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Louise Thomas

Editor

Carnival Cruise Line has announced plans to introduce three new mega-ships to its fleet before 2033.

Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri will design and construct the new vessels – nearly 230,000 gross registered tonnes per ship – that Carnival says will “deliver even more fun” to guests at sea.

The “landmark” next-generation cruise ships will be delivered in the summers of 2029, 2031 and 2033 and each vessel will be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Onboard, over 3,000 guest staterooms will have a capacity for 8,000 guests, the largest cruise ships ever constructed by Fincantieri.

Earlier this year, the cruise line ordered two more Excel-class ships to join the fleet in 2027 and 2028.

Carnival is already the world’s largest cruise company. The five new additions to the fleet, plus the transfer of vessels from sister brands, will join the 27 ships currently sailing.

Josh Weinstein, chief executive officer of Carnival Corporation said: “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.

“We continue to take a disciplined approach to growth, strategically directing new capacity to the areas of highest demand at a rate of one to two new ships per year.”

Full design plans and itinerary stops for the new ships are yet to be announced.

Pierroberto Folgiero, CEO of Fincantieri, said: “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.”

In January, the world’s largest cruise ship, Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas, set sail for the first time.

It has 18 passenger decks, seven swimming pools and over 40 restaurants and bars. It can hold 5,610 passengers on board (at double occupancy) and has a gross tonnage of 250,800.

For more travel news and advice, listen to Simon Calder’s podcast.

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