Carnival Cruise Line is one of the leading cruise giants in America.
Their fleet of 29 fun ships sails to popular destinations across the Bahamas, Caribbean, Alaska, Europe, and more. However, Carnival is just one piece of a much larger puzzle.
Carnival Cruise Line is owned by Carnival Corporation & plc, the world's largest cruise operator with a combined fleet of over 90 ships across 8 brands. They're followed by Royal Caribbean Group.
Carnival Corp's portfolio includes a diverse range of cruise lines, with the most well-known being Carnival. However, it also owns European brands like AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises, which allows Carnival to appeal to a wide range of passengers across the globe.
- Carnival Cruise Line
- Princess Cruises
- Cunard Line
- Holland America Line
- Costa Cruises
- AIDA Cruises
- Seabourn Cruises
- P&O Cruises
Each brand caters to a different demographic. Seabourn, for example, focuses on offering port-intensive, luxury cruises, while Carnival is known for its family-friendly voyages and continues to be the cruise line of choice for millions of travelers annually.
Carnival Corporation was founded as Carnival Cruise Line in 1972 by Ted Arison
The first ship in Carnival's fleet was the Mardi Gras, which was purchased from the Canadian Pacific Line. Arison then secured another former Canadian Pacific Line ship and renamed it the Carnivale.
Following the success of the Mardi Gras and Carnivale, Carnival Cruise Line's fleet grew to 3 in 1978, following the addition of the Festivale. Finally, Carnival decided to build its own vessels to compete with other cruise lines.
The company continued to grow throughout the 1980s, and in 1987, Arison took it public by listing it on the New York Stock Exchange.
This capital is what enabled Carnival to begin acquiring other cruise lines, and by 1999, Carnival secured Holland America Line, Windstar Cruises, Westours, Seabourn Cruise Line, Costa Cruises, and Cunard Line (though not all of them remain part of Carnival's portfolio today).
In 1993, Carnival Cruise Line adopted the name Carnival Corporation to distinguish the parent company from the flagship cruise line.
One decade later, Carnival Corp. merged with P&O Princess Cruises to officially become Carnival Corporation & plc, with "corporation" representing the public ownership in the United States, and "plc" indicating that it's a publicly listed company in the UK.
Today, the CEO of Carnival Corporation & plc is Josh Weinstein. Christine Duffy is the President of Carnival Cruise Line.
Carnival Cruise Line's fleet is comprised of 29 ships
The oldest Carnival ship is Carnival Sunshine (formerly Carnival Destiny), while the newest is Carnival Jubilee. The smallest, however, is Carnival Elation.
Some of Carnival's "newer" ships are actually just old Costa Cruises vessels that were transferred to the Carnival fleet after refurbishments and rebranding, including Carnival Luminosa, Carnival Firenze, and Carnival Venezia.
Moreover, Carnival's newest additions — Carnival Encounter and Adventure — actually started their careers sailing for Princess before being acquired by P&O Cruises Australia, which was absorbed by Carnival in March 2025 to increase its capacity in the South Pacific.
Read more: Carnival Ships By Age: Newest to Oldest
Princess Cruises and Holland America Line are technically owned by Carnival
Carnival Corporation, that is! Despite being owned by the same parent company, Carnival, Princess, and Holland America maintain their own brand identity and onboard experiences. As such, there are no status-matching programs available for Carnival Corporation & plc brands.
Other household names, including Royal Caribbean, Norwegian, and MSC Cruises, are all owned by other companies. Royal Caribbean International is owned by the Royal Caribbean Group, while Norwegian Cruise Line is owned by Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings.
MSC Cruises is one of the largest mainstream cruise lines that is privately owned. This means that people can't buy shares in MSC as they can with other lines, including Carnival Cruise Line.
Elizabeth Wright
Elizabeth graduated from New York University's Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute with her M.A. in Journalism in May 2023. Growing up, she traveled frequently with her family and fell in love with cruising after sailing on the Oasis of the Seas during her freshman year of high school. Having sailed on over 30 cruises across different lines, including Royal Caribbean, Carnival, MSC, Margaritaville at Sea, and Princess, she loves sharing her insight and expertise on all things cruising!
