Florida-headquartered international cruise line Carnival Cruise Line announced that the debut of its newest ship, Mardi Gras, will be pushed back until Nov. 14, 2020 after the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland informed the cruise line “that the delivery will be delayed.”
With this new schedule, Carnival will now take delivery of the ship in late October and its first revenue sailing will depart from Port Canaveral on Nov. 14, 2020.
Consequently, the first eight sailings that were scheduled starting Aug. 31 have been cancelled, including European, transatlantic and New York-based itineraries and four Port Canaveral itineraries.
Carnival said that the guest notification process began promptly after the notice by Meyer Turku so that impacted guests could begin to make alternative vacation plans.
As a gesture of goodwill, Carnival is offering these guests a 25 percent future cruise credit (FCC), in addition to the full refund of their cruise fare (and applicable fees and taxes and other pre-purchased cruise components), as well as assistance with non-refundable airline and hotel reservations already booked.
In addition, if guests rebook their cruise vacation using their 25 percent FCC by Feb. 18, 2020, they will be credited with an additional $100 per person on-board credit for that cruise. Carnival has also communicated guidelines to travel advisors regarding commission protection.
"We have been working closely with Meyer Turku executives to keep the Mardi Gras delivery on schedule, and while we deeply regret disappointing our guests, this change in the delivery date is required to make sure all of the ship's systems, features and technology will be fully operational, so that we can give our guests the vacation they expect. Our commitment is to deliver a great and innovative ship, and Mardi Gras will definitely be that when it arrives in North America," said Ben Clement, Carnival Cruise Line's senior vice president of newbuild.