Carnival AirShip Starts California Tour

Posted on 4 January, 2019 by Spacejunkie2

Carnival’s AirShip has made its debut in Southern California, starting a month-long tour of the state, according to a statement.

The promotion is part of Carnival’s West Coast push, which will see the Carnival Panorama debut out of Long Beach in December 2019.

The 120-foot-long AirShip will fly over and visit culture and entertainment locations across the state throughout January including The Rose Parade: A Showcase of Floats on Jan. 2 as well as sporting events; local schools; Carnival’s homeports in Long Beach on Jan. 5, San Diego on Jan. 13 and San Francisco on Jan. 25; travel agent viewing parties; and select Sky Zone trampoline park locations, Carnival Panorama’s newest all-ages attraction, starting with the Anaheim location on Jan 11.

In conjunction with the AirShip’s California tour, consumers have a chance to win a free cruise as well as additional prizes each week throughout the month of January, Carnival announced.

For anyone who takes a picture of the AirShip and posts it on social media with the hashtag #ChooseFun, Carnival will make a $2 donation to it is longtime charity partner St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital up to a maximum donation of $20,000.

This past summer, the AirShip made its inaugural journey in the southeast U.S. to celebrate the arrival of new ships in multiple homeports.

“The Carnival AirShip was so well received when she debuted earlier this year, and we’re delighted to bring her back to the West Coast to kick-start our year-long celebration of Carnival Panorama. It’s officially go-time!” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “Carnival is the number one cruise line from Southern California. Our AirShip is a great way to let everyone know about the many exciting choices for guests to Choose Fun from the West Coast.”

The Carnival Panorama will debut with a special three-day cruise from Long Beach on Dec. 11, 2019, followed by the launch of year-round, seven-day Mexican Riviera sailings on Dec. 14, 2019.

Carnival brings back classic name for the new ship: Mardi Gras

Posted on 6 December, 2018 by Spacejunkie2

Carnival said its largest ship due in 2020 will be named the Mardi Gras, bringing back the name of the first Carnival Cruise Line ship that entered service in 1972.

The first Mardi Gras, originally the Empress of Canada, burned bunker fuel and had a water displacement of 27,000 tons. The new ship will burn liquefied natural gas (LNG) and displace 180,000 tons.

Carnival revealed the name to a nationwide television audience on the game show Wheel of Fortune on its signature Puzzleboard at the conclusion of the broadcast.

Currently, under construction in Finland, the ship will accommodate 5,200-plus passengers at double occupancy and offer a variety of new amenities and attractions.

Itineraries for Mardi Gras will be announced in January. Carnival fans who want to be the first to book Mardi Gras can register to get a “first to know” alert and promotional offer before itineraries are opened for sale later in the month.

“Our first ship Mardi Gras was a historic vessel, introducing a brand-new style of cruising to the vacationing public. What better way to pay tribute to our company’s nearly 50-year history of creating wonderful vacation memories than by naming this groundbreaking vessel after our original and beloved Fun Ship,” said Carnival Cruise Line president Christine Duffy.

China ‘Stronger Than Last Year’ For Carnival Corp

Posted on 27 June, 2018 by Spacejunkie2

“The bottom line is things are stronger for sure that they were last year at this time,” said Arnold Donald, president and CEO of Carnival Corporation, touching on China on the company’s Monday morning second quarter earnings call.

Donald said he still believes China will eventually be the largest cruise market in the world and putting in new hardware (ships) still made sense.

“The market there is very large in terms of overall travel, both from cities in China and, of course, as a huge potential source market for fly/cruise all over the world,” Donald said.

“In terms of the distribution system itself, yes, we’ve moved from full-ship charters primarily now to group sales and partial ship charters,” he continued. “We’ve added a large number of additional distributors. All of that kind of de-risks things a bit from being overly concentrated and what, in effect, today is still pretty much a B2B market. The direct sales component is slowly growing a bit there. There’s an opportunity to grow that over time. But a timeline in China, we’ll see. It’s a small market.

“I don’t see a dramatic increase in per cent of total capacity in the short term there. And the reason is not so much because of China, but because of the demand everywhere else in the world. And then as I mentioned, there are large addressable markets everywhere in the world that are under-penetrated, including the United States.

“And so it looks positive for the year on a relative basis so far. But China’s China, and we have to see how things play out for the full year,” Donald said.

“But right now, conditionally, things definitely look stronger. In terms of sanctions, we haven’t heard of any sanctions on either side that would directly impact the cruise industry.”

Travel to Korea is still unofficially restricted, and Donald said if that opens up, it could help the situation.