Carnival Corporation has signed a memorandum of agreement to order two Vista class ships with an option for an additional two cruise ships that will be built in China.
This non-binding memorandum will mark the first time cruise ships are built in China for the Chinese cruise market. The first ship will be delivered in 2022 and will be tailored for the new Chinese cruise brand and the specific tastes of Chinese travelers.
As part of the new MOA, Carnival Corporation’s cruise joint venture in China agreed to order two new cruise ships to be built by a newly formed China-based shipbuilding joint venture between China’s largest shipbuilder, China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC), and Italy-based Fincantieri S.p.A., the world’s largest cruise shipbuilding company. The MOA also grants Carnival Corporation’s cruise joint venture the option to order two additional China-built cruise ships.
The ships will be a part of the first multi-ship domestic cruise brand in China. The partners signed the memorandum of agreement at a signing ceremony held today at the 11th annual China Cruise Shipping and International Cruise Expo (CCS11) in Tianjin, China.
Alan Buckelew, global chief operations officer for Carnival Corporation, gave the following statement: “We are excited about the potential for the first new cruise ships to be built and deployed in China for the enjoyment of Chinese travelers, which will be an important milestone in the development of the Chinese cruise market.
As we work with our Chinese partners to launch the first domestic Chinese cruise brand in the next few years, being able to offer cruises on China-built cruise ships represents a new opportunity for us to generate excitement and demand for cruising amongst a broader segment of the Chinese vacation market, which is already the largest in the world and continues to see strong growth every year.”
Carnival Corporation is the largest leisure travel company in the world operating more than 100 cruise ships across 10 cruise brands. The company has 18 new cruise ships scheduled to be delivered in the next 6 years.
