When the Celebrity Edge departs Port Everglades on Saturday, it will mark the first revenue cruise with paying passengers on a large cruise ship sailing from a U.S. port in more than 15 months.

It’s also another major news item for Royal Caribbean Group, which owns Celebrity Cruises, and has had a busy month with the Celebrity Millennium and Adventure of the Seas relaunching service in the Caribbean, and the Freedom of the Seas recently completing a test cruise for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention earlier in the week.

Saturday Port Everglades Highlights:

• The city of Ft. Lauderdale along with Broward County and Royal Caribbean Group will open the day at 10 a.m. with a press conference.
• Press conference speakers are Jonathan Daniels, Port Everglades Chief Executive and Port Director;  Michael Udine, Broward County Vice Mayor; Brian Abel, Senior Vice President, Hotel Operations, Celebrity; Richard Fain, Chairman & CEO, Royal Caribbean Group and Captain Kate McCue, Celebrity Edge Captain.

Edge Sailing Details:

• The Edge will be under the command of American Captain Kate McCue.
• The week-long itinerary is expected to depart from Terminal 25 at Port Everglades, which is said to be one of the most modern cruise terminals in operation. 
• Port Everglades will host a virtual sail-away party on Facebook Live starting at 6 p.m., while locals are encouraged to cheer on the ship at Harbor Beach or Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park.
• Calls include Costa Maya, Cozumel and Nassau, with three days at sea.

Onboard

• 1,195 guests for an occupancy ate of 41.2 percent. The 2018-built ship can take 2,900 guests at 100 percent occupancy.
• Two unvaccinated adults.
• 24 unvaccinated children.
• 100 percent of crew have been vaccinated.