Bookings were ‘robust’ and among highest in company’s history

Carnival Corp, the world’s biggest cruise company, is reporting that demand across its nine cruise lines is soaring and that Americans are raring to get back to cruise sailing.

Carnival Corp Chief Executive Officer Arnold Donald says bookings were “robust” and among the highest in the company’s history.

“We do not have an issue with being able to fill the ships. People are ready to sail, Donald told Fox Business that demand is outstripping supply.

In fact, we have far more demand than we have ships available to supply right now,” the Carnival Corp CEO lamented, noting that, “honestly, people are champing at the bit to cruise again”.

He explained that people are confident in the safety of cruises, as the vaccine rollout continues across the US, and that the shots were a “huge game-changer”.

In a second-quarter business update on Thursday, the company reported that booking volumes for future cruises were 45 per cent higher than during the first quarter. Carnival Corp also reported that advance bookings for 2022 were already higher than in 2019, thanks to pent-up demand.

Travelers eager to shell out extra cash onboard

Donald also told Fox Business that people are spending a lot of money on board too, stating that travelers are eager to shell out extra cash on casinos, massages and luxury meals. Donald reported that some of Carnival’s cruise lines, including Costa, had been sailing out of Europe during the pandemic.

Many of these passengers were unvaccinated but the company implemented universal testing, social distancing, mask-wearing, and enhanced medical screenings. Donald said there would be some unvaccinated guests on its cruises in the US, but that these passengers would have to take regular COVID-19 tests and wear masks.

Celebrity Cruises last week unveiled new regulations subjecting unvaccinated passengers or those unwilling to show proof of the vaccine to onboard restrictions, extra COVID-19 tests, and additional costs.

Carnival said that at least 52 per cent of its ship capacity would be sailing by the end of November, and expected to have its full fleet back in operation by spring 2022. Its first US cruise, the Vista is setting sail from Galveston to the western Caribbean on July 3.

Carnival’s newest ship, the Mardi Gras is setting sail from Port Canaveral to the eastern and western Caribbean on July 31. Carnival Corp said that the ship is the first in the world to have a rollercoaster on board, as well as the first in North America to be powered by liquefied natural gas.

According to Donald, Carnival is selling or had sold 19 ships during the pandemic, reducing its total capacity by 13 per cent, but that the company was buying more ships and would grow its capacity by around 2.5 per cent through 2025.