Carnival
Cruise Lines announced they’ll be calling at Little Stirrup Cay in
the Bahamas on select sailings starting in March, replacing Key West.
According
to a statement from the line, “Carnival Fascination and Carnival
Ecstasy will begin calling at Little Stirrup Cay, a private island in
The Bahamas. The March 14, 2013, visit will be the first of 19
calls to the island by the Carnival Fascination through December 2013
with an additional six calls in 2014. Carnival Ecstasy will
also make 11 calls to Little Stirrup Cay in 2013 and one call in
2014.”
Carnival
is giving guests the option to re-book their cruise without penalty.
Located
55 miles north of Nassau, Bahamas, Little Stirrup Cay is also home to
Royal Caribbean’s private island Coco Cay. The excursions on Coco
Cay will be available to Carnival’s guests.
“Key
West remains a popular port and is included on many Carnival
itineraries. Even with this change we will still be bringing the most
guests in the industry to Key West,” said a spokesman for Carnival.
Though
no statement has been made from the line regarding the the reduction
in Key West port calls, local
papers report
it could be regarding the Naval base.