Carnival Makes Fleet Changes with Liberty and Pride

Carnival has announced a couple changes to their fleet schedules affecting the Carnival Liberty and Carnival Pride.

In anticipation of a bit lower demand for European cruises in the summer of 2009, mostly due to air issues, Carnival has decided to bring the Carnival Liberty back to the Caribbean year-round! They will still have the brand new Carnival Dream in Europe for a few sailings after her inaugural, but since most of Carnival's passengers in Europe are from North America, and we all are aware of what's happening with air fares and lowered availability, they believe that even with the exchange rate improving (rather dramatically this last week, actually), fewer North Americans looking for mainstream cruises will be heading to Europe next summer.

The Liberty will continue her previously-scheduled itinerary of sailings through the spring, then in April, 2009, she will begin a new series of 7-night sailings from Miami.

This change means that the Carnival Pride will be able to move up to Baltimore to start her year-round cruises even earlier than originally announced! She will now begin her Baltimore deployment on April 27, 2009!

Reservations for both ships for the new sailings will begin on October 30.

Celebrity Mercury & Millennium - Out with Australia, in with Baltimore and Charleston in 2009/2010!

Celebrity Cruise is discontinuing its Australia and New Zealand cruises scheduled for late 2009 and 2010 on Celebrity Millennium, and adding new itineraries for the ship and Celebrity Mercury from Baltimore and Charleston!

The Celebrity Millennium will take over and enhance theend-of-seasion 2009 Alaska sailings previously scheduled for the Mercury, including a 12-night wine themed cruise from Vancouver and a 16-night Panama Canal cruise on October 10, 2009, from San Diego to San Juan, where Millennium will offer a series of 10- and 11-night Southern Caribbean cruises roundtrip beginning October 26, 2009

Celebrity Mercury, from November 2009 to February 2010, will sail a series of 12-night Eastern Caribbean cruises from Baltimore. After, it will offer 10- and 11-night Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries from Charleston through April 2010. The new Celebrity Mercury itineraries replace the Southern Caribbean cruises from San Juan previously slated from November 2009 to April 2010.

This is absolutely fantastic news for those living near Baltimore and Charleston. While I regret the fact that Celebrity won't be in Australia/New Zealand in 2009/2010, this brings some terrific opportunities closer home. I'm also sure they will return at a later point in the future.

And if you were thinking of Australia/New Zealand for that season, consider moving that up and sailing this year - there are some remarkable values for the 2008/2009 season just about to get underway!