Continuing a series of high-tech “firsts”, premium cruise line Celebrity Cruises is debuting the industry’s first self-guided art tours on an iPad®. The iPads on each of the Solstice Class ships include floor plans of every deck on the ship, with selected works of art highlighted. Guests simply touch the screen to select the work of art they would like to learn more about, which then offers full details about the piece, including the title of the work, artist’s name, medium used, description and image. In addition to the art tour application, the iPads also present guests with the opportunity to explore digital versions of each Solstice-Class vessel’s in stateroom art catalogues.

Earlier this year, Celebrity Cruises introduced the first “Celebrity iLounge” – a modern lounge equipped with MacBook® workstations, a retail space featuring Apple products and accessories, and a variety of courses and tips from certified staff on Mac and iPod® usage. Celebrity Cruises is itself an iPad pioneer, having become the first cruise line to present a menu and wine list on an iPad when it introduced its speciality restaurant “Qsine” earlier this year.

“The response to the Celebrity iLounge and to the iPad menus in Qsine was so positive, we knew our guests would relish yet another opportunity to capitalise on the latest technology in an entertaining, enriching way,” said Celebrity Cruises’ Senior VP of Hotel Operations Lisa Lutoff-Perlo. “Celebrity Cruises’ ‘Designed for you’ platform is built on our commitment to listen to our guests and offer experiences inspired by them and their sophisticated travel desires.”

With more than 14,000 works of original, contemporary art on its three Solstice Class ships alone, Celebrity Cruises is the holder of one of the world’s largest corporate collections of contemporary art. Approximately 15 percent of the art on each Solstice Class ship is site-specific or commissioned artwork, such as the signature living trees in enormous vases suspended within the Solstice Class ships’ sweeping, airy Grand Foyers.

Celebrity Cruises’ new iPad art tours will be available on Celebrity Solstice from 15 August, and on Celebrity Eclipse and Celebrity Equinox from 21 August. The tours are currently in English, and will be available in Spanish by the end of 2010 as well as in German and French in 2011.

Celebrity Cruises is designed for discerning cruisers, with modern, sophisticated environments, impeccable service, enriching and inspiring onboard programmes, and world-class cuisine. The ultimate in premium cruising, Celebrity Cruises sails in Alaska, Bermuda, California, Canada/New England, Europe, the Pacific Coast, Panama Canal, South America, and year-round in the Caribbean and the Galapagos Islands. Celebrity Cruises also offers immersive cruisetour experiences in Alaska, Canada, Europe and South America. Celebrity Cruises’ mega-series of honours include being named the top mega-ship line in Condé Nast Traveler’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards (November 2009). Celebrity Cruises’ fleet currently consists of nine ships. Its USD $3.7-billion investment in building five stylish Solstice Class ships between 2008-2012 represents the largest newbuild commitment for a single brand in industry history.