Those who were fortunate enough to be sailing on one of the company’s 100 ships on the 29th April were treated with a complimentary champagne toast to celebrate this remarkable achievement. To get a clear picture of how big Carnival really is: the company has no less than 10 cruise brands and a total of 227,000 passengers took part in the Magic celebrations on the 29th April – the biggest ever celebration of its kind to take place at sea.

After the traditional handover procedure in Italy, the Carnival Magic embarked on its maiden voyage – a nine-day cruise across the Mediterranean between Venice in Italy and Barcelona in Spain.

The departure was preceded by a christening ceremony during which the ship’s godmother, Lindsey Wilkerson, officially gave the ship its name. Carnival has a long-standing relationship with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital – one of the foremost research and treatment centres for paediatric cancers in the world. The company chose Ms Wilkerson to christen the Magic as she used to be a patient of St Jude’s and nowadays acts as an ambassador for this organization.

Carnival Magic boasts quite a range of innovative features. First there is the Red Frog Pub with its strong Caribbean flavour where guests can enjoy a private label draught beer. Then there is the open air recreation complex called Sport Square, which features the first outdoor fitness area with a ropes course at sea.