Another Carnival Cruise Line ship is heading to the Lone Star State.

In announcing that a brand new ship would be joining Carnival Jubilee in sailing out of Galveston, the line found a rather unique way to make their point: By “replacing” the new build’s instantly recognizable whale tail funnel with a pair of Texas longhorns!

Why Carnival Picked Galveston

Once the brand new Carnival Tropicale is delivered in the spring of 2028, the line’s flagship vessel will call Galveston home. In explaining why they opted to place the ship in that particular port, Carnival’s president Christine Duffy said that doing so was “a celebration of both our history and our future in Texas.” 

She added that for over 25 years, “Texas has been at the heart of Carnival’s growth, and this new Excel-class ship ensures we continue to deliver unforgettable experiences for our guests in and around the state.”

Is Carnival’s Whale Tail Really Gone?

Named after the first ship, which was designed specifically for Carnival, the Tropicale will be a sister ship to Jubilee, but not a twin.

Duffy explained that on the newest Excel-class ship, they’d be replacing the Bold roller coaster with Sunsation, a three-deck waterpark and entertainment zone that will also host special after-dark events.

And like Jubilee, the ship’s bow will proudly feature the Star of Texas.

But about that whale tail?

While the idea of replacing it with a pair of longhorns is fun and makes for a great gimmick, it’s actually only being done for advertising purposes. (You can view the full video — complete with line dancing and an original tune — below.)

A full year before Tropicale joins the fleet, Carnival Festivale will be rolled out. Like Tropicale, the Excel-class vessel will replace Bolt with the Sunsation concept.

The Festivale will not, however, join her sisters in Galveston. Rather, when that ship is introduced in April of 2027, she will make Port Canaveral her homeport.

Details regarding itineraries and booking availability for the Tropicale are set to be released later this year.

💾

A couple whose video about their experiences aboard the Margaritaville at Sea Paradise went viral found out that they’ve been permanent banned by the line. The unusual twist? Their original video was posted back in 2023!

‘We Showed Exactly What We Saw’

While Laura and Johnathan Fain’s video chronicling their time on the Margaritaville at Sea ship got a decent amount of attention when posted back in 2023, he is quick to make clear it “wasn’t something where we were thinking, ‘Oh, maybe if we complain we’ll get a refund.’”

Rather, says Johnathan, who goes by Fain, “It was literally just posting our experience. We showed exactly what we saw.”

Adds Laura during a call with Cruise Radio, “It’s not like we made a mess and then filmed it! The response to the initial vlog wasn’t really controversial. But then I put out the TikTok,” which was by nature shorter and focused more heavily on the negative aspects of their trip.

“That’s what really blew up and is probably what offended them,” she says. “And I get it, to be honest with you. But I never thought it would lead to this!”

‘Maybe We Were Banned!’

Flashforward to the spring of 2026, when the pair decided it was time to give Margaritaville at Sea another shot. “We’d heard good things and were looking to do a cruise that would fit in our budget,” explains Fain. Yet when they attempted to book online, the system instructed them to contact customer service.

“I joked that maybe we were banned,” laughs Laura. What she didn’t realize was just how right she was: When Fain called, a customer service rep confirmed they were banned from the line and even revealed that a “bad review” was the reason.

“It says you are not allowed to board a cruise,” acknowledged the Margaritaville rep.

“I was shocked that they just said it, flat-out,” Fain admits.

Radio Silence

Despite making a video about the ban which accumulated nearly 125,000 views in its first week, the couple has not heard from the cruise line. (You can see their video in its entirety below.) “I’m not expecting to hear from them,” shrugs Fain.

Many in the comment section have assumed that the company might reach out in order to make amends. Laura, however, is quick to say, “We didn’t do this to get a free cruise or bash them again. We had no agenda.” 

Despite what has gone down, the pair would like to give the line — which has undergone massive changes since their original posting — another shot… with, however, one stipulation. “I wouldn’t want it for free,” she says emphatically. “Nobody’s going to take away my credibility in that way. I can already imagine the comments people would make if we accepted a free cruise and had a positive experience.”

Adds Fain “And if we weren’t paying for it, we would disclose that. It’s important that we remain true to ourselves.”

Cruise Radio reached out to Margaritaville for comment, but received no response.

Read Next: Carnival Ordered to Pay Over-Served Guest $300,000

“Looking back, I remember I really didn’t want to take a shower because the bathroom was kind of gross.” she said

💾

The woman who was served 15 shots of tequila aboard the Carnival Radiance — and suffered injuries as a result — is speaking out about the lawsuit which netted her a $300,000 victory. Meanwhile, reaction to her win has largely involved people debating personal responsibility.

‘They Treated Me Like a Criminal’

In a video shot by her attorney, Diana Sanders says that the crew “treated me like a criminal” as she attempted to obtain information about what had taken place. After waking up at the bottom of a staircase in a crew area, Sanders says she received “conflicting information” about what had transpired.

“I was very concerned that they wouldn’t tell me exactly what had happened,” she continued. She turned to a lawyer in an attempt to get the CCTV footage, but claims that Carnival had “all the tapes right before, but nothing afterward and they will not show us what happened that day.” 

As for the process of taking Carnival Corporation to court, “I felt bullied,” she shares. “Everything they did was to either mentally torment me or financially torment me.”

The jury, however, “saw what they were trying to do, how they were trying to defame my character” and, she says, “make me look like a bad human being.” 

Sanders attorney, Spencer Aronfeld, briefly touched upon personal responsibility… a topic which many across social media thinks should have played a much bigger role in this particular case.

‘Shouldn’t A Nurse Know Better?’

In handing down their verdict, the jury determined that Carnival was 60 percent responsible for the incident, with Sanders 40 percent responsible. But for many responding to coverage of the story — including our own initial article — that seemed unreasonable.

“Wait,” responded a Facebook commenter, “she’s a nurse? Shouldn’t a nurse know better than to drink that heavily?” 

“Accountability must begin with the drinker,” posted another. “No one forced [her] to drink.”

Others speculated as to what effect this might have on future policies related to drinks served on board. “Now they’ll change the rules, dial back the number of drinks you can consume and how often.” 

Carnival has indicated that it intends to appeal the decision.

💾

Virgin Voyages has reached out to cruisers who were upset about not only a recent itinerary change but the way it was handled. Acknowledging their misstep, the line essentially promised to do better moving forward.

Why Some Cruisers Are Upset

Rarely are those about to set sail happy to hear about itinerary changes, as they tend to be less desirable than the originally scheduled route. That was most definitely the case for most passengers booked upon the Valiant Lady’s April 6 sailing out of New York City.

Originally intended to be a five-day trip to Bermuda, passengers were informed a few days before embarkation that they would, instead, be sailing north to Canada due to a possibility of bad weather. Adding insult to injury, at least in the eyes of some, was the borderline cheeky way in which Virgin addressed the itinerary change.

“St. John will feel a little bit different from Bermuda,” read one segment of the letter, “with crisp, coastal air and a completely new backdrop to explore. You may want to bring a few extra layers.” 

Of course, for some cruisers, the warning came too late as they had already flown into New York City from other locations. While many did their best to roll with the proverbial punches, some made their complaints public — with a few related Instagram vids garnering a whole lot of attention.

“We’ve Seen Your Messages” 

Facing the situation head-on, if a tad after the fact, Virgin Voyages posted a response to unhappy sailors via their Instagram page. “Welp,” it began. “That Bermuda-Canada email really wasn’t it. We’ve seen your messages, and we get it.” 

The missive continued: “This wasn’t the trip you were planning for — and we should have spoken to that reality. We understand why you’re disappointed. We agreed we need to do better, and next time we will.”

It concluded by saying, “Itineraries can change for safety, but you deserve us to be real about it when they do.” 

“This Situation Is Not Funny to Me” 

In a separate Instagram post featuring a photo of the dark side of the moon, Virgin again addressed the original email. And as is their wont, they did so in a typically sardonic manner. “We missed the mark. So NASA, if you want to fly our team to the moon next, we’ll gladly stay there and hide behind some moon rocks. (We’ll make sure to bring extra layers, too.)”

Not everyone however, saw the humor. One commenter acknowledged it was a “fun social media post” before asking “But what are you doing to make the situation right? This post alone just feels like you’re making fun of the situation.” 

One passenger who’d been on board the Canada-bound sailing didn’t see the humor in the situation. “I was on that voyage and extremely disappointed,” they wrote. “I feel that the refusal to issue refunds and $100 per person [onboard credit] per person was wholly inadequate… you should have cancelled the cruise or allowed us to get a refund. Sorry, but this situation is not funny to me.”