Ending a five-year hiatus in ordering ships, Carnival Corp. has ordered a fourth Excel-class vessel for Carnival Cruise Line. It is scheduled to be in service in spring 2027.
German shipbuilder Meyer Werft will build an 180,000-gross-ton ship that carries a maximum of 6,400-plus guests. It will be powered by liquified natural gas. The company did not announce the ship's name.
Carnival Corp. intentionally kept its order book thin during the pandemic as it worked to pay down debt. This order will keep with that approach, said Josh Weinstein, CEO of Carnival Corp.
"With one newbuild scheduled for delivery in 2025, none for 2026 and this order being our only expected newbuild in 2027, our responsible capital approach will support utilizing our substantial free cash flow over the next several years to strategically improve our balance sheet, significantly reduce our leverage levels and continue to transfer value from debtholders to shareholders," he said.
In 2024, Carnival Corp. will celebrate the debut of three new ships: Carnival Jubilee will be named in Galveston next week, the Sun Princess from Princess Cruises is expected to debut in the coming weeks, and the Queen Anne from Cunard Line is poised to debut in May.
In 2025, the company expects the delivery of the Star Princess, the second in Princess' new Sphere class.