Carnival Corporation

Wikipedia contributors · CC BY-SA · EN · 04/10/2026

Carnival Corporation Ltd. is a Bermuda-domiciled American cruise line operator that owns more than 90 vessels across eight brands. Carnival is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, and is a component of the S&P 500 index. From 2003 to May 7, 2026, Carnival was a dual-listed company, consisting of U.S.-based and British corporations collectively known as Carnival Corporation & plc.

Carnival Corporation's operational headquarters are in Doral, Florida. Carnival also has significant UK operations, with regional headquarters in Southampton, England.

History

Carnival Corporation was founded as the privately owned Carnival Cruise Line in 1972. The company grew steadily throughout the 1970s and 1980s. It went public in 1987 with an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), and used the money to buy up competing cruise lines. Between 1989 and 1999, it acquired Holland America Line, Windstar Cruises, Westours, Seabourn Cruise Line, Costa Cruises and Cunard Line. It adopted the name Carnival Corporation in 1993, to distinguish the parent company from its flagship cruise line subsidiary.

P&O Princess Cruises plc was formed in 2000, after the demerger of the cruise ship division of the P&O group. Originating as the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company in England in 1837, P&O operated the world's first commercial cruise ships. Restructuring of the P&O group in the 20th century led to its cruise operations being rebranded as P&O Cruises and P&O Cruises Australia, with the company acquiring Princess Cruises in 1974. Following the demerger in 2000, the company also acquired AIDA Cruises, as well as establishing the A'Rosa Cruises and Ocean Village brands.

In 2003, Carnival Corporation acquired P&O Princess Cruises plc. It was agreed that P&O Princess Cruises plc would remain a separate company, listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and retaining its British shareholder body and management team. The company was renamed Carnival plc, with the operations of the two companies merged into one entity. Carnival Corporation and Carnival plc thereafter jointly owned all the operating companies in the Carnival group. Prior to Carnival Corporation's acquisition, P&O Princess Cruises plc had agreed to a merger with Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. The deal unraveled as Carnival Corporation initiated a hostile takeover with improved terms for British shareholders.

Carnival sold Windstar Cruises to Ambassadors Group in February 2007 and Swan Hellenic to Lord Sterling in March 2007.

In October 2015, CSSC Carnival Cruise Shipping, a joint venture between Carnival, the China Investment Corporation, and the China State Shipbuilding Corporation, was founded, with operations expected to commence in 2019.

In March 2018, Carnival Corporation announced its intention to invest in the construction of a new terminal in the port of Sasebo, Japan. Construction began in October 2019 and was expected to be open ahead of the Tokyo Olympic Games. While it was completed on schedule in 2020, the global COVID-19 pandemic halted cruise operations there until June 2024.

In June 2018, Carnival Corporation announced that it had acquired the White Pass and Yukon Route from TWC Enterprises Limited for US$290 million. The properties acquired were port, railroad and retail operations in Skagway, Alaska.

In 2023, Carnival Corporation sold their interest in Adora Cruises.

In May 2025, it was announced Carnival would move its headquarters from Doral and create a new campus where it would unite most of its North America team members in a single new headquarters to be built in the Waterford Business District, located in Miami-Dade County. It is scheduled to begin operations in 2028.

In December 2025, Carnival announced plans to simplify its corporate structure, with shares in Carnival plc being converted one-for-one into shares of Carnival Corporation, and the latter (previously incorporated in Panama) being reincorporated in Bermuda as Carnival Corporation Limited. As a result, the enterprise would give up Carnival plc's LSE and NYSE American depositary receipt listings, with the restructured Carnival maintaining a single listing on the NYSE. The company received court approval on May 1, 2026, allowing the scheme to proceed. Carnival announced the completion of this reorganization on May 7, 2026. This was done to enjoy Bermuda's tax benefits.

Operations

The Carnival group comprises nine cruise line brands and one cruise experience brand operating a combined fleet of 93 ships.

In June 2023, Carnival restructured its corporate umbrella and created six new separate units that have full executive control of the brands in their portfolio.

Carnival Cruise Line

Carnival Cruise Line – headquarters in Doral, Florida, U.S.

White Pass and Yukon Route

Carnival Australia – headquarters in Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia

Carnival Maritime

AIDA Cruises – headquarters in Rostock, Germany

Costa Cruises – headquarters in Genoa, Italy

Carnival UK

Cunard Line – headquarters in Southampton, UK

P&O Cruises – headquarters in Southampton, UK

Holland America Group

Holland America Line – headquarters in Seattle, Washington, U.S.

Seabourn Cruise Line – headquarters in Seattle, Washington, U.S.

Princess Cruises

Princess Cruises – headquarters in Santa Clarita, California, U.S.

Princess Tours

Brands and ships

AIDA Cruises

AIDA Cruises originated from the state-owned East German shipping conglomerate Deutsche Seereederei, established in Rostock, Germany, in 1952. The company entered the passenger market in the 1960s, but after the unification of Germany in 1990, the company was privatised and its passenger ships acquired by Deutsche Seetouristik. In 1996, the company launched its first new cruise ship AIDA, but after failing to achieve a profit, the ship was sold to Norwegian Cruise Line, continuing operations under a charter agreement.

In 1999, Deutsche Seetouristik was acquired by British shipping company P&O, with the AIDA name being repurchased from NCL. P&O formed AIDA Cruises as a subsidiary brand, with two new ships ordered to form a fleet. AIDA was renamed AIDAcara, with AIDAvita and AIDAaura launched in 2002 and 2003 respectively. Carnival ordered new builds due in 2030 and 2032.

AIDAdiva

AIDAbella

AIDAluna

AIDAblu

AIDAsol

AIDAmar

AIDAstella

AIDAprima

AIDAperla

AIDAnova

AIDAcosma

Carnival Cruise Line

Carnival Cruise Line was founded in 1972 as a subsidiary of American International Travel Service (AITS), by Ted Arison and Meshulam Riklis. Due to mounting debts, Riklis sold his stake in the company to Arison for $1 in 1974. Through the acquisition of existing ships the company continued to grow. In 1980, Carnival ordered its first new commission, the Tropicale, which was completed in 1981/2. Three further ships were commissioned during the 1980s, the Holiday (1985), Jubilee (1986) and Celebration (1987).

In 1987, Carnival completed an initial public offering of 20 percent of its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange, raising approximately $400m in capital. The capital raised was used to finance acquisitions, so in 1993 the business was restructured as a holding company, under the name Carnival Corporation, with Carnival Cruise Line becoming its principal subsidiary.

Carnival Adventure

Carnival Breeze

Carnival Celebration

Carnival Conquest

Carnival Destiny (due 2029)

Carnival Dream

Carnival Elation

Carnival Encounter

Carnival Festivale (due 2027)

Carnival Freedom

Carnival Firenze

Carnival Glory

Carnival Horizon

Carnival Jubilee

Carnival Legend

Carnival Liberty

Carnival Luminosa

Carnival Magic

Mardi Gras

Carnival Miracle

Carnival Panorama

Carnival Paradise

Carnival Pride

Carnival Radiance

Carnival Spirit

Carnival Splendor

Carnival Sunshine

Carnival Sunrise

Carnival Tropicale (due 2028)

Carnival Valor

Carnival Venezia

Carnival Vista

Project ACE 2nd Newbuilding (2031)

Project ACE 3rd Newbuilding (2033)

Costa Cruises

Costa Cruises originates from a cargo shipping company founded by Giacomo Costa fu Andrea in Genoa, Italy in 1854. Better known as Costa Line or C Line by the 1920s, its first passenger carrier was Maria C, a former U.S. Navy stores ship that was partly converted for passenger use and served various routes to North and South America from 1947 to 1953. The company's first dedicated passenger ship was the Anna C, a cargo vessel that was requisitioned for war time use by the Royal Navy and refitted as an accommodation ship before returning to merchant use.

Costa purchased the ship in 1947 and it operated between Italy and South America from 1948, later converting to full-time cruising and serving with the company until 1971. From the late 1960s until the 1980s, Costa rapidly developed its passenger operations into what we now recognise as modern cruise ships. In 1987, it consolidated its cruise ship operations into a new company, Costa Cruises, which at its peak, was the largest cruise ship operator in the world.

The takeover of Costa Cruises by Carnival Corporation began in 1997, as a 50/50 deal between Carnival and the British tour operator Airtours. On January 13, 2012, Costa Concordia, a ship operated by the line, hit an underwater rock and ran aground in Isola del Giglio, Tuscany, resulting in 32 deaths. Investigations proved that the captain and general bad organization was responsible for the disaster, and the company was fined.

Costa Deliziosa

Costa Diadema

Costa Fascinosa

Costa Favolosa

Costa Pacifica

Costa Serena

Costa Smeralda

Costa Toscana

Cunard Line

The second oldest brand in the Carnival group after P&O, Cunard Line originated in 1840 and celebrated its 180th anniversary in 2020. It was founded by Samuel Cunard, who was awarded the first trans-Atlantic mail contract in 1837 and established the British and North American Royal Mail Steam-Packet Company in 1840. After initially dominating the trans-Atlantic route, the need for new capital led to the company being re-organised as the Cunard Steamship Company Ltd in 1879. The early 1900s saw increased competition for speed, particularly from Germany, which led the British government to subsidise the building of Mauretania and Lusitania, which both won the Blue Riband. Competition continued to increase however and by the early 1930s, Cunard was experiencing financial difficulties. To secure further government subsidy, it agreed to merge with its chief rival White Star Line, to form Cunard-White Star Line in 1934. Cunard later purchased the remaining White Star shares in 1947, reverting to the name Cunard Line in 1949. Cunard continued to operate independently until 1971, when it was acquired by the conglomerate Trafalgar House, which was in turn taken over by the Norwegian company Kværner in 1996. In 1998, Carnival Corporation purchased a controlling stake in Cunard, completing the acquisition in 1999 to become sole shareholder. Since that time, Cunard has been one of Carnival's most high-profile brands, with the continued popularity of the famous Queen Elizabeth 2, and the development of the world's largest transatlantic ocean liner, Queen Mary 2, which continues to be the flagship of the fleet.

Queen Mary 2

Queen Victoria

Queen Elizabeth

Queen Anne

Holland America Line

Holland America Line originated as Plate, Reuchlin & Company, founded in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 1871. Initially struggling to survive, the company went public in 1873, renamed Nederlandsch Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij (NASM). The company grew quickly in the early years, acquiring several new ships, including SS Rotterdam, which operated the company's first passenger cruise in 1895. The company also quickly became known by its shortened English name, Holland America Line. By the early 1900s, the company had separated its cargo and passenger operations, with its passenger ships being identifiable by names ending with dam, a tradition which continues with Holland America cruise ships today. The development of container shipping in the 1960s, forced the company to make a decision between investing in new cargo ships, or cruise ships. It ultimately sold its cargo operations, becoming exclusively a cruise ship company in 1973. Holland America continued to thrive well into the 1980s, consolidating its business with the acquisitions of Westours, Windstar Cruises and Home Lines. In 1989 however, it was itself the subject of an acquisition, when it was purchased in full by Carnival Corporation.

Eurodam

Koningsdam

Nieuw Amsterdam

Noordam

Oosterdam

Nieuw Statendam

Rotterdam

Volendam

Westerdam

Zaandam

Zuiderdam

P&O Cruises

P&O Cruises was originally a subsidiary of the British shipping company P&O and was founded in 1977. Along with P&O Cruises Australia, it has the oldest heritage of any cruise line in the world, dating to P&O's first passenger operations in 1837. P&O Cruises was divested from P&O in 2000, subsequently becoming a subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises, before coming under the ownership of Carnival Corporation & plc in 2003, following the merger between P&O Princess Cruises and Carnival Corporation. P&O Cruises is based in Southampton, England, and operates a fleet of seven ships, dedicated to serving the British market.

Arcadia

Arvia

Aurora

Azura

Britannia

Iona

Ventura

Princess Cruises

Caribbean Princess

Coral Princess

Crown Princess

Diamond Princess

Discovery Princess

Emerald Princess

Enchanted Princess

Grand Princess

Island Princess

Majestic Princess

Regal Princess

Royal Princess

Ruby Princess

Sapphire Princess

Sky Princess

Sun Princess

Star Princess

Seabourn Cruise Line

Seabourn Encore

Seabourn Ovation

Seabourn Pursuit

Seabourn Quest

Seabourn Venture

Ships on order

Carnival Corporation currently has ten ships under construction or under agreement.

Source and attribution

Adapted from “Carnival Corporation” by English Wikipedia contributors. Main paragraphs and sections are retained; tables, reference markers and technical markup are omitted. This is an encyclopedic adaptation, not a personal review. Original revision and contributor history ↗. Text is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0 ↗. Check current visitor access, tickets and transport with the relevant operator.