We’re Boarding a Celebrity Xcel Mediterranean Cruise in 2026 — 5 Stunning Ports, the Retreat & Everything We Can’t Wait to Experience
We are pretty darned excited to be boarding our fourth Celebrity cruise in June 2026, this time sailing 7 nights from Barcelona to Athens with four port stops in between. We previously sailed the Solstice to Alaska in 2018, with a long gap until last year’s amazing April sailing on the Apex from Barcelona to Southampton. This will mark our second time aboard the Xcel, having been on her preview sailing in November.
Celebrity Xcel Mediterranean Cruise 2026
We loved the Apex and the entire “cruising Europe” experience, so soon after disembarking, we reserved our 2026 sailing aboard the not-yet-ready Xcel. But then the Xcel’s November 2025 preview cruise was announced, and we irresponsibly booked that as well, though exhibited some restraint by going with a guaranteed infinite veranda (GTY) to save some money.
This June, however, we’ll be in the Retreat, and it will be our first time in a Sky Suite booked outright rather than via a Move Up bid, which netted us a retreat cabin on the Apex.
The Itinerary
This sailing embarks in Barcelona, then sails for Malta, followed by stops in Kusadasi, Turkey and the Greek Islands of Mykonos and Santorini, before disembarking in Athens. This is a port-heavy itinerary, with only the sea days before and after Malta.
Prior to boarding the Apex in Barcelona last year, we spent two very full days in Barcelona, packing in the Gothic Quarter, La Boqueria, Park Guell, La Pedrera, Sagrada Familia, and lots and lots of walking and eating. We’ll only be in Barcelona for one day before boarding this time, and are so excited to wander the Gothic Quarter once again, indulge in Jamón Ibérico, fresh seafood like razor clams and octopus, and the astoundingly delicious fresh juices in La Boqueria. If time permits we hope to visit Barcelona Cathedral, and then check out some dining in El Born and/or La Barceloneta. Walking and eating rules the day.
In historic Malta, the tiny but mighty Mediterranean archipelago, we’re pretty psyched to cruise the Grand Harbor, with its spectacular views of ancient fortifications, soak in Marsaxlokk, a supposedly postcard-perfect fishing village, and then wander around Valletta, check out Upper Baraka and then search for some of the snacky places we’ve seen on various Youtube channels. The bummer is that we’ll not be able to visit St. John’s Co-Cathedral as it will be a Sunday.
As for Kusadasi, along Turkey’s Aegean coast, it’s all about the ancient ruins of Ephesus, a well preserved ancient Roman metropolis where you can walk down original marble streets, and take in the iconic Library of Celsus and a humongous amphitheater.
Next, we’ll sail to the Greek islands, arriving first at Mykonos, known for its iconic whitewashed windmills and twisting alleys with bright pink flowers. This port is the only destination where we haven’t booked an excursion, so we are looking forward to exploring, and – you guessed it – finding some tasty gyros.
After Mykonos, the Xcel will bring us to Santorini, a beautiful island famous for its blue-domed churches and white villages perched high on cliffs overlooking the bay where cruise ships weigh anchor. The bay is actually a caldera, a giant, water-filled volcanic crater. Here, we are pretty excited for our excursion that will bring us to the top of the cliffs and the scenic village of Oia with the aforementioned blue-domed churches.
We will be flying home from Athens the same day we disembark, but late enough that we’ll have time to visit the Acropolis, built in 5th century BC, with the Parthenon resting at the top. Ancient ruins! Also, this is built into an excursion that’ll take our luggage from the ship and eventually bring us to the airport.
Cabin Upgrade
We originally booked an infinite veranda stateroom for this sailing, planning all along to bid on a Sky Suite via the Celebrity Move Up program, as we had done on the Apex. After receiving the invitation to bid and reviewing the options, inclusions, and pricing implications for this sailing, we opted to bypass Move Up and upgrade our booking to a Sky Suite. You can find those implications and financial details in Celebrity Move Up Program: 7 Proven Things You Must Know Before You Bid, including the math on why booking outright made more sense for this sailing.
This will be a very different experience from the Xcel preview sailing, because we’ll have all the many benefits of the Retreat, starting with Luminae, the suites only restaurant that we think is a step up from the MDRs and the Retreat Lounge, with its bar, concierge, afternoon tea, and self-serve drinks and snacks, as well as priority embarkation and debarkation, including priority access to the tenders at tender ports like Santorini.
Though the Retreat includes premium drinks and Wi-Fi, we would have purchased those packages anyway, and did so on the preview sailing. We may take advantage of the Retreat Sundeck and its pools and poolside bar. And while there’s a butler, it’s kind of embarrassing for us and we generally don’t take a whole lot of advantage of that service, especially since the Retreat Lounge has a concierge desk.
What We’re Most Looking Forward To
We are each looking forward to a few different things on the Xcel. Topping the list is that first coffee at Cafe al Bacio while the ship is still quiet – an iced americano for Rona, and hot one for me. We both love that first drink at the Martini Bar while soaking in the live music and bartender theatrics.
Rona can’t wait for that first Hibiscus Collins at The Club, and I’m excited for a custom smoked old fashioned at Craft Social. Returning to the immersive experience of #IYKYK is going to be fun. We’re hopeful that we have better luck seeing the shows at the Bazaar this time. And we’re interested to check out the theatrical shows that weren’t available on the 4-night preview sailing.
The destinations are the most important component of a cruise vacation for us, and we love that sailing in and around Europe takes us to locations we’ve never been. When we’ve done all the sightseeing we could possibly do in one day, we’ve got a floating deluxe hotel, with fabulous food, drink, and entertainment welcoming our return. Apart from Barcelona, these are all new destinations to us, offering a mix of beautiful scenery, and above all, ancient ruins!
What We’re Nervous About
We’re slightly nervous about a few things. First, we are arriving in Barcelona from the United States with the EU’s new Entry/Exit System (EES) now in effect. As this will involve first-time registration of biometric data (fingerprints and facial scans) for many people arriving, we’ve read it’s adding anywhere from 30 minutes to 2.5 hours to the time from landing to exiting the airport. That’ll cut into our free time in Barcelona.
We’re not nervous about anything on the ship, though we’re not looking forward to the likely Turkish carpet sales job that will occur at the end of our guided tour to Ephesus. Still, a polite “no” should do the trick.
Fitting everything into the days you’re at a destination on land without over-exerting yourself is always a neat trick, which we failed miserably with in London last year. There are limitations when visiting a location from a cruise, of course, since you have limited hours in port. So you have to carefully prioritize what you want to see and do the most.
What’s Different This Time
When we sailed the Apex in April 2025 we were so focused on the destinations — Barcelona, Lisbon, Porto, La Coruña, London — that the ship itself almost became background noise. When we were on the Xcel for her first paid sailing in November, our focus was almost entirely on the ship since it was brand new, and folks were going to be very interested. All this means we have a lot of ground to cover. Our experience on the Xcel will be different being in the Retreat and because some of the rough edges from the first sailings have likely smoothed. And as mentioned previously, there’s brand new destinations to cover!
This sailing we’re going in with a plan. A proper Sky Suite cabin tour video – hopefully better than the last cabin tour, which was incrementally better than the one before that. Sharing some very short videos on social media as we go to give folks a taste of our experiences soon after they’ve happened. One strong photo per port. Notes written while things are fresh. And a deliberate focus on the ship experience alongside the destinations — Luminae, the Retreat Lounge, the Bazaar, all of it.
Watch this space, Facebook and Instagram — full trip reports coming port by port after we’re back.