Agents are hopeful that Celebrity Cruises’ move into river cruising will lead to a rise in sales and increased spotlight on the sector.
The line has signed an initial order for 10 “transformative” ships to sail in Europe from 2027.
More details are due to be announced soon and bookings will open this year.
Jonny Peat, senior commercial manager for cruise at The Advantage Travel Partnership, said: “Celebrity Cruises is a hugely important and popular cruise brand for our members. We look forward to hearing more about their plans.”
More: Royal Caribbean Group’s river cruise ambitions go ‘far beyond’ 10 ships
Sarah Wikevand, ROL Cruises managing director, said the specialist was “delighted” to learn of the move. She added: “We know there is a strong crossover between ocean and river cruising, and we can’t wait to see how Celebrity Cruises brings its renowned style and service to this growing sector.”
Alison Earnshaw, managing director at Cruise118 parent World Travel Holdings UK, said it was “exciting news” as it was “always positive” to see cruise product expansion and diversification.
She added: “It will be interesting to see how they will provide differentiation within the river market and we look forward to learning more and working with Celebrity on this new product launch on our River Voyages brand.”
Marco Macchieraldo, Paramount Cruises senior product manager, hailed the plans as “very exciting”. He said the tailor-made specialist had always seen “huge potential” in the river cruise market but had “never quite cracked it”. He was hopeful that would change with the new ships.
Lauren Wood, head of cruise at Destinology, echoed this as she said the move “will offer a different river cruise perspective” and “avid” Celebrity clients will want to try the new product.
Club Voyages founder Sam Ballard said he “cannot wait” to see what Celebrity has in store.
“They’re one of the most innovative ocean lines in the world and they’re going to really shake the space up and bring even more spotlight to the sector,” he added.
This was echoed by James Cole, Panache Cruises founder and chief executive, who said the move would “increase the exposure of river cruising”.
Olivia Cairns, cruise specialist at Creative Travel Company, expressed similar sentiment as she said there was “no one quite like Celebrity” among the ocean cruise lines, which will make it interesting to see what the line brings that to the river sector with its growing demand.
Gareth Harding, Travelosophers cruise specialist and winner of the Clia Cruise Master Award, said he expected Celebrity Cruises to “bring its own take on the product and service offering”.
However, he tempered this with a warning that the move must “not encourage agents to discount unnecessarily” as is sometimes the case in the ocean sector.
Speaking after the expansion was announced, Giles Hawke, Celebrity Cruises vice-president and managing director for the UK, Ireland and EMEA, said: “We feel there’s a big opportunity for us in this market.
“We know our trade partners will love having Celebrity Cruises river cruises to sell, and we know our customers will love it too.”