Carnival Corporation completes new pier expansion for Celebration Key in the Bahamas | News
Carnival Corporation, the world’s largest cruise line, today announced the successful completion of the Celebration Key pier expansion on Grand Bahama Island. The flagship expansion adds two new berths, allowing Celebration Key to accommodate up to four ships at a time and welcome more than 13,000 guests per day to the popular exclusive destination.
Building on the original two-berth pier that opened with Celebration Key in July 2025, the two additional berths were completed ahead of schedule and doubled arrival capacity to four ships at a time. This expansion on the maritime side adds operational flexibility and allows for approximately 200 additional ship visits and 700,000 additional guest arrivals per year.
“Celebration Key is one of the centerpieces of our Paradise Collection – a bold destination built to redefine what a Caribbean vacation can feel like,” said Josh Weinstein, CEO of Carnival Corporation. “From a mile of white-sand beach to the Caribbean’s largest freshwater lagoons and five distinct experience portals, every element of Celebration Key is designed to offer something unforgettable. Completing the pier expansion ahead of schedule gives us a real leap forward in meeting the extraordinary demand we are seeing and allows us to bring even more guests to this unique Bahamian paradise faster than expected.”
In less than 18 months, Celebration Key has firmly cemented its role as the cornerstone of Carnival Corporation’s Paradise Collection. Twenty Carnival Cruise Line ships now call at ten U.S. homeports, reflecting Celebration Key’s cornerstone position within the company’s Caribbean deployment strategy. Beginning in September 2026, three- and four-ship days will be routine at the destination, and later this year Princess Cruises and AIDA will join the rotation as Celebration Key becomes a true Caribbean Corporation portfolio-wide Caribbean platform.
“The expansion of Celebration Key reflects the continued confidence in Grand Bahama and the Bahamas as a leading tourism destination,” said the Hon. Glenys Hanna Martin, Minister of Tourism. “Our priority is to ensure that investments of this magnitude create meaningful opportunities for Bahamian businesses, increase employment and deliver lasting economic benefits for our people. We congratulate the Celebration Key team on its first anniversary and look forward to its continued contributions to Grand Bahama’s economy and the well-being of its communities.”
“The expansion of the Celebration Key pier is a strong endorsement of Grand Bahama’s economic potential,” said the Hon. Ginger Moxey MP., Minister of Grand Bahama. “Every ship that visits our island creates opportunities for Bahamians – from entrepreneurs and small businesses to countless families who rely on a thriving tourism industry. This investment represents more than new infrastructure; it is an investment in our people, our economy and a future built on sustainable, year-round growth.”
When Celebration Key celebrates its first anniversary on July 19, 2026, it will have welcomed approximately 2.5 million guests. Now that the pier expansion is a reality, the second year is expected to bring that number to approximately 3.5 million – growth that will bring meaningful long-term benefits to The Bahamas. According to an economic impact study by Tourism Economics (an Oxford Economics company), the development, construction and continued operation of Celebration Key is expected to create more than 2,500 direct Bahamian jobs, generate $3.2 billion in incremental government revenues and contribute $9.7 billion to incremental GDP impact over the next twenty years.
Celebration Key is just one of seven exclusive Caribbean destinations that are part of Carnival Corporation’s Paradise Collection, which also includes RelaxAway Half Moon Cay, Isla Tropicale (Roatan), Amber Cove (Dominican Republic), Puerto Maya (Cozumel, Mexico), Grand Turks Cruise Center (Turks & Caicos) and Princess Cays (The Bahamas). Together, the Paradise Collection is unmatched by any other cruise line, creating differentiated guest experiences that drive increasing demand, support price strength and reinforce the company’s leadership in the world’s most popular cruise region.
