Full-ship charters can be lucrative opportunities for cruise lines, and that’s why decision-makers will sometimes choose to disappoint booked guests by cancelling a scheduled voyage in favor of a charter.

On March 20, 2025, Carnival Cruise Line became the latest brand to notify guests that their sailing — a 2026 voyage onboard Carnival Liberty, has been nixed in favor of a charter. It was the second time in less than a year that the ship’s schedule was interrupted for that reason.

The 3,000-guest Conquest-class ship that debuted in 2005 is homeported in New Orleans, sailing mostly 7-night Eastern and Western Caribbean cruises. In its notice to booked guests, the line noted that several alternatives are available to replace the April 26, 2026 departure.

“We are very sorry to inform you that the ship has been chartered and your cruise has been cancelled,” Colleen Oliverio, vice president of guest services-contact center for Carnival Cruise Line, wrote in a letter to guests.

“Our team is ready to discuss options and rebook you on another Carnival cruise right away,” Oliverio added.

As an incentive to rebook, the notice confirms that each guest’s cruise rate is protected on a comparable sailing in similar accommodations, meaning that if a new voyage is booked in the same stateroom category and for the same duration, the original cruise fare applies.

Moreover, a $100 per stateroom onboard credit will be applied to the new sailing. The cruise line set a deadline of April 3, 2025 for booked guests to contact the line directly or the travel agent who handled the reservation.

The notice also advises that those who do not reschedule will automatically receive a full refund of their cruise fare and any pre-purchased services, such as shore excursions, drinks packages and the like.

The refund process can take up to three weeks to be completed, the line noted.

Guests Can Choose Another Voyage From the Big Easy

Since Carnival Liberty is based year-round in New Orleans through at least April 2027, guests are likely to find another itinerary that suits their vacation schedule. Seven-night Western Caribbean voyages typically call at Roatan Island’s Mahogany Bay, Honduras; Belize City, Belize; and Cozumel, Mexico.

Read Also: Eastern vs. Western Caribbean Cruise: Which Will I Prefer?

Eastern Caribbean sailings visit Key West, Florida; Celebration Key, the new private island destination set to open in July 2025 in the Bahamas; and Nassau, Bahamas.

In addition to 7-night sailings, some 6-night Western Caribbean and 8-night Eastern Caribbean cruises are offered.

It is not unusual for full-ship charters to upend the plans of booked cruisers. It happens on virtually all of the major cruise lines from time to time, and the reason for the charter is rarely made known. They often are focused on specific themes, such as music, for instance.

The newly announced cancellation was not the first for Carnival Liberty. Guests booked on the ship’s October 19, 2025 cruise also received the bad news that the voyage was cancelled in favor of a charter.

In that case, the notice was sent out to booked guests in August of 2024, again providing sufficient time to find another alternative.

Other cruise lines swap out scheduled sailings for charters, too. A February 6, 2025 cruise aboard Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Joy was cancelled due to a charter. The 5-night itinerary was a Mexican Riviera cruise sailing roundtrip from Los Angeles. Guests learned of the cancellation in December 2023.

There are some foods out there that aren’t all that they are cracked up to be – but eggs are not one of them. Eggs are not only a favorite at breakfast, but are also a key ingredient in many recipes and desserts.

An egg shortage onboard Carnival’s cruise ships wouldn’t just impact breakfast items like scrambled eggs and omelettes, but could impact other dishes served onboard. But thankfully, this is not something that cruisers need to worry about.

As of Wednesday, March 19, 2025, Brand Ambassador John Heald confirmed that rumors of egg options being removed were false.

“Apparently once again one of the many copy and paste and egg agerate cruise pages said yesterday that due to the egg shortage (hence me using the words egg agerate) that ‘Carnival has removed all egg options from their menus.’ This is of course utter nonsense,” Heald said in a pun-filled Facebook post.

“I know there is an egg shortage in parts of the United States but we still offer all the egg options we always have,” Heald continued.

Unfortunately for much of the US, a dangerous strain of avian influenza has been decimating flocks, killing 13.2 million hens in December 2024 alone, and has continued to wreak havoc throughout the first quarter of 2025.

This has resulted in egg shortages and increased prices in both grocery stores and restaurants – with chains like Denny’s and Waffle House temporarily adding a small surcharge to all meals that include eggs until things normalize.

But of course, Heald couldn’t conclude his post without making another joke: “We source all our eggs from a farm in Cleveland, Ohio. It’s called Old Macdonald’s Chicken Farm and the Beards have a brilliant relationship with Mac who is the EIEIO of the farm.”

In actuality, Carnival has a partnership with the Humane Society of the United States to source eggs using 100% cage-free chickens – which is a more ethical way of raising the hens.

Business as Usual Onboard

If Heald’s reassurance wasn’t convincing enough, plenty of recent Carnival guests in the comments were able to confirm that there was no sign of a shortage onboard.

“I have been on 4 cruises this winter. My 60th carnival cruise will be on the Vista in October. Eggs were not a problem. We had great times and memories,” one woman wrote.

“I had as many omelettes and over easy eggs as I wanted for breakfast every morning on a cruise about 4 weeks ago. So awesome. Just have to stand in eggs to order line,” another man confirmed.

No one reported having experienced any limitations on portions or extra fees to order the eggs, either.

Additionally, Carnival is not known to use powdered eggs for dishes like omelettes, opting for fresh eggs instead. These eggs are dehydrated and transformed into a powder, as their name suggests.

Powdered eggs allow for easy transportation and storage and are primarily used in culinary settings where a shelf-stable product may be needed – but they aren’t as widely used as they used to be and can even cost more than fresh eggs.

Read Also: Free Carnival Cruise Dining Options You’ll Want to Know (With Menus!)

But while eggs aren’t going anywhere, rumors that another staple in the Lido Marketplace has gone away are true.

Grapes are a popular fruit that can complete a healthy breakfast or offer a sweet dessert. However, they have been phased out because having multiple guests pick the grapes off the vine – as what could happen in the buffet line – is unhygienic.

That said, it’s possible that the grapes will rejoin the eggs onboard in the future – or will perhaps be served in pre-picked bowls (instead of on the vine) as they have been in the past.

The huge popularity of Carnival Cruise Line’s Excel class ships has eager cruisers excited about the next forthcoming ship in the class, Excel #4, scheduled to set sail in spring 2027.

While the vessel’s debut is still two years away, hopes are already growing for what the ship will deliver, including how she might be the same or different from her sister ships, Mardi Gras, Carnival Celebration, and Carnival Jubilee.

Carnival Cruise Line’s Brand Ambassador, John Heald, did recently note that news about the new ship will be coming soon, though he doesn’t say exactly what or precisely when.

“In the next coming chunk of time, we’re going to be telling you about the next Excel ship,” Heald announced in his daily Facebook video. “Wow, this, um… Can’t say anything else.”

This quickly caught the attention of Heald’s fans, who followed up with their excitement but wondered what a “chunk of time” might be.

“It should be in early April so stay tuned,” Heald said.

That means official news and announcements about the next ship in Carnival Cruise Line’s largest-ever class and the first new order for Carnival Corporation & plc in five years could just be days away.

The Next Excel Ship – What We Already Know

The announcement of the fourth Excel class ship was made in February 2024. The ship will be built by the Meyer Werft shipyard in Germany, with promises to “wow” guests.

As a sister ship to the existing vessels, the new Excel class will likely feature many of the same attractions and amenities of her older siblings, including the division into distinct themed zones, the extensive Ultimate Playground with the Bolt rollercoaster, a unique Emeril’s Bistro, and much more.

The ship will be powered by liquefied natural gas and will be able to welcome approximately 5,300 guests at double occupancy or up to 6,600 guests when fully booked with all berths filled. Roughly 2,000 international crew members will be onboard to help every guest have their most FUN cruise vacation ever.

But there is so much more we don’t know about the ship, and what great fun is to come!

Naming the Next Excel Class Ship

The new ship’s name has not yet been announced. Carnival Cruise Line has, however, given each of the in-service Excel ships names that nod to the cruise line’s early vessels.

The original Mardi Gras was Carnival Cruise Line’s first ever ship when the cruise line began in 1972.

Celebration was in service with the line from 1987-2008, while Jubilee was in service from 1986-2004. Both were Holiday class ships.

But what about other past Carnival ship names that could be reused?

Carnival Holiday could be a nod to the lead ship of the Holiday class, while three other former names – Festivale, Tropicale, and Carnivale – have not yet been reused. The first two might be good choices, but “Carnival Carnivale” doesn’t have quite the right ring to it.

While the retired Fantasy class ship names could be reused, two Fantasy class vessels – Carnival Elation and Carnival Paradise – are still in service, so it would be unusual to reuse those names while any sister ships are still sailing.

Of course, the new ship might have a completely new name as she represents a further evolution of the Excel class into what today’s cruisers want to enjoy.

Where Will the New Ship Homeport?

Carnival cruise fans are eager to know where the fourth Excel ship will be homeported and whether or not she’ll bring the newest, most updated Carnival cruising to a brand new homeport.

Mardi Gras is homeported from Port Canaveral, while Carnival Celebration is in Miami and Carnival Jubilee sails from Galveston. All three ships are staying in their respective homeports year-round at least until spring 2027 – just when the new ship is slated to arrive.

There is great interest in the possibility of homeporting the new Excel class ship from Long Beach, California, bringing the first of these large ships to the West Coast.

Because Long Beach is a year-round homeport, this would be a great place to position the vessel for exciting Mexican Riviera itineraries as well as Carnival Journeys sailings to Hawaii or even offering longer California coast and Alaska sailings.

While it might be exciting to position an Excel class ship in Australia, this might not be as likely with the recent growth of Carnival’s brand Down Under with Carnival Adventure and Carnival Encounter joining the fleet. Still, this might be another option.

The new ship could also offer more seasonal options rather than remaining year-round sailing from the same homeport. Perhaps she will begin her career in Europe before moving to the Caribbean, Alaska, Australia, or even Asia for unique itineraries throughout her first year or two.

While Carnival Cruise Line does not traditionally do an inaugural season moving a ship to multiple homeports over just a few months, this might be a new strategy the line could try with the new ship.

Of course, it’s also possible that she might displace one of the existing Excel ships and take over sailing from Port Canaveral, Miami, or Galveston while the other ship moves on to a new homeport. Or one homeport could take pride in offering sailings from two Excel ships simultaneously!

Will the New Ship Have a New Theme?

Each of Carnival’s Excel class ships has a distinctive theme. Mardi Gras is the most classic of the ships and set the standard for the zone design with different decor and options in different spaces onboard.

Planned around the cruise line’s 50th birthday extravaganza, Carnival Celebration truly celebrates all things Carnival. Of special note is the Golden Jubilee bar that showcases Carnival history with dioramas and artifacts from all five decades of Fun Ships.

Carnival Jubilee is the first in the fleet to have a special homeport connection with the Texas Lone Star on her bow, as well as unique themed parties and shows that offer Texan hospitality and fun to every guest onboard.

So, what will the next ship’s theme be? Maybe another homeport connection, or perhaps a tribute to a specific sailing region.

How about a Caribbean theme for all the top Caribbean destinations Carnival visits? Or maybe a Mexican theme (Carnival Fiesta, anyone?) for the vibrant Mexican destinations the cruise line offers?

Next Steps for the New Ship

The very first step that needs to be taken for the new ship is her steel cutting as official, physical construction begins on her hull. At that time, coins will also be laid under the hull in a shipyard tradition.

This might also be when more news is revealed about the vessel, including her name or theme. Blocks will begin to be laid into place, and eventually the hull will take shape.

After the hull is complete – a process that takes several months, or even more than a year, depending on schedule – the ship will be floated out. This is a special milestone when the ship touches water for the first time, and the hull is complete.

Read Also: Carnival Cruise Ships by Age – Newest to Oldest

The interior outfitting is the next phase of construction, as the details of the ship come together. As this process nears its conclusion, the ship will undergo sea trials to test all critical systems.

Once the sea trials are complete and the interior outfitting is finished, the ship will be delivered or “handed over” to Carnival Cruise Line. Her construction is complete, but she may still need final interior details and must be supplied. Crew members will start to report, and just a few weeks later, the ship will welcome her first guests.

There is a lot to come in the next two years for the new Excel class ship. Stay tuned every step of the way for the latest updates, news, and announcements as she comes together!