This was our second cruise in the Mediterranean on Celebrity, the first being western and this being eastern. A general comparison of the two is that the Itinerary on the western Med. is more interesting and, in my opinion, better. I also thought the food was better on the last cruise in 2009 but the food was still good this year. This voyage was a lot rougher than the last one but the ship handled 6-8 foot seas (and sometimes higher) without a problem. I will also say that I think wearing a patch is a good idea and it works well if you are prone to seasickness. Anyway, last time we stayed in Concierge class, this time in Deluxe ocean view. Concierge class offers a few more amenities, and the room is a little bigger, but I was quite happy in my room this time. I found all the staff on the ship to be helpful, especially the concierge and the Guest Relations people. The waiter was good but did not have the warmth of other waiters we have had. We did not do excursions at every port, but the ones we did were good or excellent with the exception of the one in Bodrum. The tour guide in Crete was amazing. Excursions are much about personal preference, but we had read that Delos was a must (off Mykonos) and we would agree. Very interesting (but the ferry ride in rough seas was a challenge). We loved Istanbul, Santorini, Ephesus and Crete. As to the food, it was very good most of the time. We ate at the early sitting in the dining room most nights and the choices were adequate. The buffet on Deck 10 is always amazing to me. There are so many choices and so much food most of the day that I could eat there at every meal. The stir fry was wonderful. We never ate in any fancy restaurants or in our room. All the amenities (pool, thelassotherapy pool, massage etc) were all excellent.

We went to some of the shows in the Theatre. The ones we chose we average but not great. I have to say something about the piano player (who also did a stage show one night). His name is Perry Grant and he is truly one of a kind. It took a little getting used to him because of his schtick, and the fact that he is one of the oddest looking people one might encounter. But, his knowledge of music of many eras, and his skill at the piano, are amazing. We ended up going to his sessions almost daily.

Upon reading other reviews, I feel like the people must have been on a different ship (although I think complainers are more likely to write). We had a really good time and highly recommend Celebrity which I think is great value for the price. As an aside, Turkish Air was really nice.