Carnival Jubilee received its official welcome to the fleet during a naming ceremony in Galveston, Texas, the home port for Carnival Cruise Line’s latest 5,282-passenger ship.
The new 180,000-gross-ton ship is already making a Texas-sized impression on cruisers. Jubilee is packed with restaurants (22 different eateries), pools, bars and activities. Most of the good stuff is included in the cruise fare, too, which clients will love.
A Big Texas Welcome
Singer Gwen Stefani, Godmother to Jubilee, stepped foot on a cruise ship for the first time and — after having a tour around her impressive ship — declared that she now understands why people are so excited about cruise vacations.
At the christening ceremony, Galveston mayor Craig Brown handed Carnival Cruise Line president Christine Duffy a key to the city and proclaimed Feb. 24, 2024, to be Carnival Jubilee Day. It was the first ship christening to be held in Galveston, and Jubilee is the first new ship to homeport in the city.
Jubilee will homeport in Galveston, Texas.
Credit: 2024 Carnival Cruise LineAnd Carnival certainly is catering to the residents of the Lone Star state with a number of design features on the ship. Jubilee boasts a big Lone Star logo high on the point of the bow, and a giant Texas state flag chair situated for photo ops mid-ship at Grand Central.
“Texas is her forever home; she ain’t going anywhere,” Duffy said.
Texas is her forever home; she ain’t going anywhere.
Texas-themed activities are offered onboard throughout the ship’s weeklong Western Caribbean cruises. Jubilee’s itinerary offers stops at Mahogany Bay in Roatan, Honduras, and Costa Maya and Cozumel, Mexico. Fares start at $679 per person.
The shipboard program also features something called Lone Star Tailgate, with sports competitions, competitive games and country music on the Lido Deck.
Jubilee is the third ship in Carnival’s innovative Excel Class, joining sister ships Carnival Celebration and Mardi Gras. A fourth Excel ship was announced and is scheduled to debut in 2027.
Fun for All Ages
These Excel ships are marked by creative zones — six neighborhoods for cruisers to experience around the ship. All three existing Excel ships feature the Ultimate Playground (with activities at the top of the ship including mini-golf, a sports court and Bolt, the thrilling roller coaster), Lido and Summer Landing zones.
The Bolt roller coaster
Credit: 2024 John RobertsWhereas Mardi Gras has a French Quarter zone and Celebration offers its Miami-themed 820 Key Biscayne neighborhood, Jubilee features new zones called The Shores and Currents, giving the ship a distinct connection with the sea.
The Shores has the Marina Bar and Beach Buns for hot dogs, sausages and deli sandwiches, as well as Coastal Slice for pizzas.
Currents, an underwater-themed zone, is the place for Dr. Inks, a bar with fun, color-changing craft cocktails, and a corridor of immersive sights and sounds provided by six LED portals. I joined cruisers who gathered on two levels of Currents to watch the show Seaquest: A Fun Sub Adventure.
The high-tech portals display a submarine adventure that aims to simulate an underwater experience navigating a magical grotto amid schools of fish and close encounters with glowing whale sharks.
Currents is an underwater-themed zone.
Credit: 2024 John RobertsThroughout the day, cruisers get the chance to “Change the Currents,” or choose their favorite underwater worlds shown on the portals — such as waters with penguins and orcas or coastal mangroves with alligators and crabs.
Families and kids also will love the “Create a Fish” sessions, during which little ones can draw fish, then watch them swim into the ocean through the portals.
More for the kids of all ages: The Bolt ride ($15), waterslides and ropes course.
