Carnival is going to make its presence stronger in New Orleans and if there's a better fit for that, we don't know what it is.
Carnival…Mardi Gras…get it?
The world's largest cruise line currently has two ships in the Big Easy, as they call it, the Elation and the Conquest. Total passenger count per week: 5,036. In November, it will have the Elation and the refurbished, renamed Sunshine (nee Destiny). Passenger count: 5,058. Yes, that's only 22 passengers more per week, but the big change comes next spring.
That's when the Dream will join the Elation (they must like that ship in New Orleans, where visitors are usually "elated"), jumping the passenger count to 5,698. That's 640 more visitors to New Orleans per week. Or 33,280 per year…assuming that all those staterooms are filled by visitors to the Louisiana port.
The changes are about more than capacity.
In swapping the 11-year-old Conquest for the Sunshine, New Orleans cruisers will board a far more modern ship, with all the bells and whistles. In New Orleans, they also like bells and whistles. Swapping the Sunshine for the Dream kicks it up another notch — or octave — as the Dream is the flagship of Carnival's premium class, which also includes the Magic and the Breeze.
So this isn't all about playing musical ships…although in New Orleans, they'd probably be happy with that anyway.
7 nights
August 12, 2013
Anchorage, Hubbard Glacier, Glacier Bay National Park, Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Vancouver
Inside: $499
Cost per day: $71
www.princess.com