Celebrity Xcel

Celebrity Xcel is the fifth Edge class ship and the newest vessel in the Celebrity fleet, delivered in October 2025 and in service since her maiden voyage from Fort Lauderdale on 18 November 2025. At 129,500 gross tons and 3,260 guests at double occupancy, she is a dimensional sister to Ascent. The one design decision that separates her is the deletion of Eden: where the first four ships gave three aft decks to a glassed conservatory that never quite decided what it was for, Xcel puts The Bazaar in that volume, a market hall of food counters, retail and rotating destination themed festivals that is busy all day. She is also the first Celebrity ship with methanol capable engines. After a first Caribbean winter she is now working the Mediterranean from Barcelona and Athens, and moves to Miami for winter 2026 into 2027.

The new dining is new, not renamed: Bora for Mediterranean seafood on the old Rooftop Garden footprint, Mosaic at the top of the price list, the complimentary Spice Cafe and Chef's Studio for cooking classes. IYKYK, a small speakeasy with a no phones rule, and the Attic at The Club give the evening somewhere that is not a theatre. The spa gains the Hydra Room and a Vitamin D Deck; Magic Carpet and Luminae carry over.

Published criticism is thin, because she has been sailing less than a year. Cruise Critic's editor review awards her 5.0 out of 5, while member ratings on the same site spread across roughly three to five stars over a few dozen sailings. The complaints that recur are narrow: the main pool fills early and stays full, and the Hydra Room hydrotherapy pool is small for the attention it is given.

Celebrity is a premium line, prices above Royal Caribbean for the same week, and Xcel is adult leaning. There is a kids club, but no waterslides or racing track. She suits couples, food led travellers and people who want a large ship that stays quiet, and not families wanting constant activity or anyone shopping on price.

Cabin choice matters more here than on most ships. The Infinite Veranda buys a larger interior, around 243 square feet, by absorbing the balcony into the room behind a window that drops halfway at a button press. The honest trade off is that the air conditioning cuts out while the window is down, a real limitation in the Caribbean, and the mechanism is loud enough to wake a sleeping partner. Only Sunset Veranda staterooms and The Retreat suites have a conventional outdoor balcony. The Retreat is a three deck enclave with its own sundeck, pool and Luminae restaurant, worth the premium only if you intend to live in it. Otherwise treat deck 3 cabins beneath the public rooms, the forward deck 6 rooms above the theatre and the deck 12 rooms under the pool deck with caution, and note that connecting staterooms are less well isolated. Our per cabin quiet and convenience scores are not yet published for this ship.

Read the deck plan before you book: on this class, a good week and a compromised one are usually one deck apart.