Tenerife which was nice to see but 4 hours was long enough for us. In Madeira we pre booked a private taxi tour with Daniel Taxis for 85 euros for 4 hrs. There were 4 of us so it worked out to be very reasonable. Daniel was a great driver and guide and tailor made the tour for us. We had been to Lanzarote before and have seen all the main sights so we stayed on the ship and it was lovely to enjoy the pool deck and the spa cafe when it was quiet. In Gran Canaria we stayed in Las Palmas and found a nice local restaurant to enjoy our favorite Canarian dishes, potatoes with Mojo sauce and garlic shrimps. In Lisbon we took a train to Sintra and visited the Pena Palace, the weather was cool and rainy so not the best day to look around the gardens. The final port was Vigo. Our friends found a segway tour for 18 euros each and had a lot of fun on that. We stayed on the ship until after lunch then just had a wander round the old town. They do fantastic fresh seafood there. Read more