Five ships, including two new vessels of Celebrity Cruises, will visit the region in a single European season for the first time in the line's history making it the largest European deployment slated for 2009 of the cruise operator. The line will visit 76 ports in 29 countries, five of which are brand-new to Celebrity Cruises. Celebrity's 2009 Europe season includes six homeports, overnight stays in eight different ports, and five unique cruisetour options. Celebrity also will offer nine transatlantic sailings in 2009. The cruises open for sale today.

"Our guests have told us repeatedly that Europe is where they want to be, and they want to be there in style," said Celebrity Cruises President and CEO Dan Hanrahan. "This year, by offering more ships and itineraries in Europe than ever before -- some past favorites and some new stars, including Celebrity Solstice and Celebrity Equinox -- we're giving our guests a great deal of variety, and Europe really is theirs for the taking."

Five Celebrity Cruises ships will sail in Europe in 2009, including two ships currently under construction, Celebrity Solstice and Celebrity Equinox. Joining them are Celebrity Century, which underwent a $55-million makeover in 2006, Celebrity Constellation, built in 2002, and Celebrity Summit, which launched in 2001.

With six different homeports in Europe for the season, including Amsterdam, Holland; Barcelona, Spain; Harwich and Southampton, England; and Rome and Venice, Italy, Celebrity's ships will sail much of the continent. Itineraries exploring Scandinavia and Russia, the Arctic Circle and North Cape, the Mediterranean, Israel and Egypt, and even transatlantic sailings, will offer guests a number of opportunities to get to know Europe. These include overnight, in-port stays that offer travel enthusiasts the opportunity to more thoroughly explore the culture of eight cities: Alexandria, Egypt; Copenhagen, Denmark; Istanbul and Kusadasi, Turkey; Rome, Italy; Stockholm, Sweden; and Venice, Italy.

Celebrity's 2009 Europe - New Stars

• Celebrity will call on five new ports:
  • Antwerp, Belgium, located on the River Scheldt, 50 miles from the sea.
  • Ashdod, Israel's largest port, offering access to Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and must-see sites such as Mount Zion, the Tomb of David, the Tomb of Judges and the Dead Sea.
  • Haifa, Israel's third-largest city, nestled in a broad natural bay between the Mediterranean Sea and Carmel Mountain.
  • La Spezia, Italy, one of Italy's major harbors, located at the head of La Spezia Gulf between Genoa and Pisa on the Ligurian Sea, known for its numerous churches, museums, the Castle of San Giorgio, public gardens and Art Nouveau-style villas.
  • Portofino, Italy, the famed town in the province of Genoa on the Italian Riviera, considered to be among the most beautiful Mediterranean ports.
• Celebrity Century will offer seven-night Western Mediterranean sailings roundtrip out of Barcelona from September 19-November 21. Celebrity's European itineraries have traditionally lasted 10 nights or longer, and this shorter offering will give guests who may not have enough vacation time for a longer sailing, the opportunity to enjoy Celebrity's Europe in a shorter format.
• Celebrity Century will offer a 13-night "Best of Europe" sailing September 6, that begins with an overnight stay in Amsterdam and the line's first call on Antwerp, Belgium.
• From August 18 through October 23, Celebrity Equinox will sail 13- and 14-night "Ancient Empires" itineraries out of Rome, featuring calls on Ashdod and Haifa, Israel, an overnight stay in Alexandria, Egypt, and ports throughout Greece, Turkey, and Italy.
• Beginning May 4, Celebrity Solstice will sail 10- and 11-night Eastern Mediterranean itineraries roundtrip out of Rome, calling on ports throughout Greece, Turkey, and Italy. The 11-night sailings include overnight stays in Istanbul, Turkey.

Celebrity's 2009 Europe - Past Favorites

• Celebrity Century has increased the number of "Scandinavia and Russia" cruises roundtrip out of Amsterdam, with nine of these itineraries scheduled between May and August 2009 (in 2008, Celebrity Century will sail four Scandinavia and Russia itineraries). These voyages feature an overnight stay in St. Petersburg, Russia, and calls in Germany, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, and Denmark.
• Celebrity Century's 12-night "Arctic Circle and North Cape" itinerary, offered June 26 and July 8 roundtrip out of Amsterdam, features calls on seven Norwegian ports, including the breathtaking Geiranger, which the line hasn't visited since 2006, back by popular demand.
• Celebrity Constellation's 14-night transatlantic sailing from Harwich on September 5 will feature a stop in Reykjavik, Iceland, a country named by National Geographic magazine as one of the world's top destinations. This will be the first time Celebrity has called on an Icelandic port since 2004; the voyage, which ends in Cape Liberty (Bayonne), New Jersey, also features stops in France, Ireland, Scotland, Newfoundland, and New Brunswick.
• Beginning May 10, Celebrity Summit will alternate 12- or 14-night "Classical Mediterranean" and "Mediterranean Legacies" sailings between Venice and Barcelona, calling on ports in France, Italy, Greece, Croatia and Turkey, collectively.

Celebrity's 2009 Europe - Cruisetours

In 2009, Celebrity offers options to guests who wish to make the most of their time in Europe through cruisetours, a combined cruise and pre-voyage multi-night land journey package. Cruisetours are available for guests sailing on the following ships:

• Celebrity Century and Celebrity Summit out of Barcelona (Mediterranean sailings)
• Celebrity Equinox and Celebrity Solstice out of Rome (Mediterranean sailings)
• Celebrity Summit out of Venice (Mediterranean sailings)
• Celebrity Equinox out of Southampton (Mediterranean sailings)
• Celebrity Constellation out of Harwich (Northern Europe sailings)