Today Celebrity Cruises took delivery of its third Edge-class ship Celebrity Beyond at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France.
The delivery ceremony, held onboard, was attended by Celebrity Cruises president Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, Royal Caribbean Group president and CEO Jason Liberty, and the ship’s captain, Kate McCue. The occasion was particularly special as it marked the first physical cruise ship delivery ceremony for the shipyard since the pandemic.
During the handover, Celebrity Cruises took ownership from the shipyard as the traditional changing of the flags was completed. Other Celebrity Cruises executives, shipyard officials, and Celebrity Beyond‘s crew members were also in attendance.
“The delivery of Celebrity Beyond today marks our ongoing commitment to growth and innovation; today, we celebrate the future of travel and its possibilities,” 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. We look forward to what’s to come as the travel industry grows to new peaks.”
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“Celebrity Beyond is a true new ship. We have worked hard, in a spirit of strong collaboration and even during the pandemic, to achieve this result,” said Laurent Castaing, General Manager of Chantiers de l’Atlantique. “Celebrity Beyond is one of the exceptional ships that will be remembered.”
Celebrity Beyond is scheduled to depart on her maiden voyage on April 27 from Southampton, England. It will be a 10-night western Europe voyage, visiting Bordeaux, France; Lisbon, Portugal; and Seville, Malaga, Palma de Mallorca and Barcelona, Spain.
The vessel will then offer a variety of Mediterranean sailings, including nine-night Italian Riviera and France itineraries, and 10-night Greek isles itineraries through early October. After that, the ship will head across the Atlantic to begin sailings to the Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale.
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