Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Vista arrived in Texas on Sunday, September 23, to become the largest ship ever to be homeported in Galveston.
The arrival was celebrated with Carnival's President Christine Duffy and ship's godmother Deshauna Barber, the first member of US military to be named Miss USA, and then the vessel left on its first trip from Galveston TX Sunday afternoon.
Vista is part of the line's newest and biggest class of ships and boasts new features like SkyRide aerial bike ride, IMAX theater, 2 dining venues by Food Network star Guy Fieri, onboard brewery, expansive water park, and Family Harbor accommodations with bigger staterooms and lounge area.
The ship offers a couple of distinctly different 7-day western Caribbean itineraries out of Galveston, visiting the most popular destinations in the region. The first includes visits to Montego Bay, Grand Cayman, Cozumel, while the regular itineraries visit Mahogany Bay, Belize City, Roatan, Cozumel.
Vista joined Carnival Valor and Carnival Freedom with year-round departures from the port. Together, the three ships operate over 200 voyages per year carrying more than 600,000 cruise passengers annually, which is the most in cruising.