Celebrity unveils ad aimed at safe travel, advancing inclusion in marketing

Celebrity Cruises launched a multi-million-dollar global advertising campaign on Thursday (Sept. 9) enticing all consumers to reawaken their wanderlust and reconnect with the people and the world around them.

With the tagline, "Journey Safe, Journey Wonderfull," the campaign taps into the transformative wonders of experiencing the world from the perspective of a Celebrity ship.

It blends new luxury experiences with places and people at its heart, doubling down on a message of inclusivity. 

The global campaign spots are part of a wider initiative aimed at drawing attention to the need for greater diversity in the way the travel industry markets to consumers.

How many moments have we missed?

The campaign's television spot opens by posing the question, "How many precious moments have we missed?", before taking the viewer on a journey filled with experiences and wonders one might not immediately associate with a cruise.

Set to a remix of Louis Armstrong's iconic life-affirming ballad "What a Wonderful World," the spot draws on the lyrics, enticing the viewer at every moment to return to experiencing the fullness of life.  

The spot also reminds viewers that there are new safety considerations in today's travel environment that Celebrity Cruises takes seriously.

Like many other travel brands, Celebrity paused its operations in March 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic took hold.

After nearly 16 months, it became the first cruise operator to sail with passengers from both North America, and then, the first to sail from a U.S. port when Celebrity Edge left Fort Lauderdale on June 26 for a seven-night cruise of the Caribbean.

READ MORE: "We’re ready": Celebrity Edge gets green light from CDC to resume U.S. cruising in June

The brand went on to become a leading advocate for vaccinations in the travel industry, requiring all crew and eligible guests to be fully vaccinated in order to board a Celebrity Cruises ship.

“It took enduring a pandemic, where we were literally cut off from each other and the world, to recognize how powerful and meaningful travel is in our lives,” said Celebrity Cruises President and Chief Executive Officer Lisa Lutoff-Perlo. "It's not just a vacation. Travel is a journey – where our hearts and minds are filled with new people, new experiences, new realizations about ourselves and the world around us.”

“And, as the first cruise line back in service in North America, we saw an opportunity to not just re-emerge, but reframe the Celebrity Cruise experience through this lens." 

Lutoff-Perlo added: "Our new advertising campaign poses a question, 'isn't it time?' And with the time and care we have put into our new health and safety measures, we think it is. It is time to see the world and each other, again, on one of the safest vacations possible.”

The campaign soft-launched last week with out-of-home executions targeting U.S. Open tennis fans.

Utilizing a compelling combination of media channels, the brand begins online placements today that will be complemented by high-impact print and TV.

A 60-second version of the television commercial premiering tonight during primetime NFL Football, and can also be viewed online here, seeks to challenge many of the stereotypes and cliches that surround cruising.

"As a new luxury travel company, we're about the fullness of the travel experience,” said Michael Scheiner, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Celebrity Cruises. “When you choose Celebrity Cruises, you're choosing the best of everything: It's a luxury hotel, it's Michelin-quality dining, it's a luxury spa retreat, it's seeing all four corners of the world and meeting different people from different cultures."

“This campaign tears up every cliche and stereotype that exists about cruising, and this is just the beginning of this type of work."

Travel can do more to promote diversity

The campaign spots were produced using only library footage and stock videography and "is, in part," Scheiner added, "an allegorical tale of equality and diversity.”

“We wanted the audience to, yes, marvel at the rich fullness of a Celebrity cruise, but we also wanted to draw attention to the diversity of people who travel with us and who you meet on your journey.”

“I think we as an industry need to do more to celebrate and accurately represent in our advertising everyone who travels."

The launch of the campaign also kicks off a major brand refresh that will include overhauling the look and feel of Celebrity Cruises' social presence, including a reset of its @CelebrityCruises Instagram account that is representative of the brand's message of Wonderfull experiences that will reignite guests' wanderlust aspirations.

Watch the new campaign here!

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