Today, leading luxury cruise line operator, Celebrity Cruises announced a new and exciting development with the introduction of the Wonderverse. A continuation of its strategy of innovation and a customer-centric focus, the Wonderverse is a brand new way to see Celebrity and all it has to offer.
Described as an industry first, the fully immersive, virtual experience lets cruisers explore the cruise line’s ship unlike anyway before. Developed in partnership with Surreal Events, it’s the company's first foray into the metaverse, allowing cruisers to “see before they sail.”
A new iteration in its current marketing strategy, Chief Marketing Officer Michael Scheiner explains the benefits to consumers: “The Wonderverse allows us to unlock and bring to life the richness and fullness of the Celebrity experience in really exciting ways we can’t do through traditional marketing and advertising vehicles.”
Celebrity Beyond is the first ship to enter into the Wonderverse. It is the latest in the cruise line’s transformational series of Edge ships, a natural showcase for cruisers wanting to see the latest and greatest in the cruise world. Here’s what we know so far.
Welcome to the Wonderverse
The launch today is perfectly timed for the holidays and the dip into colder temperatures. Cruisers are dreaming about heading to warmer climates and their ideal cruise vacation.
Michael Scheiner describes the Wonderverse experience: ““We’ve revolutionized cruise ship design and now we’re revolutionizing where cruise ships are experienced”. Travelers can go deeper and farther than ever before, controlling how they see the ship and all it has to offer - bringing the dream of their cruise vacation closer to reality.
For those who scout the internet in search of the smallest of ship details, look no more. The hyper-realistic experience allows travelers to see every detail, even the light fixtures and textiles, something that just doesn’t exist right now in the cruise industry.
Wonderverse on Celebrity Beyond
Using Celebrity Beyond as the launching pad for this new endeavor, the Wonderverse allows guests to delve deeper into all the details that make this leading class of ships so exceptional. This is described as a natural evolution for the leading-edge Celebrity Beyond, prized for its balance of architecture, technology and design.
The newest entry into Celebrity’s growing fleet was recently christened and is not a surprising choice for the set of the Wonderverse. Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, CEO of Celebrity, notes: “ Celebrity Beyond is the newest, most luxurious and most innovative ship in our fleet, and I can’t think of a better ship to showcase its state-of-the-art design than in our state-of-the-art Wonderverse”.
Not only can venues and spaces be explored, but there are also numerous ways to have an interactive experience with other guests and Celebrity management, including Captain Kate McCue - the first American female captain of a major cruise ship.
What’s in the Wonderverse?
Once their accounts are set up, consumers can venture into the Wonderverse for a variety of new and innovative experiences delivered through a desktop style video game available worldwide.
Some of the highlights include visiting the Resort Deck, along with other iconic spaces and bars. Guests can visit the Grand Plaza and see the cruise line’s flair show. A signature event onboard, mixologists perform tricks under a lit-up, moving chandelier to the delight of onlookers. They can also visit The Magic Carpet floating bar, the Grand and the Sunset Bar.
The ship voyages among the backdrop of famous destinations such as St Lucia, Santorini, Greece, Alaska and Japan, adding international flair. Enticed by the tropical rainforests of the Pitons in the Caribbean, a once in a lifetime visit to see Japan’s famed cherry blossoms in full glory, or the unparalleled natural beauty of Alaskan glaciers, the Wonderverse allows cruisers to explore onshore activities. If they like what they see, there is even a “book now” to guide would be cruisers to the next step.
Interactive Experiences
Adding to the fun, Celebrity has enhanced the experience by allowing for social capabilities, more specifically, the ability to interact with other players in groups of up to 12. With audio, video and chat features, the meeting room is a hub of connectivity.
For those who want to tap the great mind of famed interior decorator Nate Berkus, they can meet him at the Sunset Bar and find out more about how he designed the ship’s incredible spaces.
Individuals have the option to customize their avatars, including choosing from hundreds of options, from hair and facial features to clothing and accessories, adding to the realism and depth of the experience. There are even some fun games, such as Endless Runner and Edge Launch.
Accessing the Wonderverse
Registration is now open on Celebrity’s website, where guests can create a profile for the cruise line’s first digital cruise experience,
After a quick setup process to create an account, cruisers start at the pier, ride a launch to the ship and board the Magic Carpet to start their journey. At any point, users can modify their avatar with tons of great options.
Greeted by Captain McCue, guests can control their movements as they wander around the ship. With music, fellow passengers and great graphics, users will definitely get a much better feel for the Celebrity Beyond, as opposed to the class deck plans/ schematics.
Looking the future
The introduction of the Wonderverse is an impressive and bold new tool for cruisers to learn about ship design, features, and destinations in a fun integrative way. The easy to use platform, leaves room for additional functionality and many more destination.
Integrating avatars and games in an user friendly interface makes researching a cruise even easier and will be a welcome addition to traditional marketing materials for Millennials and Gen Z, who don’t want the traditional methods.
This will no doubt set a high bar for how cruise lines market and interact with customers, in addition to being a launching pad for new products and services in the future.
Chantal McPhee
Chantal McPhee has a great passion for travel since first venturing to the Bahamas as a child with her grandparents. Today, she loves cruising with her husband and two daughters to new places and aspires one day to do a world cruise. Living on the east coast of Canada, she shares cruising tips and information with fellow Canucks seeking a reprieve from the great white north. She also teaches business studies at a university, with a focus on strategy
