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HISTORY A man named Ted Arison had an idea of refurbishing an old ocean liner. American Travel Services Incorporated, under the direction of Mr. Arison, bought two ocean liners from Canadian Pacific Empress Lines for $6.5 million in 1972. These two ships were named the Mardi Gras and the Carnivale. Unfortunately, the Mardi Gras was very slow and high maintenance. On its first voyage, it ran aground in Miami Harbor. Later, Mr. Arison and American Travel Services Incorporated bought another old liner from Union Castle Lines and named it the Festivale. From 1972 to 1974, Carnival began losing money. To attract new customers each liner began having planned activities, casinos, nightclubs, and discos. Finally, in 1974, American Travel Services was ready to pull out of the joint venture. So, Ted Arison bought out ATSI for $1 cash. Unfortunately, he also acquired the $5 million debt that went along with it. As luck would have it, however, the following month after the buyout by Arison, the repaired Mardi Gras began showing a profit. For the remainder of the year, it operated at or above than 100-percent capacity. Following this successful year, Mr. Arison along with his son, Micky Arison and Vice President of Sales Bob Dickinson, began to change the Carnival marketing strategy. Carnival’s target market became first time and young travelers. Carnival prided themselves on having a “Family-Like” atmosphere to work in. They began an open door policy for communication, they began to promote from within (advancement strategy), and their prices were in moderation. They also began to offer vacation packages. Some vacation packages even included passages to exotic Caribbean ports. Carnival was the first cruise operator to use multimedia advertising promotions. This cruise line eventually became known as the “Fun Ship”. In 1993 to 1995 there were two additions to the cruise line, the Imagination and the Ryndam. Unfortunately, Carnival was never able to successfully run a Spanish market. Nevertheless, Carnival Corporation is expanding internally and externally generated by growth and acquisitions. The company now owns 44 percent of the cruise market. Carnival Conquest, the largest of the “Fun Ships”, was launched from New Orleans on Dec. 1, 2002. In 2003, Carnival Glory a “Conquest-class” ship will begin year-round cruises from Port Canaveral, Florida. In 2004, Carnival Miracle and Carnival Valor will make their deput. In 2005, Carnival will debut its fourth 110,000-ton “Conquest-class” vessel. By the year 2006 they plan on adding 17 more ships.
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