Carnival Cruise Line said the first eight sailings of the
new 5,000-passenger Mardi Gras will be canceled because the ship won’t be
ready.
It is now advising booked guests and travel advisors that
the first revenue sailing of the ship will be Nov. 14, 2020.
The cancellations result from a delay at the Meyer Turku
shipyard, where the first ship in Carnival’s new XL class is under
construction.
Cancellations include European, transatlantic, New York and Port
Canaveral itineraries.
The ship had been slated to enter service in Europe on Aug.
31 before repositioning to New York for a series of voyages. It would then
shift to Port Canaveral for year-round seven-day Caribbean cruises beginning in
October.
“We have been working closely with Meyer Turku executives to
keep the Mardi Gras delivery on schedule, and while we deeply regret
disappointing our guests, this change in the delivery date is required to make
sure all of the ship’s systems, features and technology will be fully
operational, so that we can give our guests the vacation they expect,” said Ben
Clement, Carnival’s senior vice president of newbuild.
Carnival said that the guest-notification process began
promptly after the notice by Meyer Turku so that impacted guests could begin to
make alternative vacation plans.
Carnival said it is offering affected guests a 25% future cruise credit
in addition to the full refund of their cruise fare (and applicable fees and
taxes and other pre-purchased cruise components), as well as assistance with
nonrefundable airline and hotel reservations already booked.
In addition, if guests rebook their cruise vacation using
their 25% credit by Feb. 18, 2020, they will be given an additional $100 credit
per person for onboard spending.
Carnival said it has also “communicated guidelines to travel
advisors regarding commission protection.”