Carnival Cruise Ship Dry Dock Continues, Latest Photos

New photos have been released of Carnival Pride‘s ongoing dry dock refurbishment and upgrade, and the ship is looking fantastic as every inch of the vessel is being gone over, refreshed, and revitalized. What does it look like behind-the-scenes of this month-long dry dock?

New Carnival Pride Photos

Carnival Pride entered dry dock at the Navantia Shipyard in Cadiz, Spain on April 28, 2023, for a month-long, bow-to-stern refurbishment.

While the most visible and highly-anticipated improvements include the addition of three new popular venues – the Heroes Tribute Bar & Lounge, the Carnival Adventures Shop, and Dreams Photo Studio – much, much more is going on while the ship is out of service.

Newly released photos show the extent of the upgrades and maintenance, and include every window on the ship’s iconic half-glass funnel being scrubbed to new brilliance, with the surrounding metal cleaned and repainted for the most vibrant colors.

New Livery Being Painted

Of particular interest is the complete exterior hull painting, which not only refreshes the ship’s colors, but is also adding the new red-white-and-blue livery to the hull, a design detail that first debuted with Mardi Gras in 2021 and has been slowly added to every ship in the fleet as each vessel undergoes dry dock maintenance.

Hull repainting is more than just as aesthetic detail, however. Proper painting ensures the integrity of the hull by resisting corrosion and the growth of unwanted organisms such as algae and barnacles that could reduce fuel efficiency and introduce unwanted creatures into delicate marine environments.

Interior Upgrades

On the inside of the ship, team members are hard at work installing new flooring, extensively cleaning the vessel, and adding new decorative details wherever necessary.

The ship’s lower-level Beauties nightclub space is also being removed and several new staterooms added in that location, including one fully-accessible cabin. The upper level of the nightclub remains intact.

Furthermore, the popular steakhouse, David’s, is being renovated to become Fahrenheit 555 in line with the familiar steakhouse aboard other Fun Ships.

Less visible details are also being upgraded aboard the ship, including new electrical upgrades and other technical adjustments that will ensure Carnival Pride is functioning at peak efficiency and optimum safety when she sets sail again.

Almost Ready to Return

Carnival Pride is scheduled to return to service with a one-way, 12-night voyage from Barcelona to Dover departing on May 28, 2023. Along the way, the ship will show off her new look and extensive upgrades at ports of call in Spain, Portugal, France, and Belgium.

The revitalized ship will spend the summer months offering 9- and 12-night sailings from Dover, UK, visiting amazing destinations in Norway, Sweden, Germany, Estonia, Finland, and Denmark, depending on the cruise itinerary and sailing date.

In September and October, Carnival Pride will offer a limited number of longer cruises from Rome to explore the Italian coast and Greek Isles, before repositioning back to the US with a 15-night repositioning sailing from Rome to Tampa that departs Italy on October 28, 2023.

After arriving in the US, the refreshed Carnival Pride will homeport from Tampa through early April 2024, offering Western Caribbean and select Panama Canal sailings. In the spring of 2024, the ship will once again reposition, this time to Baltimore for cruise to Bermuda, The Bahamas, and the Eastern Caribbean.

Carnival Pride first entered service for the cruise line in 2002, and has had numerous upgrades and renovations through her 21 years of service. The most recent major upgrade was in early 2015, when the ship received the 2.0 upgrade that included the addition of Guy’s Burger Joint, the BlueIguana Cantina, WaterWorks, and much more.