Carnival Cruise Line has announced plans to expand its fleet by adding two ships by 2023. An Excel-class vessel, previously allocated to sister line AIDA Cruises, is expected to arrive in late 2023. The Costa Magica, from another of its European sister lines, will undergo a dry dock refurbishment, rebranding, and conversion to the Carnival name and will join the fleet in mid-2022.
These two ships join the new capacity growth represented by Mardi Gras, Carnival’s first Excel-class ship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), which will begin sailing from Port Canaveral on July 31, and its sister ship, Carnival Celebration, which will be delivered and sail from Miami starting in late 2022, as part of Carnival’s 50th anniversary celebrations. Carnival’s fleet will consist of 27 ships by the end of 2023.
“We are thrilled with these additions to our fleet, which reflect Carnival’s strong position in the United States, the demand for cruise vacations, and Carnival Corporation’s overall plans to optimize capacity and growth in key markets,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “While our immediate focus is on restarting guest operations this summer, this is another reason for excitement at Carnival, and we will soon be announcing more detailed plans regarding homeports, itineraries, and ship names.”
