My traveling companion and I are university professors looking for a relaxing, yet stimulating way to recover from a hectic and stressful academic year. We had cruised together several times before on the Solstice, and the Holland America and Princess lines. We've traveled to the Caribbean and the Baltic and I have cruised Alaska.

We have been interested in the Mediterranean but we also wanted the experience of numerous lazy days at sea. The Celebrity Solstice's 13 day voyage from Fort Lauderdale to Barcelona with port days in the Azores, Lisbon, Cadiz and Malaga was a perfect blend of both.

We rented a car and drove to Fort Lauderdale from our homes in Jacksonville the day before the sailing. Spent the night nearby and dropped the car off in mid-morning and took cab to the ship. Check-in was rapid and easy and in a very short time were were on deck with our champagne. This was our second time on the Solstice, so it was like coming home. We wandered about, had something to eat and checked out our stateroom. Read more