I was really excited for my first vacation of 2021, sailing solo on Celebrity Edge, but told only a handful of people.  I felt like I had to hide my excitement to go on the cruise, for fear of travel shaming.  I love to travel as it recharges my mind, body and soul and it’s important to support the industry that has been decimated around the world.

After the year that was 2020 along with my job search and many low points, I needed a vacation, a break from all the bad news, all the stress and my four walls at home.  I had just seen the Celebrity Edge sailing its first 2021 itinerary with passengers from the U.S. with all the media and socials posting a play by play of the cruise restart. It looked like fun, like a normal cruise.  I wanted to experience that again.

I signed my job offer on Thursday (yeah!) and booked the cruise on Friday to leave in less than two weeks.  Where was I cruising to?  I frankly didn’t care to be honest (it was the Caribbean), I wanted someone else to cook for me while I tried to catch up on more than a year’s worth of sleep.  Room darkening blinds, a few sea days and no schedule meant I didn’t need to set an alarm. If that isn’t the start to a great vacation, I don’t know what is. As someone who loves the transatlantic sailings because of the plethora of sea days, I was ready to chill. The all-included pricing gave me internet access but I deleted a few apps, disabled notifications and planned to be off-line as much as possible, save the fabulous Celebrity app used on board.

Here’s what I knew that gave me a comfort level to sail with Celebrity Cruises (look for my reviews in future posts)

Captain Kate, a celebrity in her own right on social Instagram & Tiktok, was the captain of the Celebrity Edge. If you aren’t following her, you should!

Plus a few other important details:

Staff & Crew – The staff and crew were 100% vaccinated. The staff and crew were not sharing rooms (normally it’s two in a cabin).

Vaccination Status – The cruise would allow unvaccinated passengers (Florida law) but they would be required to pay additional for testing, have limited access to shared areas and required to wear masks throughout the cruise (when inside).  Vaccinated passengers, approx. 95%+,  did not need to wear a mask onboard, only in ports. Staff/Crew wore masks in different areas of the ship.

Lower Capacity – The ship would sail with lower passenger capacity, estimated to be 50% or so.  During my cruise, the Edge, which can accommodate 2,908 passengers, had close to 1,500 passengers sailing. It was the third sailing for Celebrity Edge out of Fort Lauderdale. Passenger loads will vary by cruise line and ship so do your research (ask your travel agent).

Single Supplement Deal – A single discount, rare in cruising, was on offer so I could actually afford a veranda (balcony) room which would normally be outside my solo budget. Celebrity does have a handful of solo cabins (which book up quickly) at the verandah level but I booked a normal verandah room.

Celebrity App – The Celebrity app is a game changer in my opinion. Celebrity has had time to reimagine the muster drill, port check-in, required documents, dining reservations, touchless access to your cabin as well as touchless control of the cabin features and television.  I felt such joy lying in bed and using the phone to open the blinds to reveal a new port arrival (wait until you see the video). It was also awesome to control the room temperature and lights.

Cruise Bidding Upgrade Chances – With the sailing not full, I had a good chance of winning a bid to upgrade my verandah cabin to a variety of suites for less. Knowing the cost difference in my cabin vs the cabin I wanted helped me with my bid amount tolerance.  For me, it was about getting more value for less. I will share the cruise bidding process in a separate post as I won my bid to upgrade to a Aqua Class Spa cabin which provided access to the Thermal Spa.

Port Rules – Passengers who had booked a tour via the cruise line, could leave the ship in Cozumel (Mexico) and Nassau (Bahamas).  In Costa Maya (Mexico), you could wander the port area only however most shops were closed during our visit.  All ports required wearing masks.

Armed with this information, I was feeling more comfortable with my trip.  I found a Marriott award stay for the hotel pre-cruise (always, always fly in a day or more early) at the Hotel Dalmar Ft. Lauderdale.  Thankfully I arrived a day early as there was a bomb scare at the Fort Lauderdale airport that would have likely delayed my flight to the point of missing the boat.

I will share more about the cruise, ship review, port tours and cruise bidding in upcoming posts. Being flexible is definitely needed in the travel world right now as so much continues to change with local, state and federal guidelines, laws and business requirements and international immigration rules.  Your cruise experience may vary depending on the procedures in place by the cruise line and all interested parties.  Please be kind to everyone as we move forward together.