MIAMI, Feb. 16, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Carnival Cruise
Line, Texas' number-one cruise
operator, marked the arrival of Carnival Freedom at its new
year-round homeport of Galveston
on Saturday, Feb. 14, with a
celebration honoring U.S. military personnel and their
families.
In partnership with Operation Homefront, a national nonprofit
organization that supports military families, service members and
their families were treated to an overnight event featuring a
variety of daytime activities, including an exclusive outdoor
Carnival LIVE performance by country music superstar Martina McBride, along with dinner and a full
evening of entertainment, all compliments of Carnival.
Prior to McBride's concert, Carnival presented a check in the
amount of $100,000 to Operation
Homefront.
"We're excited to kick off Carnival Freedom's year-round
deployment from Galveston with a
donation to an organization that touches so many lives and a
special event for the brave men and women who serve our country,"
said Christine Duffy, president of
Carnival Cruise Line. "Martina
McBride put on a fantastic show and we were thrilled to
honor these deserving military families and provide them with an
incredible day and night to remember."
Carnival Freedom kicked off year-round departures from
Galveston yesterday with a special
six-day voyage to Mexico and will
launch four- to seven-day cruises calling at ports throughout
Mexico, the Caribbean, Bahamas and Florida beginning Feb.
21. Carnival Freedom joins Carnival Triumph and
Carnival Magic in Galveston.
Together these three ships will carry more than 600,000 passengers
annually from Texas — more than
any other cruise line.
McBride, a 14-time GRAMMY® nominee, performed on Carnival
Freedom's upper deck in the first Carnival LIVE show staged
outdoors. It was her second time participating in the Carnival LIVE
concert series that offers guests the best live music at sea from
popular acts spanning a variety of musical genres.
"Performing for these military families was an incredible honor.
And everyone really enjoyed the outdoor setting on the ship's
deck," said McBride. "I hope that everyone who was there had a
special Valentine's Day experience;
I'm so glad I was asked to be part of it."
"We're thrilled Carnival Cruise Line honored these service
members and their families by providing a truly memorable day and
evening of onboard fun and exciting activities," said Tim Farrell, chief operating officer for
Operation Homefront. "In that spirit, we're also grateful for
Carnival Cruise Line's generous gift of $100,000, which will help military families here
in Texas and throughout the
country."
Carnival Freedom recently underwent a $70
million makeover that added an array of Fun Ship 2.0 product
enhancements, and attendees at Saturday's event had full access to
the ship's many on-board innovations, including new family
entertainment programming such as Seuss at Sea and Camp Ocean
featuring 200 marine-themed activities.
The renovation also included complimentary eateries such as
BlueIguana Cantina, and Guy's Burger Joint, developed in
partnership with Food Network personality Guy Fieri, along with exciting new bar concepts
BlueIguana Tequila Bar, RedFrog Rum Bar, the cocktail
pharmacy-themed Alchemy Bar and the Caribbean-inspired RedFrog Pub. Four new
high-tech Playlist Productions shows were added, as well.
For additional information on the Carnival Freedom or any other
"Fun Ship" vacation, contact any travel agent, call 1-800-CARNIVAL
or visit carnival.com.
Carnival can also be found on:
Twitter: www.twitter.com/carnivalcruise
Facebook Fan Page: www.facebook.com/carnival
YouTube: www.youtube.com/carnival
Journalists also can visit Carnival's media site,
www.carnival-news.com or follow the line's PR department on Twitter
at www.twitter.com/CarnivalPR.
About Carnival Cruise Line
Carnival, a unit of
Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), is "The
World's Most Popular Cruise Line®" with 24 ships operating three-
to 16-day voyages to The Bahamas,
Caribbean, Mexican Riviera,
Alaska, Hawaii, Canada, New England, Bermuda, Australia, New
Zealand and the Pacific Islands. The company has two
135,000-ton ships on order - Carnival Vista, scheduled to enter
service in 2016, and an as-yet-unnamed vessel set to debut in
2018.
About Operation Homefront
A national nonprofit,
Operation Homefront leads more than 2,500 volunteers with
nationwide presence who provide emergency and other financial
assistance to the families of service members and wounded warriors.
Operation Homefront has provided assistance to thousands of
military families since its inception in 2002. Recognized for
superior performance by leading independent charity watchdog
groups, nationally, 93 percent of total donations to Operation
Homefront go directly to programs that provide support to our
military families. For more information, go to
www.OperationHomefront.net.
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SOURCE Carnival Cruise Line