Carnival Cruise Line has a lot in store for New Orleans.
The cruise line announced Thursday that its new island resort in the Bahamas, known as Celebration Key, opens this weekend. The Carnival Liberty will set sail Sunday from the Port of New Orleans to Carnival’s first exclusive destination, stopping first in Key West, Florida.
Nestled on the south side of Grand Bahama, Celebration Key will feature five “portals” spread across 65 acres, each offering guests a different experience.
Spread out along the portals are white sand beaches, family friendly games, the world’s largest swim up bar, a Bahamian artisan market, restaurants and an adults-only club, according to the cruise line.
Carnival is also rolling out its 2027-28 cruise schedule and announced it will continue homing two ships in New Orleans, moving the larger Carnival Dream back to the Port of New Orleans in May 2027.
Carnival Dream will join Carnival Liberty at Port NOLA, returning to the Crescent City for the first time since 2019 after finishing a Caribbean cruise from Galveston, Texas.
Carnival Dream can hold 4,600 guests and will offer a series of four- and five-day voyages from New Orleans to Mexico. The ship is equipped with several staterooms and restaurants as well as a comedy club, Broadway-style shows and movies under the stars.
“More capacity with a larger ship means more tourism activity for Port NOLA and the region, where we’ve enjoyed a successful partnership for over three decades,” Carnival President Christine Duffy said in a prepared statement.
Information on recently announced trips can be found here.
Carnival Liberty will extend several seven-day Western Caribbean and Bahamas itineraries through April 2028. The ship will take passengers to Celebration Key, Key West and Nassau.
Liberty voyages also make stops in locations such as Cozumel, Belize, Grand Cayman and Isla Tropicale.
