Carnival Cruise Line's next giant cruise ship has begun her first set of sailings aimed at testing the ship's seaworthiness.
The Mardi Gras departed the Meyer Turku shipyard in Turku, Finland on Monday morning to spend the next 10 days at sea.
Once her sea trials are complete, she will return to the dock for final preparations for its departure for the U.S.
Mardi Gras will be the first ship powered by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in North America.
Mardi Gras is scheduled to enter service from Port Canaveral, Fla., Feb. 6, 2021, operating week-long itineraries.
Following the Mardi Gras, Carnival Cruise Line has plans for two sister ships -- Carnival Celebration and Carnival Jubilee -- to enter service in late 2022 and 2024, respectively.
Matt Hochberg
Matt loves to cruise, and started Cruise.Blog as a place to share different cruise experiences, advice, and what to know before going on a cruise.
He lives in Florida with his wife and two daughters, where he can be found on any given day trying to convince his wife they "need" to book another cruise.
