By
Alex Smith |
Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Edge has been approved to depart Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, on 26 June, and will become the first ship to sail from US waters in over a year.
The ship will set sail on a seven-night cruise of the Caribbean, helmed by the first and currently only American female captain, Kate McCue.
“The power of travel has a way of healing our souls as we connect with cultures, sights, and experiences that bring greater joy and renewed energy to our lives.,” said Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, CEO and president of Celebrity Cruises. “Nothing compares to these experiences at sea and now the wonder of these journeys returns. We’ve been preparing for this day for months and, on behalf of all of us at Celebrity Cruises, we’re ready and we can’t wait to welcome our guests aboard once again!”
Eight of the 15 ships within the Celebrity Cruises’ fleet now have plans to return to sailing in 2021. Celebrity Apex will make her debut with seven-night sailings from Athens, Greece on 19 June, while the newly renovated Celebrity Millennium will sail in the Caribbean from 5 June. Celebrity Silhouette will sail from Southampton, UK, this summer, and luxury yacht Celebrity Flora will resume sailing in the Galapagos Islands from 4 July, followed by Celebrity Xpedition and Celebrity Xploration on 24 July and 18 September respectively. Finally, Celebrity Summit will sail seven-night roundtrips from Seattle, Washington, from 23 July.
“Today’s exciting news is the result of a collaboration with the CDC, our elected officials at the local, state and national levels and our industry partners at Cruise Lines International Association,” said Richard Fain, chairman of Royal Caribbean Group, Celebrity Cruises’ parent company. “We’ve consulted with the brightest minds in the health industry to ensure that our passengers and crew feel safe and comfortable on our ships while enjoying the uncompromised experience they know and love.”
All Celebrity ships will sail with a vaccinated crew. All US guests 16 years and older must be vaccinated at least 14 days before sailing, extending to guests 12 and older from 1 August. For UK sailings, all guests 18 and over must be fully vaccinated.