Carnival Cruise Lines is the most successful cruise line
in the world, carrying more passengers than any other.
But the Carnival of today is a vastly different company
than the one started from humble beginnings more than four decades ago. Carnival was launched with a converted
transatlantic ocean liner and a dream of entrepreneur Ted Arison, a pioneer in
the modern-day cruise industry who set out to realize his vision of making a
vacation experience once reserved for the very rich accessible to the average
person.
The rest, as they say, is history.
THROUGH THE YEARS . . .
1972 – Maiden voyage of
Carnival’s first ship, the TSS Mardi Gras, which runs aground on sandbar
outside the Port
of Miami
1975 – Carnival purchases
Empress of Britain, enters service as the TSS Carnivale
1978 – The Festivale,
formerly the S.A. Vaal, undergoes $30 million refurbishment, begins service for
Carnival as the largest and fastest vessel sailing from Miami
to the Caribbean
1982 – Debut of the Tropicale, the first new cruise ship the cruise
industry has seen in many years; ship marks the beginning of an industry-wide
multi-billion-dollar shipbuilding boom
1984 – Carnival becomes first cruise line to advertise on network T.V.
with the premiere of new advertising campaign starring company spokesperson
Kathie Lee Gifford (then Johnson)
