Sarah Bretz, ContributorCarnival Cruise Line’s newest ‘Italian Style’ ship Carnival Firenze has officially been christened at its new homeport in Long Beach, California.
Hollywood actor Jonathan Bennett served as godfather, as he and Carnival Cruise Line President Christine Duffy celebrated all things Italian with the help of a Broadway star, a Puccini aria, and a Catholic priest making a running jump onto the stage to deliver a blessing.
The 5,000-guest vessel is now sailing year-round from the Port of Long Beach, adding significant capacity for Carnival from the port and joining two Carnival ships also sailing there year-round: the 5,100-passenger Carnival Panorama and the nearly 4,000-passenger Carnival Radiance.
Launching just ahead of the busy summer season, Carnival Firenze is part of a significant expansion that added five ships to the Carnival fleet in the past 18 months. By next year, Carnival will embark over 750,000 guests from Long Beach on over 200 sailings, an increase of 100,000 more guests compared to 2019.
Bennett was made an honorary Italian during the fun-filled evening, which included a performance of Puccini’s “Nessun Dorma” by Carnival’s Playlist Productions cast, an Italian blessing by Father Charbel Grbavac of the Mary Star of the Sea Catholic church in nearby San Pedro, and was capped off by a show-stopping performance by Leslie Kritzer, Bennett’s co-star from the recent Broadway revival of “Spamalot.”
Like sister ship Carnival Venezia, Firenze features new concepts and experiences that put an Italian Style twist on Carnival staples for guests to enjoy. Firenze, however, is the first ship in the fleet to usher in new technology and harness AI that creates guides for energy-saving routes on each sailing. The ship’s captain and officers will be the first to utilize this update to Carnival’s voyage efficiency system ahead of a fleetwide rollout expected to begin later this year.
Carnival Firenze is also the latest Carnival vessel to utilize shore power and joins Carnival Panorama and Radiance in connecting to the electric grid while docked in Long Beach.
Firenze was built in 2020 as Costa Firenze for Carnival’s sister brand Costa Cruises. It just finished a 49-day dry dock in Cadiz, Spain that integrated Carnival’s signature venues and amenities into the ship’s existing design. Notable additions to the ship include the specialty restaurant Il Viaggio (Italian for ‘The Voyage’) and a top-deck Italian-themed “street party.”
The ship will operate a variety of itinerary lengths, with three to seven-day Baja Mexico and Mexican Riviera cruises open for sale now through spring 2026. This afternoon, the ship sets sail on a seven-day cruise to Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlán, and Cabo San Lucas.
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