Carnival Destiny will not be leaving the brand's fleet as rumored. Instead it will undergo a major refit including expansion of several decks, and it will be renamed Carnival Sunshine in early 2013. When it returns to service it will incorporate all the "Carnival 2.0" features, most of which will have debuted on other ships by then.
The expansion will include 182 new staterooms raising double capacity to 3,006 passengers.
Plans for Carnival Sunshine then include a summer 2013 Mediterranean season, and at its completion it will be moved to New Orleans for year round service from there. The Mediterranean itineraries will generally be a series of nine- and 12-night sailings either round trip from Barcelona or between Barcelona and Venice (or vice versa) beginning in April 2013. It will reposition from Barcelona to New Orleans with a 16-day transatlantic crossing beginning November 1. From New Orleans, Carnival Sunshine will sail three different 7-night itineraries in the western Caribbean and Bahamas.
The $155 million refit will be carried out at Fincantieri, during a 49-day drydock that will run from February to April 2013. The Fincantieri yard will be designated at a later date.
The new itineraries are now open for sale through the 2013/2014 winter season. Deck plans are available on Carnival.com
Details appeared in the March 6, 2012, edition of Cruise News Daily.
