It’s big news for Carnival fans… quite literally.
Carnival Corporation — the parent of Carnival Cruise Line — announced today that it is ordering three new ships that are set to join the fleet in 2029, 2031, and 2033.
But these aren’t just any new ships. Carnival says they are all three part of a “new class of vessel” and will come in at nearly 230,000 gross tons.
That means this ship class will not only be something completely new for the cruise line, but they will also be the largest in Carnival’s fleet and some of the largest in the world.
“We are doubling down on the growth of Carnival Cruise Line – our highest-returning brand – to keep up with the incredibly strong demand we continue to see for the world’s most popular cruise line,” said Josh Weinstein, CEO of Carnival Corporation.
The cruise line has contracted with Italian company Fincantieri to design and construct the new ships, which will be built on a liquified natural gas platform.
8,000 Passengers and 28% Larger Than Current Ships
The yet-unnamed ships are set to be massive. Carnival says they will have over 3,000 staterooms and carry almost 8,000 passengers at full capacity, in addition to the 230,000 gross tonnage.
For comparison, Carnival’s Excel-class of vessels, which include Mardi Gras, Celebration, and Jubilee, measure 180,000 gross tons. These newly-announced ships will be about 28% larger on this basis.
Meanwhile, the largest cruise ship in the world — Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas — comes in at roughly 248,500 gross tons. Royal Caribbean’s Oasis-class measures 225,000-236,000 gross tons. So you can think of these new ships from Carnival as matching Royal Caribbean’s Oasis class.
These ships will also be the largest ever built by Fincantieri.
“We are excited to join forces with Carnival Cruise Line to debut a new class of ship, which will be the largest cruise ship ever constructed by Fincantieri and the largest ship ever built in Italy,” said Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO, Fincantieri.
Smaller Ships Not on the Horizon
While it will be years before the first of these ships are delivered, Carnival isn’t just sitting on their hands. This marks five new ships the cruise company has announced this year. It already shared that two more Excel-class ships will be built, arriving in 2027 and 2028, respectively.
That’s in addition to the upcoming debut of a new private destination — Celebration Key — expected next year.
If there is any drawback to this big news, it’s that there is a definite undercurrent of cruise passengers that enjoy smaller cruise ships. Smaller ships are easier to navigate, have fewer people, and tend to be more subdued compared to modern mega-ships.
A post about this announcement on Carnival Brand Ambassador John Heald’s Facebook page was filled with comments from fans that wish there could be smaller ships.
“While this is exciting, we would like to see some smaller ships as the Mega ships are of no interest to us,” wrote on commenter.
“Why not build some new smaller ships? The smaller ships are getting older, and a lot of people like them. I’d love to see some brand new smaller ships to sail on,” said another.
However, the trend in cruising is toward larger cruise ships that carry more passengers than ever before. As time goes on, those older, smaller ships are retired, reducing the number of options for passengers who enjoy the experience they offer.
We’ll continue to look for more details from Carnival on what to expect from these three new ships. Carnival does says the “order is contingent upon financing” and that it expects that to be finished later this year. We can’t wait to learn more about design, amenities, and names.
