“We’re all really excited to bring our renowned Celebrity hospitality to our river ships.”
Celebrity Cruises has shared more detail about their planned river cruise product, which is slated to launch with two ships, Celebrity Compass and Celebrity Seeker, in 2027.
I caught up with Celebrity Cruises President Laura Hodges Bethge during a hard hat tour of Celebrity’s upcoming ocean ship Celebrity Xcel at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard late last month. That ship is bringing a host of new spaces in something of a modest departure from the Edge Class sister ships, but I was much more curious about the river ships.
Unable to then share much detail at that time, Hodges Bethge revealed that they were definitely planning to incorporate a lot of the features popular with the Edge Class ships into the river ships, and challenge some of the orthodoxies currently prevalent in river cruising.
While river cruise lines have expanded into ocean cruising (Viking is a notable example), ocean cruise lines having had much success scaling down into river cruising. Hodges Bethge shared that their goal was to “build something transformative in river cruising”, but also introduce ships that would “look and feel familiar” to longtime Celebrity cruisers.
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Brand fans familiar with the Edge series ships will find familiar spaces onboard their river cruise, including Martini Bar, Sunset Bar, and Café al Bacio, a barista-hosted espresso bar offering light snacks and pastries. All told, there will be eight restaurants and bars, significantly more than what is offered on other river ships, which typically focus on a multi-purpose bar/lounge and separate dining room, which are often located on the river level.
Another big departure from other river cruise products will be room service and 24/7 meal availability—an amenity thus far not offered as standard on river cruises, but long a baseline offering among ocean cruise ships.
The ships will also introduce Magic Edge cantilevered dining pods giving diners the chance to enjoy local destination-driven menus while floating above the water. The ships will offer a significant amount of outdoor dining and relaxation spaces (including an infinity pool) across multiple levels in what Celebrity claims will be “the most usable outdoor space of any river ship”.
Edge series design will also appear in staterooms and suites—each of which will have king-sized beds. Infinite Verandahs, an innovation introduced on Celebrity Edge in 2018, inspired similar spaces on the new river ships, and the ship’s public spaces and Skylight Infinite Balcony Suites will be illuminated with natural light via skylights. Suite guests will also have on-demand butler service, complimentary exclusive dining, laundry service, and priority booking for shore excursions.
Pricing will also be more in line with river cruise practice; fares will include meals, alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, Wi-Fi, onboard experiences, and daily shore excursions. Celebrity’s Captain’s Club members will also be able to earn points toward the program’s loyalty tiers on board the river sailings.
The ships will have space for 172 passengers in 86 staterooms and suites—a decent size, considering the largest river ships currently sailing can accommodate up to 190 passengers.
Celebrity Compass and Celebrity Seeker will initially offer seven-night itineraries on the Rhine and Danube rivers, with port calls each day, and some days with multiple ports visited, plus overnight experiences in select cities. Pre- and post-cruise stays in ports like Prague and Budapest will be announced in early 2026.
When asked what she was most looking forward to with the launch of Celebrity’s river cruise product, Hodges Bethge answered easily, and with conviction—“We’re all really excited to bring our renowned Celebrity hospitality to our river ships.”
