Celebrity’s newest ship will sail its maiden voyage from Southampton on April 27, 2022 and will be longer and taller than its sister ships in the Edge series, it was announced last night (April 28) by Celebrity president and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo. Celebrity Beyond will be “beyond anything anyone is going to expect, and will change a lot of people’s minds who have never been on a ship,” she said.
Celebrity Beyond will have 179 more cabins than its sister ships, Celebrity Edge and Celebrity Apex, and will also feature several new and enhanced experiences. Designer Tom Wright, whose WKK was responsible for the Burj-Al-Arab in Dubai, is overseeing the expanded design, which lengthens the ship by 20 meters and raises it to 17 decks tall. Kelly Hoppen’s design role has expanded too, overseeing a Retreat Sundeck that will be 40 per cent larger than on previous Edge series ships and will feature a living Rooftop Garden with an expanded eating area. The Moroccan-inspired Sunset Bar, created by Nate Berkus, will be almost twice the size of that on other Edge ships.
Gwyneth Paltrow is also on board, in her role as Celebrity’s new “wellbeing advisor” that will see the creation of onboard wellness programmes and “goop kits” in the Aqua class staterooms; as is Michelin-starred chef Daniel Boulud, who will create his first restaurant-at-sea, Le Voyage.
Royal Caribbean Group chief executive Richard Fain joined the call and declared that “this is a great day. We are taking something that was already extraordinary with Edge; our mantra is continuous improvement. There were already mind-boggling features on Edge vessels and Beyond will take them even further.”
“Celebrity Cruises has always been an innovator at sea, and now we have challenged the status quo with a vessel that goes beyond expectations, beyond imagination,” added Lutoff-Perlo.
“Celebrity Beyond shatters any and every preconceived notion of the cruising experience. This exquisite ship offers a journey at the intersection of elegance and approachability filled with what’s important to our guests today: forward-thinking design, culinary excellence, unparalleled well-being and incomparable service.”
Celebrity Cruises’ commitment to trade
Celebrity said its maiden voyage from Southampton “underlines the brand’s commitment to the UK market and its confidence in its trusted travel partners.” It has put in place incentives and resources to support agents, including:
- Dedicated trade webinars taking place this week
- The opportunity to earn Celebrity Rewards points of up to £20 on every booking
- A brand-new Celebrity Passport training module which will be made available soon
- A suite of new marketing materials for trade to share with customers including a brochure, social assets, videos and flyers – all of which is available on Celebrity Central
- A special Celebrity Beyond episode of Celebrity Cruises’ podcast, ‘Conversations with Celebrity’, which will be out on 7th May packed full of handy top tips
Celebrity Beyond’s maiden voyage will be a 10-day Mediterranean cruise after which it will homeport in Barcelona before transferring across to Fort Lauderdale for the winter, with Caribbean cruises starting in October 2022.
