Carnival Cruise Line Cancels Sailings Through February

Carnival Cruise Line has canceled cruises through Feb. 28 and moved the inaugural voyage of its new Mardi Gras ship until April 24, 2021.

The 180,000-gross-ton Mardi Gras will operate from Port Canaveral. It will be the first ship powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the Americas, and feature BOLT, the first roller coaster at sea.

Carnival plans to take delivery of the ship from the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland later this month and eventually sail to the U.S. and meet the requirements of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC).

“We apologize to our guests, but we must continue to take a thoughtful, deliberate and measured approach as we map out our return to operations in 2021,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “Our commitment to the health and safety of our guests, crew and the communities we visit is at the forefront of our decisions and operations.”

The announcement came a day after Royal Caribbean International, Celebrity Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line canceled cruises through Feb. 28. Oceania Cruises and Regent Seven Seas Cruises canceled cruises through March 31.