Carnival President Christine Duffy, Shaquille O’Neal, and Carnival CEO Josh Weinstein cut the ribbon to open Celebration Key. PHOTOGRAPHS COURESTY OF CARNIVAL CRUISES
Celebration Key is the new exclusive resort destination that’s closer to Florida than you think.
PHOTOGRAPHS BY GERRY BARKER AND COURTESY OF CARNIVAL CRUISES
BY GERRY BARKER AS ANYONE WHO CRUISES from Miami knows, the Bahamas have long been a favorite destination. Located just 50 miles away at its closest point, the islands get almost 2,000 cruise ship calls yearly, with Nassau alone hosting a record-breaking 5.6 million cruise passengers in 2024. Now, Carnival Cruises will boost that even more with the grand opening of Celebration Key, their new, exclusive resort destination. Built at a cost of $600 million, it occupies a portion of a nearly 400 acre-site on the northern end of Grand Bahama island, including one mile of sandy, white beach. On Saturday, July 19, company executives, travel advisors and media joined nearly 5,000 passengers from Carnival Vista, the first ship to dock there, to officially cut the ribbon and welcome the first guests, a little over three years after construction started in May 2022. “Today marks an extraordinary milestone for Carnival as we open the first phase of our initial $600M investment, with more
to come,” said Carnival President Christine Duffy in Carnival’s press release. “Celebration Key is more than just a beautiful place; it’s a celebration of the Bahamian paradise our guests love, complemented by an impressive variety of incredible new experiences and offerings,” said Duffy. “We’ve built the ultimate beach day for our guests whether they crave fun in the sun or relaxation under a palm tree.” Many of those palms were part of a “Plant a Tree” community engagement project last year, where some 1,000 sabal palms were saved and replanted, along with thousands of native plant varieties across the resort. A WORLD OF LUXURY Guests from the ships enter through the Sun Portal, a large arch bearing the resort’s name, and start their day at Paradise Plaza. At the grand opening, visitors were led by a Bahamas marching band and greeted by large crowds waving Bahamian flags. Nearby is
the 10-story Suncastle, with its twin 350-foot body slides. From there, you can choose from four areas to explore, including: • Starfish Lagoon: One of the two largest freshwater lagoons in the Caribbean at 275,000 square feet; also includes the Parrotfish Swim-Up Bar. There’s also a sports court where Carnival Chief Fun Officer and basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal made the first bucket. • Calypso Lagoon: An “adult-friendly area” with the second 275,000-square-foot freshwater lagoon. Both lagoons are serviced by Celebration Key’s desalination system and hold about seven million gallons of water. Here also is DJ Island, the Sunshine Swings Bar with its almost 50 swings and the “world’s largest swim-up bar,” which seats 166 at one time. • Pearl Cove Beach Club: Billed as “the largest adults-only retreat at any cruise destination,” it features an 11,000-square-foot infinity pool that overlooks a white sand
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