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November 26, 2025 — 5:00am
Discovering you’re cruising off the coast of Florida with Taylor Swift’s soon-to-be mother-in-law would float any Swifty’s boat.
Who knew, but Donna Kelce, (mother of Kansas City Chiefs’ primary tight end Travis Kelce), was a rusted-on fan of Celebrity Cruises long before her son popped the question to the world’s princess of pop.
She was among several VIP guests who swept aboard Celebrity Xcel for the ship’s two-day float out, and its gala onboard launch party on November 16 in port at Fort Lauderdale.
Once her presence was confirmed by numerous independent sightings, the rumour mill hit overdrive. Burning questions included: was Taylor Swift’s future mother-in-law staying in one of the two spacious Penthouse Suites, or in a two-storey Edge Villa? How likely was she to hit the buffet on level 14 for some fries, or would it be strictly room service?
And was she secretly scouting – as in, might Taylor and Travis charter Xcel for an engagement party? After all, the ship can fit 3260 guests onboard across its 1646 staterooms and one-bedroom suites.
But no amount of Swifty fever induced by Mrs Kelce’s presence could outshine Xcel’s godmother – acclaimed Brazilian chef Janaina Torres, named the world’s best female chef in 2024 by the World’s 50 Best Restaurants.
Torres might be used to feeding hundreds of diners each night in her home town of Brazil’s Sao Paulo, but when faced with some 3000 people lining Xcel’s top decks (14,15 and 16), her nerve momentarily gave way.
Big ships deliver big energy, and the occasion landed somewhere between Roman Amphitheatre gladiator-style spectacle meets pop concert, meets 21st-century ship launch.
Fighting back tears, Torres apologised for being emotional. After a short pause, she continued with gusto: “I name this ship Celebrity Xcel. May God bless her and all who sail on her.”
Torres then hit the button that released a bottle of champagne, which dutifully smashed against the mighty hull.
New ships hit the waves with unprecedented regularity these days. Royal Caribbean group chairman and chief executive Jason Liberty reminded guests of the scale of this feat, pointing out that “Xcel is almost as long as the Eiffel Tower and is some 200 feet (60 metres) high”.
Chef Torres is the “perfect godmother for Celebrity Xcel”, he said. “Through her restaurant A Casa do Porco in Sao Paulo, she elevated Brazilian cuisine to the world stage while empowering women, improving school nutrition, and making exceptional dining experiences more accessible.”
Xcel is the fifth Edge-class ship since sister ship Celebrity Edge was launched in 2018, and it’s definitely the best, with brilliant leaps forward in technology, design and ship layout, plus several new venue offerings.
More than 140,000 guests of Celebrity Cruises – dubbed “Dream Makers” – cast votes for what should be different on Xcel. Given Celebrity boasts a slightly younger than usual average guest age for cruise ships (around 45-plus), the fun has been dialled up.
There’s a captivating new speakeasy-style secret bar concept that took some finding. Once inside, it is like returning to the prohibition era in a time machine.
The ship also has a new Mediterranean eatery, Bora, and a “Bazaar” street-vendor-style concept that brings local manufacturers from each destination aboard to sell their original wares.
Music and theatre lovers will appreciate the dramatically expanded theatre venue, including a curved kinetic LED wall for video display.
Meanwhile, you can officially party all day and all night on Xcel thanks to the addition of The Attic, a 24-hour retro gaming lounge within The Club. You can bet they play plenty of Taylor Swift there.
The writer was a guest of Celebrity Cruises. See celebritycruises.com/au
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