Carnival Cruise Line’s new Mardi Gras is shown here departing on its sea trials this morning from the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland.  The vessel will spend 10 days at sea before returning to the dock for final preparations for its departure for the U.S.
​
The first ship in North America to be powered by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG), Mardi Gras is scheduled to enter service from Port Canaveral, Fla., Feb. 6, 2021, operating week-long itineraries.

As we continue to refine health and safety protocols for our future return to service and await direction from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Disney Cruise Line has decided to further extend its suspension of new sailings.

Sailings are cancelled on board the Disney Fantasy through December 6; the Disney Dream and Disney Wonder through December 11; and the Disney Magic through December 12.

Guests booked on affected sailings who have paid their reservation in full will be offered the choice of a cruise credit to be used for a future sailing or a full refund. Guests who have not paid their reservations in full will automatically receive a refund of what they have paid so far. Affected Guests and travel agents will receive an email from Disney Cruise Line outlining details and next steps.
​
Guests who booked their reservation through a travel agent should contact them directly with any questions. Those who booked directly with Disney Cruise Line and have questions after receiving their email should call (866) 325-6685 or (407) 566-7797.

Cruise Date Flexibility Option

Guests now have the flexibility to change their sail date up to 15 days prior to departure for any cruises booked by October 31, 2020 for sailings through May 2021. Learn more about the Cruise Date Flexibility temporary booking policy.

​MIAMI, Sept. 16, 2020 – Carnival Cruise Line today announced the sale of Carnival Fascination and Carnival Imagination, which had previously been put on long-term lay-up status and removed from published itineraries.

The sale of Carnival Fascination, launched in 1994, and Carnival Imagination, introduced in 1995, is in line with Carnival Corporation’s plan to accelerate the removal of less efficient ships from its fleet.  This follows the sale of Carnival Fantasy and Carnival Inspiration which took place in July.  Upon return to operations, Carnival will still operate four upgraded Fantasy-class ships – Carnival Ecstasy, Carnival Sensation, Carnival Elation and Carnival Paradise – which feature additional balcony staterooms as well as enhanced dining and entertainment options that are part of the line’s Fun Ship 2.0 enhancement program.

“While we are sad to see Carnival Fascination and Carnival Imagination leave our fleet, it is a necessary move as it allows us to focus on ships that offer the greatest variety of features and stateroom accommodations for our guests,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line.  

Related to its ongoing ship enhancement program and the current pause in cruise operations, Carnival also advised guests and travel agents that it is delaying the return to guest operations for four ships until after scheduled dry dock enhancements are completed in the first half of 2021.
​
The four impacted ships and resulting cancelled itineraries include:

• Carnival Magic itineraries operating from Miami will be cancelled until Mar. 13, 2021
• Carnival Paradise itineraries operating from Tampa will be cancelled until Mar. 19, 2021
• Carnival Valor itineraries operating from New Orleans will be cancelled until Apr. 29, 2021 (including the transatlantic cruise from New Orleans on Jan. 25, 2021 and the return from Barcelona on Feb. 26, 2021)
• Carnival Spirit itineraries operating from Brisbane will be cancelled through May 16, 2021, with the first sailing being the Singapore to Brisbane voyage embarking on June 12, 2021.

 
“This extended pause in our operations has also impacted shipyard availability, and we’ve had to reschedule required dry docks.  As we continue to work through issues related to our eventual return to operations, we are committed to providing our guests and travel agent partners with certainty where we can, although we regret disappointing our guests.  We appreciate the continued support and understanding of our guests and hope to welcome them back on board soon,” Duffy said.