Carnival Cruises & New Orleans Celebrate 30th Anniversary

Carnival Cruise Line marked its 30th anniversary of operations in New Orleans with a celebratory event aboard the Carnival Liberty, featuring notable attendees including the cruise line’s Chief Culinary Officer, Emeril Lagasse, celebrated for his New Orleans-style cuisine.

The event coincided with the Carnival Liberty docking at its new base, Port NOLA, for the first time, as stated in a press release. During the celebration, both Chris Chiames, Carnival’s Chief Communications Officer, and Arnold Donald, the former CEO of Carnival Corporation and a native of New Orleans, expressed gratitude to the local leaders for their enduring collaboration.

Carnival holds the position as the leading cruise operator in New Orleans, offering the only year-round ocean cruise service from the city. Since initiating its first year-round service in 1994, nearly seven million passengers have embarked on a Carnival cruise from Port NOLA, the company reported.

Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy highlighted the significance of the partnership between the city and the cruise line: “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.”

In commemoration of the 30-year milestone, Carnival donated $30,000 to the Emeril Lagasse Foundation to support educational and culinary programs for New Orleans youth.

Lagasse himself conducted a tour of the ship’s main galley for children from Belle Chasse Academy, a partner school of Emeril’s Culinary Garden & Teaching Kitchen. The tour followed the cutting of a special anniversary cake by the Carnival Liberty’s culinary team.

Lagasse remarked on the significance of the partnership with Carnival and the benefits to New Orleans: “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. 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 Carnival Liberty is part of Carnival’s strategy to maintain a two-ship, year-round deployment in New Orleans. The ship offers various sailing options, including week-long cruises to the Bahamas, Mexico, and the Caribbean, and two special 14-day voyages through the Panama Canal.

Next year, it will also sail to Celebration Key, Carnival’s new exclusive destination on Grand Bahama Island. It joins the Carnival Valor, which provides four- to seven-day cruises.

Brandy D. Christian, President & CEO of Port of New Orleans and New Orleans Public Belt Railroad, expressed enthusiasm about the anniversary: “We are thrilled to celebrate this monumental milestone with our valued partner, Carnival Cruise Line. 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.”