New Ships Announced for Carnival Cruise Lines & Holland America Line

ms Koningsdam

The prototypes for the newest cruise vessel classes for Carnival Cruise Lines and Holland America Line are still under construction, but parent company Carnival Corporation is demonstrating once again why they are the world's largest travel and leisure company by placing new ship orders for those brands. The new cruise ships will be constructed by Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri.

The as-yet-unnamed 3,954-passenger vessel, which is to be the 26th ship in Carnival Cruise Lines' fleet, will offer many of the newest and most popular features from Carnival's current ships, along with several innovations that will be exclusive to this vessel. The delivery date for the new cruise ship is scheduled for March 2018. Homeport and itinerary information will be announced at a later date. The new ship will be a sister ship to Carnival Vista, which is slated for delivery in spring 2016. Carnival plans to announce details on the many unique features and innovations of Carnival Vista during a three-day event for media, travel agents and consumers in New York Jan. 22-24, 2015.

For Holland America Line, the new order adds a second Pinnacle class ship to the fleet, a new class of vessels that will debut with the delivery and launch of the ms Koningsdam in February 2016. The new ship, scheduled for delivery in late November 2018, will accommodate 2,650 guests and 1,025 crew. The new as-yet-unnamed ship will feature new public spaces and venues that will debut on Koningsdam. In addition, many of the familiar spaces that are currently featured across the Holland America Line fleet will be included.

"These beautiful new ships on order from Fincantieri signify our ongoing commitment to provide the best possible guest experience across our industry-leading brands," said Arnold Donald, President & CEO of Carnival Corporation. "New ships with the latest in features, accommodations and innovations really bring the modern cruise experience to life and will help us continue to grow new demand for cruising."

All told, Carnival Corporation has refreshed its global fleet—made up of nine brands and the largest in the world—with more than 30 new ship additions since 2007. Not to be overlooked, Seabourn, another Carnival Corporation brand, will unveil its newest and largest 604-passenger luxury ship in 2016. Also under the Carnival Corporation banner, Princess Cruises is looking forward to 2017 and working with Fincantieri to build a 143,000-ton vessel featuring the highly popular design elements introduced by the brand's two newest ships, sisters Royal Princess and Regal Princess.

ms Koningsdam Image Courtesy Holland America Line