Tag Archives: Carnival Jubilee

Carnival Brings Texas Flair to Jubilee’s Keel Laying

Posted on by
Reply

The Carnival Jubilee is set to sail from Galveston, Texas, next year and Carnival Cruise Line’s third cruise ship to be powered by liquified natural gas (LNG) got its first taste of Texas today with the keel laying ceremony at Meyer Werft in Papenburg, Germany., according to a press release.

Wearing cowboy-shaped hard hats, Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy was joined by Meyer Werft Managing Director Bernard Meyer and Carnival’s Senior Vice President of Newbuilds Ben Clement, among others, to celebrate the construction milestone by placing coins under a 375-ton keel block.

The coins signify good luck for the ship and will remain under its foundation as the structure is built. the company said.

One of the ship’s lucky coins is an official ship coin. It commemorates an integral part of Carnival history while celebrating its future by showing the Carnival Jubilee alongside the original MS Jubilee from 1986. The coins will later be placed in a special compartment near Carnival Jubilee’s mast as permanent fixtures of the ship.

“Our plans for Texas are as big as the state itself, and we’re looking forward to bringing guests aboard our third Excel-class ship that will be just as magnificent as her sister ships Mardi Gras and Carnival Celebration. I’m ecstatic to be here for this important moment and witness construction now officially underway. Carnival Jubilee will significantly enhance our offerings from Galveston as the industry leader in the Texas cruise market and an important contributor to the Galveston tourism economy,” said Duffy.

The Carnival Jubilee will be the first Carnival Cruise Line ship built in Papenburg, Germany. Meyer Werft has already built four other LNG-powered ships for other cruise lines under Carnival Corporation. 

“We are pleased to take another symbolic step in the construction of Carnival Jubilee with the keel laying. The Meyer team will once again produce an advanced and innovative cruise ship that will provide a great vacation for millions of passengers,” said Meyer.

For ships entering their golden years, a variety of fates

Posted on by
Reply

Former Carnival Jubilee and the HNA Cruise Henna before scrap

It’s sometimes hard to believe that the average useful life of a cruise ship is 30 years, as estimated in the financial statements of most of the major cruise companies. Many ships built in the 1980s and later seem to have disappeared from the scene.

The Celebrity Century, for example, was only 20 years old when it was sent to China to be part of Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.’s joint venture with Ctrip, called SkySea Cruises. But the Century is still sailing, just not in a market that North American cruisers frequent.

Another old stalwart sailing in China, the former Carnival Cruise Line ship Jubilee, did make it to 30 years. The 1,486-passenger ship, built in 1986 by the Swedish shipyard Kockums, most recently had been sailing as the Henna for a Chinese cruise venture, HNA Tourism Cruises. But after operating for three years, HNA shut down in November, a victim of newer ships flocking to China. Now there’s word that the Henna has been sold for scrap to shipbreakers.

The Jubilee was last seen carrying North American passengers a dozen years ago. Since then it has made what could be considered a typical journey for an aging cruise ship trying to survive to its 30-year target date.


P&O Pacific Sum the former Carnival Jubilee

In 2004, Carnival Corp. transferred the Jubilee to P&O Cruises Australia, changing its name to the Pacific Sun. It sailed in a secondary but developing market for eight years before being sold to HNA in 2012, showing that it still had some residual value at age 26.

There wasn’t much of that value left by age 30, however. HNA had listed the ship for sale at $35 million, but there were apparently no takers.

So the Jubilee will join other beloved ships such as Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norway and the former Love Boat, Princess Cruises’ Pacific Princess, which were reduced to scrap.

Two sister ships built as part of Carnival’s Holiday class are still operating: the Celebration is now sailing as the Grand Celebration for Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, and the Holiday, now 31 years old, sails for Cruise & Maritime Voyages as the Magellan on Baltic Sea itineraries.