Review of the Fitness Center on the Celebrity Edge Cruise Ship

The Smith machine is a great piece of equipment available on Celebrity Edge.

With the launch of Celebrity Cruises' first new ship in a decade, Celebrity Edge, the hype and excitement has been focused on new hi-tech capabilities and innovative design features that stand out as cruise industry firsts.

Sure, the Magic Carpet floating deck on Celebrity Edge and the cruise ship app that allows passengers to use their phones as a room key and to control the blinds, lights and temperature in their cabins are exciting new features.

But I’m here to take a look at the fitness center, which also is a cut above your average cruise ship facility. The gym on Celebrity Edge offers a large amount of space, as well as the most modern and popular equipment for cruisers who want to try something new or stick with their training methods and classes that they enjoy back home.

The gym on Celebrity Edge offers modern workout equipment like kettlebells for dynamic workouts.

Celebrity Edge has six Peloton bikes, and passengers in certain suites can reserve them for use in their staterooms throughout their cruises. Otherwise, passengers can also reserve use of the Peloton bikes in the fitness center.

Video: Celebrity Edge Cabin and Full Ship Tours

In addition to the gym’s dozens of pieces of cardio equipment, such as treadmills, rowing machines, ellipticals, stair climbers and stationary bikes, Celebrity edge offers an area outfitted with kettlebells and plyometric jump boxes for more sport-specific training and explosive workouts.

The cardio and resistance-training machines are all TechnoGym equipment. I was pleased to see ample space set aside for free weights, and equally impressed that the dumbbells went up to 100 pounds (not that I am ever pressing up a pair of those). Most cruise ship gym weight sets that I've used over the years go up to 50 pounds and prove to be a bit limiting for people who train seriously with heavier weights.

Celebrity Edge also offers a Smith machine (picture at top of post) with high-quality rubber-covered weight plates that go up to 45 pounds. These machines are fantastically versatile and allow you to squat, bench and expand the overall number of free-weight exercises to target all muscle groups.

The ship features to studios that are dedicated spaces for fitness classes (for a fee). Motion Studio A is filled with cycles for the intense Ryde spin class, and Motion Studio B is the space used for several other classes, including bungee training, aerobic sessions and TRX.

All of this stuff is fantastic and gives the gym on Celebrity Edge the feel of a top-notch land-based fitness center. Even the most avid workout fanatics will have little problem finding a way to keep up with their training regimens.

But the jogging track on Celebrity Edge is perhaps my favorite fitness-focused amenity. Prior to my cruises, I always have a romantic notion about how I will wake up and take nice morning runs on my ship's jogging track, ticking off the laps as I breath in the fresh air and watch the sun rise in the Caribbean or Med.

Yeah, right.

Instead, the tracks typically prove to be frustrating. The laps are too short, but even more problematic are the layouts. I mean jogging tracks that trace their routes through busy areas with people pulling loungers out onto the running space or past designated smoking spots.

Not on Celebrity Edge. The ship's running track is an innovative design, spanning two decks on 15 and 16. The layout is such that it is never crowded, offers a clear lane direction and paths for both runners and walkers. Furthermore, you get a little bit of hill work with the course gradually and gently sloping from Deck 16 back down to its starting area on Deck 15 before another stretch of incline that takes you back up to Deck 16. The route also is varied and curving, not a simple mind-numbing circle. It's 4.5 laps per mile.

The Spa Cafe and Juice Bar on Celebrity Edge is a nice place to get a smoothie or light healthy meal.

Also, the wellness options on Celebrity Edge don't end with the fitness center and jogging track. The ship has a nice spa with a thermal suite, as well as the Spa Cafe and Juice Bar in the Solarium pool area.

Overall, Celebrity Edge is a great ship if you are a traveler in search of a nice wellness vacation or are someone who really strives to keep up with your workouts whether at home or away.

Thanks for reading, and always travel fit!

Cheers,

JR