Carnival Corporation announced that it has experienced an early and robust start to wave season (peak booking period), exceeding expectations, with bookings volumes since November hitting an all-time high.
According to a statement, for 2024, the company continues to have the best booked position on record, with both pricing (in constant currency) and occupancy considerably higher than 2023 levels.
The company said the first half of 2024 is almost fully booked and it said it believes its continued strong bookings momentum is expected to deliver outperformance during the year, offsetting the Red Sea rerouting impact.
The Carnival Vista just arrived in Europe for its upcoming routine drydock.
After leaving Port Canaveral on Jan. 8, the Carnival Cruise Line ship crossed the Atlantic on its way to Spain.
The 2016-built vessel is now set to undergo a two-week drydock at the Navantia shipyard in the Bay of Cádiz.
Work expected to be carried out onboard the Carnival Vista includes the addition of Carnival’s new hull livery, in addition to scheduled maintenance, class surveys and technical work.
The 135,000-ton vessel is also poised to see upkeep of its common areas and staterooms, as well as updates to facilities and venues.
Following the work, the Carnival Vista is set to cross the Atlantic on its back to North America before resuming service on Feb. 15.
On that day, the vessel sails from Port Canaveral for a three-night cruise to the Bahamas that features a visit to Nassau, in addition to a full day at sea.
The ship’s regular schedule features six- and eight-night cruises to the Southern and the Eastern Caribbean.
Itineraries include popular ports of call in both regions, such as Half Moon Cay, Princess Cays, Aruba, Curaçao, San Juan, St. Thomas, St. Maarten and Nassau.
First in a series of three ships known as Vista Class, the Carnival Vista offers a series of features, including SkyRide, a suspended open-air cycling experience, and the Dreamscape, a three-deck-high LED sculpture located its main atrium.
The 4,000-guest cruise ship was later followed by the 2018-built Carnival Horizon, and the 2019-built Carnival Panorama.
Originally built for Costa Cruises, the 2019-built Carnival Venezia and the 2020-built Carnival Firenze are also considered part of the Vista Class.
Carnival Cruise Line announced a series of new enhancements in time for the new year, from a revamped Chef’s Table and a dedicated cooking class to online improvements.
Dedicated Cooking Class with Chef Lagasse’s Favorites
Debuting onboard the Carnival Jubilee as part of the Carnival Kitchen offerings, the Carnival Culinary Center features a dedicated cooking class curated by Chief Culinary Officer Emeril Lagasse. Guests will learn to create a three-course meal with recipes selected by Emeril, including his New-New Orleans Pasta, Shrimp and Okra Gumbo with Filé and Strawberries Romanoff.
Chef’s Table Revamps with New Menu and Wine Selections
Carnival launched a new option for its Chef’s Table, a VIP culinary experience featuring a multi-course dinner hosted by the Executive Chef onboard. The experience starts with cocktails and hors d’oeuvres for a group of 14, followed by a tour to see the galley in operation and a dinner of appetizers, entrees and desserts. The Chef’s Table 2.0 menu offerings are available fleetwide.
“Behind The Fun” Ship Tours Now Available Online
Carnival’s “Behind The Fun” tours will now be available for bookings pre-cruise on Carnival.com starting Jan. 1.
The new option will be rolled out fleetwide. To book, guests need to select the tour as a shore excursion under their ship’s homeport. An accessible, abbreviated tour is also now available for guests with disabilities.
New HUB App Feature
To simplify debarkation, the cruise line added a new feature to the HUB App. Guests no longer need to pick up zone tags for their luggage but can indicate a debarkation time via the app. Guests should list the number of bags to be placed outside their stateroom so the tags can be delivered directly to them.
VIFP members and suite guests will still receive special tags with priority debarkation as normal, and travelers who prefer not to use the app can still follow the traditional debarkation process.
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