CRUISE SHIP REVIEWS DESTINATIONS
TRIED & TESTED Celebrity Edge
There are several theories as to how Celebrity Edge got its name. Was it the ‘edgy’ decor? The cutting-edge design? Or – as I wondered when stepping onto the Magic Carpet while it doubled as a tender platform – is it because you can enjoy a drink literally at the ‘edge’ of the ocean? The Magic Carpet is a
cantilevered platform the size of a tennis court that was originally conceived as a faster and more comfortable way to get passengers from the ship into a tender boat. Tenders are the vessels used
to get people ashore in smaller ports, which can be a slow process at the best of times, and challenging for older passengers
and those with mobility problems. In its tender platform mode, the Magic Carpet aligns with the ‘destination gateway’ lounge, a spacious room also used for port talks and presentations, where passengers are swiped out, go down a few fixed steps (there is also a chairlift) and board their tender. Then, once the rush to get ashore is over, the bar opens and the Magic Carpet becomes an oceanside lounge. As the platform ‘sits’ on the
water, architects had to find a way to raise it while the ship was sailing. Initially the plan was to move it up to deck five, but then the question was asked: if it can go to deck five, why not higher? Back at the drawing board, designers found a way for it to ‘fly’ right up to deck 16, changing function as it goes. At its highest point, it becomes a speciality restaurant where up to 75 people
can have Dinner on the Edge. Its bright orange gantry isn’t particularly attractive from the outside, but for those on board, it is pure genius.
Z LIFE ON BOARD It’s also just one of many aspects of traditional ship design turned upside down on Celebrity Edge to create a fresh look sure to catch the eye of the cruising-is- not-for-me generation. The ship’s hot tubs balance on impossibly high martini glass-shaped stems that offer incomparable sea views as you soak; lounge-cum-restaurant Eden does away with stairs in favour of a three-storey spiral walkway; and a sloping jogging track links the top two decks. There’s substance as well as style, with tree sculptures and real shrubs acting as windbreaks and sun shades in the stunning-yet- practical Rooftop Garden. In one of the biggest
transformations, conventional balconies have been replaced with what Celebrity calls ‘infinite balconies’, which have a balcony inside the cabin and floor-to- ceiling windows that open horizontally with the touch of a button. While some passengers I spoke to said they preferred being able to sit outside on traditional balconies, I liked the combination of fresh air with more usable space inside the cabin. Suites, which make up 12% of
the accommodation on Edge, still have sit-out balconies along with access to The Retreat, an exclusive spot with a lounge, bar, sundeck and pool reserved for suite passengers. Categories include six
two-storey villas with plunge pools on the balcony, two two-bedroom Penthouse Suites, and two Iconic Suites – the best rooms in the house – which sit above the bridge with uninterrupted views of the horizon.
Jo Rzymowska, Celebrity’s
vice-president and managing director for the UK, Ireland and
Asia, says suites are selling faster than other cabin categories, which she attributes to designer Kelly Hoppen, who has given even the lowliest accommodation a sleek, modernistic look and feel. “Kelly has spoken to our target
market of affluent customers who have an appreciation of design, and also attracted those who have yet to cruise,” she says. “For us, it’s less about millennials, more about attitude.”
Z DINING BY DESIGN Dining has not been left out of the Edge revolution. Instead of a main dining room, there are four complimentary restaurants. Each serves the same menu but with its own decor and choice of speciality dishes – Italian in Tuscan, French in Normandie, American in Cosmopolitan and Mediterranean in Cyprus. Passengers can choose select dining and eat when and in whichever restaurant they fancy; bookings can be made in advance or they can just turn up and wait for a table. Otherwise they can opt for traditional fixed dining and eat in the same restaurant at the same time and table each evening. The choice of paid-for dining
venues includes steakhouse and seafood restaurants and the superb Le Grand Bistro, where $55 buys a four-course dinner and animation show where 3D ‘petit chefs’ prepare each dish on plates in front of diners’ eyes. Baffled? Yet another reason
why everyone needs to discover life on the Edge.
17 January 2019
travelweekly.co.uk79
FAST FACT Ship architect
Tom Wright used 3D technology to ‘walk’ through plans over and over until they were just right
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