Forget extra charges and smaller menus, Carnival has something special planned for main dining room diners.

The holidays are here, and you certainly can’t say that Carnival Cruise isn’t getting into the spirit.

Recently, Carnival rolled out its plans for the holidays, which include special activities on all 24 of the ships in Carnival’s fleet. 

While the specifics will vary by ship, all of them will have a large, fully-decorated, star-topped Christmas tree in an easily accessible public area. Additionally, there will be a special tree lighting ceremony before each embarkment, all scored by classic holiday music. 

There will obviously be caroling, because what would the holidays be without caroling? And these days, ugly holiday sweater parties are all the rage, and Carnival isn’t going to be left out of the fun, and there will be prize for the best/worst garment.

Carnival  (CCL) – Get Free Report will also be hosting non-denominational Christmas and Hanukah services on board, with prayer, hymns, and fellowship on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. The Hanukah services start on December 18 and continue through every night of Hanukah, and will include traditional food, songs, and prayer to commemorate the occasion.

That’s not all that Carnival has in store, though. John Heald, Carnival Cruise Line brand ambassador, is in a pretty festive mood, because now he’s announced even more details about how the line is celebrating the holidays. 

Carnival Announces Its Holiday Menu

Via his Facebook page, Heald has revealed further details about the holiday menu. Here’s what you can expect:

Appetizers

Shrimp cocktail American cocktail sauceRoasted winter vegetables & cheese avocado vinaigrette, marinated haloumi, manchegoRib eye tartare* mustard aioli, caramelized onion, balsamic and red pepper aioliRoasted stuffed beet dressed quinoa, feta, mint maple dressingTruffled dates & tomatoes cucumber, avocado, pomegranate juice dressing, torn herb saladCaesar salad traditional preparation, house-made dressing, shaved parmesanSeafood risotto crab, shrimp and mussels, crawfish butterAle house cheese soup brisket, sausage, turkey, roasted vegetables, jack cheeseSweet potato soup buttermilk, caramelized butter, croûton

Main Course

Slow-roasted tom turkey sweet potato, Christmas stuffing, gravy, cranberry relishCrisp veal parmesan pickled cabbage, pear mostarda, salsa agrodolceRoasted barramundi corn succotash, pickled tomato and shallots, chive sauceGarlic butter shrimp potato and cauliflower gratin, lemon sauceSteamed mussels chorizo, tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms, buttered gritsNy strip steak* mashed potato, broccoli, crisp onions, creamy pepper corn sauceGuava glazed stuffed chicken mozzarella, basil, corn relish, shallot herb beurre blancStuffed pork belly cranberry apple stuffing, bacon jam, braised cabbageVegetarian/veganTortellini whipped ricotta, eggplant raguCaramelized onion and heirloomTomato tart queso fresco, dressed cornShahi paneer, achari baingan dal makhani, onion kulcha, pappad & raita

Dessert

Melting chocolate cake vanilla ice creamBuche de noel hazelnut pate, spearmint moss, eggnog anglaisePear and cheese cinnamon cheese core, creme fraiche, rhubarb chutney, yam crisp lower calorie, no added sugarClassic pecan pie delicious pie crust, plenty of pecan and caramel ice cream

Image source: Carnival

Carnival Changes a Beverage Policy 

In other Carnival news, the company has recently made a change to an unpopular beverage policy. Or more accurately, they’re undoing a policy that disallowed passengers to order liquor bottles in their cabins, due to passenger safety concerns.

But now this policy has been rolled back, and now full-bottle liquor sales will be available on some sailings.

“From Dec. 1, 2022, guests will be able to prepurchase bottles for their staterooms, with a limit of one bottle per stateroom (no matter how many guests are in the stateroom). The policy will not be available on all cruises, however, but only on itineraries of 7 nights or longer,” the website reported.