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Prices are $42 per adult and $10 per child, just fyi.

From John Heald: CARNIVAL CRUISE LINE’S NEW RESTAURANT CONCEPT ‘IL VIAGGIO’ WILL EMBARK GUESTS ON A CULINARY JOURNEY ABOARD CARNIVAL VENEZIA Reservations Open for New Specialty Dining Experience Showcasing Italy’s Finest and Most Traditional Dishes MIAMI, May 8, 2023 – Carnival Cruise Line announced today it will debut a new specialty restaurant on board its most recent addition to the fleet, Carnival Venezia, which is aptly named Il Viaggio – Italian for “The Voyage” – since it promises a journey across Italy through the country’s rich and diverse cuisine. Il Viaggio’s food and beverage offerings are curated to showcase distinct culinary regions of Italy.. Each menu item, from “antipasti” starters to “dolce” desserts, is representative of a regional specialty, so guests can create elevated meals that bring together different tastes from all areas of Italy. “Highlighting the various Italian regions renowned for certain specialties will invite our guests to enjoy an immersive exploration of flavors – a meal that’s truly unique, delicious and offers an enriching experience as well,” said Emeril Lagasse, Carnival’s chief culinary officer. “Guests will find their favorite Italian staples here, and they’ll also have the chance to try authentic dishes and drinks that might just become new favorites.” Reservations for the restaurant are now open for guests booked on upcoming Carnival Venezia sailings. Il Viaggio will carry a reservations fee in line with Carnival’s other full-service specialty restaurants. To make reservations or learn more about specialty dining options, visit Carnival.com. Elevated Menu Will Indulge in the Best of Italian Cuisine Creatively crafted to offer regional collections across each part of the menu, selections of appetizers, entrees, desserts, wines and cocktails all note diverse regions of Italy where they are most known. The menu will also feature signature dishes, called “Favorito” entrees. Among them is the Sicilian-inspired Pollo Parmigiana Pizza, which is made with a crispy chicken crust pizza with tomato basil sauce, mozzarella, pepperoncini flakes, parmesan and a honey-chili dressing, and the Lombardy-influenced Lombata Milanese, a 16-oz bone-in veal chop that’s thinly pounded, lightly breaded, pan-fried and served with a green salad. A sampling of menu selections from each of the three courses offered includes: “Antipasti” – Starters House-Made Burrata (Lombardy): A soft, fresh Italian cheese is accompanied by heirloom tomatoes and Genevese pesto. Panzarotti (Campania): A golden brown and savory puff stuffed with sausage and pesto. Supli al Telefono (Lazio): Crisp risotto croquette filled with mozzarella and marinara sauce. “Secondi” – Entrees Pappardelle Al Cinghiale (Tuscany): Delicious ribbon pasta is tossed with pork ragu in a red wine marinade. Jumbo Shrimp Scampi (Venice): A classic scampi sauce is flavored by garlic, pepperoncino, Pinot Grigio and accompanied by lemon risotto. Pasta alla Genovese (Liguria): San Marzano tomato sauce flavors ziti pasta, along with cooked onion and simmered beef rib. “Dolce” – Desserts Mile-High Gelato Pie (Tuscany): A special creation that includes the delicious flavors of salted caramel, mocha, toasted coconut and Chantilly cream. Cannoli Siciliani di Ricotta (Sicily): Crunchy shells filled with delicious ricotta cheese flavored by marsala wine and chocolate chips. Tiramisu (Venice): Espresso-flavored quintessential Italian dessert with mascarpone cream. Unparalleled Service and Authentic Ambiance Enrich Experience Il Viaggio’s culinary team will be led full-time by an Italian executive chef. Carnival’s signature friendly service will make guests feel like family from the moment they enter, and in the fashion of renowned Italian restaurants, the staff will embody the warm hospitality and passion that characterizes Italian culture. The welcoming feeling will help create an exceptional and memorable experience for each guest during every visit. The refined backdrop of the restaurant will celebrate the theme of journeying through Italy. Through artwork and architectural touches that highlight the different regions featured on the menu, Il Viaggio’s visual aesthetic will bring to life a nuanced portrayal of journeying through diverse Italian landscapes and guests will also have the option to dine al fresco on the restaurant’s lanai. Il Viaggo also features a show kitchen, where guests will see chefs baking the fresh focaccia bread that servers will share at each table to welcome them. Altogether, the intimate ambiance of the restaurant will perfectly complement the menu to create the truly unique culinary voyage that offers guests a unique and immersive dining experience. Carnival Venezia is the first ship to showcase Carnival Fun Italian Style. It’s currently undergoing an enhancement project in Spain before embarking on a 15-day Carnival Journeys transatlantic sailing May 29, 2023 from Barcelona. The ship is set to arrive to her new home at in New York City and begin operations from the Manhattan Cruise Terminal on June 15, 2023. The ship accommodates more than 5,000 guests and will offer 10 different cruise durations and 22 unique itineraries featuring visits to 25 ports across 14 countries.

We sailed on the Pride for the first time this past March and had a wonderful time. We loved the decor, had really nice touches and had some neat features you don’t see on the bigger ships. She had just enough to keep you busy so as long as you don’t need all the modern bells and whistles found on the newer ships, you’ll be just fine. Would definitely return to the Pride in the future or one of the sister ships.

I work for a supermarket chain and we used to carry them as well but I think they were dropped around the beginning times of covid, probably for a fear if they had actually filed for bankruptcy. Now all I see is Walmart or Best Buy having $100 ones but digital only through their website.

Thank you, they all looked lined up on the other decks and was thrown off from the deck plans, when it came to those two, silly I know.

Have sail on Horizon twice and have three cruises booked for Venezia. The second cruise we actually booked deck 1, an oceanview. I would probably say go with 1 with cabins above verses a public space, you made still encounter noise but it would probably be less frequent. The other two cruises are on deck 10 and 11, and the one on 11 appears to be under elevators but that could be just the way the deck plan is styled.

Looks fantastic in my opinion, yellow funnel and all. Can’t wait for June 15 and even booked another cruise for September.

Have cruises 6 times since the restart (5 on Carnival and 1 on Royal Caribbean which was also our first sailing with them). Overall service was pretty good on each cruise. Nothing will probably top the reduced capacity when the restart first happened but nothing was down right horrible. The biggest issue is how hit and miss the food can be. Our next cruise is on the upcoming Carnival Venezia so hopefully everything will be top notched but we shall see, I have two booked on that ship so pretty excited for it.

Never sailed with him but all the comments I see he is very good, very excited! Getting close now.

How did you hear that when it was announced it will sail from Miami? It would most likely bump Seaside, Seashore or Seascape; would be my guess. Galveston is the next homeport for MSC in the US but I doubt it would be World America.

We should be getting pictures soon, she just arrived at Cadiz yesterday. I also don’t think Carnival has fully revealed the new Italian concept restaurant just yet.

The Costa Fortuna’s new voyages in the Mediterranean will sail for two weeks each. From June 24 to August 19, the Costa Fortuna will sail a brand new itinerary that includes two of the Mediterranean’s popular destinations: the Greek and Balearic Islands. The itinerary also includes Savona, Civitavecchia/Rome, Messina, four Greek islands (including Crete), Rhodes, Mykonos, Santorini, Kefalonia; Palma de Mallorca, in the Balearic Islands, and then Barcelona and Marseille. The second itinerary is dedicated to the Canary Islands where the ship will explore up to five locations including Arrecife, Puerto del Rosario, Las Palmas, San Sebastian de la Gomera, Santa Cruz de Tenerife as well as Madeira, Malaga, Savona and Civitavecchia/Rome (on some departures). The Costa Fortuna will offer these sailings from April 29 to June 10, as well as departures on September 2 and 16. There is a third new itinerary available on April, 16, September 30 and October 14. On these sailings, the ship will explore Istanbul (with an overnight stay for September and October departures), Izmir, Athens and Malta, as well as Savona, Civitavecchia/Rome, Catania, Barcelona and Marseille. In the fall, the Costa Fortuna will also sail three- and four-day cruises in the western Mediterranean, to Barcelona and Marseille, departing from Savona. https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2023/02/costa-cruises-launches-new-program-for-costa-fortuna/

Elation is certainly not a bad choice, sailed on her in Dec ‘21 and had a great time, ship is very beautiful on the inside. Little odd how quickly you can pass through the ship. Freedom is also a good choice, did that for the Sailabration and had a good time as well. Can’t comment on Liberty.

Curious what on the ship is considered old? Same age as Carnival Dream.

Carnival is slowly experimenting with longer cruises so it could be on the horizon one day, however with that said if any ship were to do a world cruise for Carnival it would be Luminosa. Venezia is much too big for a world cruise run and Costa uses Luminosa’s sister Deliziosa to cover theirs.

Both are still laid up off the coast of Cyprus. I think the new China/Vista will be the first ship for the brand to debut at the end of the year.

I thought it was announced both were transferred to the new joint venture and not just Atlantica? But agreed with what you said otherwise, very interesting tidbits about ships sailing from China.

Deliziosa covers the World Cruise run, I don’t think they’d use a bigger ship than that.

I don't think Sunshining the Destiny/Triumph Class was a horrible idea. We loved our cruise on the Sunshine, little less so on Sunrise. Yeah it would have been a bit nicer to not add the extra cabins but there was no way they weren't but that didn't effect our opinion overall. I will be curious what their next plan will be for newer ships once they turn their financial situation around or if they snag a few more ships from their other brands (Carnival Fun German Style anyone?). Though I would be pretty surprised if Carnival did a World Cruise, its good they are exploring more long and unique cruises with Luminosa, and with a few other ships.

It was announced around June 2021 that Carnival was to get Costa Magica and AIDA’s 3rd new build which is now Carnival Jubilee. A year later it was announced Carnival was taking Luminosa over Magica. However I don’t believe they stated why they took one over the other, but presumed that Luminosa was cheaper to convert then say attempting to Sunshine Magica, Carnival really didn’t have to change much on Luminosa other than the name Costa to Carnival and a few touch’s on some of the venues.

Magica wouldn’t be able to port in Tampa or Jacksonville and the Spirit Class are needed in other crucial ports (Tampa/Europe, Baltimore, Alaska/Mobile, etc). Or the cost of refurbishment aren’t worth it, as it was probably easier to just change Luminosa (swapping Costa for Carnival names etc).

Trade Wind News reporting it as well https://www.tradewindsnews.com/cruise-and-ferry/carnival-corp-sells-costa-brand-cruise-ship-to-greece-s-seajets/2-1-1401260?fbclid=IwAR0uQn_Luhbq8k6gJgLusmjO8imnBTD_yMR3cgCnpbUtMUBXMcb2-HUldCk

Serena was given a separate announcement, will sail from South Korea and Taiwan from June to Sept; not sure where she will be from Sept to Dec and is expected to sail in the Caribbean starting Dec. Magica is definitely out with the recent flag change, shame they couldn’t keep Fortuna since it’s in active service now.

The only sailing that has a stop in Tahiti is Luminosa's transpacific this coming April, from Brisbane to Seattle. The return trip doesn't feature a stop there, they could however in the future on other repositioning, as Carnival experiments more and more with longer sailings in that area. But I wouldn't hold my breath.

Yes, a fairly popular one for ships based in the at region, Holland America’s Westerdam is wrapping up a dry dock there now and Pacific Encounter (P&O Aus) is heading there for an extensive dry dock to add waterslides and other outdoor activities.