Mardi Gras is an Excellence-classcruise ship operated by Carnival Cruise Line. The ship is Carnival’s lead vessel of the fleet’s Excel-class, a subclass of the Excellence class, and was built by Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku in Turku, Finland. The ship has often been incorrectly referred to as Carnival Mardi Gras, though Carnival has specified that her name does not include the “Carnival” prefix, a first since the Fantasy-class vessels originally omitted “Carnival” in their names upon their debuts. Mardi Gras has been subject to numerous delays in her construction, delivery, and debut amid the COVID-19 pandemic and its subsequent impact on tourism. First scheduled for a summer 2020 delivery and debut, she was delivered to Carnival on 18 December 2020. After her debut was postponed on numerous occasions, Mardi Gras began operating weekly sailings on 31 July 2021.
Mardi Gras measures 181,808 GT and has a maximum passenger capacity of 6,500 passengers, with approximately 2,000 crew members. Mardi Gras is divided into six zones incorporating themed elements and spaces that host activities and events and also house various dining and shopping outlets. On her top decks is the “Ultimate Playground” zone, where the world’s first shipboard roller coaster, named “Bolt”, is located. Designed by Maurer AG, the ride consists of self-propelled cars that ride on an 800-foot track and can travel up to 40 mph (64 km/h). “Bolt” is also joined by a water park and sports center.
On 6 September 2016, Finnish shipbuilder Meyer Turku announced it had signed a memorandum of agreement with Carnival Corporation & plc to build two 180,000 GT ships for Carnival Cruise Line, with deliveries expected in 2020 and 2022, respectively. The ships would be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), making them the first LNG-powered ships to be based in North America. Carnival explained that the company’s pivot towards LNG was due in part to the demands voiced by environmental groups and the European Union to reduce greenhouse gases and other emissions. In order to fulfill the order, Meyer Turku postponed the delivery of sister brand Costa Cruises‘ second Excellence-class vessel by one year to 2021.
On 15 November 2018, Carnival held the steel-cutting ceremony for the ship at Meyer Turku. Carnival also unveiled the new ship’s livery, which features a predominantly blue hull with red and white accents. The new style marked a departure from the fleet’s mostly white hulls and was commissioned by Carnival in an effort to market the brand as “America’s Cruise Line.” On the 5 December 2018 episode of American game show Wheel of Fortune, hosts Pat Sajak and Vanna White initially revealed the name of the ship as Carnival Mardi Gras, after Carnival’s first ship, TSS Mardi Gras, which operated for Carnival from 1972 to 1993.Prior to the reveal, leaked renderings of a ship bearing the name Carnival Reflection fueled speculation that Carnival’s next ship would be named as such. After the reveal, Carnival issued a press release clarifying the ship’s name as simply Mardi Gras.
In May 2019, a floating engine room unit built at Neptun Werft in Rostock headed for Turku. On 18 June 2019, the ship’s keel was laid at Meyer Turku with the traditional coin ceremony, in which a coin was set atop the ship’s keel blocks. On 24 January 2020, Mardi Gras was floated out and repositioned elsewhere in the shipyard to complete her outfitting. In March 2020, a fire contained to a cabin broke out during final outfitting work; no further damage was reported. On 28 September 2020, the ship set sail for her first set of sea trials for 10 days from Airisto/Finland.
