Today Carnival Cruise Line announced starting in January 2020 Pepsi products will be sold on Carnival's ships. A variety of PepsiCo products will be sold including Bubly, Pure Leaf, Naked Juice, Gatorade, Mountain Dew, Starbucks, Pepsi, Pepsi Zero Sugar, Sierra Mist, and Sierra Mist Zero Sugar. A full list of the PepsiCo products planned to be sold & served onboard can be found below.
                The full variety of PepsiCo beverages will be available as Carnival ships deplete inventories of Coca-Cola products and receive shipments of the PepsiCo beverages. Carnival's website states for some time ships may have a mix of Coca-Cola and Pepsi products onboard until the Coca-Cola inventory is sold out. 
                  Through this change in beverage suppliers, Carnival will be taking an additional step to reduce single use plastics on the ships. Carnival's website states more aluminum and glass bottling will be used, but soda dispensers will be used when space allows. It is unclear which ships or bar areas will receive soda dispensers. 
                 There will be an impact to Carnival's beverage package programs, Cheers and Bottomless Bubbles. Some of the newly offered beverages will be available under one program but not the other, both, or not included in the program for either. Carnival's website notes that the change to PepsiCo products is not changing the price of Cheers or Bottomless Bubbles. 

PepsiCo Beverages That Will Be Served On Carnival's Ships:
               Once the roll-out is complete the following PepsiCo beverages are expected to be on the menu for Carnival's ships (per Carnival's website). I have also included information about whether the PepsiCo beverage is eligible for consumption under Carnival's Cheers or Bottomless Bubbles beverage packages:

             If you are a beverage package user (Cheers or Bottomless Bubbles) I recommend checking onboard to make sure you desired drink is included in the package you selected. Please keep in mind beverage availability and inclusion in a beverage package is subject to change. I compiled this list using Carnival's website on 11/13/2019, but information could have changed since this time.

Carnival's Press Release:
Click Here To View -  will take you away from RyG's Cruise Guide to Carnival's News website. This webpage will open in another window. 
Carnival's Beverage FAQ Section Over The PepsiCo Product Change:
Click Here To View -  will take you away from RyG's Cruise Guide to Carnival's website. This webpage will open in another window. ​

        Carnival Cruise Line recently announced the Carnival Freedom will be re-deployed to sail Alaska cruises for summer 2021. With the deployment of the Carnival Freedom to sail Alaska, Carnival Cruise Line is increasing its Alaska cruise capacity. 

Overview Of The Ship's Alaska Itineraries:
              The Carnival Freedom's Alaska cruises will begin after a 17 night Panama Canal re-positioning cruise departing from Galveston. Starting on Tuesday, April 27, 2021, the Carnival Freedom will begin sailing seven night round-trip Alaska cruises departing from Seattle, Washington. These cruises are scheduled to visit Skagway, Juneau, Ketchikan, Victoria, and have a scenic cruise day in Tracy Arm Fjord. The port of call stop in Victoria is an evening stop.  The Carnival Freedom's Alaska cruise season will end with an 8 round-trip cruise from Seattle that visits Juneau, Skagway, Icy Straight Point, Ketchikan, Victoria, and has a scenic cruise day in Tracy Arm Fjord. This 8 night cruise will depart on Tuesday, September 14, 2021. For more details on both of these itineraries see the tables below:

Carnival Freedom's 7 Night Alaska Cruise Itinerary Departing From Seattle, Washington:
                 Carnival has the Carnival Freedom scheduled to sail this itinerary weekly starting April 27, 2021 and the last cruise on this itinerary beginning on September 7, 2021. Please note, this itinerary is subject to change!

Carnival Freedom's 8 Night Alaska Cruise Itinerary Departing From Seattle, Washington:
                    The Carnival Freedom will end its 2021 Alaska cruise season with an 8 night round-trip cruise from Seattle, Washington. This cruise departs on Tuesday, September 14, 2021. ​Please note, this itinerary is subject to change!

The Carnival Miracle will also be sailing a variety of 10 & 11 night Alaska cruises from San Francisco, but this will be topic of another post! 

For more Alaska cruise information, including some generic Alaska cruise tips, check out Alaska guide:
Click Here

​All information was compiled from Carnival Cruise Line's booking engine and press release. Please visit Carnival's website for more information. All information is subject to change at any time! Make sure you check Carnival's website or with your travel agent for any changes to the ship's itineraries. 

        The Carnival Ecstasy recently underwent a nearly two-week dry-dock at the beginning of October 2019. During this time out of service, Carnival added and updated some features in the ship's public areas as well as used the dry-dock time to do some routine maintenance.

New & Updated Features:
             Carnival added Bonsai Sushi Express to the Carnival Ecstasy during this dry-dock. Bonsai Sushi Express serves a variety of sushi, sashimi, and rolls to cruisers that want to quickly get a bite to eat. This feature is not complimentary, which means guests do have to pay a little extra. Bonsai Sushi Express is located on the Carnival Ecstasy's Promenade Deck (Deck 9) across from the Crystal Palace Casino. 
             Another new feature is the Dreams Studio venue. The Dreams Studio is an area for private photography sessions with the ship's photographers. This studio is a part of the ship's Pixels Photo Gallery and Carnival sells photo packages for purchase. The Dreams Studio is located on the Carnival Ecstasy's Promenade Deck (Deck 9) on the same side of the ship as Club 02. 
                   When Carnival added the Dreams Studio, this took the place of the ship's old arcade. The Carnival Ecstasy received a brand new arcade in dry-dock that is now located on the Promenade Deck (Deck 9) where the ship's old conference room was located. 

Other Maintenance: 
               Carnival typically uses dry-dock time to refresh carpet and tile on the ship. Carnival's press release said this dry-dock was used to replace tile, carpet, and furniture in areas where work was needed. 

For more information on the Carnival Ecstasy visit Carnival's website: Click Here (will take you away from RyG's Cruise Guide and will open in a new browser window). 

         Carnival Cruise Line announced earlier this week the cruise line will have four year-round cruise ships sailing from Galveston starting in May 2021. Currently, three ships sail from Galveston (Carnival Vista, Carnival Dream. and Carnival Freedom). However, starting in May 2021 the Carnival Freedom will leave Galveston and the Carnival Radiance & Carnival Breeze will begin cruising from Galveston. 

Carnival Radiance To Galveston
          The Carnival Radiance will be deployed to Galveston starting on May 14, 2021. While sailing from Galveston, the Carnival Radiance is scheduled to sail a combination of 5 and 9 night cruises with two 14 night cruises currently scheduled. The five night cruises will visit Cozumel and Progreso or Costa Maya, depending on the sailing date. The Carnival Radiance's 9 night cruises will sail to a variety of ports of call. The first nine day option has scheduled port visits to Cozumel, Limon, Panama Canal (partial transit) or Colon, Panama. The second nine day cruise itinerary option has scheduled port visits to Key West, Grand Turk, Half Moon Cay, and Nassau. The third nine day cruise itinerary option has scheduled port visits to Grand Cayman, Mahogany Bay (Roatan), Belize, Costa Maya, and Cozumel. 
                The Carnival Radiance is a sister ship to the Carnival Sunrise and will be undergoing a 200 million dollar renovation next year. During this renovation Carnival will transform the Carnival Victory into the Carnival Radiance by adding many new features and refreshing the ship. 

Carnival Breeze To Galveston
               The Carnival Breeze will be deployed to Galveston starting May 5, 2021. While in Galveston, the Carnival Breeze will be primarily sailing 4 & 5 night cruises. Four night cruises typically sail to Cozumel and depart on Thursdays. Five night cruises alternate between departing on Mondays and Saturdays and sail to Cozumel & Progreso or Costa Maya. 

Carnival Dream Will Switch To Sail  6 & 8 Night Cruises
​                The Carnival Dream currently sails 4 & 5 night cruises from Galveston, but starting in May 2021 the ship will begin alternating between 6 & 8 night cruise vacations. The Carnival Dream's six night cruises are scheduled to visit Cozumel, Mahogany Bay or Belize, and Costa Maya. The Carnival Dream's eight night cruises are scheduled to visit Key West, Freeport, 
Half Moon Cay, and Nassau. 

Carnival Vista Will Continue Sailing Seven Night Cruise Itineraries
                   The Carnival Vista is scheduled to continue sailing 7 night cruises from Galveston that depart on Saturdays. One itinerary sails to Mahogany Bay, Belize, and Cozumel. The other itinerary sails to Grand Cayman, Montego Bay, and Cozumel.

Where Will The Carnival Freedom Be Repositioning To?
                Although there is excitement about the Carnival Breeze and Carnival Radiance coming to Galveston, several people are wondering where the Carnival Freedom will be redeployed to. When I put this post together, the Carnival Freedom's new homeport is not yet announced. I will come back and update this post once I learn more.  

Check Out My Galveston Cruise Tips & Information Page:  Click Here

Itinerary information is compiled from Carnival's press release and booking engine. All itineraries, ship deployments, and ports of call are subject to change. Please check Carnival's website for updated information!

       Norwegian Cruise Line has opened its bookings for the 2021 Alaska cruise season. During the 2021 Alaska cruise season, Norwegian will have three ships that sail to Alaska. The Norwegian Jewel, Norwegian Encore, and Norwegian Bliss will all have Alaska sailings at some point in the season.

Norwegian Bliss
           The Norwegian Bliss will sail seven night round-trip Alaska cruises that depart from Seattle, Washington. One of the ship's seven night itineraries includes Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay (scenic cruising), Ketchikan, and Victoria (British Columbia). The ship's other seven night itinerary includes Ketchikan, Juneau, Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier (scenic cruising), Icy Straight Point, and Victoria (British Columbia). 

Norwegian Encore
         The Norwegian Encore will sail seven night round-trip Alaska cruises that depart from Seattle, Washington. The booking engine appears to have only one main itinerary that includes visits to Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay (scenic cruising), Ketchikan, and Victoria (British Columbia). 

Norwegian Jewel
              The Norwegian Jewel will primarily sail seven night Alaska cruise voyages that alternate departing between Vancouver, Canada, and Seward, Alaska. Based on the booking engine, it looks like cruises that depart from Seward will end in Vancouver and cruises that start in Vancouver will end in Seward. The Northbound Alaska cruise itinerary that will begin in Vancouver is seven nights and visits places such as the Inside Passage (scenic cruising), Ketchikan, Juneau, Skagway, Glacier Bay (scenic cruising), and the Hubbard Glacier (scenic cruising). The Southbound Alaska cruise itinerary that will begin in Seward is seven nights and visits places such as Hubbard Glacier (scenic cruising), Icy Straight Point, Juneau, Endicott Arm & Dawes Glacier (scenic cruising), Skagway, Ketchikan,and the Inside Passage (scenic cruising). 

The information for each ship was compiled from Norwegian Cruise Line's website. Itineraries and information is subject to change at any time. 

        Carnival Cruise Line's new deli menu has several different sandwich for cruisers to enjoy. This new menu has been slowly rolled out to most Carnival ships, but is not yet fleetwide. 
            One of the new sandwich options available from Carnival's deli is the BLT Sandwich, which stands for Bacon Lettuce & Tomato. The menu that is posted at the ship's deli says this sandwich comes with "Bacon, tomato, iceberg lettuce on toast".  My sandwich also came with mayo on one of the slices of bread, which was not indicated on the menu. If you do not want mayo or any other type of sauce on the sandwich you can tell the crew member working the deli when you order.


​Overall Rating:
             On a scale of 5 stars (5 = highest rating and 1 = lowest rating) I would give this sandwich 5 stars. My reasons for giving this sandwich the highest possible rating are as follows: 

• Moderate Portion:   I found this sandwich to be a very good size, but not too large. On my sandwich I had approximately 4 or 5 slices of bacon, three tomatoes, and a handful of lettuce. Although everyone's appetite is different, I found that this sandwich allowed me to still have room to try other things on the ship's buffet & have dessert. 
• Crispy Bacon:   The bacon in my sandwich was mostly crispy with the exception of parts of one piece. This could vary by ship and cruise, but in my experience the bacon was extremely good. Also, the bacon was less greasy than what is served at the Lido buffet in the mornings at breakfast. I enjoyed the bacon that was in my sandwich much more than the Lido breakfast buffet. 
• Customization Is An Option:   Carnival's deli menu is very standardized, but most crew members are willing to make small customization to sandwiches. I asked for only a light amount of mayo to be put on the sandwich and the crew member made sure he put enough to add flavor, but not too much. 
• You Can Get Sides From The Deli To Go With This:   The new style deli menu includes the option to get a side of french fries, potato and egg salad, as well as a salted chocolate chip cookie with each sandwich. The fries can be regular french fries or truffle fries. I tried the french fries and salted chocolate chip cookie with a different sandwich. The fries were really good and the chocolate chip cookie was good as well. 
• Toasted Bread: I really liked the bread this sandwich was toasted on. The crew member making my sandwich toasted each slice of bread for about a minute and then turned each piece of bread around to toast the other side. The bread was not burnt and was warm when I took my first bite. 

Common Questions: 

• Is this food item free?   Yes, the BLT sandwich at the deli is free. Typically, Carnival's deli is open from 11:00am - 11:00pm which means you can visit the deli to get this item during lunch, as an  afternoon snack, for dinner, or in the evening after dinner. 
• Is this the same sandwich as the BLT listed on the room service menu?   I would imagine they are very similar, but I have never ordered from the room service menu to know what that BLT sandwich looks like. At the time of writing this post, the BLT sandwich on the room service menu is available only during daytime hours and is complimentary from room service. 

​The review of this sandwich reflects my opinion. If you have food allergies or dietary restrictions please do not use this review to make any decisions about whether this item is suitable for your consumption, because this information may not include all ingredients or facts related to the food dish. Consult Carnival to get a full listing of ingredients. 
​Also, food items and menus served can vary by cruise. 

         Carnival Cruise Line has started posting itineraries for May 2021 - April 2022 for select ships and homeports. Typically, Carnival makes bookings available in small batches and starts with ships that are staying in the same homeports. Within the next few months, I expect Carnival to continue opening itineraries and when homeport changes are being made Carnival will likely do a press release. For now, we just have to wait and see what additional ship deployments are coming. 
                    Currently, over half of Carnival's fleet has cruise bookings open and available through April 2022. 

​Here are some details and notes about each ship's released itineraries:
​
Carnival Fantasy
           The Carnival Fantasy is the oldest ship in Carnival's fleet and has been sailing Mobile over the past few years. Carnival only opened up sailings for the Carnival Fantasy from May 2021 through April 2022. 

Carnival Conquest
               The Carnival Conquest is scheduled to sailing from Miami, Florida and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the ship will primarily sail 3 & 4 night cruises. 

Carnival Elation
                 The Carnival Elation is scheduled to continue sailing from Port Canaveral, Florida and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the ship will primarily sail 4 & 5 night cruises. Note: Port Canaveral is the cruise homeport that is sometimes referred to as Orlando. 

Carnival Glory
​                   The Carnival Glory is scheduled to continue sailing from New Orleans, Louisiana, and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the ship will primarily sail 7 night cruises. 

Carnival Imagination
                        The Carnival Imagination is scheduled to continue sailing from Long Beach, California and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the ship will primarily sail 3 & 4 night cruises. 

Carnival Inspiration
                        The Carnival Inspiration is scheduled to continue sailing from Long Beach, California and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the ship will primarily sail 3 & 4 night cruises. 

Carnival Liberty
                 The Carnival Liberty is scheduled to continue sailing from Port Canaveral, Florida and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the ship will primarily sail 3 & 4 night cruises. 

Carnival Panorama
                  The Carnival Panorama is Carnival's third Vista class ship that is entering service in December 2020. Carnival scheduled the Carnival Panorama to continue sailing from Long Beach, California, and itineraries are available for booking through April 2022. During this time the ship will continue to primarily sail 7 night cruises. 

Carnival Ecstasy
                    The Carnival Ecstasy is scheduled to continue sailing from Jacksonville, Florida, and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the Carnival Ecstasy will continue sailing 4 & 5 night cruises.  

Carnival Horizon
                    The Carnival Horizon is scheduled to continue sailing from Miami, Florida, and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the Carnival Horizon will continue primarily sailing 6 & 8 night cruises. 

Carnival Paradise
                    The Carnival Paradise is scheduled to continue sailing from Tampa, Florida, and has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the Carnival Paradise will continue primarily sailing 4 & 5 night cruises.         

Carnival Sensation
                     ​The Carnival Sensation is scheduled to continue sailing from Miami, Florida. The ship has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the Carnival Sensation will continue sailing 4 & 5 night cruises. 

Carnival Valor
                     The Carnival Valor is scheduled to continue sailing from New Orleans, LA. The ship has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the Carnival Valor will continue primarily sailing 4 & 5 night cruises.

Mardi Gras
                      The Mardi Gras will make its debut in August 2020. Cruises for May 2021 through April 2022 are now available for booking. The Mardi Gras will continue sailing from Port Canaveral (Orlando), Florida. During this time, the ship will continue primarily sailing 7 night cruises.

Carnival Dream
                  The Carnival Dream is scheduled to continue sailing from Galveston, but will switch from 4 & 5 night cruises to 6 & 8 night cruises beginning in May 2021. 

Carnival Breeze
                   The Carnival Breeze will reposition to Galveston in May 2021 and will take over the 4 & 5 night cruises. The ship has cruises scheduled through April 2022. 

Carnival Vista
                    The Carnival Vista is scheduled to continue sailing from Galveston, Texas. The ship has cruises scheduled through April 2022. During this time the Carnival Vista will continue to primarily sail 7 night cruises. 

Carnival Radiance
                    The Carnival Radiance will reposition to Galveston in May 2021. The ship has itineraries scheduled through April 2022. During this time, the ship will primarily sail a combination of 5 & 9 night cruises. There are three different 9 night cruise combinations that will be offered and two different 5 night combinations. 

Carnival Freedom
                    The Carnival Freedom will reposition to Seattle, Washington in April 2021. During the summer of 2021, the Carnival Freedom will sail 7 night Alaska cruises from Seattle, Washington. After the Alaska cruise season ends, the ship will reposition to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. From Ft. Lauderdale, the Carnival Freedom will sail a variety of 6 & 8 night cruises. 
                

It's time to wait for more Carnival ships to be released! I'm hoping more will be posted soon!

Last Updated:  Wednesday, November 6, 2019

Please keep in mind itineraries are subject to change at any time and I am not affiliated with any cruise line so I have no control over itineraries. All of this information was compiled from Carnival's booking engine, is subject to change, and does not reflect all sailings that each ship does. When I use the term "primarily sail" I intend to mean this is what the ship does the majority of the time, which does not mean all cruises the ship is scheduled to sail. 

Carnival Dream Docked At Galveston Cruise Terminal 1:
          Below are some pictures I took of the Carnival Dream docked at Galveston's Cruise Terminal 1. These pictures were taken on Thursday, August 15, 2019. The Carnival Dream was about to depart on a 4 night cruise to Cozumel, Mexico. 
Click Any Photo To Make It Larger!

Carnival Dream Docked At Galveston Cruise Terminal 2:
               Below are some pictures of the Carnival Dream docked at Galveston's Cruise Terminal 2 and departing later in the day. These pictures were taken on Saturday, May 18, 2019. The Carnival Dream was departing on a 5 night cruise. I took these pictures on the same day I was cruising on the Carnival Vista. 
Click Any Photo To Make It Larger!

          If you eating in the Lido buffet of your Carnival Cruise ship for breakfast you will have a variety of choices each morning of the cruise. The best part of the Lido buffet for breakfast is you can choose to eat as much as you want and for most items get to serve yourself. 
              This post will share items that are commonly found in Carnival's Lido buffet for breakfast. The actual food offerings during your cruise may vary slightly so don't be disappointed if something you see here is not offered. Enjoy the pictures posted here of the food offered in the Lido buffet from some of my cruises!

​Main Lido Breakfast Buffet Line Selections:
             Typically, Carnival's main Lido buffet lines have similar offerings each day of the cruise, but the style of a dish offered can vary. On my cruises, Carnival seems to almost always have oatmeal, scrambled eggs, french toast, pancakes, and bacon available daily. Additionally, Carnival typically will have some sort of potato dish each day of the cruise. The potato dish served  could be roasted potatoes, hash browns, or some other variation of a potato. Carnival does the same thing with the sausage available at breakfast. One day of the cruise might be sausage links, but the next day might be sausage cooked in a different way. The exact offerings are up to the chef onboard the ship. I have also seen Carnival's main breakfast buffet lines offer grilled tomatoes, baked beans, grits, and biscuit & gravy. 

Pastries & Fruits:
                 Carnival's Lido breakfast buffet is filled with a variety of different pastries and sweets. I reached out to Carnival to ask for a list of pastries typically served on the buffet. The Lido buffet selection generally consists of the following pastries: Apple Cornet, Vanilla Crown, Cinnamon Swirls, Raspberry Danish, Croissant, Banana Bread, and muffins. The muffins offered is up to the chef and could include: Chocolate Chips muffins, Orange Sunrise muffins, Chocolate Chunk muffins, Banana Nut muffins, Glorious muffins, Lemon Poppy Seed muffins, or Honey Raisin muffins. THANK YOU to the nice people working in Carnival's PR Department that were able to provide me with information about the pastry offerings. If you happen to read this I appreciate your help!
                  Here are a few pictures of some of the pastries that I have captured on past cruises:

What types of fruits are generally available? 
              The exact offering can vary by day. Carnival usually has fruits available including cantaloupe, prunes, honeydew, pineapple, peaches, grapefruit, and watermelon. Some Carnival ships have bite sized sliced fruit available by the pastries, but generally the main breakfast buffet line has large chunks of fruit available. The location of fruit can vary by ship. 

                   Besides hot breakfast food dishes, fruit, and pastries, Carnival also usually has a variety of sliced meats & cheeses available in the Lido buffet. If cruisers want cereal, Carnival also has cereal available in the Lido buffet. Due to cutting down on waste, Carnival is transitioning away from personal cereal boxes and moving to dispensers that will be available. On my recent Carnival Cruise, cereals available included Cheerios, Raisin Bran, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Corn Flakes, Fruit Loops, Lucky Charms, and Rice Krispies. I have also seen Frosted Flakes offered too.

Omelet Station:
          An omelet station is also available, but I cover this in another post:  Click Here For My Omelet Station Post