Which ship should you actually book?
All five ships share the same core cabin structure. The real decision, in my mind, comes down to hull size and how new you want the venues to be.
Want the original design at the lowest price point?
I’d point you to Celebrity Edge or Celebrity Apex — the shorter-hull twins, both well-established with mature service records.
Want more space and a bigger Retreat, established service history?
I’d go with Celebrity Beyond — the first stretched-hull ship, in service since 2022.
Want the restored Magic Carpet and refreshed venues on the newer hull?
That’s Celebrity Ascent for me — it restored/retained the Magic Carpet with its own dedicated suite category.
Want the newest ship and an entirely new dining lineup?
Celebrity Xcel is the one I’d book — launched November 2025, with The Bazaar, Bora, Chef’s Studio and a hidden speakeasy bar.
Four questions, then a starting point
You don’t need to memorize every category on every ship in this class. Answer these and I’ll tell you which of the five I’d start pricing first.
Which Edge Class ship fits you?
Four questions about what actually matters to you, then a specific ship — not a shrug.
Two hull generations, one shared design language
In my read, Edge Class splits into two real generations, not five identical ships.
| Ship | In service | Gross tonnage | Staterooms | Hull generation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Celebrity Edge | 2018 | 130,818 GT | 1,467 | Original — first of class, introduced the Magic Carpet |
| Celebrity Apex | 2020 delivery / 2021 revenue service (COVID-delayed) | 130,818 GT | 1,467 | Original — Edge’s near-twin |
| Celebrity Beyond | 2022 | 141,420 GT per Wikipedia vs. 140,600 GT per the trackers — a gap I haven’t been able to close | 1,646 | Stretched — ~20m longer, debuted the AquaClass Sky Suite |
| Celebrity Ascent | 2023 | 141,420 GT | 1,646 | Stretched — restored the Magic Carpet with its own suite category |
| Celebrity Xcel | 2025 | 141,262–141,420 GT — sources disagree and I’m showing the range rather than picking a winner | 1,646 (the figure most trackers agree on) | Stretched — newest, an entirely new dining lineup |
Celebrity Xcite is under construction as the sixth Edge Series ship, expected 2028. I won’t cover her on this site until she actually enters service.
Original hull — Edge & Apex
- 130,818 GT and 1,467 staterooms on both ships — the smallest footprint in the class
- Edge introduced the Magic Carpet; Apex is her near-twin, COVID-delayed into revenue service in 2021
- Both report a single, undisputed tonnage and stateroom figure — no cross-tracker gap for me to flag here
- The lower typical price point in this class
Stretched hull — Beyond, Ascent & Xcel
- ~20 metres longer, 1,646 staterooms — real extra suites and larger public spaces, not just a marketing claim
- Beyond debuted the AquaClass Sky Suite; Ascent restored the Magic Carpet with its own dedicated suite category; Xcel replaced much of the dining lineup outright
- Tonnage gets fuzzier here — Beyond splits by source and Xcel shows the widest cross-tracker disagreement in the class
- Le Voyage by Daniel Boulud, not available on Edge or Apex
Interior through Iconic Suite
Every Edge Class ship runs the same named-tier structure, as far as I can tell: Interior, Oceanview, standard Veranda/Sunset Veranda, Infinite Veranda, Concierge Class, AquaClass, and six Retreat suite tiers (Sky Suite, Celebrity Suite, Royal Suite, Edge Villa, Penthouse Suite, Iconic Suite).
Celebrity’s own site publishes category names, descriptions and typical sizes, but rarely per-category cabin counts. Every ship page in this class relies on third-party trackers (primarily CruiseMapper and cruisedeckplans.com) that frequently disagree with each other by dozens of cabins in the Concierge Class, AquaClass and Sky Suite categories specifically. I present both figures on every ship page rather than silently picking one.
The signature — and most misunderstood — Edge Class category
I’d call Infinite Veranda the largest cabin category on every ship in this class, and it looks like a balcony in marketing photos, but it’s a motorized floor-to-ceiling glass wall rather than a true open-air step-out balcony. The air conditioning shuts off when the glass is open, which can make the cabin warm in tropical climates. If a true open-air balcony matters more to you than the extra square footage, I’d price the smaller standard Veranda/Sunset Veranda category on any ship in this class instead.
Luminae, a dedicated deck, and the Magic Carpet
The Retreat is Celebrity’s suite-guest ecosystem, standard across all five ships: Luminae (suite-exclusive restaurant), The Retreat Lounge, and a dedicated Retreat Sundeck. Edge Villas (6 per ship) are two-story suites with a private plunge pool, exclusive to this class. Iconic Suites (2 per ship) are, in my read, the largest standard accommodation in the class — roughly 1,890 sq. ft. interior plus 689 sq. ft. of veranda on every ship where I independently checked — so I’d take any marketing claim on a specific ship that theirs is "the biggest yet" with a grain of salt. The size holds consistent across the class.
The Magic Carpet
Present on all five ships — a cantilevered, glass-roofed platform that moves vertically, used as a tender platform, extra pool-deck space, and a restaurant venue. To me, this is the class-defining feature — the one thing I’d point to if someone asked what makes Edge Class Edge Class.
AquaClass Sky Suite
A newer hybrid category, first introduced on Celebrity Beyond, pairing Sky Suite space and Retreat perks with AquaClass wellness features. Worth asking about if you want both worlds in one cabin.
Consistently 25 per ship
Every ship in this class carries 25 wheelchair-accessible staterooms — a figure I found remarkably consistent across all five ships and multiple independent sources, which is a notable exception to how much the rest of this class’s cabin-count data disagrees between trackers.
I’d confirm the exact accessible cabin number, category and door width directly with Celebrity or a travel advisor well ahead of your sailing.
Four main dining rooms, plus real per-ship variation
All five ships run the four-main-dining-room concept (typically Normandie, Tuscan, Cosmopolitan, Cyprus, though naming varies slightly by source and may have been refreshed over time) rather than one traditional MDR — that’s my read of the class. Beyond, Ascent and Xcel — the stretched-hull ships — add Le Voyage by Daniel Boulud, not found on Edge or Apex. Xcel goes furthest, in my opinion, with an entirely new lineup (The Bazaar, Bora, Chef’s Studio, IYKYK) replacing venues found on earlier ships.
Start with the hull decision
Everything else in this class branches off whether you want the original hull or the stretched one — pick a priority above and I’ll narrow it down.
What does the next dollar actually buy?
A window with no balcony — every ship in this class. I wouldn’t pay much extra for it unless natural light is genuinely a priority for you.
This is the fork I’d think hardest about: decide first whether you want the larger, glass-walled Infinite Veranda or a true open-air balcony.
Priority perks or wellness extras plus Blu dining access — I’d pick based on which perks I’d actually use, not which sounds nicer.
This is where I’d say full Retreat access on any ship in this class actually begins.
The top of the ladder class-wide, in my view — a private plunge pool or the largest standard suite. Both are limited in number; book early or don’t bother comparing prices.
Make the upgrade prove itself
Use the Celebrity Add-On Value Evaluator alongside this guide — the cabin library above gives you the facts, and the evaluator tells you whether the price gap between two categories is actually worth paying.
Celebrity Add-On Value Evaluator
Open the Celebrity value tool and apply it to the cabin premium you are actually deciding on.
Pick your ship for the full breakdown
Celebrity Edge
The original — introduced the Magic Carpet, in service since 2018.
Celebrity Apex
Edge’s near-twin, COVID-delayed into revenue service in 2021.
Celebrity Beyond
First of the stretched-hull ships, debuted the AquaClass Sky Suite.
Celebrity Ascent
Restored the Magic Carpet with its own dedicated suite category.
Celebrity Xcel
The newest ship — an entirely new dining lineup, launched November 2025.
Edge Class cabin questions
What is the difference between Edge Class ships?
In my read, Edge and Apex share the original, shorter hull (130,818 GT, 1,467 staterooms). Beyond, Ascent and Xcel run on a hull stretched roughly 20 metres longer, with more suites (1,646 staterooms) and larger public spaces.
What is Infinite Veranda, and is it a real balcony?
It’s the signature Edge Class cabin category on every ship in the class — a motorized floor-to-ceiling glass wall rather than a true open-air step-out balcony, and the air conditioning shuts off when the glass is open. If open air matters more to you than square footage, I’d price the standard Veranda category on any ship in this class instead.
What is the Magic Carpet?
It’s a cantilevered, glass-roofed platform that physically moves between low and high decks, used as a tender platform, extra pool-deck space, and a restaurant venue. I’d call it present on all five Edge Class ships and the feature that defines the class.
Do all Edge Class ships have Edge Villas and an Iconic Suite?
Yes — I can confirm both categories are present and Edge Class-exclusive across all five ships, typically 6 Edge Villas and 2 Iconic Suites per ship.
How many wheelchair-accessible cabins does each Edge Class ship have?
25 per ship, in my research — the one cabin-count figure that stays consistent across all five ships and multiple independent sources.
Is a sixth Edge Class ship coming?
Yes — Celebrity Xcite is under construction, expected in 2028. I’m not covering her on this site until she’s actually in service.
My own research — verify specifics before booking
This page is my own research into Celebrity’s published stateroom data across all five Edge Class ships, cross-checked against third-party cruise sources current as of August 2026 — I’m not presenting it as some locked, pre-audited document.
Gross tonnage on the stretched-hull ships varies by source (Wikipedia vs. CruiseMapper/cruisedeckplans.com) by roughly 1%.
Concierge Class, AquaClass and Sky Suite counts show real, unresolved disagreement between third-party trackers on every ship in this class — sometimes by 50+ cabins.
Royal Suite counts show a recurring pattern of disagreement (one CruiseMapper figure vs. two independent cruisedeckplans.com pages) across Apex, Beyond and Xcel — I lean toward the cruisedeckplans.com figure where this pattern recurs.
Xcel, as the newest ship, shows the widest cross-source disagreement of any ship in this class — I’d treat its figures as the least settled.
The Magic Carpet, the Retreat program’s components, and the Edge Villa/Iconic Suite category structure are each confirmed on Celebrity’s own current site across all five ships, as far as I can tell.
The 25-accessible-cabin figure and the Edge Villa (6)/Penthouse Suite (2)/Iconic Suite (2) counts are the most consistently corroborated figures I found across every ship in this class.
The Infinite-Veranda-vs-true-balcony trade-off that applies identically across all five ships, and which ship makes sense for which traveler, are my own conclusions from the research above — not numbers I found written down somewhere.