NOT SO FAST Carnival postpones entry to China

Posted on 03/04/2016 | About China

Carnival was initially enthusiastic about the China market. In October the cruise line announced service in China, starting with the Carnival Miracle in spring 2017, followed by Carnival Splendor in spring 2018. Then, in December Carnival backtracked somewhat, saying it was cautious on its outlook to China.  This week the cruise line announced that the China debut would be postponed by a year.

The company released a statement saying, “Following a recent review of our fleet-wide deployment plans over the next few years and the best formula for balancing capacity needs, we have decided to enter the Chinese market in early 2018 and remain excited about expanding our operations to this part of the world. “Carnival Miracle, which was originally scheduled to begin service in China in spring 2017, will now continue to operate Mexican Riviera and Hawaii cruises throughout 2017 and will be repositioned to China in early 2018.”Carnival spokesperson Vance Gulliksen said that the line wants to move only one ship to China initially and made the decision based on the "best formula for balancing capacity needs."