I booked this cruise because of a conference onboard and also wanted to see what 6 star cruise experience is like. The chance to visit the Black Sea was also an attraction.

I added the business class upgrade to Athens and from Istanbul because of the long flight from the west coast of North America. It was well worth the $999 each way. They flew us there on KLM and back on Delta. We were met at Athens airport by RSSC representative and a dozen of us were sent by bus to the Divani Caravel Hotel. They had a hospitality desk at the hotel that handled our questions. Arrangements to take us to the ship the next day was very smooth. Check-in was very efficient as their staff handled one bus at a time and the buses arrived at staggered times. We were treated to a buffet lunch with white table cloth once onboard since the suites were not ready until 2:30 p.m.

We booked a guaranteed Suite F but was "upgraded" to Concierge Suite D on Deck 10. The suite was the same size as a mini-suite on larger ships but the layout was very functional. There was a walk=in closet and the bathroom was good size. Even though there was no bathtub, the shower was quite large and the shape of the bathroom made everything very convenient. The bed was an European King size bed that had a plush pillow top. The mini-bar was stocked with water, soda and beer (no extra charge). Balcony was fair size with two bamboo chairs and an ottoman. Read more