Celebrity Solstice Asia Season Cancelled; Set for Mexican Riviera Instead

Celebrity Cruises has announced a deployment move for the Celebrity Solstice, as the Royal Caribbean Group brand said it would cancel the ship’s 2022-2023 season in Asia.

Instead, the ship will reposition to the Mexican Riviera, the company said.

“We have made the difficult decision to cancel our Asia season due to the ongoing uncertainty around when international operations might fully restart in this region. Our guests have the option to apply their current booking to select Asia sailings in our 2023-2024 season, or, they may choose a full refund,” read a statement from Celebrity.

“We thank our guests for their patience and understanding as the world continues to reopen and we continue to work through unique circumstances. We will reposition Celebrity Solstice to sail a season of Mexican Riviera itineraries beginning in September.”

The Solstice was scheduled to move to Asia in the fall after a summer season of Alaska cruises, sailing mainly from Seattle. 

After her Alaska season, the ship was scheduled for longer itineraries, including deployments in Japan in October and then moving to Southeast Asia in November and December.

Celebrity’s latest Edge-class offering, Celebrity Beyond, has been officially delivered

The 3,200 passenger ship is 20 metres larger than any other ship in Celebrity’s fleet, with 179 more suites and staterooms than sister ships Apex or Edge.

Beyond also features 40% larger deck space, with 32 restaurants, bars and lounges – more than any other Celebrity ship.

New venues include the 50-seat speciality restaurant Le Voyage while Luminae has been redesigned. Meanwhile, all-inclusive restaurants include Cosmopolitan, which Celebrity describes as “the next evolution of our current main restaurants”; Italian eatery Tuscan; French restaurant Normandie; and Cyprus, which Celebrity said represented its Greek heritage.

Beyond also boasts two Iconic Suites, which are the largest in Celebrity’s fleet.

The ceremony saw Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, president and chief executive of Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean Group president and chief executive, Jason Liberty, and Beyond’s captain, Kate McCue, officially took ownership of the new vessel from the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France.

They were joined by Beyond’s 1,400 crew members from more than 60 different countries.

“This incredible ship, on this long-awaited day, signifies our commitment to investing in the future of the travel industry, as well as the shipbuilding industry in Europe,” said Liberty.

“We are so grateful to the Chantiers de l’Atlantique team; our own Newbuild and Celebrity Cruises team; our loyal guests and trade partners, and everyone who has contributed their time, resources, creativity and loyalty.”

1st Celebrity ships in new class to be named Edge and Beyond

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Celebrity Edge steel cutting ceremony

 Celebrity Cruises has named two new ships being built for 2018 and 2020: Celebrity Edge and Celebrity Beyond.

They will be the first two ships in a new class. Two additional Edge-class ships are due in 2021 and 2022.

It will be Celebrity’s first new ship class since the debut of Celebrity Solstice in 2008. There are five Solstice-class ships (Solstice, Equinox, Eclipse, Silhouette and Reflection).

Celebrity and shipyard STX France cut the first steel for the Celebrity Edge this week.