Carnival expands its cruise joint venture in China

Carnival Corporation has just signed a non-binding memorandum of agreement to built first new cruise ships dedicated for the Chinese market

Two brand new Carnival Corporation cruise ships will be build to expand the company’s services into the Chinese market. China State Shipbuilding Corporation and Fincantieri will be the two companies that will manage the construction of the vessels.

Alan Buckelew, global chief operations officer for Carnival Corporation, commented on the latest strategic move: “We are excited about the potential for the first new cruise ships to be built and deployed in China for the enjoyment of Chinese travellers, which will be an important milestone in the development of the Chinese cruise market. As we work with our Chinese partners to launch the first domestic Chinese cruise brand in the next few years, being able to offer cruises on China-built cruise ships represents a new opportunity for us to generate excitement and demand for cruising amongst a broader segment of the Chinese vacation market, which is already the largest in the world and continues to see strong growth every year.”

The partnership will allow the first multi-ship domestic cruise brand in China to be tailored for the specific requirements of the Chinese market. The first ship is expected to be delivered until 2022, as the government has recently approved for the joint venture to be the official CC representative in Hong Kong. The signing of the joint venture agreement was expected since October 2015.