Norwegian Cruise Line recently announced the first of its Prima Class ship, the Norwegian Prima, is scheduled to sail from Galveston in the Winter 2023 and Spring 2024 season. The Norwegian Prima is scheduled to enter service in 2022. 

Seven Night Round-Trip Cruises
            The Norwegian Prima is scheduled to sail seven night cruises from Galveston that depart on Fridays. These itineraries are scheduled for Winter 2023 and Spring 2024. Based on Norwegian Cruise Line's booking engine these cruises are scheduled to depart Galveston on Friday and will have a sea day on Saturday. On Sunday the ship will dock at Costa Maya, Mexico and then on Monday the ship will tender at Harvest Caye, Belize. On Tuesday the ship will tender again at Roatan Bay in Honduras and on Wednesday the ship will dock at Cozumel, Mexico. The cruise will end with a sea day on Thursday and then will dock again in Galveston on Friday. The exact itinerary of the Norwegian Prima's cruises could change due to a variety of factors so please keep in mind that scheduled itineraries can change! 

One Time Galveston Sailing In 2022: 11 Night Cruise
                 The Norwegian Prima is scheduled to sail an 11 night cruise in October 2022 from Galveston that will end in Miami, Florida. This is not a round-trip cruise! The 11 night cruise includes scheduled port of call stops at Cozumel, Mexico; Oranjestad, Aruba; Willemstad, Curacoa; Kralendijk, Bonair; and Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas. The itinerary is subject to change. 

For Additional Norwegian Prima Information
              I highly recommend taking a look at the Norwegian Prima's page on Norwegian Cruise Line's website. Here you can find information about the ship's amenities, dining, entertainment, and more. 
Click Here To View (link will take you away from RyG's Cruise Guide to Norwegian Cruise Line's website). 

      This morning I traveled to Galveston to see the Carnival Dream and Carnival Vista docked. The Carnival Vista was docked at Cruise Terminal 1 and the Carnival Dream was docked at Cruise Terminal 2.

Carnival Dream New Livery
       Today marked the end of the Carnival Dream's first cruise back in service after the long Coronavirus shutdown that began in March 2020. During the shutdown, the Carnival Dream received a dry-dock in France and the ship was given a new hull livery design. The new paint livery design is consistent with the Mardi Gras and changed the ship's front hull to a navy blue color. In my opinion, the new navy blue livery design looked great on the ship! Now that the Carnival Dream is back in-service it is scheduled to be sailing 6 & 8 night cruises from Galveston that depart on alternating Saturdays and Sundays. 

Crew Members Ashore
                 When cruises initially re-started the crew members were not allowed to debark the ship in Galveston, but today it looked like this rule might have changed. The Starbucks across from Cruise Terminal 1 was very busy and I saw crew members wearing Carnival badges walk across the street to the Starbucks. There appeared to be less crew members walking around today compared to my other times of visiting Galveston (pre-COVID) with cruise ships in, but it was great to see the crew being able to enjoy some time away from the ship. 

Check out some of my pictures from today of the Carnival Dream & Carnival Vista: 

          Carnival Cruise Line has published a schedule of cruise directors that includes a listing of who the cruise director is at a particular time. This schedule is available to everyone online and according to Carnival's social media is updated as changes are made.

UPDATE (September 25, 2021)  Carnival Cruise Line has announced the cruise directors for additional cruise ships. 
Here is who is currently scheduled to each ship:
​- Carnival Vista: Kyndall Magyar 
- Carnival Horizon: Chris Salazar 
- Carnival Breeze: Jonathon "Cookie" Adams
- Carnival Miracle: Jen Baxter 
- Carnival Magic: Gary Blair 
- Carnival Sunrise: Felipe Couto   
- Carnival Panorama:  Lee Mason
-  Mardi Gras: Mike Pack (Chris Williams started as cruise director as Mike Pack was away, but Mike is now back). 
- Carnival Glory: Leon Smith 
- Carnival Valor: Marty Pitts
- Carnival Pride: Frankie Portera 
- Carnival Legend: Leigh Xuereb 
- Carnival Dream: Deon Williams
- Carnival Freedom: TJ Partida 
- Carnival Elation: Paully Munhollon 

At this time the actual schedule is not posted, but I will update this post as soon as things are ready. Keep in mind the cruise director schedule is always subject to change!

How To View Carnival's Cruise Director Schedule:
               The easiest way to find Carnival's cruise director schedule is by having the direct link. Here is a direct link to the cruise director schedule:
Click Here To View The Schedule  - [Please See Note Above About Coronavirus Situation]
​                    By clicking this link you will be taken away from RyG's Cruise Guide and to a website called AirTable which is what Carnival uses to manage its cruise director schedule. NOTE: I am not affiliated with Carnival and have no control over the cruise director schedule. I am just sharing how you find out what Carnival's schedule says. This schedule can change at any time! 

Does the schedule change?
            The schedule can change at any point in time. For this reason, I do not recommend booking a cruise solely to have a certain cruise director because I do not want you to be disappointed if the schedule changes. I do understand that having a well liked cruise director is a great reason to want a certain cruise, but just realize things could change with the schedule.

What if my ship has a TBA cruise director?
                This most likely means that Carnival has not finalized who will be on your cruise at a particular date. Generally, the TBAs are filled in advance of a cruise leaving. Even if for some reason your cruise didn't have a true cruise director someone onboard would probably act as the cruise director which would mean no visible impact would be seen by guests. 

How far out does the schedule go? 
                  Since Carnival's schedule is updated frequently this could change. Generally for most ships, the planned cruise director up until mid-2020 is available (at the time of writing). This means for several of Carnival's ships you are able to see who the cruise director will be through summer 2020. Some ships have not yet been updated. Just keep checking back is my recommendation! 

Other Carnival Cruise Resources You May Enjoy:
My Unofficial Guide to Carnival Cruise Food & Dining -  Click Here To View
My Carnival Cruise Reviews With Pictures & Fun-Times -  Click Here To View

Please consider liking RyG's Cruise Guide on Facebook!
I occasionally share Carnival cruise related tips, articles, and pictures. 
Click Here To View Our Facebook Page

      Carnival Cruise ships with a Seaside Theater will show movies in the evening as part of Carnival's Dive In Movies program. The movies shown typically change each month. On your cruise if you are interested in Dive In Movies, check your Fun-Times activity newsletter or the Carnival Hub App for movie offerings and the time the movie will be shown. 
​
October 2021 Carnival Dive In Movies List
John Heald posted on September 21, 2021 the movies for October. These movies are scheduled to be shown on ships that have resumed cruising and have Seaside Theaters that can host Dive-In Movies. If you are scheduled to cruise in October 2021 on a ship that does Dive-In Movies make sure to check your Carnival Hub App for the times that the movies for the day are scheduled to show. 

• Cruella​
• F9 Fast & Furious
• Hocus Pocus
• In The Heights
• Maleficent Mistress of Evil
• Nomadland
• Raya and the Last Dragon
• Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins
• The Boss Baby: Family Business
• The Invisible Man 

September 2021 Carnival Dive In Movies 
           John Heald posted on August 19, 2021 the movies for September. These movies are scheduled to be shown on ships that have resumed cruising and have Seaside Theaters that can host Dive-In Movies: 

• ​Cruella
• Dream Horse
• News of the World
• Nomandland
• Peter Rabbit 2 
• Raya and the Last Dragon
• Soul
• Tenet

August 2021 Carnival Dive In Movies List
           John Heald posted on July 24, 2021 the movies for August. It looks like the list of movies for the month of August 2021 is the same as July 2021. These movies are scheduled to be shown on ships that have resumed cruising and have Seaside Theaters that can host Dive-In Movies: 

•  Nomadland
• Raya and the Last Dragon
• Minari
• Tenet
• Barb & Star Go To Vista Del Mar
• Independence Day
• News of the World
• Captain America The First Avenger ​

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July 2021 Carnival Dive In Movies List
The Carnival Vista, Carnival Breeze, and Carnival Horizon will be restarting cruising after the coronavirus pandemic shutdown in July 2021. John Heald, Carnival's Brand Ambassador, posted on Facebook the following movies are scheduled to be shown on these three ships in the month of July 2021: 

• Tenent
• Minari
• News of the World
• Nomadland
• Raya and the Last Dragon
• Soul
• The Father
• Independence Day
• Captain America: The First Avenger
• Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar 

November 2021 Carnival Dive In Movies List
The November 2021 Dive-In Movies list has not yet been announced. Stay tuned!

December 2021 Carnival Dive In Movies List
The December 2021 Dive-In Movies list has not yet been announced. Stay tuned!
​

Please keep in mind the movies are subject to change! 

      The fall is just around the corner and that means Halloween is coming up! The past couple of months of 2021 have seen several Carnival ships coming back into service after the long coronavirus shutdown and additional ships are scheduled to return to service as the year continues. Carnival recently released some of the 2021 Halloween activities and the sail-dates for ships that are hosting Halloween events & activities for 2021. This post contains some information about Carnival's planned Halloween events & activities as well as a list of Carnival ships and departure dates that are scheduled to have Halloween festivities onboard. 

2021 Planned Halloween Activities
Carnival has a variety of different Halloween events and activities planned for this year. These events & activities will take place in addition to the regular activities normally held during a cruise. Below is a list of activities that Carnival shows as being planned for the 2021 Halloween cruises: 

• Patch's Halloween Deck Party
• Costume Contest 
• Dive In Movies*
• Patch's Halloween Pumpkin Hunt
• Themed Trivia
• "Patch's Spook-tacular" Bingo
• "Frightfully Fun" Dance Class
• "Guess That Frightful Song Line-Up" 
• Pumpkin Carving Competition
• Halloween Photo Opportunities 

Note: Dive-In Movies is not on every ship. 

UPDATE (9/26/2021) -  The October 2021 Dive In Movies list has been announced which includes some Halloween themed movies/shows. Click Here for the list of Dive In Movies that Carnival ships with a Dive In Movie theater are scheduled to show throughout the month of October. 

Additionally, Carnival's website shows youth activities such as a family trick or treat, kids costume contest, and a teen Halloween party are scheduled to take place. 

How can I know when Halloween events are taking place during my cruise?
              You can check your Carnival Hub App which includes events and activities taking place onboard for each day of the cruise. The app typically shows the time and location of each event. Additionally, at your Carnival ship's Guest Services desk a one-pager Fun-Times activity is available that has all of the daily activities. 

Does Carnival have any rules for costumes?
            Carnival's website lists out costume types/items that are prohibited. Please refer to Carnival's website by clicking here for the full list of things that are prohibited. 

Ships and Dates Halloween Events Will Be Held Onboard
                  This year not all Carnival ships will be back in service to hold Halloween activities. Below is a table that shows ships and a range of departure dates that are scheduled to have Halloween festivities onboard: 

My source for this information is Carnival's website. Click here to go to Carnival's website (link will take you away from RyG's Cruise Guide). I highly recommend this page if you want further information. Also, please keep in mind things are subject to change.