The Cruise Report With Cruise Specialists Cruise Reporter Ralph Grizzle

When he was but a nine-year-old boy, my son Alex reached into the Windex-blue waters on a sandy Bahamian beach and quickly withdrew his hand to proclaim, “Dad, I touched a stingray.” He furrowed his tender brow and added thoughtfully, “They’re nice.”

In doing so, he had ascribed a sweet, if somewhat inaccurate, characteristic to the stingray. Yes, the stingray was nice indeed, particularly with its barb blunted for safety. None of tragedy that befell animal lover Steve Irwin here. Off the coast of Australia, a ray’s barb had pierced his heart and stunned the world.

Alex, my daughter and I were in a friendlier place, a paradise really, free of danger and removed from the real world, an idyllic island created for us by a cruise line.

There is a science to mastering the waterslide. I learned this from my 10-year-old son and 12-year-old daughter, both deft descenders of waterslides and other water-oriented features found on cruise ships today.

Celebrity Cruises is gearing up for its biggest season ever in Europe. Five ships, including the new Celebrity Solstice and Celebrity Equinox, will offer more itineraries in Europe than ever before for Celebrity Cruises.