Getting all decked out
New name will come with $200 million price tag for upgrade
$200 million makeover will transform Carnival cruise ship.
Carnival Triumph is getting a $200 million makeover and a new name before its planned return to Port Everglades in October 2019.
The ship will be renamed Carnival Sunrise after a two-month dry dock refurbishment in Cadiz, Spain, beginning March 1, the company announced Tuesday.
The upgrade will change the appearance of “every space on the ship,” including all staterooms and public areas, Gustavo Antorcha, the cruise line’s chief operating officer, said in an interview.
“If you’ve been on it before, I don’t think you’ll recognize it. It will feel like a new ship,” Antorcha said.
The ship was the focus of international media attention in 2013, after an engine fire caused a power shutdown and left passengers adrift for several days.
Asked whether renaming the ship was an effort to disassociate it with the 2013 event, Antorcha said “no,” adding, “If we had wanted to change the name because of that, we would have done it five years ago.”
After the makeover, the ship will sail from Norfolk, Va., and New York between April 29 and late October to various destinations in the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Caribbean, Panama, New England and Canada.
The ship will be repositioned to Fort Lauderdale beginning Oct. 28, 2019, for four- and five-day cruises to ports including Half Moon Cay, Princess Cay, Grand Turk, Nassau, Grand Cayman, Jamaica and Cuba.
As part of the renovations, staterooms will be updated with “bright colors and soothing pastels inspired by the line’s Caribbean itineraries,” according to a news release. Other upgrades will bring enhanced looks and features to the ship’s cocktail lounges, promenade deck, sports deck, spa and kids’ play area.
New eating options will be added, highlighted by Guy’s Pig & Anchor Bar-B-Que Smokehouse, described as “a casual open-air eatery featuring ‘real deal’ barbecue favorites created by Food Network star Guy Fieri.” The eatery will complement the existing Fieribranded Guy’s Burger Joint.
Food from the barbecue restaurant will be included as part of guests’ cruise fares, as will sandwiches from The Carnival Deli, pizza from Pizzeria del Capitano, meals at the Lido Marketplace, lunch at the Pasta Bar at Cucina del Capitano, and full-service meals in the ship’s main dining room, the company said.
Other new dining venues will offer options for additional prices, including a family-style Italian restaurant, Cucina del Capitano; an American-style steakhouse, Fahrenheit 555; a sushi restaurant, Bonsai Express; and The Chef’s
Table, described as “a new multicourse dining experience hosted in a special glass-enclosed venue in the forward dining room.”
Introduced in 1999, Triumph can accommodate 2,758 passengers, according to an overview on the website, cruisecritic.com.
Previous passengers and a cruise critic rated the ship 3.5 stars out of a possible 5 stars, with one of the site’s professional critics saying it’s “loud, with music everywhere,” but concluding it “delivers a classic, fun cruise experience that allows passengers to let loose and relax.”
The site criticized its “outdated hardware and tired color schemes,” which Antorcha said would be addressed during the makeover.
Reservations are currently available for trips from the three ports, the company said.