Celebrity Cruises to base a ship in Abu Dhabi for winter 2016

Celebrity Cruises have demonstrated their commitment to the Emirates by basing one of their cruise ships out of Abu Dhabi for winter 2016/17. The cruise line has also announced its new sailings from India, Asia and South Pacific for 2016 and 2017, perfect for those that like to plan ahead!

An aerial photograph of Celebrity Celebrity Constellatio

Celebrity Constellation will be based in Abu Dhabi during the winter of 2016-17, offering a choice of sailings ranging from nine to 15 nights.

The highlights of the new schedule are the 12-night Arabian Sea and India itinerary or the 15 night Suez Canal itinerary.

The 12-night Arabian Sea and India itinerary, sailing from Abu Dhabi (UAE) on 28 November 2016 will call into Dubai (UAE) for an overnight stay before sailing to New Mangalore (India), Goa (India), Mumbai (India) and Khasab (Oman) before returning back to Abu Dhabi.

The 15-night epic departs on 17 April 2017 and calls into ports at Muscat (Oman), Aqaba (Jordan), Athens and Katakolon in Greece and Rome (Italy). It transits the Suez Canal passage which is an incredible experience.

Meanwhile, Celebrity Millennium will be sailing throughout Asia with a variety of itineraries on offer between 11 and 16-nights in length. The 12-night Southeast Asia Immersion cruise, departing on the 12 January 2017 on-board Celebrity Millennium starts with an overnight stop in Singapore. From here the ship calls into Bangkok (Laemchabang), Thailand (two overnight stays); Ho Chi Minh City (Phu My), Vietnam; Hue/Danang (Chan May), Vietnam and finally Hong Kong, China for another overnight stay. Cruise passengers have long been calling for more overnight stops to be made available and this itinerary crams as many in as is possible.

A new itinerary for 2016/7 will be one that encompasses China and Japan. Departing on 8 April 2017 the 14-night cruise begins with an overnight stay in Hong Kong (China) before sailing onto Taipei (Keelung), an overnight stay in Taiwan (China), Okinawa (Japan), Shanghai (China), Nagasaki (Japan), Kobe (Japan) and Mount Fuji (Japan) before arriving into at Tokyo (Japan).

These new 2016/7 itineraries for Abu Dhabi, India, Asia and South Pacific will go on sale on 12 December 2014.

(Photo credit to Celebrity Cruises)

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Cruise to the Holy Land this autumn on Celebrity Constellation

Embark on a cruise into history with a tour of Istanbul, Israel, Malta and Italy this October with Celebrity Cruises. Join Celebrity Constellation on a 12 night Holy Land cruise from £999 per person (based on two people sharing a balcony stateroom).

Price includes return flights from London Heathrow, transfers, one night pre-cruise hotel accommodation and a 11-night cruise departing from Istanbul and calling at Kusadasi (Turkey), Haifa, Ashdod, Valletta, and Naples before arriving in Rome for the return flight home; meals and entertainment onboard the ship and all relevant cruise taxes/fees.

Price based on 25 October departure.

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Adventure Cruising blog

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Celebrity Cruises offer instant onboard credit up to £300

Celebrity Cruises' onboard booking programme, “Celebrity Future Cruise”, is now giving guests the chance to enjoy an instant onboard credit of up to £300. Simply by booking a future Celebrity Cruises’ holiday while onboard, guests can immediately receive the credit to spend during their current cruise or have the option to use it when on a future Celebrity Cruises holiday.

The offer, now available on all of Celebrity Cruises’ ships, can also be combined with one of the benefits from the year-round “123Go!” promotion - a choice of a free Classic Beverage Package, free gratuities or up to an additional $300 in onboard credit.

  

Guests can take advantage of the exclusive promotion by visiting the Celebrity Future Cruise team and receive the following benefits:

Deposits from £30 to £300 per stateroom

Instant onboard credit from £30 to £300 per stateroom or receive it during a future cruise

No additional deposits for suites

Specific stateroom selection

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Adventure Cruising blog

Time Spent at Sea has moved and can now be found at World of Cruising. You can follow World of Cruising on Twitter and Facebook for the very latest in cruise news.

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Celebrity + Xbox = Fun@Sea!

Celebrity Cruises has joined forces with Microsoft’s Xbox to integrate the leading video game entertainment into their 'modern luxury' cruise style. Introducing one of the industry’s largest Xbox experiences at sea, Celebrity's alliance boasts entertaining themed spaces across its fleet, offering families interactive Games experiences for children, teens and the kid in every adult.

Beginning this summer, guests can enjoy enhancements to existing venues and onboard programming, with the inclusion of Xbox-featured activities, facilities and gaming areas in the youth programme’s Fun Factory, offering exciting age-appropriate games and themed nights ranging from sports and dance to adventure and racing on Xbox 360 and Kinect for Xbox 360.

Adults also have the opportunity to connect and enjoy the Xbox experience through free play and at scheduled themed events, including Zumba® parties and sports tournaments, available on Kinect for Xbox 360 consoles in different venues throughout the ships.

The newly refurbished Celebrity Constellation was the first of Celebrity's 10 ships to introduce the onboard Xbox experience when it re-entered service on May 5, after completing its scheduled dry-dock. The remaining ships will offer Xbox 360 and Kinect for Xbox 360 this summer, and will unfold the full Xbox experience by the end of the year.

For bookings, follow this link to The Cruise Line, the UK's luxury cruising specialists.

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Greece & Turkey The Celebrity Way

How's this for the Deal of the Day? Join Celebrity Cruises Celebrity Constellation on a 12-night Greek Isles & Turkey fly/cruise from just £1,262 per person this autumn (based on two people sharing an inside stateroom).

The price includes return flights from London Heathrow, transfers and a 12-night Greek Isles & Turkey cruise departing from Istanbul and calling at Kusadasi (for Ephesus, Turkey), Bodrum (Turkey), Rhodes (Greece), Marmaris (Turkey), Santorini (Greece), Piraeus (for Athens), Mykonos (Greece) and Chania (Crete) before returning to Istanbul; meals and entertainment onboard and all relevant cruise taxes/fees. Price is based on October 13 departure.

For more info, visit www.celebritycruises.co.uk or the specialist cruise agents of The Cruise Line Ltd on 0800 008 6677.

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Head For The Sunshine with Celebrity

Join Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Constellation for a sunshine-laden 12-night Greek Isles & Turkey fly/cruise from just £1,294 per person (based on two sharing an inside stateroom) this autumn.

The price includes return flights from London Heathrow, transfers and the 12-night Greek Isleas & Turkey cruise departing Istanbul and calling at Ephesus, Bodrum, Marmaris, Rhodes, Santorini, Athens, Mykonos and Chania (Crete), before returning to Istanbul; meals and entertainment onboard and all relevant cruise taxes/fees. Price based on September 19 departure.

For more info, visit www.celebritycruises.co.uk or contact the cruise-agent specialists of The Cruise Line Ltd on 0800 008 6677.

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European Capital of Culture with Celebrity Cruises

By guest blogger Steve Newman

Now you can combine luxury and culture by heading to Tallinn, the 2011 European Capital of Culture onboard Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Constellation (above). A 12-night Scandinavia and Russia fly/cruise costs from £1,575 per person (based on two people sharing an inside cabin).

Celebrity also offers a selection of shore excursions, such as ‘Glory of old Tallinn’, a walking tour of Tallinn’s Old Town, and ‘Panoramic Tallinn’, a coach tour that takes in the best sights of the city to ensure guests can experience everything it has to offer.

Price includes return flights from London Heathrow, transfers and a 12-night Scandinavia and Russia fly/cruise departing Amsterdam and calling at Berlin (Warnemunde), Stockholm, Tallinn, St Petersburg, Helsinki and Copenhagen before returning to Amsterdam; meals and entertainment onboard and all relevant cruise taxes/fees.

Price is also based on June 15, 2011, departure. For more details, visit http://www.celebritycruises.co.uk/ or call the specialist cruise agents of The Cruise Line Ltd on 0800 008 6677.

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The Constellation of Solstice

Since Celebrity Cruises coined the rather ponderous (not to mention downright ugly) word 'Solsticized' in January, we have waited for the full meaning behind it to become evident. At the weekend, guests embarking on Celebrity Constellation in Amsterdam got the full story.

As regular World of Cruising readers (and those who partake of this Blog) will know, the advent of Celebrity's Solstice-class vessels in 2008 brought a new level of big-ship sophistication and style to the premium cruise world, and the line's bigwigs decided that was a good reason to retro-fit a variety of their new ships' features on to their Millennium class vessels. Constellation is the first fruits of these particular labours.

And, following an intensive 15-day dry-dock, the 8-year-old Constellation now boasts some of the most popular venues found on the widely-lauded Solstice Class. These include:

• The tantalising Tuscan Grille steakhouse

• The vibrant creperie, Bistro on Five

• A “cool” new ice-topped Martini Bar

• The inviting Café al Bacio and Gelateria

• Cellarmasters wine bar

Cellarmaster comes complete with Celebrity's state-of-the-art wine serving systems known as “Enomatics,” allowing guests to select and serve wines by the glass, at the touch of a button, while other notable 'Solsticizations' include more sumptuous suites, with all-new furniture, flat-screen TVs, upholstery, bedding and carpeting; restyled staterooms, with entirely new carpeting, flat-screen TVs, upholstery and bedding; and new colour schemes, carpeting and upholstery reflective of the Solstice Class’ stylish, modern design in every public venue.

It all amounts to a dramatic enhancement of a fleet which was already fairly impressive. Or, as Celebrity president and CEO Dan Hanrahan explained: “Our newly-Solsticized Celebrity Constellation is a significant outgrowth of our ‘Designed for you’ brand platform, built around our long-time commitment to identifying and designing what our guests want. By adding Solstice Class features we know our guests love to our already award-winning Millennium Class ships – with the impeccable service our spectacular crew delivers across the entire fleet – we’re confident we have a winning combination, expressly designed for discerning cruisers.”

And, while the marketing spiel, 'outgrowth' and 'brand platform' may be tough to swallow (how about just saying "Our message"?), it definitely serves notice Celebrity intend to be at the forefront of this more stylish version of cruising for some time to come.

* Constellation is the first of the line’s four Millennium-class ships to be “Solsticized.” Infinity and Summit will be similarly refurbished in 2011, followed by Millennium in 2012.

Following her current seven-night Norwegian fjords cruise, Constellation will offer a series of 12-night Scandinavia and Russia cruises, followed by an 8-night Northern Europe and Mediterranean cruise from Amsterdam to Barcelona, where the ship will operate a series of round-trip, seven-night Med voyages, before a 14-night transatlantic voyage departing Barcelona in November for Fort Lauderdale and a winter Caribbean/Panama Canal series.

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