Celebrity will host two two-night trade preview sailings onboard Beyond ahead of the ship’s maiden voyage on 27 April from Southampton before the vessel homeports in Barcelona this summer. 

Beyond is due to be delivered during a ceremony at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire on Wednesday (6 April)

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Beyond’s arrival in the UK comes little more than two years after the christening of Edge’s sister ship, Celebrity Apex, was cancelled due to the onset of the pandemic. 

Speaking in London last month at the return of the line’s Travel Agent Appreciation Awards, Rzymowska said: “It’s our aim to have an Edge ship sailing out of Southampton soon. We haven’t made any firm decisions quite yet, but we have another two Edge ships coming into deployment. 

“The UK and Ireland is such a strategic market, and our team here think it makes absolute sense for an Edge-series to be based in Southampton.” 

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Celebrity is set to sail six ships, including its three Edge vessels, in Europe this summer with the region leading British bookings, Rzymowska said.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has caused “some nervousness”, but consumer demand has been buoyed by the UK dropping its remaining Covid travel rules, she added. 

Speaking alongside Rzymowska, UK and Ireland sales director Claire Stirrup said the line had seen lots of agents who hadn’t previously won places onboard earn spots through its Above and Beyond Celebrity Moments campaign. 

She added the Celebrity Beyond Hub Facebook group had been launched to give agents “everything they need” before coming onboard.

“We were three weeks away from Apex [in 2020] and now, for a lot of agents, this will be the first time they step onboard an Edge-class ship. There’s a lot of excitement.”