Tag: Celebrity Apex
Celebrity Cruises celebrates The Apex of Change
As the exquisite Celebrity Apex sailed into the setting sun from Port Everglades, the moment was made sweeter as the ship’s Godmother, Reshma Saujani, the inspiring the founder of groundbreaking non-profit Girls Who Code and the Marshall Plan for Moms and author of bestseller, “Brave, Not Perfect” joined Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, Celebrity Cruises’ President and CEO, and Richard Fain, Chairman of the Royal Caribbean Group and hundreds of guests including local dignitaries and media and influencers in an official naming ceremony of the stunning vessel.
Saujani is a lifelong activist who surged onto the political scene as the first Indian American woman to run for U.S. Congress in 2010. Her viral TED Talk and international bestseller “Brave, Not Perfect” have sparked a worldwide conversation about how we’re raising our girls and inspired countless women to fear less, fail more and live better.
Since launching in the U.S. in 2012, Girls Who Code has reached 450,000 girls across the globe at nearly every stage of their educational journey. With a presence in the UK, U.S., India, and Canada the organisation runs free programming for girls from ages 11-18, to inspire them to get excited about coding and computer science by providing learning opportunities, clear career pathways and a supportive sisterhood of peers and role models. In 2019, Girls Who Code was named the No.1 Non-Profit on Fast Company’s The World’s Most Innovative Companies list.
Building on her work to empower women and girls, Reshma has most recently founded the Marshall Plan for Moms, a campaign to put women at the center of our nation’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. After witnessing the impact the pandemic had on working mothers, millions of whom were pushed out of the workforce to care for children and take on increased labor at home, she built a movement to champion public and private sector policies to support all moms. Her efforts have led lawmakers to introduce resolutions in support of the plan.
Celebrity Apex‘s much-anticipated arrival to U.S ports is a landmark moment for the brand, as the vessel’s launch was originally planned for March 2020. Following a short run of Greek Island sailings this past summer, the ship now embarks for the first time from U.S shores on rotating Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries, where guests will visit the picturesque islands of Puerto Rico, St. Thomas, Belize, Grand Caymans and more.
Celebrity Apex debuts in Athens
The next new-luxury addition to Celebrity Cruises’ fleet welcomed its first guests and departed Athens
Excitement, anticipation, and awe. These three words captured the feeling of passengers and onlookers as Celebrity Apex, the world’s most anticipated new-luxury cruise ship, sailed out of the Port of Athens (19 June 2021), to begin her maiden voyage and first summer season in the Aegean.
The much-anticipated sailing marks an historic moment for the company, which had originally planned to introduce its newest ship in late March, 2020. Guests and fans of the brand have waited ever-since with huge anticipation to experience the fleet’s new flagship.
That moment came as Celebrity Apex sailed gracefully out of port at 8:30pm Eastern European Summer Time, ushering in not only an important return to European sailing, but a new standard of luxury travel. With the vivid and vibrant backdrop of the azure Athens sky, Celebrity Apex, the second ship in the brand’s transformational, multi-award-winning Edge Series, set sail on a seven-night cruise of the Aegean, delighting those who have waited with patience for more than 15 months to explore the world by sea.
The company’s return to the Aegean is all the more poignant given Celebrity Cruises’ proud Greek heritage. Founded in 1988 by the Chandris family of Greece, the company later became a part of the Royal Caribbean Group. Celebrity Cruises is still rooted in its Greek origins today, with 70% of marine officers across the fleet, hailing from Greece with more than 40 Captains and Chief Engineers, including the Captain of Celebrity Apex, Dimitrios Kafetzis.
Guests travelling on the Greek Islands and Cyprus itinerary will have the chance to visit the ancient city of Rhodes, with its stunning classical Acropolis and unparalleled Medieval architecture; the beauty and mythology of Mykonos; the incredible island of Santorini, a world heritage site and bucket list destination famous for the colourful blue and white palettes that pepper the architecture of this fascinating and historical coastal town. And finally, Limassol. Tucked away on the southern coast of Cyprus, it exemplifies all that is great about the unique island culture – with heavy influences from eastern neighbours, Turkey and Egypt.