This was our first 'ocean' cruise. We had avoided cruises because of the size of the ships and the impression we had of people being herded. The Viking Star was a great size - only about 800 people on our cruise. We began with the pre-cruise extension to Gallipoli and Troy. First class accommodations and an excellent guide. We were unable to go back to Istanbul. Viking had made the wise decision not to have guests go into Istanbul as it was only a few days after the bombing in the main street. Instead the Star travelled to Cannakale where we were and we had an additional day in the area. The itinerary was interesting - Ephesus was amazing and we enjoyed Santorini, Kotor and Dubrovnik. I especially liked that in all ports except Athens and Santorini that we docked in the city. This reminded me of the river cruises. The excursions were well done. On board the lectures were fascinating - a professor from Oxford on ancient civilizations and one from the US navel defense college on topics such as the Syrian civil war and the rise of ISIS. The entertainment was well done. Food was excellent as was the service. All the cabins have balconies. I loved being pampered and we booked another cruise on the Viking Sea before we landed in Venice