Carnival Cruise Line has officially welcomed the latest member of its cruise ship fleet, as Costa Venezia has officially been handed over and renamed Carnival Venezia.
A handover ceremony took place at the shipyard in Cadiz, Spain as Costa Captain Tihomir Muzic handed over the ship to Carnival Captain Claudio Cupisti. Other leadership team members from both lines were also in attendance.
“We are so pleased to welcome Carnival Venezia to the fleet, which following a dry dock, will debut as our first ‘Fun Italian Style’ ship this May,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “A big thank you to everyone from our sister line Costa and all those within the Carnival family who will work to add the Carnival touches to this ship over the next two months.”
Carnival Venezia will depart on her 15-day transatlantic Carnival Journeys voyage from Barcelona on May 29th, and is scheduled to begin year-round cruising from Manhattan on June 15th. The ship will offer 10 different cruise lengths and 22 unique itineraries from New York City, including those to Bermuda, the Bahamas, and Canada/New England.
As her name implies, much of Carnival Venezia‘s design has been inspired by the Italian coastal city of Venice and other parts of Italy. The atrium is modeled after the Venice’s Piazza San Marco square, and the Lido deck draws inspiration from the Italian Riviera with a retractable roof that makes it a perfect ship for sailing from the north in the winter.
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The ship will introduce a variety of new food and beverage concepts to the Carnival fleet, including La Strada Grill with classic Italian street food, Tomodoro Mexitalian fusion restaurant, a similar-to-Alchemy-Bar called Amari, and Frizzante — serving bubbly drinks, Italian beer, authentic Italian coffees, and biscotti.
New activities that will be found on board include the Italian Street Party where Little Italy meets the Lido deck, the Captain’s Venetian Toast, and Italy-inspired programming for kids and teens.
Amenities and venues that Carnival guests already know and love that will also be found on Venezia include the WaterWorks aqua park, Piano Bar 88, Heroes Tribute Lounge, Fahrenheit 555 steakhouse, Bonsai Sushi & Teppanyaki, Guy’s Burger Joint (with a new Italian-inspired burger!), Cloud 9 Spa, the adults-only Serenity sundeck, and Dr. Seuss Bookville.
Carnival Venezia was built in 2019, and is similar to Carnival Cruise Line’s Vista-class ships. She comes in at 135,225 gross tons and can accommodate up to 5,145 guests and 1,393 crew members.
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