Carnival Glory Celebrates 20th Anniversary

This month marks the 20th anniversary of Carnival Glory’s service. Carnival Cruise Line received the Conquest-Class vessel on June 27, 2003 from Fincantieri shipyard in Italy. Few weeks after crossing the Atlantic without passengers, the cruise ship arrived at its homeport in Port Canaveral. Carnival Glory embarked on its first commercial cruise on July 14, 2003, following a christening ceremony in which astronaut and physicist Sally Ride served as godmother.

A series of alternating seven-night cruises to the Western and Eastern Caribbean were offered during the vessel’s inaugural season, making it the largest vessel to sail from Port Canaveral. With stops in Cozumel, Puerto Progreso, Belize City and Key West, the Western Caribbean itineraries of the program went to Mexico, Belize and the United States. Aside from Nassau, in the Bahamas, Phillipsburg, in St. Maarten, and Charlotte Amalie, in St. Thomas, were some of the ports of call on the Eastern Caribbean cruises.

A redeployment move is scheduled to bring the Carnival Glory back to Port Canaveral from New Orleans. The vessel will take over the current Carnival Liberty program in May 2024, which includes short Bahamas cruises. In addition to visiting Nassau, Bimini and Princess Cays, the Glory will depart Central Florida every Friday and Monday.

There are still a number of week-long cruises offered from Louisiana by the 2,974-passenger vessel. There are a number of popular ports destinations in the Western Caribbean on the itineraries, including Mexico’s Cozumel, Jamaica’s Montego Bay, Honduras’ Roatán and Grand Cayman’s George Town. Known as the Conquest-Class, Carnival Glory is one of five ships in the series. As well as three pool decks, a library, a casino, and several bars and lounges, the vessel offers a variety of facilities designed by architect Joe Farcus.