Carnival Cruise Lines
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Carnival Cruise Lines (NYSE: CCL) is a cruise line operating a large number of cruise ships. It originally was an independent company founded in 1972 by Ted Arison. It is now a branded division within Carnival Corporation & plc, a publicly traded company with Micky Arison as the Chairman. Carnival Corporation & plc owns a number of different cruise lines and has become the largest corporation in the cruise industry. Carnival and its affiliates Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Cunard Line, Costa Cruises, Windstar Cruises and the Yachts of Seabourn, are branded by the company as the World's Leading Cruise Lines.
Carnival was a pioneer in the concept of cheaper and shorter cruises. Its ships are known for their Las Vegas decor and entertainment. The line calls its ships The Fun Ships and there is a wide range of activities offered on board. Carnival is well-known for the towel animals it creates for its guests in their cabins. Its trademark is the smoke stack, or funnel, which is red, white and blue and shaped like a whale's tail. The mascot for Carnival is "Fun Ship Freddy", a character in the shape of Carnival's distinctive funnel.
In 1996 the Carnival Destiny of 101,000 gross tons became the largest passenger ship in the world at the time. As of 2006, the latest and largest ship in the Carnival Fleet is the Carnival Liberty, a Conquest Class ship and Carnival's first ship to be based in Europe. The company announced two new ships in early 2006: the Carnival Freedom, set to debut in 2007, and the Carnival Splendor, to debut in spring of 2008. At 112,000 gross tons, the Carnival Splendor will house a maximum of 3,000 passengers.
Image:Carnival Conquest cruiseship.jpg
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[edit] Ships
Here is the list of all Carnival cruise ships that either have been, are currently in, or will soon be in service, in the chronological order:
[edit] Pre-Holiday Class
- Mardi Gras (Retired)
- Carnivale (Retired)
- Festivale (Retired)
- Tropicale (now Pacific Star)
[edit] Holiday Class
- Holiday
- Jubilee (now Pacific Sun)
- Celebration
[edit] Fantasy Class
[edit] Destiny Class
[edit] Spirit Class
[edit] Conquest Class
[edit] Un-Named Class
[edit] History in Brief
1972 – Maiden voyage of Carnival’s first ship, the TSS Mardi Gras, which runs aground on sandbar outside the Port of Miami
1975 – Carnival purchases Empress of Britain, enters service as the TSS Carnivale
1978 – The Festivale, formerly the S.A. Vaal, undergoes $30 million refurbishment, begins service for Carnival as the largest and fastest vessel sailing from Miami to the Caribbean (the ship has since been retired from the fleet)
1982 – Debut of the Tropicale, the first new cruise ship the cruise industry has seen in many years; ship marks the beginning of an industry-wide multi-billion-dollar shipbuilding boom (the ship has since been retired from the fleet)
1984 – Carnival becomes first cruise line to advertise on network television with the premiere of new advertising campaign starring company spokesperson Kathie Lee Gifford (then Johnson)
1985 – Debut of 46,052-ton Holiday
1986 – Launch of 47,262-ton Jubilee (the ship has since been retired from the fleet)
1987 – The 47,262-ton Celebration enters service
Carnival earns distinction as “Most Popular Cruise Line in the World,” carrying more passengers than any other
Carnival Cruise Lines undertakes its initial public offering on Wall Street, raising approximately $400 million to fuel future expansion; entity later becomes Carnival Corporation & plc, a multi-line worldwide cruise conglomerate
1990 – The 70,367-ton Fantasy – the first and namesake vessel in the highly successful “Fantasy-class” -- enters service as first new ship ever placed on three- and four-day Bahamas cruise program from Miami. Eventually, Carnival would construct eight “Fantasy-class” vessels, the most cruise ships in a single class.
1991 – Launch of 70,367-ton Ecstasy
1993 – Carnival introduces its third 70,367-ton SuperLiner, Sensation
1994 – Debut of 70,367-ton Fascination
Carnival’s parent company renamed Carnival Corporation to distinguish between it and its flagship brand, Carnival Cruise Lines. Company is later renamed Carnival Corp. & plc following the combination with P&O Princess Cruises, creating the world’s largest cruise vacation group by far.
1995 – 70,367-ton Imagination enters service
1996 – Carnival’s launches sixth “Fantasy-class” vessel, the SuperLiner Inspiration
Carnival debuts the first passenger vessel to exceed 100,000 tons, the 101,353-ton Carnival Destiny, at the time the world’s largest cruise ship
1998 – Carnival Cruise Lines introduces seventh “Fantasy-class” vessel, the Elation, the first new cruise ship deployed on the West Coast
The eighth and last in the “Fantasy-class” series, the Paradise, enters service
1999 – Debut of the 102,000-ton Carnival Triumph, Carnival’s second “Destiny-class” vessel
2000 – A third “Destiny-class” vessel, the 102,000-ton Carnival Victory, is launched.
2001 – Carnival introduces a new class of vessel with the launch of the 88,500-ton Carnival Spirit, the first new “Fun Ship” ever positioned in the Alaska and Hawaii markets
2002 – A second “Spirit-class” vessel, the Carnival Pride, is launched
Carnival’s third “Spirit-class” ship, Carnival Legend, enters service
Debut of the 110,000-ton Carnival Conquest, the largest “Fun Ship” ever constructed.
2003- Second 110,000-ton “Conquest-class” ship, the Carnival Glory, begins year-round seven-day cruises from Port Canaveral, Fla., July 19.
2004 – Carnival Miracle, the fourth in Carnival’s “Spirit-class,” begins a series of 12 voyages from Jacksonville, Fla. – the first “Fun Ship” sailings from that port – Feb. 27, 2004.
A third 110,000-ton “Conquest-class” ship, the Carnival Valor, begins year-round seven-day service from Miami Dec. 19, 2004, becoming the largest "Fun Ship" ever based at that port.
2005 – A fourth 110,000-ton “Conquest-class” vessel, Carnival Liberty, debuts July 20, 2005, operating Carnival's first-ever Mediterranean cruises.
2007 - Carnival Freedom, the line's fifth 110,000-ton vessel, is scheduled to enter service in February 2007.
2008 - The 112,000-ton Carnival Splendor is slated to debut in spring 2008.
2009 - An as-yet-unnamed 130,000-ton vessel - to be the largest "Fun Ship" ever constructed - is scheduled to enter service in fall 2009.
[edit] Hurricane Katrina Charters
Three of the Carnival cruise ships were chartered by the United States government for six months to serve as temporary housing in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The Holiday was docked in Mobile, Alabama, and the Ecstasy and Sensation were docked at New Orleans, Louisiana. The six-month contract cost $236 million. The contract was widely criticized because the vessels were never fully utilized, and Carnival received more money than it would have earned by using the ships in their normal rotation. [1] Carnival did not have the same fuel, entertainment, staffing, and other expenses they would have incurred had the ships been on their normal routes, but the line also did not receive revenues from on-board gambling, alcoholic beverages, and other product and service sales that would have been generated had the vessels been engaged in cruising.
