Carnival's Katrina relief effort ships

Jason · September 25, 2005

Carnival ships in Katrina relief effort will sail again next year

By The Associated Press

MIAMI- Three Carnival Cruise Lines ships chartered by the federal government for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts will return to service next year, cruise line officials said Friday.

The Ecstasy will resume four-and-five day cruises out of Galveston, Tex. starting next April after undergoing a 35-day refurbishment.

The Holiday will return to Caribbean cruising out of Mobile, Ala. in March 2006 after undergoing a three-week drydock for refurbishing. The Sensation will resume four-and-five-day cruises out of New Orleans starting in October 2006.

The ships have provided shelter for as many as 7,000 Katrina victims.

In addition, Carnival announced that four-and-five-day cruises will be available from Port Canaveral and a seven-day cruise will launch from Miami.

The four-and-five day cruises out of Port Canaveral will start next March, initially on the 2,052-passenger Sensation. The 2,052-passenger Elation will take over the cruises starting in October 2006.

The four-day cruises will call at Nassau, Freeport or Half Moon Cay. The five-day cruises will call at Half Moon Cay and Grand Turk, a new port of call in the Turks & Caicos Islands; starting in 2007, the cruise also will make stops in Key West and Cozumel.

Carnival also plans to start seven-day cruises out of Miami that will last from May to October of next year aboard the Elation, with a daytime call in San Juan.