Meyer Turku, the Finnish cruise ship builder, has delivered Mardi Gras to Carnival Cruise Line, which is part of the Carnival Corporation & plc group.
The LNG powered ship of some 180,000 gross tons is the second of the type delivered by the yard and follows Costa Smeralda, which was completed for Costa Crociere, a sister brand of Carnival Cruise Line, in December last year.
The Meyer shipyard in Papenburg in Germany is also building ships based on the same platform as Mardi Gras, with AIDAnova being delivered to AIDA Cruises in Germany and Iona to P&O Cruises in the UK so far. Both are units of the Carnival group.
Mardi Gras will accommodate more than 5,200 guests and a crew of 2,000. Guests will have the choice of more than 2,600 staterooms and 180 suites across 11 categories.
“We have been working tirelessly this year to get to this exciting day to take delivery of this beautiful ship, and the team at Meyer Turku has been an outstanding partner throughout this process,” said Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line. “I cannot wait for our guests and crew to see and experience Mardi Gras. Notwithstanding the delays related to the pandemic, there is tremendous enthusiasm and pent-up demand for this ship. Next we will work on the development of her sister ship, Carnival Celebration, which arrives in 2022 and has sold very well since inventory opened in October.”
“We are delivering a beautiful and highly advanced ship with world-class technology such as LNG propulsion, to name just one. With these sophisticated systems, she will be one of the most environmentally friendly ships to sail the North American waters. I am very proud of our team of shipbuilders and would like to thank everyone involved of their dedication during the building process”, CEO of Meyer Turku, Tim Meyer, states.
Unlike other ships in the Carnival Cruise Line fleet, Mardi Gras does not feature the Carnival prefix in its name. Mardi Gras is scheduled to begin 7-night cruises from Port Canaveral, Florida in April 2021.
