So the reader can better put into perspective the writer's cruising experience, here is a brief history. Wife Judy has sailed five times, first on Celebrity Infinity, second two on RCI Navigator of the Seas, fourth on the Summit and this cruise. I have cruised since the '80's, sticking with the mainstream or premium lines for over a dozen cruises. We have made Celebrity our line of choice for the past several years since we enjoy what has been up until now a finer cuisine, better service and best value for the dollar. Our opinions of most of those categories have not changed. This was our second cruise to the Western Caribbean. This specific cruise was chosen for its itinerary, since we wanted to either do the Western or another Southern, the ship, since it was new to the fleet, and its cost, since it was the least expensive of all the weeks in December or January. This cruise was taken with old and good friends known for over 35 years who drove to Florida from St. Louis and then were kind enough to drive all of us across the state from Cape Coral to Miami for the cruise.

Reviews, by their very nature, are subjective works and contain little more than the opinions of the writer, with little to no factual evidence that can be proven or disproven. This review will be no different and the reader should bear in mind that one person's experience onboard a cruise ship can vary greatly from another's. The opinions contained in this review are solely those of the writer and not his wife and/or friends with whom he sailed. It is evident that differing opinions can be gleaned from various people who were on the same ship, depending upon who served them, when they were served, where they were served, etc. Opinions of cruises can also vary from one week to the next, one ship to the next and one crew to the next, so it is literally impossible to get an accurate picture of just how good or bad a ship or cruise line may be from reading only one review. The writer strongly encourages the reader to incorporate this review and its contained opinions into as many other reviews that can be obtained about the same ship, time frame, crew and itinerary. Look at the various reviews as you would view a figure skating competition scoring from the judges - throw out the best and worst, and then see with what you are left.

Twenty years ago, when determining how good or bad your cruise was, only three things were taken into consideration: food, cabin and entertainment. Much has changed since then and the general public is much more demanding, for both quality of product and information regarding same. This writer believes that cruises should be reviewed in several categories - the things that make you want to take another cruise with the same line or on the same ship. Cruise Critic covers these topics quite well and you will find my ratings for each category in their poll. The following review will be an attempt to justify those ratings. Read more