Celebrity expands Europe offerings in 2007 and 2008

Celebrity has joined just about all of its competitors in expanding its Europe offerings in 2007 and 2008. Ho hum. Tell us something really new.

The real news is that Celebrity is now accepting bookings for sailings through 2007. So if you’re one of those amazing people who can actually plan a vacation a year or more in advance, you’ve got first crack at these new itineraries.

Here are the highlights:

• The Constellation will sail 14-night Scandinavia and Russia cruises out of Dover, England, in the summer of 2007. The ship will make the line’s first-ever calls at Cornwall, England, and Visby, Sweden. In 2008, the ship will make its debut appearances in Brest and Cherbourg, France.
• The Galaxy will homeport in Civitavecchia/Rome, Italy, between May and October next year, and will sail 10- and 11-night eastern Mediterranean cruises. Her transatlantic crossing will make Celebrity’s first calls at Casablanca and Agadir, Morocco. Special sailings will feature Celebrity’s first cruise through the Bosporus Strait, as well as calls in Limassol, Cyprus; Alexandria, Egypt; and Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands), Spain.
• The Millennium will also visit the Canary Islands on her way to Europe next March. The ship will troll the waters of the Mediterranean, making inaugural stops at La Rochelle, France; Bilbao, Spain; and Tangier, Morocco.
• You can find the Century hanging out in northern Europe in 2007. She’ll sail a mixture of Scandinavia, Russia, and British Isles itineraries, including the line’s first Scotland and Ireland cruise and the first Arctic Circle cruise. New ports include Edinburgh, Inverness/Loch Ness, and Kirkwall, Scotland; Molde and Tromso, Norway; and Holyhead, Wales. Then the Century will switch to Mediterranean voyages in mid-September before heading for Miami in November.