Carnival Sensation will be arriving in Mobile, Alabama, on Friday, as confirmed by Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson. The Fantasy-class ship is not yet resuming operations but will be there for crew vaccinations.
It comes as Carnival Cruise Line recently started vaccinating crew of the Carnival Breeze and Carnival Vista when they made a much-anticipated return to the Port of Galveston in Texas over a week ago.
Carnival Sensation to Arrive in Mobile
For the first time since cruise operations were first suspended more than a year ago, a Carnival cruise ship will be returning to the Alabama Cruise Terminal in Mobile. However, it won’t be the ship that was originally expected.
Related: Things to Know About the Mobile Cruise Terminal in Alabama
Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson announced on Tuesday in a City Council meeting that the Carnival Sensation will arrive at the port on Friday. The plan is for 110 crew members to receive their first dose of the vaccine. It follows two other ships that have started having crew vaccinations at the Port of Galveston.
In a local news report, Mayor Stimpson said in the meeting, “We’re pretty excited about that. It’s a big deal, they’re coming here to be vaccinated. My understanding is that three weeks later the ship will come back in for the crew members to be re-vaccinated.”
It’s a major step forward for cruise operations out of the State of Alabama and makes sense as Carnival Sensation will be based from the port once cruises resume. Sister ship Carnival Fantasy was originally set to homeport out of Mobile but was sadly sold for scrap in 2020. Carnival Cruise Line was then planning on shifting Carnival Fascination from Puerto Rico to Mobile but then that she was sold.
Carnival Sensation is actually arriving in Galveston, Texas, on Tuesday afternoon and, according to the Cruise Ship Tracker, is currently in the Gulf of Mexico waiting to enter the port. From Galveston, she is then expected to make her way directly to Mobile for the vaccinations.
Mayor Stimpson has urged the public to head down to the Gulf Quest maritime Museum or the Cooper Riverside Park at around 9:00 AM on Friday to welcome the Carnival cruise ship’s arrival.
Also Read: Things to Know About the Carnival Sensation Cruise Ship
Carnival Sensation is now the second oldest ship in the fleet and joined the fleet in 1993. She’s 70,367 gross tons with a guest capacity of 2,052 at double occupancy along with 920 international crew members.
