Carnival Cruise Line has reached out to guests booked aboard Mardi Gras for a great number of sailings in the months to come with an alert about an itinerary change. In total, more than 60 published sailings are impacted.
The change, however, is a minor one that most guests won’t notice. Still, it is wise of the cruise line to alert travelers in case their onward travel plans may be impacted by the adjustment.
“We have slightly revised the itinerary for your cruise and now plan to conclude the voyage at 8:00 AM (instead of 7:00 AM) in Port Canaveral,” the email notification read. “Although this is some time away, the Mardi Gras is already looking forward to welcoming you aboard for a fun and memorable cruise.”
The impacted sailings are every Mardi Gras cruise from the ship’s January 4, 2025 departure through and including the September 7, 2025 departure, plus the October 16, 2025 sailing through and including the December 27, 2025 voyage. Furthermore, all published sailings in 2026 are also included in the itinerary change.
This makes a total of 63 sailings of the Excel-class ship that will have this later ending time as she returns to Port Canaveral. The only cruise not included with the change is Mardi Gras’ 14-night one-way transatlantic crossing to Barcelona that departs on September 13, 2025.
To be clear, only the ship’s return to Port Canaveral is impacted, and at this time, there are no changes to any ports of call on the various voyages.
That crossing is ahead of the ship’s roughly two-week dry dock refit, a planned out-of-service window for general maintenance, refreshment, and upgrades. This will be Mardi Gras‘ first dry dock update since she debuted in July 2021.
It is common for ships to undergo dry dock refreshments every 4-5 years, which will include general updates, technical enhancements, minor repairs. This type of work will keep the ship looking her very best and operating at peak efficiency.
The exact updates planned for Mardi Gras have not been announced and will not likely be revealed until much closer to the dry dock dates, or even after the upgrades are complete.
The impacted cruises are mostly 7-night sailings from Port Canaveral, including both Eastern and Western Caribbean itineraries. Also affected are the occasional Southern Caribbean cruises the ship offers, as well as her return transatlantic crossing from Barcelona, which will depart Spain on October 16, 2025 and arrive in Port Canaveral on October 30.
The 181,808-gross-ton ship, the largest ever built for Carnival Cruise Line when she debuted, can welcome 5,282 travelers at double occupancy or up to 6,500 guests when fully booked with all berths filled. Also onboard are roughly 2,000 international crew members to make sure every passenger has a memorable Mardi Gras vacation.
Why the Change?
A one-hour change may not seem significant to most travelers, but it could impact anyone who had hoped to make a quick exit from the ship to reach an early flight or perhaps even get back to work that same day, if they live locally to Port Canaveral.
For most cruisers, however, the one hour delay will be a welcome chance to sleep in a bit, enjoy one last leisurely breakfast, or grab an extra cup of coffee before the general chaos of debarkation.
Read Also: Carnival Announces 2025 and 2026 Itinerary Adjustments Impacting Half Moon Cay
Carnival Cruise Line has not explained the nature of the minor delay, but it is likely due to expected port operations.
As Port Canaveral continues to grow with new ships from Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, and other cruise lines all beginning to homeport from the Space Coast over the next year, it will be necessary to carefully plan when individual vessels move in and out of the channel as well as turning basins.
Some ships will undoubtedly come in earlier than planned, while others, like Mardi Gras, are very slightly delayed.
While the first of the impacted sailings is more than three months away, if any guests are troubled by the changes, they should reach out to their travel agent, airline, or other travel arrangements to make adjustments if need be. With such a small change, most guests will not even realize there has been any adjustment at all.
