Celebrity Infinity

The 2001-built Celebrity Infinity cruise ship is the second of the Millennium-class Celebrity liners, with sisterships Constellation, Millennium, Summit. Celebrity Cruises Infinity ship underwent a "Celebrity Revolution" drydock refurbishment in February-March 2021.

The vessel (IMO number 9189421) is currently Malta-flagged (MMSI 249048000) and registered in Valletta.

History - construction and ownership

Celebrity Cruises was founded in 1988 as the Greece-based Chandris Line (cruise shipping operations between 1974-1996). In 1997, Royal Caribbean International (RCI) merged with "Celebrity Cruises Ltd" to become "Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd" (RCCL). The "X" on ship funnels is the Greek letter chi (standing for "Chandris"). Common features of Celebrity Cruises ships include aft located glass-walled dining rooms, signature alternate dining venues, bars and lounges, spacious Atrium lobby areas, a large number of balcony staterooms, large sundecks with swimming pools, The Retreat (adults-only sundeck with full-size swimming pool, Jacuzzi, cabanas, poolside full bar service). Rooftop Terrace (top-deck outdoor lounge-restaurant-cinema), large Spa (with Thermal Suites), premium retail shops selling top-brand merchandise.

The 2200-passenger ship Celebrity Infinity started with novelty special features like a 2-story Library, a retro ocean liner-themed restaurant and a lovely bank of all-glass sea view elevators. Amenities and new tech things like grass cover and solar power, as well as the company's basic dedication to art, natural woods, and sleek Scandinavian styling, make Celebrity Infinity stunningly elegant. Celebrity Cruises considered that a significant problem with Infinity was a recurring pod propulsion issue on the Millennium-class vessels that led to a number of canceled and shortened cruises. In 2010, Celebrity's parent company RCCL settled a longstanding lawsuit with Rolls-Royce, one of the creators of the faulty pod system, for USD 65 million. An RCCL press statement from the time noted that the two companies have been "clever in improving the reliability of the design".

Decks and Cabins

Celebrity Infinity staterooms (1085 total, in 28 grades) include 50x Suites, 573x Balconies, 244x Oceanviews, 212x Inside cabins. Most staterooms are sized 170 ft2 / 16 m2. Around 60% of all passenger accommodations have a private step-out balcony. Most cabin balconies are sized 40 ft2 / 4 m2. Wheelchair-accessible cabins are 26. The largest are the Penthouse Suites (1430 ft2 / 133 m2 with wraparound terrace sized 1100 ft2 / 102 m2).

The boat has 12 passenger decks, of which 7 are with cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

Trellis Restaurant is Celebrity Infinity's main dining room. It offers formal breakfast, brunch on one of the sea days, lunch on select days, and dinner. The highlight of the 2-tiered restaurant is its huge, paned showcase window, extending from floor to ceiling. The Oceanview Cafe is the Lido-buffet restaurant, situated aft on the pool deck. Tea, coffee, and juices are available 24 hours a day. Food is served from 6:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. Set up in one long U, the buffet also has three stations that are hidden away at the back, and are easy to miss: these sections feature different from the regular buffet offerings. The Pool Grille is forward of the buffet and offers veggie burgers, hamburgers and hot dogs from 12-noon to 6 pm.

Follows the complete list of Celebrity Infinity restaurants and food bars.

• Tuscan Grille (130-seat specialty steakhouse restaurant which during 2015 refurbishment replaced the SS United States (reservations-only, at a surcharge; dinner-only - 6-10 pm, with Mediterranean cuisine). The Tuscan Grille steakhouse offers fresh (on the ship made) pasta, Italian cocktail menu, Italian wines list, premium meats (including oven-roasted USDA dry-aged steak).
• Trellis Restaurant (1,150-seat aft Dining Room, with open seating Breakfast 8:00-9:30 a.m., Lunch 12:00-1:30 p.m., Afternoon Tea 4:00-5:00 p.m., and two fixed Dinner seatings - at 6:00 and 8:30 p.m.)
• Bistro on Five (60-seat creperie all-you-can-eat restaurant; offers lunch and dinner with table-side service)
• Blu (98-seat AquaClass passengers only restaurant, reservations required; also serves Suite guests upon availability)
• AquaSpa Cafe (116-seat complimentary Solarium and Spa bar, self-service; offers healthy food choices for Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner)
• Oceanview Cafe & Grill (650-seat indoor/outdoor self-service buffet restaurant, complimentary; open between 6:30 am - 1 am for Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner, with a variety of food stations)
• Mast Bar (alfresco burger bar, poolside; offers complimentary lunch)
• Qsine (86-seat, dinner-only specialty restaurant; reservations recommended)

In 2015, on deck 12 was added the Rooftop Terrace - a multi-functional venue with modular furniture and cabanas. It is operated as an outdoor bar lounge during the day. By night, Rooftop Terrace is transformed by decorative lighting, and on its large LED screen are showcased movies and other entertainment. The unique open-air experience is combined with food options available for purchasing. Signature dishes are presented in unique serving vessels themed after the cruise itinerary destination or the special occasion.

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

Celebrity Infinity guests tend to be well-traveled adults in the 45 to 65 age range. The Celebrity adventure is ideal for the "baby boom" generation. Most of the customers are North American, with Britain and other European nations included. The modern Infinity Theater is where most of the entertainment action takes place onboard Celebrity Constellation. The banquet-style seats are quite comfortable for the hour-long programs. The 2-tiered theater is 3 decks high and hosts Vegas-style productions, focusing on pop and Broadway hits. Other evening headliners include musical acts, veteran singers, stand-up comedians. Evening entertainment elsewhere onboard emphasizes on music. Bands in the Rendezvous Lounge perform the '40s and '50s jazz standards, pop songs, and other danceable classic hits. The Reflections venue serves as an observation lounge and a quiet place for craft and dance classes by day.

Follows the complete list of Celebrity Infinity lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues for kids, teens, and adults.

• Infinity Theatre (900-seat show lounge for grand musical and show productions; hosts daily trivia games, bingo, classes, movies)
• Infinity Atrium “Grand Foyer” (3-deck open floor area with live music entertainment)
• Cinema (also used as Conference Center)
• Michael’s Club (piano bar); Martini Bar; Crush Bar (with a 12-seat table filled with ice cubes in the middle)
• Photo Gallery & Shop
• Infinity Fortunes Casino
• Celebrity iLounge (24-hour Internet cafe/computers room; sells Apple computers; classes available)
• Rendez-Vous Lounge & Nightclub
• The Emporium shopping alley (Atrium boutique shops for duty-free alcohol and tobaccos, watches, luxury jewelry, accessories, fashion clothing, logo items)
• Cafe Al Bacio & Gelateria (72-seat a la carte specialty coffee, patisserie, ice cream; with the Gelateria - Italian Gelato ice cream bar)
• Cellar Masters (24-hour Wine Bar; features an Enomatic wine tasting system; provides Sommelier consultations in the evenings)
• Art Gallery; Library
• Aquaspa & Fitness complex with Persian Garden (Thermal Suite - rain shower, steam room, sauna, heated loungers), Therapy and Treatment Rooms, Hair & Beauty Salon, Solarium (adults area) and Aquaspa Cafe (spa bar)
• Fitness Center (with separate Aerobics area)
• Solarium Pool area (with adults-only Thalassotherapy Pool and seawater lap pool; 2 Whirlpools)
• Breezes Pool (with Splash Pool for kids and 4 Whirlpools, outdoor pool bar, served by the Pool Grill)
• Sunset Bar (120-seat, alfresco bar, selling fine cigars)
• Infinity Lounge (observation lounge during the day, show lounge & dance club in the evening)
• Kids clubs by age (Fun Factory 3-11 yo, Shipmates 3-5 yo, Cadets 6-8 yo, Ensigns 9-11 yo, with supervised age-appropriate activities, like arts-crafts, themed parties, games, movies, toys, interactive games, scavenger hunts)
• X-Club (teen-only disco and lounge area); Video Games Arcade
• Tennis Tables, Shuffleboard; Power Walking/Jogging Track; Multi-sports outdoor court; Sun Deck area.

In 2023, Celebrity introduced pickleball playing (at the sports courts) fleetwide. The sports facilities are complimentary, including the pickleball equipment (net, paddles, balls) but operated with separate scheduled playing times for adults and families (with kids older than 6).

Pickleball Court's locations vary by ship class - on EDGE ships is at the Rooftop Garden (Deck 15), on SOLSTICE ships is on the Sports Deck (Deck 15), on MILLENNIUM ships - at the Multi-Sports Court (Deck 12).

Itineraries

Celebrity Infinity itinerary program is based on Antarctic cruises in South America, Alaska roundtrip deals from Vancouver BC, and some Caribbean sailings with departures from Fort Lauderdale/Port Everglades Florida.

Due to the Coronavirus crisis, the Celebrity ship Infinity was paused for 2+ years (March 2020 thru June 2022). Operations were scheduled to restart on June 25, 2022 (Caribbean itineraries from homeport Fort Lauderdale), followed by a South America winter season (2022-2023, with homeporting in Buenos Aires Argentina and Valparaiso Chile) and a European program (2023) with deployment in the Mediterranean.

The Mediterranean program (2023 thru 2025) was largely based on homeporting in Barcelona (Spain) and Piraeus-Athens (Greece). The Med itineraries (6- to 12 days in length) included exotic call ports in Morocco (Tangier, Casablanca/Marrakesh), Spain's Canary Islands (Arrecife/Lanzarote, Las Palmas/Gran Canaria, Santa Cruz/Tenerife), Holy Land voyages (visiting Ashdod Israel and Alexandria Egypt), as well as popular destinations in Turkey (Istanbul, Kusadasi/Ephesus) and Greece (Santorini Island, Mykonos Island, Rhodes Island, Hydra Island, Volos/Meteora, Thessaloniki, Kavala).

Celebrity Cruises Infinity ship is from the company's Millennium-class liners, with sisterships Constellation, Millennium, Summit. Infinity (the second in this class) started operations with the Maiden Voyage on March 3, 2001, and was initially named "GTS Infinity".

The Infinity ship was for the first time drydock refurbished in 2007. The added new amenities included Oceanview Cafe, Bistro on Five, Cafe al Bacio, Cellar Masters (wine restaurant). The decoration and all the carpets were changed with trendy ones. Infinity's second renovation (November 2011) was in Freeport Bahamas. New "Solsticized" amenities included iLounge (computer lab), new restaurants (Qsine, Blu, Bistro on Five/creperie), new cabin balconies.

Celebrity Infinity refurbishments review

The vessel's last drydock was in 2021 February (at Navantia Shipyard in Cadiz Spain). The 16-day drydocking involved mainly general maintenance and technical works - new valves, new propellers and stabilizers, new sliders and sonars (echo sounders), hull and superstructure cleaning-repainting (excluding decks with passenger facilities-cabins), propulsion system revision, lifeboats inspection.

The list of deck plan changes after the ship's 2015 drydock refurbishment (October 15 to 29 in Freeport Bahamas) includes:

On Sports deck 12 a new relaxation and entertainment area was added (aft location) named Rooftop Terrace (taking some space from the sundeck area at the stern). Rooftop Terrace is a multi-functional venue with modular furniture and cabanas. It is operated as an outdoor bar lounge during the day. By night, Rooftop Terrace is transformed by decorative lighting, and on its large LED screen are showcased movies and other entertainment. The unique open-air experience is combined with food options available for purchasing. Signature dishes are presented in unique serving vessels themed after the cruise itinerary destination or the special occasion.

On Plaza deck 3, the "SS United States" restaurant was replaced by "Tuscan Grille" (steakhouse). The Tuscan Grille restaurant offers fresh (on the ship made) pasta, Italian cocktail menu, Italian wines list, premium meats (including oven-roasted USDA dry-aged steak). Also on Plaza deck 3 a new office for "Future Cruise Sales" was built (separate from the Captain's Club) and a new portrait studio was added. The Cinema was redesigned to function also as Conference Center.

On deck 5 a new retail store was added. On deck 11 was added the Qsine restaurant. Renovations were done to the Casino (on Promenaded deck 4) and to the adults-only complex Solarium (on Lido deck 10). Both areas received new furniture and flooring. Also on the Lido deck, the pool area and the AquaSpa Cafe were renovated. In the Casino, the theme decoration was removed.

Major renovations were done to all Suite accommodations categories Royal Suites and Penthouse Suites, including new furniture and amenities upgrades. Among the changes are the upgraded bathrooms (marble surfaces, comfortable seats, new lighting system), new carpeting, new drapes, new bed linens.

The 2015-2016 Celebrity Cruises refurbishment project also includes the sister-ship Celebrity Summit (scheduled dry-dock in February-March 2016) and cost the line a total of USD 16 million.

The list of deck plan changes after the November 2011 drydock refurbishment included:

• 60 new passenger cabins were added.
• 107 balcony rooms were upgraded to AquaClass category Spa cabins.
• The balconies of all Sky Suites (mini-suites) were updated and refurbished.
• Celebrity iLounge (Apple Computers reseller, Internet place, enrichment classes)
• Bistro on Five (creperie) was added on deck 5. In 2016 was renamed to "Sushi on Five".
• On Promenade Deck 4 (midship starboard, in the Grand Foyer area) were added two new bars - Martini Bar and Crush Bar.
• Michael's Club menu was upgraded with 60+ craft beers.
• The Wi-Fi was upgraded to shipwide coverage.
• On Lido Deck 10, the pool deck's sunbathing area was refurbished with new sun loungers. New gym equipment was installed in the fitness.

Major renovations were done to all passenger cabins and public areas (flat TVs, carpeting, tiling, furniture, upholstery, etc).