Carnival is turning 50 and is planning year-long festivities suitable for the occasion. Kicking off the celebration are Sailabration cruises starting later this week (and continuing through March 10) and featuring rare at-sea ship meetups, as well as special entertainment and programming.
“We only turn 50 once, so we had to go big, and what’s bigger than a year-long birthday celebration that begins with our special Sailabrations cruises,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “From the minute our guests walk into our terminals, they’ll know they are at the biggest and best birthday party ever.”
Before stepping on board, guests will be welcomed into Carnival’s cruise terminals-turned-birthday parties with fun music, signage, and décor. Upon embarkation, the celebration begins as each ship will host a 50th Birthday Bash Sailaway Party where guests are invited to wear their favourite Carnival gear, vintage or modern, as cast members join the ships’ cruise director and fun squad to rock to festive tunes.
Other unique entertainment that will debut on the Sailabrations will include Carnival-themed puzzles; 1972 fun-fact trivia with commemorative 50th Birthday medallions; a Build-A-Bear Birthday Party featuring the debut of a special-edition cuddly bear; and a Rollin’ In Riches casino event. The sailings will also include the debut of new, exclusive collections of specially designed and collectable retail offerings.
The 17 themed Sailabrations will allow guests to not only celebrate with each other on board but also with other Carnival ships. Ships throughout the Carnival fleet will meet to host the biggest birthday parties at sea. The meetups include:
• March 5: Carnival Radiance and Carnival Miracle (Baja, Mexico, outside Ensenada)
• March 7: Carnival Breeze, Carnival Ecstasy, Carnival Glory, Mardi Gras, Carnival Pride, Carnival Sunrise and Carnival Vista (Western Caribbean, between Cozumel and Costa Maya)
• March 9: Carnival Conquest, Carnival Spirit, Carnival Freedom, Carnival Legend, Carnival Liberty and Carnival Sunshine (The Bahamas, between Eleuthera and Nassau)
• March 11: Carnival Miracle and Carnival Panorama (Baja, Mexico, outside Ensenada)
Other activities include:
• The biggest Ship-Tok at sea: Taught and led by staff, the choregraphed dance is inspired by Carnival’s 50th birthday and will be posted on TikTok. Guests are encouraged to wear red, white and blue to show their Carnival spirit.
• Guests will also have the opportunity to indulge in a specially curated commemorative dining menu for one night that features some of the most popular Carnival dishes from the past 50 years.
• A selection of all-new birthday-themed beverages will debut on these sailings, including a Birthday Bellini at Seaday Brunch, a special Carnival Birthday Beer from Carnival’s own brewmasters that will be both canned and on tap, and Carnival’s 50th Birthday Tini.
• Guests can also expect to witness Carnival’s original main dining room show set to Bob Marley’s classic “Could You Be Loved,” as well as a Baked Alaska Farewell Parade on the final evening reminiscent of the line’s earlier days.
• Carnival Miracle will be the first Sailabration cruise to set sail when it leaves Long Beach, Ca. on Feb. 20 on a Carnival Journeys cruise to Hawaii. Most other Sailabrations will depart the week of March 5.
Serving as the culmination to the year-long festivities, Carnival Celebration will officially be named in PortMiami in late November at the newly transformed Terminal F which will also usher in a new era of port infrastructure as one of the first at PortMiami equipped to provide shore power to ships by fall 2023.
Details on additional Sailabrations voyages can be found at www.carnival.com/sailabration