Carnival Cruise Line is announcing that it will name its new XL-class ship to be delivered in 2020 Mardi Gras, bringing back to the fleet the name of the first Carnival ship that entered service in 1972 and started the wave of cruise vacation popularity in the United States.
Carnival revealed the name to a nationwide television audience on the game show Wheel of Fortune on its signature Puzzleboard at the end of the broadcast.
Mardi Gras will be the largest Carnival Cruise Line ship ever constructed and the first in North America to be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), part of Carnival Corporation’s green cruising platform. At 180,000 tons, the new Mardi Gras will be more than six times the size of its namesake.
Currently under construction at Meyer Turku in Finland, the 5,200-plus lower berth vessel will offer a variety of attractions.
Itineraries for Mardi Gras will be announced in January and go on sale later that same month. Carnival Cruise Line fans who want to be the first to book on Mardi Gras can get a head start by registering, so they get a “first to know” alert and special promotional offer when itineraries are opened for sale.
The original 27,000-ton TSS Mardi Gras, a converted transAtlantic oceanliner purchased by entrepreneur and Carnival founder Ted Arison, set sail on its inaugural voyage in 1972, which Carnival says helped transform cruising from an experience once reserved for the elite into a mainstream vacation accessible and affordable to everyone.
Carnival previously announced that the ship will be based in Port Canaveral, FL, which will feature a new terminal. A second XL-class ship will start construction in 2020 and be delivered in 2022 to mark the 50th anniversary of Carnival Cruise Line’s founding.
For more information, visit Carnival.com.
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