After showcasing
its new Celebrity Solstice to more than 8,000 members of the travel
agency
community, press
and other dignitaries on a series of two-night preview cruises,
Celebrity Cruises
today eagerly
welcomes guests embarking on the ship’s maiden voyage.
“This is yet
another significant milestone in the rapid growth and evolution of the
Celebrity brand, as
Celebrity
Solstice – our first in a series of five spectacular Solstice-class
ships – officially enters
service,” said
Celebrity’s President & CEO Dan Hanrahan. “We hope our guests on this
sailing are
as elated with
the extraordinary service, design, dining and entertainment as
preliminary trade and
press response
would indicate.”
Among the many
accolades the ship has already received:
“The "wow"
factor: Some have it; others don't. And I'm not talking about
fashionable celebrities
here. Well, yes
I am. Celebrity Cruises, that is. As a veteran of more than 50 cruises,
I'm not easily
dazzled. But one
spin around the decks of the 122,000-ton, 2,850-passenger Celebrity
Solstice had
me saying
‘wow.’” – Harry Shattuck, Houston Chronicle
“My own view --
and one widely held by other cruise writers and travel agents on board:
The hype
is justified.
Solstice is, simply, one of the most comfortably stylish ships on the
seas. It's a premium
ship -- that's
to say, it aims at upscale ambiance, dining and service, but without the
super-high
price of true
luxury cruising. And it hits the mark.” – Jane Wooldridge, Miami Herald
“Celebrity
Solstice breaks the mold in every conceivable way.” – Ralph Grizzle,
Avidcruiser.com
“First
impressions of the ship? In a word, ‘wow!’ The design of the ship is
exquisite, with space after
space that makes
you gasp with surprise and amazement.” – Gene Sloan, USA Today
"The chatter is
unbelievable. I can't remember a time when a group of executives in
retail companies
sat around and
talked about a ship like this." – Mike Drever, president and CEO of
Expedia
“Travel agents
at Travel Trade's 25th Annual Leisure Travel Conference were among the
first agents
to inspect the
Solstice, and the new ship got rave reviews. One agent told Travel Trade
that he has
been in the
business for 40 years, and the Solstice is ‘the best hardware that I
have seen.’” – Travel Trade
“Mainly, agents
gushed about the style, space and imaginative details of the line’s
first post-
Panamax ship.
‘The ship is fabulous,’ enthused Bob Newman of The Cruise Brothers,
pointing to
‘all the open
spaces ... It feels open and bright.’ ‘Everywhere you look there’s
something that charms
the eye,’ said
Jo Kling of Landry & Kling Cruise Event Services.” – Anne Kalosh,
Seatrade Insider
Celebrity
Solstice presents 7-night Eastern Caribbean cruises roundtrip from Fort
Lauderdale until
April 2009, with
visits to San Juan, St. Maarten, Tortola, Haiti, and St. Kitts,
depending on the
itinerary.
Celebrity Solstice sets sail on a transatlantic voyage from Fort
Lauderdale April 19, 2009,
ending in Rome,
where the ship will offer a series of roundtrip 10- and 11-night Eastern
Mediterranean
sailings.
Celebrity
Solstice will be one of five Celebrity ships presenting enchanting
Mediterranean and
Northern Europe
cruise vacations in 2009.
Celebrity
Cruises offers comfortably sophisticated, upscale cruise experiences
with highly
personalized
service, exceptional dining, and extraordinary attention to detail.
Celebrity sails in
Alaska,
Australia/New Zealand, California, Canada/New England, the Caribbean,
Europe,
Galapagos
Islands, Hawaii, the Pacific Coast, Panama Canal and South America. The
line also offers
unique
cruisetour vacations in Alaska, Australia, Canada, Europe and South
America. Noted for four
of the top 10
"Top Cruise Ships in the World" in the large-ship category, as voted by
the readers of
Condé Nast
Traveler (February 2008 readers’ poll), Celebrity’s fleet – including
the new Celebrity
Solstice – will
be joined by Celebrity Equinox in 2009, Celebrity Eclipse in 2010, a
fourth
Solstice-class
ship in 2011, and a fifth in 2012.
For more
information, call A & A Cruises & Tours at 713-777-8383 or 800-365-8497.
