Luxury Cruising Editorial

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to attend the grand opening for Celebration Key, Carnival Cruise Line’s new private port in The Bahamas.

I joined a group of media and travel agents who flew in for the day so we can get a first hand look at what this new port has to offer.

We spent around five hours at Celebration Key, exploring every part of what this new $600 million port in The Bahamas.

Early feedback we’ve received from guests who have visited the port have been extremely positive. Also, reactions on Cruise Fever’s social media posts from our day at the port have exceeded our expectations. We posted a photo tour on our Facebook page and it has nearly 1.5 million views and counting at the time of press.

Note: I took many of these photos before passengers got off the ship so that is why there are no guests in most of them.

What’s so great about Celebration Key and why can’t cruisers get enough of this new port?

Here are reasons why you should visit Celebration Key and a look at how the port will expand in the future and offer guests even more options and activities.

Pools

The two main swimming pools, Starfish Lagoon and Calypso Lagoon, are the crown jewel of Celebration Key. They are separated by a walkway that leads through the 10-story sandcastle.

When I first saw the pools, I couldn’t believe how insanely large they were. They are a combined 550,000 square feet, or 12.6 acres in size. They hold 350 million gallons of water and the maximum depth of the pools is five feet. It’s mindboggling how large the pools are once you see them in person.

The pools are a combined 16.5 times larger than the freshwater pool at CocoCay, Royal Caribbean’s private island in The Bahamas. They take up 20% of the current developed port area.

They have swim-up bars, cabanas to rent, and plenty of complimentary loungers and umbrellas.

Starfish Lagoon caters towards families while Calypso Lagoon is an adult-friendly area.

If you love to chill in a massive pool on hot, sunny day, then Celebration Key is for you.

There is a kids splashpad next to Starfish Lagoon and it’s one of the first things you see when you enter the port and look to the right.

There is also an 11,000 square foot infinity pool in the adults-only beach club, but more on that in a bit.

Want to see which cruises visit Celebration Key? You can view cruises and prices here.

Beaches

There are three beaches at Celebration Key, although it’s really one large beach divided by the pier and a separate area for the Pearl Cove Beach Club.

The beaches are lined with complimentary loungers and umbrellas and were much quieter on my day there than the pools were.

Adults-Only Areas

A decent size part of the port is adults-only (18+), this includes Calypso Beach, areas of Calypso Lagoon, and the Pearl Cove Beach Club.

The Pearl Cove Beach Club, located at the western end of Celebration Key, has an infinity pool with views of the ship, and an elevated, private restaurant just for guests who purchase a day pass to the club.

The infinity pool has a swim-up bar and the Pearl Cove Beach Club is the largest adults-only area at any cruise destination.

I spent a couple hours in this area and it’s a great way to enjoy a premium day at Celebration Key.

I was also told that the Beach Club has room to expand when Carnival adds the pier extension to accommodate more ships.

Excursions

It is worth noting that Celebration Key is not a private island, but a dedicated private port area on Grand Bahama Island. It’s about a 40 minute drive away from the cruise port in Freeport.

Because you are on a large island, you can take excursions to experience local culture if you don’t want a beach/pool day.

Most of the excursions offered on cruises that stop in Freeport are also offered when you visit Celebration Key.

Facts about Celebration Key

Celebration Key features the world’s largest swim-up bar with 166 in-water seats.

The longest and largest swings bar is also here with nearly 50 swings.

The world’s first and largest 10-story sandcastle structure that has two 350-foot long water slides. Note, there is an extra charge for an all-day pass to use the slides.

The two largest freshwater lagoons are located at Celebration Key, each one 275,000 square feet in size.

There are eight types of villas, cabanas and daybeds that can be rented out. Many of them are right on the water.

There are nearly 30 food and beverage outlets with 14 of the dining options being complimentary.

A Junkanoo parade will take place twice at day (at 1pm and 3pm) weather permitting.

There are two basketball courts, a pickleball court, and beach games for families.

There is a pier at Celebration Key that can accommodate two ships so there is no need to tender. Work has already begun on adding an expansion to the pier so four ships can visit in one day.

Future Expansion

Celebration Key is not done yet, this is just Phase 1. Phase 2 will take place on the east side of the port and Carnival has previously talked about building a waterpark in this phase.

Now that the port is open, I’m hoping that we will hear more details from Carnival about Phase 2 or who knows, maybe even a Phase 3.

Why do I say Phase 3? The total area for the port is 369 acres and the first phase only used 68 acres. With 110 acres set aside for a wetlands preserve, that leaves another 154 acres that Carnival can develop at the port. They can triple the size of Celebration Key, if they choose to, with future expansions.

It’s going to be exciting to see what they do with these 154 acres of land.

Christine Duffy, president of Carnival Cruise Line, gave the following statement the day the port opened and talked about future expansion:

“Today marks an extraordinary milestone for Carnival as we open the first phase of our initial $600M investment, with more to come. 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.

“We’ve built the ultimate beach day for our guests whether they crave fun in the sun or relaxation under a palm tree.”

There’s no feeling like having a cruise booked and spending the next few months getting ready for it.  For most people, it would have to be a pretty enticing offer to get them to change those plans.

But a recent email sent to some future cruisers on Celebrity Millennium is revealing just how enticing these offers can be.

What if you were offered a deal to cancel your future cruise and, in return, receive a 200% future cruise credit? Or perhaps move your trip to a similar sailing a year later, get half your money back, and score an extra onboard credit?

This is exactly the offer some passengers are now finding in their inboxes from Celebrity Cruises, under the heading, “Are Your Plans Flexible?”.

This message and seemingly too-good-to-be-true offer has prompted some to figure out what it actually means and what could have caused such an email to be sent.

One Reddit user recently posted about getting one of these emails for their March 2026 Japan honeymoon cruise. They’ve already booked flights and sorted out a bunch of time off work, so they naturally had some questions.

“I’m worried now that the cruise will get cancelled leaving us in a difficult position closer to the time,” they wrote in a popular cruise related subreddit.

But, as the email states, there are no worries for cruise guests who don’t want to change their plans.  Their cruise is not getting canceled and they can just ignore the email if they want to proceed with their original sailing.

So, what’s the deal with these “flexible plans” offers? Most experienced cruisers and people who know the industry agree on one main reason for these types of messages: the ship might have been overbooked.

“They oversold and need some people to not go,” commented one Reddit user,” comparing it to when airlines ask for volunteers to give up their seat for money.

The offers themselves are definitely attention-grabbing. In this cruiser’s specific case, Celebrity gave them two choices:

• Option 1: Switch to a similar Celebrity Millennium cruise in March 2027. They’d get half their money back from their current booking, plus a $200 non-refundable Onboard Credit (OBC) for their room. Just a heads up: if they’d already paid for the whole trip, that 50% refund on the original fare basically turns into a 50% discount on the new cruise.
• Option 2: Get a full refund for their current booking AND a huge 200% Future Cruise Credit (FCC) to use on another Celebrity cruise. This means they get all their money back, and then double that amount in credit for a future trip.

I would have a very hard time passing up on option 2, personally. 

“Full refund AND 200% FCC? So get all your money back and double the money in credit? That is a slamming deal and I bet people are going to jump on it,” stated one comment.

But for the OP who posted the email, the situation was a little different.  This cruise is for their honeymoon—kind of a big deal.  And while the balance has not yet been paid in full, flights have already been booked and over 4 weeks have been taken off of work.

“You don’t have anything to worry about though. The offers are sweet enough that people with flexibility will take them,” assured one comment. “There’s nothing for you to be concerned about if you aren’t interested in changing.”

These “move over offers,” as they’re called in the cruise world, are a normal way for cruise lines to manage how many people are on board.

Several Reddit users guessed why they might be overbooked. “Cherry blossom season, high demand,” suggested one, pointing to how popular Japan cruises are during certain times.

Sometimes, big group events can be booked on a cruise as well, meaning cruise lines have to free up some cabins.

In this case, the cruise is far enough in the future to allow plenty of time for any necessary changes.

Here’s the key thing: saying yes to these offers is totally up to the individual.

So, for those who receive an email titled “Are Your Plans Flexible?”, there’s no need to panic.  In fact, it might be cause for some celebration if you want to be rewarded for your flexibility while the rest of us get jealous at the chance for 200% future cruise credit.