Talk about a "hot spot": Celebrity Cruises' new Celebrity Solstice will introduce an industry first.

Celebrity will collaborate with the world-renowned Corning Museum of Glass to bring the captivating art of glassblowing to sea when the Museum's "Hot Glass Show(SM)" debuts on Celebrity Solstice in December 2008.

Through Celebrity's alliance with The Corning Museum of Glass, the premier authority on glass and glassmaking history, the Hot Glass Show will provide live demonstrations and a narrated performance of glassblowing, designed to engage, educate and inspire cruisers about the art, history and science of glass.

"We're confident our guests will be awestruck by what we're offering with The Corning Museum of Glass," said Celebrity Cruises President and CEO Dan Hanrahan. "The museum's surveys repeatedly show that live glassmaking demonstrations rank as one of the top reasons more than 340,000 people visit the museum each year. Now, it's also a compelling reason to sail on Celebrity Solstice."

"At The Corning Museum of Glass, our mission is to engage and inspire visitors by telling the story of glassmaking," said Marie McKee, president of The Corning Museum of Glass. "This collaboration with Celebrity Cruises allows our Museum to dramatically expand our outreach across the world."

Located on the ship's upper deck within a custom-designed, outdoor glassmaking studio, the Hot Glass Show will present the history and craft of glassblowing, from its ancient origins to its current countless uses. Three resident "gaffers" — highly skilled glassblowing artists — will educate and entertain cruisers with live glassmaking shows, lectures and workshops.

Live hot glassmaking demonstrations are central to the experience at The Corning Museum of Glass, complementing the history and the artistry of glass showcased in the Museum's exhibitions and permanent collections. Since 2001, the Museum has traveled the Hot Glass Show to museums, art fairs and public festivals around the world, extending this experience beyond the walls of the Museum. The Museum's traveling Hot Glass Roadshow has been seen at such venues as the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics and America's 400th Anniversary Celebration at Jamestown.

Celebrity Cruises' microsite, www.cruisecelebritysolstice.com, offers a sneak peek at The Corning Museum of Glass Hot Glass Show on Celebrity Solstice.

The Corning Museum of Glass

The Corning Museum of Glass is a leader in education, research, and scholarship for glass. The Museum is home to the world's most comprehensive collection of art and history in glass, with more than 45,000 objects spanning 3,500 years of human creation. Technological exhibits tell the story of historic advancements and contemporary innovations in glass technology. Public programs provide opportunities for active engagement with the material, bringing glass to life through live glassblowing demonstrations as well as Make Your Own glass workshops where visitors can create their own work. Housed in a unique collection of award-winning modern glass architecture, the Museum is the centerpiece of the city of Corning, NY, America's leading center for glass innovation.

Facilities include a state-of-the-art glassmaking studio, that presents a dynamic roster of programs and workshops taught by leading international glass artists. The Museum also features the Rakow Research Library, the world's foremost library on the art and history of glass and glassmaking.

Nestled in the heart of Finger Lakes Wine Country of New York State, the Museum is conveniently located directly off Exit 46 on I-86/Rte. 17. Corning, NY, is 4 hours north of New York City, 2 hours south of Buffalo and 6 hours north of Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.cmog.org.

Celebrity Solstice

Celebrity Solstice will be the line's first in a class of four 2,850- passenger vessels with an exceptional range of guest-inspired services and amenities. German shipbuilder Meyer Werft, who constructed the line's Century-class fleet — Celebrity Century, Celebrity Mercury, and Celebrity Galaxy — is building the 122,000-ton ship.

Following several weeks of inaugural activities, Celebrity Solstice will make its maiden voyage December 14, 2008, on a seven-night Eastern Caribbean cruise roundtrip from Fort Lauderdale, FL, visiting San Juan, Puerto Rico; Basseterre, St. Kitts; and Phillipsburg, St. Maarten. The itinerary will be offered on Sundays through April 5, 2009, with an alternating itinerary calling on San Juan, Puerto Rico; Phillipsburg, St. Maarten; Tortola, B.V.I; and Labadee, Haiti, through April 12, 2009. Fares for veranda staterooms begin at $1,099 per person, based on double occupancy.