NEWS SPECIAL REPORT


First Ascent


C


elebrity Cruises plans to welcome 1,000 agents on board in 2024 in its biggest ship visit


programme since the pandemic. The line will host a series of


ship visits around the UK and in Europe. Celebrity will also operate five agent seminars at sea: two in the Caribbean, which will include visits to private island Perfect Day at CocoCay in the Bahamas; two in Europe; and one in Alaska.


Sixteen ship visits Speaking at the naming ceremony for Celebrity Ascent in Miami, Claire Stirrup, sales director for the UK and Ireland, said the cruise line wanted to offer agents the chance to “immerse” themselves in destinations. Sixteen visits are scheduled


around the UK on Celebrity Apex, which is homeporting in Southampton in summer 2024. “We are going bigger for our


ship visit series next year with 1,000 agents, which is really exciting,” said Stirrup.


14 7 DECEMBER 2023


on Apex from Southampton. We will use ports all around the UK, with visit opportunities in Scotland, Ireland and Liverpool as well. “There will also be a couple of


visits on Celebrity Ascent, which is sailing in Europe. We want to offer immersion experiences within the destination it is docked in, so agents can come on board, have dinner, watch a show and then depart and stay on land in the evening.” Stirrup said the line intends to


“make full use of the ship when it is in port” rather than “just doing normal 10am to 3pm ship visits”.


Record year forecast Giles Hawke, managing director and vice-president for EMEA, predicted that 2024 would be a “record year” for the line, due to how it has deployed its fleet and the launch of Celebrity Ascent. He added that Caribbean


sales had been particularly strong, although “everything is selling well”. Celebrity Ascent, Celebrity


Cruises’ fourth Edge-class vessel, was travelweekly.co.uk


Celebrity Ascent is named by its two godmothers (centre), co-captains and Royal Caribbean Group president and chief executive Jason Liberty and Celebrity Cruises president Laura Hodges Bethge


Celebrity Cruises plans ship visits as it names Edge-class vessel. Josie Klein reports from Miami “We won’t just be hosting people


officially named by its godmothers Sandy Yawn, who appeared in TV series Below Deck, and her sister Michelle Dunham, founder of the Jacksonville School for Autism. They were joined by the ship’s


co-captains, Greek brothers Dimitrios Kafetzis and Tasos Kafetzis, along


with senior staff from Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean Group, agents, passengers and media. The ship departed on its maiden


seven-night voyage from Fort Lauderdale on December 3, calling at Saint Martin, Saint Thomas and the Dominican Republic.


LINE REVAMPS BOOKING SYSTEM


Celebrity Cruises is investing “hundreds of millions of dollars” in overhauling its booking platform to facilitate the process for agents and customers. Giles Hawke, managing director and vice-president for the EMEA


region, said the line had already begun making improvements to the system and the project would take two years to complete. Once finished, the platform will give bookers the “ultimate flexibility” in


how they package their holiday. “The project is a two-year piece of work and is for the benefit of both


travel agents who want to book on behalf of a client and for customers who want to book with us direct,” said Hawke. “It will make the entire process easier, from the pre-booking stage all the


way through to the final booking stage, including adding pre and post-cruise stays, and will allow us to manage capacity as well as package holidays for passengers who want to sail on back-to-back cruises. “We have dedicated teams working on the project day in and day out to give customers the ultimate flexibility in how they book a holiday.”


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