Celebrity Century to leave fleet in 2015

By Tom Stieghorst

Celebrity Cruises said its oldest ship, the 1,814-passenger Celebrity Century, will leave the fleet in April 2015.

The exit of Century, built in 1995, would leave Celebrity with five Solstice-class and four Millennium-class ships, along with its 98-passenger Xpedition ship. It has no new ships on order.

Celebrity has not said what it plans to do with Celebrity Century, although a page on the CDF Croisieres de France website last year said it would be the new operator of Century. Like Celebrity Cruises, CDF is owned by Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.

A special 14-night president’s cruise in Asia has been scheduled in March 2015 to commemorate Century’s time with Celebrity.

Celebrity’s new spa provider plans more than pampering

By Tom Stieghorst

*Insight Celebrity Cruises is shaking up the spa services available on its ships starting in March when Canyon Ranch takes over the concession on 10 ships from Steiner Leisure Ltd.

Peter Smith, Canyon’s COO, promises to announce new treatments in the next few weeks that will be available to Celebrity passengers once the hand-off occurs.

In an interview last week, Smith outlined three emerging areas in the spa industry and in particular at Canyon Ranch, which puts as much or more emphasis on wellness as on beauty care.

• Brain health: Smith calls this “a major issue for many of our customers.” With longevity rising, there are more seniors living to an age where diminished memory or various forms of dementia are distinct threats. Canyon Ranch plans an onboard lecture series on the latest thinking behind brain health and what can be done to prevent or mitigate declining mental skills.

Brain health is a major focus for Dr. Richard H. Carmona, president of the Canyon Ranch Institute and a former surgeon general appointed by George W. Bush. He is the author of “30 Days to a Better Brain,” due out from Atria Books in May.

• Stress: “This is a huge issue right now,” said Smith. Many passengers choose to cruise in part or entirely to escape the pressures of their daily obligations to work, family and even themselves.

“It really crosses every aspect of our lives,” said Smith, and is a contributor to many modern ailments from teeth grinding and overeating to high blood pressure and heart disease.

“We’re spending a lot of our time trying to explain how to cope with stress,” said Smith.

• Sleep: Whether it is a sleep disorder or the simple difficulty of getting a full night’s rest, more people than ever need help achieving regular and healthy sleep. “As a nation, we don’t sleep,” said Smith, who said improvement of sleep habits will be another wellness offering at Canyon Ranch spas.

Although the more exotic treatments at spas can sometimes seem trivial or silly, the wellness concerns outlined by Smith are serious ones shared by many potential cruise passengers. By attending a Canyon Ranch discussion on one of these topics, they may be getting more lasting insight into rest and relaxation on their next Celebrity cruise.

Royal Caribbean International appoints new director of sales

By Hollie-Rae Merrick

Royal Caribbean International appoints new director of salesRoyal Caribbean International has appointed a new director of sales for the UK and Ireland.

Ben Bouldin (pictured, right) will lead an 18-strong dedicated sales team. The addition of the newly-created role and the expanded sales and marketing team follows the announcement that Royal Caribbean and sister brands Azamara Club Cruises and Celebrity Cruises would operate as individual businesses.

Bouldin has 15 years experience in sales having held senior roles at PepsiCo International. He will now work alongside Jo Briody, who has been appointed director of marketing and PR for the brand.

Stuart Leven, managing director for UK and Ireland, said: “With a new brand structure in place and the recent announcements confirming Anthem of the Seas deployment to the UK in 2015, Ben joins the Royal Caribbean business at an exciting time.

“I look forward to working alongside him and am confident that with his exceptional experience working with high profile international brands he’ll be able to build on the team’s industry leading track record within the cruise sector.”