Beyond Our Shores

Last week Celebrity Cruises introduced its latest ship, Celebrity Beyond, in a grand online reveal – a year ahead of her real-life maiden voyage from Southampton, England. Celebrity Beyond is being built at Chantiers de L’Atlantique in France and bookings for her inaugural Mediterranean season have already opened.

Beyond is the third ship in Celebrity’s Edge class. Celebrity Apex’s March 2020 debut was delayed by the pandemic and she is now set to embark on her maiden season next month, sailing seven-night itineraries in the Aegean, round-trip from Athens. All crew and passengers over the age of 18 will have to be vaccinated against Covid-19. 

Sadly, Australian cruisers are still stuck on the other side of the world and will have to miss out, so at this stage booking for a ‘modern luxury’ Mediterranean cruise on Apex or Beyond in 2022 might be more realistic.

Beyond, as the name implies, has gone beyond the original Edge design. The ship will have the signature ‘Magic Carpet’, a cantilevered multi-use platform that moves up and down outside the ship, as well as several other features found on Edge and Apex. Beyond will be considerably bigger, accommodating up to 3,260 guests rather than 2,900, and 1,400 crew; there will be 157 extra cabins, including singles. 

Guests will notice the additional space most at the redesigned Rooftop Garden, which extends over the open sea with two cantilevered float pools and the new, two-deck Retreat area, a resort-within-a-resort for suite guests. Beyond will offer 30 distinct restaurants, bars and lounges, including a redesigned Sunset Bar that is nearly twice the size of the bar on Edge and Apex. 

Celebrity Cruises is planning to send Celebrity Eclipse Down Under for the 2021-22 summer season, with her first Sydney round-trip cruise to New Zealand scheduled for October 18. The current ban on cruise ships sailing in local waters is due to be revisited on June 17 – could we finally see the start of the hugely anticipated, tightly controlled return to domestic cruising? Hope springs eternal.