Royal Caribbean Group announced that Laura Hodges Bethge will be the next president of Celebrity Cruises, taking over from Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, who will transition to Vice Chair, External Affairs for Royal Caribbean Group, effective May 01.

Hodges Bethge has been with the company more than 23 years and has held senior positions in many different areas including product development, hotel and marine operations, sales, marketing, product innovation, market development and investor relations. Most recently she served as executive vice president, shared services operations,

“Now 15 ships strong, this is an exciting time for Celebrity Cruises,” said Hodges Bethge. “This year alone, we’ll be welcoming Celebrity Ascent, and reaching key construction milestones in the yet-to-be-named fifth ship in the revolutionary Edge Series.”

Lutoff-Perlo’s career with Royal Caribbean Group began in 1985 with her first role as a district sales manager and she went on to trailblaze a legacy of firsts, including becoming Celebrity’s first female senior vice president of hotel operations. In 2012, she was named executive vice president of operations for Royal Caribbean International, the first woman in the industry to oversee both hotel and marine operations. Two years later, she was the first woman appointed to president and CEO of one of Royal Caribbean Group’s brands.

Along the way, she led Celebrity Cruises to record growth, revenue, and profit. Under her leadership, Celebrity Cruises welcomed four new ships, and underwent one of the largest fleet revitalization projects in the industry.

“Lisa has been instrumental in transforming the Celebrity Cruises brand to what it is today,” said RCG president and CEO Jason Liberty. “From helping us introduce the… Edge Series of ships to advancing the role of women in maritime careers, Lisa has had an incredible career during her time leading Celebrity Cruises, and multiple parts of our Royal Caribbean International brand.”