Celebrity Cruises is postponing the christening ceremony of its newest ship Celebrity Apex, although its passenger shipping operations start in late-March 2020, the company’s president and chief executive confirmed. At the end of March, the newbuild was due to be named by Reshma Saujani (technology entrepreneur and equality activist) in Port Southampton UK.
However, in a letter sent out to passengers, Celebrity's President and CEO Lisa Lutoff-Perlo said that “continuing with the naming ceremony in the current environment would be inconsistent with the spirit and intention of such an important and meaningful event”. She added they had, therefore, made the difficult decision to postpone the formal naming ceremony until later this year and would name Celebrity Apex when she arrives in Fort Lauderdale FL to begin her Caribbean season.
Two planned Apex cruises will still be going ahead in March 2020. Lutoff-Perlo also said she wanted to reassure passengers “of the protocols Celebrity Cruises follows for every sailing, in addition to the enhanced screening we have implemented in an abundance of caution in response to current events”.
She added they continued to monitor global developments and were "in constant consultation with global health authorities including the World Health Organization to abide by all protocols.”