Carnival Cruise Line Celebrates 30 Years of Sailing from New Orleans

Laissez les bons temps rouler - Carnival Cruise Line is celebrating its 30th year of sailing from New Orleans! Carnival leaders, notable community members, and Carnival Chief Culinary Officer Emeril Lagasse gathered aboard Carnival Liberty to celebrate as the ship arrived in its new home of Port NOLA for the first time.  

Carnival is a top cruise operator in New Orleans, and the only ocean cruise line to homeport in the city year-round. Nearly seven million guests have cruised from Port NOLA on a Carnival ship since the cruise line began year-round service from here in 1994.            

“It’s an honor to share this great milestone and build on our successful partnership with the city and the port of New Orleans. We sail more than 400,000 guests from Port NOLA annually and for every one of them, our goal is the same: providing a fun and memorable vacation. That’s certainly a shared objective with the City of New Orleans, for all its visitors, which drives our partnership’s continued success,” said Christine Duffy, Carnival Cruise Line President. 

To mark the special 30-year milestone, Carnival donated $30,000 to the Emeril Lagasse Foundation to support New Orleans’ education and culinary programs for youth. Lagasse led a tour of the ship’s main galley for a group of children from the Belle Chasse Academy, a local school partner of Emeril's Culinary Garden & Teaching Kitchen. 

Carnival Chief Culinary Officer Emeril Lagasse joined the cruise line for its anniversary celebrations - Photos by Carnival Cruise Line

“Even before joining the team, I knew well that Carnival has been a great partner to our incredible city. We’ve all seen and enjoyed the growing popularity of cruising from our port over the years, which continues to bring more people here to enjoy all the rich culture our city has to offer,” said Lagasse. “My restaurants, Emeril’s and Meril, are just a few blocks from the pier, and it’s also special getting to welcome a ship docking here for the first time. We’re proud Carnival Liberty and her great team are now calling New Orleans home.”             

The arrival of Carnival Liberty to New Orleans maintains the line’s two-ship, year-round deployment strategy from New Orleans. Carnival Liberty will offer a variety of sailing options, with mostly week-long Caribbean cruises. In 2025, Carnival Liberty will sail several voyages visiting Celebration Key, Carnival’s upcoming private destination on the island of Grand Bahama. Carnival Liberty’s first cruise from New Orleans departed yesterday, sailing for a six-day Western Caribbean itinerary. 

“We are thrilled to celebrate this monumental milestone with our valued partner, Carnival Cruise Line,” said Brandy D. Christian, President & CEO, of Port of New Orleans and New Orleans Public Belt Railroad. “For 30 years, Carnival has shown an unwavering commitment to the New Orleans cruise market, and we are most grateful. Our cruise industry is thriving – and on track to exceed pre-pandemic numbers with the support of Carnival’s two year-round homeported vessels. We look forward to many more years of partnership and successes.”              

Carnival Liberty will share its new homeport with Carnival Valor, which also offers an array of four- to seven-day cruises from Port NOLA. 

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