Celebrity Cruises to host earlier...

Four-night sailing to depart 9 November due to early completion of ship

Celebrity Cruises will host a four-night preview cruise on Celebrity Xcel due to the ship's construction being completed “earlier than originally anticipated”.

The latest Edge Class ship was originally scheduled to sail from Port Everglades, Fort Lauderdale on 18 November 2025.

In an email to agents, the line said: “Our teams have been working diligently on building our new ship, and the completion is now earlier than we had originally anticipated. With the earlier delivery, we’ve now added a four-night Celebrity Xcel Preview Cruise, setting sail on 9 November.”

Passengers booked on the 18 November voyage will have the choice to move to the 9 November sailing in the same exact suite or like-for-like stateroom at the current prevailing rate. If there is an overpayment, there will be a refund for the difference and passengers have until 8 May to decide.

After the preview and inaugural voyages, Xcel will offer seven-night itineraries alternating between the Bahamas, Mexico, Cayman Islands, Puerto Plata, St Thomas and St Maarten, before moving to Europe for a series of seven- to 11-night cruises from Barcelona and Athens.

Sister brand Royal Caribbean has made a similar move by adding three “showcase sailings” ahead of Star of the Seas’ inaugural voyage on 31 August 2025 as construction is due to be completed ahead of schedule.

There will be a three-night Perfect Day Cruise on 20 August, a four-night sailing on 23 August and another four-night sailing on 27 August before the official maiden voyage.

Xcel will debut seven redesigned venues, with the first to be announced being The Bazaar, which will replace The Eden at the back of the ship and host a rotation of themed festivals based on the regions where the ship is sailing.

For more information, call UAE +971 4 331 4299, KSA 800 897 1419, email book@rccl.ae or visit www.celebritycruises.ae

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