Celebrity Cruises intends to join expanding Port Canaveral lineup
Port Canaveral has reeled in another major cruise line to join its burgeoning fleet, as Celebrity Cruises announced Tuesday it will begin sailing from the port in 2024.
The premium brand and sister cruise line to Royal Caribbean, Celebrity is bringing to the port its 2,852-passenger, 122,000-gross-ton Celebrity Equinox, which debuted in 2009.
The announcement is the latest coup for the Orlando-area port, which became the No. 1 cruise port in the world in 2022, besting Port Miami for the first time as it brought in more than 4 million multi-day passengers for the year.
“Expanding into Central Florida allows us to introduce the Celebrity cruise experience to new audiences, especially families who are seeking a relaxed yet elevated cruise vacation,” said Celebrity Cruises President Laura Hodges Bethge in an email.
Port Canaveral has been the traditional home of Disney Cruise Line as well as mainstay tenants Royal Caribbean, Carnival and Norwegian Cruise Line. In 2022, MSC Cruises based a ship at the port yearround.
And earlier this year, Carnival’s sister line Princess Cruises announced it would begin sailing from the port for the first time beginning in 2024 when it brings the Caribbean Princess to town.
Part of the line’s Solstice class, Celebrity’s Equinox had a multimillion-dollar overhaul in 2019 adding an exclusive area for suite guests called The Retreat. It also has features like Craft Social with a selection of more than 40 microbrews, a reworked open marketplace-style buffet and its popular Le Petit Chef dining experience that combines animated projections that interact with all of the courses of dinner.
Shipwide, Equinox has 11 food and beverage options, two pools on the openair deck plus one for the adults-only indoor solarium. A fan favorite of the vessel is the real grass lawn installed on the top deck.
It will sail mostly seven-night Caribbean itineraries between Dec. 3, 2024, to April 19, 2025, with stops including the Bahamas, Belize, Grand Cayman, Mexico, San Juan and St. Maarten. Two of the sailings in March 2025 will also visit Royal Caribbean’s private Bahamas island playland Perfect Day at Coco Cay.
Celebrity Equinox is of similar size and age to Caribbean Princess with both lines catering to a similar target demographic.
“The demand for Celebrity Cruise sailings from our port has been growing,” said Port Canaveral CEO Capt. John Murray in a press release. “Now, with Celebrity Equinox homeported here, there are great opportunities for even more cruise travelers to experience the cruise line’s high-quality experience while experiencing the comfort and ease of travel provided by our port.”
Port Canaveral expanded to six fulluse terminals with the revamp of Cruise Terminal 3 that opened in 2021, and in the past two years has welcomed several of the newest vessels at sea including Disney Wish, Royal Caribbean’s Wonder of the Seas, Carnival’s Mardi Gras and the Norwegian Prima.
This fall will mark the first time the port hosts two Oasis-class vessels when Wonder of the Seas is joined by Allure of the Seas, two of the five existing largest ships in the world. In 2024, Royal will be sending Utopia of the Seas to the port for its North American debut.
For this past year’s busy winter sailing season, a record 13 ships called Port Canaveral home. The winter season for 2024 with both Princess and Celebrity making calls will grow to 15.
Celebrity also announced expanded Caribbean plans for the 2024-2025 winter sailing season, including more voyages on Celebrity Apex and Summit from its normal home port of Port Everglades as well as Port of Tampa sailings for Celebrity Constellation.
Bookings for the Port Canaveral and other sailings are open Aug. 22 at celebritycruises.com