The Celestyal Crystal ain't no Queen Mary or Queen Elizabeth (but nor are you paying their fares!), not of their ilk is the CC. It is however an old girl pretty efficiently run with a seemingly happy and friendly crew who all work damn hard and probably get little sleep.

The ship itself has been on the water for many a year and the fabric and finish is showing signs of wear and tear and is not quite leading edge from a designers perspective. Despite this the hard working staff keep everything shiny and polished and persevere with its short comings; cupboard door half off a hinge in the Amalthia restaurant, the main dining room, drawers that don't close properly in our cabin.

A seven day cruise around the Aegean is a Greek Island taster and no more, with Istanbul and Kusadasi thrown in for some Turkish delights - Hagia Sofia, the Blue Mosque and Ephesus being on offer. Excursions available at all ports and so the chance to get a flavour of Mykonos, Santorini, Crete, Rhodes, Chios and Lavrio (Athens). The excursion process is always good and bad. Highlights you would never see independently are delivered in bite sizes with tour guides who mainly avoid sounding rote and inject some enthusiasm for their subject matter. Organisationally there is the marshalling and checking of the excursioneers, with inevitable waiting and the usual stragglers who are always holding up the show. Read more