The Carnival group comprises nine cruise line brands and one cruise experience brand operating a combined fleet of 93 ships.
In June 2023, Carnival restructured its corporate umbrella and created six new separate units that have full executive control of the brands in their portfolio.
Carnival Cruise Line – headquarters in Doral, Florida, U.S.
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Carnival Australia – headquarters in Chatswood, New South Wales, Australia
Carnival Maritime
AIDA Cruises – headquarters in Rostock, Germany
Costa Cruises – headquarters in Genoa, Italy
Carnival UK
Cunard Line – headquarters in Southampton, UK
P&O Cruises – headquarters in Southampton, UK
Holland America Group
Holland America Line – headquarters in Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Seabourn Cruise Line – headquarters in Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Princess Cruises
Princess Cruises – headquarters in Santa Clarita, California, U.S.
Princess Tours
Brands and ships
AIDA Cruises
AIDA Cruises originated from the state-owned East German shipping conglomerate Deutsche Seereederei, established in Rostock, Germany, in 1952. The company entered the passenger market in the 1960s, but after the unification of Germany in 1990, the company was privatised and its passenger ships acquired by Deutsche Seetouristik. In 1996, the company launched its first new cruise ship AIDA, but after failing to achieve a profit, the ship was sold to Norwegian Cruise Line, continuing operations under a charter agreement.
In 1999, Deutsche Seetouristik was acquired by British shipping company P&O, with the AIDA name being repurchased from NCL. P&O formed AIDA Cruises as a subsidiary brand, with two new ships ordered to form a fleet. AIDA was renamed AIDAcara, with AIDAvita and AIDAaura launched in 2002 and 2003 respectively. Carnival ordered new builds due in 2030 and 2032.
Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival Cruise Line was founded in 1972 as a subsidiary of American International Travel Service (AITS), by Ted Arison and Meshulam Riklis. Due to mounting debts, Riklis sold his stake in the company to Arison for $1 in 1974. Through the acquisition of existing ships the company continued to grow. In 1980, Carnival ordered its first new commission, the Tropicale, which was completed in 1981/2. Three further ships were commissioned during the 1980s, the Holiday (1985), Jubilee (1986) and Celebration (1987).
In 1987, Carnival completed an initial public offering of 20 percent of its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange, raising approximately $400m in capital. The capital raised was used to finance acquisitions, so in 1993 the business was restructured as a holding company, under the name Carnival Corporation, with Carnival Cruise Line becoming its principal subsidiary.
Costa Cruises
Costa Cruises originates from a cargo shipping company founded by Giacomo Costa fu Andrea in Genoa, Italy in 1854. Better known as Costa Line or C Line by the 1920s, its first passenger carrier was Maria C, a former U.S. Navy stores ship that was partly converted for passenger use and served various routes to North and South America from 1947 to 1953. The company's first dedicated passenger ship was the Anna C, a cargo vessel that was requisitioned for war time use by the Royal Navy and refitted as an accommodation ship before returning to merchant use.
Costa purchased the ship in 1947 and it operated between Italy and South America from 1948, later converting to full-time cruising and serving with the company until 1971. From the late 1960s until the 1980s, Costa rapidly developed its passenger operations into what we now recognise as modern cruise ships. In 1987, it consolidated its cruise ship operations into a new company, Costa Cruises, which at its peak, was the largest cruise ship operator in the world.
The takeover of Costa Cruises by Carnival Corporation began in 1997, as a 50/50 deal between Carnival and the British tour operator Airtours. On January 13, 2012, Costa Concordia, a ship operated by the line, hit an underwater rock and ran aground in Isola del Giglio, Tuscany, resulting in 32 deaths. Investigations proved that the captain and general bad organization was responsible for the disaster, and the company was fined.
Cunard Line
The second oldest brand in the Carnival group after P&O, Cunard Line originated in 1840 and celebrated its 180th anniversary in 2020. It was founded by Samuel Cunard, who was awarded the first trans-Atlantic mail contract in 1837 and established the British and North American Royal Mail Steam-Packet Company in 1840. After initially dominating the trans-Atlantic route, the need for new capital led to the company being re-organised as the Cunard Steamship Company Ltd in 1879. The early 1900s saw increased competition for speed, particularly from Germany, which led the British government to subsidise the building of Mauretania and Lusitania, which both won the Blue Riband. Competition continued to increase however and by the early 1930s, Cunard was experiencing financial difficulties. To secure further government subsidy, it agreed to merge with its chief rival White Star Line, to form Cunard-White Star Line in 1934. Cunard later purchased the remaining White Star shares in 1947, reverting to the name Cunard Line in 1949. Cunard continued to operate independently until 1971, when it was acquired by the conglomerate Trafalgar House, which was in turn taken over by the Norwegian company Kværner in 1996. In 1998, Carnival Corporation purchased a controlling stake in Cunard, completing the acquisition in 1999 to become sole shareholder. Since that time, Cunard has been one of Carnival's most high-profile brands, with the continued popularity of the famous Queen Elizabeth 2, and the development of the world's largest transatlantic ocean liner, Queen Mary 2, which continues to be the flagship of the fleet.
Holland America Line
Holland America Line originated as Plate, Reuchlin & Company, founded in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 1871. Initially struggling to survive, the company went public in 1873, renamed Nederlandsch Amerikaansche Stoomvaart Maatschappij (NASM). The company grew quickly in the early years, acquiring several new ships, including SS Rotterdam, which operated the company's first passenger cruise in 1895. The company also quickly became known by its shortened English name, Holland America Line. By the early 1900s, the company had separated its cargo and passenger operations, with its passenger ships being identifiable by names ending with dam, a tradition which continues with Holland America cruise ships today. The development of container shipping in the 1960s, forced the company to make a decision between investing in new cargo ships, or cruise ships. It ultimately sold its cargo operations, becoming exclusively a cruise ship company in 1973. Holland America continued to thrive well into the 1980s, consolidating its business with the acquisitions of Westours, Windstar Cruises and Home Lines. In 1989 however, it was itself the subject of an acquisition, when it was purchased in full by Carnival Corporation.
P&O Cruises
P&O Cruises was originally a subsidiary of the British shipping company P&O and was founded in 1977. Along with P&O Cruises Australia, it has the oldest heritage of any cruise line in the world, dating to P&O's first passenger operations in 1837. P&O Cruises was divested from P&O in 2000, subsequently becoming a subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises, before coming under the ownership of Carnival Corporation & plc in 2003, following the merger between P&O Princess Cruises and Carnival Corporation. P&O Cruises is based in Southampton, England, and operates a fleet of seven ships, dedicated to serving the British market.
Ships on order
Carnival Corporation currently has ten ships under construction or under agreement.
Former brands
Adora Cruises - Established as a joint operation in 2015, sold their interest in 2023
A-Rosa Cruises – Established by P&O Princess in 2001, sold following the Carnival merger in 2003
Fathom – Established by the Carnival Corporation in 2015 – Ended cruise operations in 2017. Its functions were reduced to operating as a tour group until the end of 2018.
Fiesta Marina Cruises – Established by Carnival Corp in 1993, liquidated in 1994. The sole ship was sold to the Epirotiki Line.
Ibero Cruises – Established by Carnival Corp in 2003, liquidated in 2014 with ships transferred to Costa Cruises and Cruise & Maritime Voyages.
Ocean Village – Established by P&O Princess in 2003, liquidated in 2010 with ship transferred to P&O Cruises Australia
P&O Cruises Australia – Carnival subsidiary from 2003, absorbed into Carnival Cruise Line in 2025.
Swan Hellenic – P&O Princess subsidiary from 1983, liquidated in 2007 with ship transferred to Princess Cruises
Windstar Cruises – Carnival subsidiary from 1989, sold to Ambassadors International in 2007.
