Fares are on the rise on Carnival Cruise Line. Citing inflation and supply chain issues, Carnival is making changes to a handful of dining options.
In a letter to reserved guests, Carnival President Christine Duffy wrote: “We have all experienced the impact of inflation, higher fuel prices and supply chain challenges. The challenges of the food supply chain are further complicated by global politics and a host of laws regarding how we obtain products and how crops and animals are grown and treated.
“At Carnival, we have worked hard to minimize the impact on our guests, committed to our promise to make Carnival the most memorable, fun and best value vacation option on land or at sea. However, we’ve reached a point with our food costs where we need to take some modest but specific actions, which we know most of you have already done yourself, whether it’s with eating patterns or shopping to stock the fridge or the pantry.”
Dining changes on the Carnival cruise line
The following changes will be effective starting with sailings departing from November 7th onwards.
Steak prices across the fleet are increasing from $42 per guest to $48, a 14 percent increase. Prices at specialty dining restaurants such as Rudi’s Seagrill and Bonsai Teppanyaki are also increasing on select ships, however new prices have not been disclosed at press time.
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For sailings departing through December 31, specialty dining reservations paid for prior to sailing will be charged at the current price. Reservations made on board will be charged at the new prices.
For travel departing January 1st onwards, specialty dining reservations already paid for as of today will be honored at the current rate.
Instead of being available 24 hours a day, free self-serve ice cream and frozen yogurt will now be available from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Guests can continue to order a complimentary second entree in the main dining room if they wish; however, effective immediately, a third entry will incur a $5 fee. Also in the main dining room, the line will continue to offer lobster on itineraries of six days or longer, but will switch to the second elegant evening (rather than the current offering on the first elegant night).
Duffy closed the email by saying, “We will continue to do our best to ensure that the Carnival dining experience is a key part of your memorable vacation, but we wanted to provide this update so you you understood how we are managing the many challenges we are facing and we thank you for your understanding and cooperation.”
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