On Celebrity's Edge-class ships, the Eden venue is the definition of versatility.
In the morning, it's one of the only quiet public spaces on the ship where guests can recline and read a book in air-conditioned comfort. At lunchtime, it's a place to grab a sandwich at the cafe and enjoy a live piano performance, soaking in a bit of calming ambience.
An evening might be spent savoring a seven-course meal in front of an open kitchen and a beautiful sunset. Late at night there might be an aerialist twirling above while a full cast of performers sings and dances below.
On the next Celebrity Edge-class ship, however, there won't be an Eden at all.
The multideck, multipurpose venue at the rear of the Celebrity Xcel is being reworked and renamed and will be known as the Bazaar. The ship is expected to make its debut with a preview sailing on Nov. 9.
The layout will mostly remain the same, and like Eden, the Bazaar will be used for several purposes. But its overarching function will be different: The space will host festivals on sea days themed to the ship's next destination, with entertainment, activities and food. On port days, the space will host local vendors.
"The first thing that comes to mind is vibrancy," said Katina Athanasiou, Celebrity's senior vice president of sales and services for the Americas.
Bringing elements of the destination onboard was a priority when imagining the next phase of the Edge class, an idea that was influenced by guest feedback, Celebrity executives said.
There was healthy debate about using the Eden location for this purpose since it's such a well-known and prominent venue, but the space Eden provided was the best spot on the ship to bring the idea to life, said chief marketing officer Michael Scheiner.
"As long as we're maintaining some of the aspects guests love about going to Eden and that experience, we felt confident we could make the change," he said.
The Celebrity Xcel’s Bazaar is a three-story space that will blend onboard and in-port experiences. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Celebrity Cruises
A festival atmosphere
For Caribbean sailings, Celebrity has designed four destination-themed festivals, and each sailing will host three of them. Guests can expect music, crafts, performances and food to create an immersive celebratory experience.
The all-day nature of the festivals will also encourage a constant flow of guests and enable them to build a visit into their schedule in whatever way they choose, said Alex De Roeck, Celebrity's associate vice president of product development, during a tour of the vessel as it was under construction in Saint-Nazaire, France.
But each festival in the Bazaar will conclude with an entertainment spectacle that president Laura Hodges Bethge described as an "explosion of everything."
Mosaic, the restaurant in the Bazaar, will feature menu items that reflect the next port call as well as a new chef's table experience.
A complementary cafe, called Spice, will also offer themed cuisine with bites available as well as full meals available for order.
At Eden, pianists and guitarists can be heard throughout the day, with productions on certain evenings featuring vocalists, dancers, acrobats and aerialists. At the Bazaar, the performances will be themed to the destination, but there will also be new interactive activities, such as crafting.
The bar will be located in the same location as it is in Eden but will serve destination-themed drinks, Athanasiou said.
"The feedback that we've received from our guests over the last several years has really been about wanting to be immersed in more authentic destination experiences," Athanasiou said. "So for us, the concept of the Bazaar has been, how do we blur those lines between ship and shore?"
First look at the Celebrity Xcel
Something different for repeat guests
The structural difference between Eden and the Bazaar begins from the moment you cross into the space. While the bones of the space will remain the same, it's the details that will differentiate it.
For example, on the Celebrity Ascent, you enter Eden through a tunnel that is a silver, mirrored hallway that's perfect for selfies. That same entryway on the Xcel will be covered in glowing LED screens. On existing Edge-class vessels, it is perfumed with a signature Celebrity scent, but that scent and the sounds in the tunnel will change on the Xcel on festival days -- again, to match the destination, De Roeck said.
A space that on some prior ships hosted a chocolate shop is being built out with booths for the marketplace. Another change: LED screens will cover walls in the main room of the Bazaar and will also be built into structures, like a ceiling fixture and archways. The screens will project images that correspond to whatever festival is taking place, helping to establish the proper atmosphere.
There are also changes meant to maximize and improve upon the Eden experience. The outdoor seating area at the cafe, for instance, is no longer open-air but enclosed in glass.
"It's so windy. It's used now, but not as often [as it will be]," Hodges Bethge predicted.
Spice will serve specialty coffees at a beverage station to supplement the popular Cafe al Bacio, which can be found just off the Grand Plaza on the Xcel.
And guests dining at Mosaic will no longer feel like they're missing out on a performance taking place on the Bazaar's main deck. There will be a small stage in the corner of the restaurant, where a member or two of a band can perform in sync with the live performance above.
"The heart of what Eden was is still there," Scheiner said. "It's just a different experience, which I think is important -- particularly for our guests who sail on all of our ships many times. Giving them something new, a reason to come on Xcel, is important."