Husband and I really enjoyed this 11 night cruise. The ship is beautifully decorated and keep extremely clean. When we booked, we could get only anytime dining. We really wanted early seating where we would dine with the same people each night. After boarding, which was painless, we toured the ship then went to visit the maitre'd Sasha. We asked for early seating and he said he would try his best to accommodate us. The next day, we received a note in our room letting us know we were changed to early dining for the duration of the cruise. Thank you to Sasha for all your help. The meals were very good with a variety of choices. Waiter and assistant waiter were great. We had a wonderful group at our table of eight and plan to keep in touch with many of them. We didn't try any of the specialty restaurants but did try Bistro on Five which we thoroughly enjoyed. We had our breakfasts and lunched at the buffet which was fine. To us, the best food on the cruise was the one-time brunch. It was wonderful, ice sculptures, and all.

As for shore excursions, we booked three with the cruise line. We were very disappointed with one of the three but were given a discount from Celebrity. We learned from our new dining friends that going ashore and picking/choosing from the numerous excursions offered would have saved us a lot of money. We will take their advice on our next cruise.

We had an inside cabin which was very roomy. We usually opt for a balcony but could not upgrade as the cruise was fully booked. There were plenty of activities and the shows were good. We especially liked the cirque de soleil-like show. The performers were flawless. It felt as if we were in Las Vegas...they were that good. The cruise director was great; very talented. He and other crew members put on a masquerade-type show one evening which was great. The casino paid out very well on the slots. One problem we encountered was the ubiquitous "lounge chair saving." We've seen this on every other cruise and it ruins the pool experience for others. All in all, a great cruise on a great ship. We will sail with Celebrity again next January.