By: Dr. Adal Hussain (AKA) Dr. Abbey, Editor @ Large for World Liberty TV

Carnival Venezia is a Venice-class cruise operated by Carnival Cruise Line, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Originally intended to serve the Chinese market, she debuted as Costa Venezia for sister brand Costa Cruises in Shanghai on 18 May 2019.

At 135,225 gross tonnage (GT) and with a capacity of 4,208 passengers, she became the largest ship commissioned for the Costa fleet upon her delivery.

In March 2023, she was officially renamed Carnival Venezia during her pre-delivery renovation and debuted for Carnival the following May as the lead vessel for the new sub.

On 1 November 2017, Costa Cruises announced that the first of the two vessels built specifically for the Chinese market would be named Costa Venezia.

The announcement came at the coin ceremony for the ship at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone.

On 22 June 2022, Carnival Corporation announced that Costa Venezia and sister ship Costa Firenze would be transferred to Costa’s sister brand, Carnival Cruise Line, in 2023 and 2024, respectively, under a new sub-brand, “Costa by Carnival” operating as “Carnival Fun Italian Style”.

Both ships would be renamed with the Carnival prefix, painted in a hybrid Costa and Carnival livery, and staffed and operated by Carnival.

It was a project aimed at boosting Carnival’s capacity in the American market during its recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic and came after Carnival had sold numerous older vessels in its fleet while Costa faced operational challenges in its core markets, including Europe and China.

The ship left the shipyard in late-May and commenced operations on 29 May 2023 with her inaugural voyage, a two-week transatlantic crossing from Barcelona to New York, after which she was christened by her godfather, American comedian Jay Leno, on 14 June 2023.

Carnival Venezia sails year-round from her homeport in Manhattan to the Caribbean and from December 2024, she operates week-long Caribbean voyages from Port Canaveral on a seasonal basis.

The ship spans 12 passenger decks, accommodating up to 4,090. 1,061 Length in Feet, 1,424 Onboard.  Crew it has a total of 15 decks.

Deck 3: The social hub featuring the Grand Central Atrium, Piazza San Marco, and the lower level of the main Canal Grande Restaurant.

Deck 4: Home to the Venezia Casino, Dreams Studio, and the multi-level Teatro Rosso.

Deck 5 (The Piazza): Features the interactive Bonsai Teppanyaki, Fahrenheit 555 Steakhouse, Bonsai Sushi, and the elevated Il Viaggio.

Deck 12: Features the Cloud 9 Spa, Fitness Center, and a 9-hole mini-golf course.

Deck 14: Features the sprawling Carnival WaterWorks aqua park and a high-ropes course.

Carnival Venezia’s deck plan includes an adults-only spot: the Serenity Deck on Deck 15. It’s a large area with sunbeds, loungers and clamshells. There’s no charge, but it fills up fast, especially on sea days, when towels are clipped into place early, even if the actual chair occupants don’t return till much later.

As you tour the Carnival Venezia ship, you’ll find the outdoor sports facilities and activities on decks 11 through 14. These include a running track, pickle ball and basketball court, ropes course, waterpark, mini golf and gym, and an arcade.

The double-deck lido area is like an Italian piazza, surrounded by cafes, bars and restaurants, including a new venue Tomodoro (Mexican/Italian); Guy’s Burger Joint and the buffet. It’s enclosed with a sunroof (or Magrodome), which opens and shuts depending on the weather.

Main Dining: The two primary complimentary restaurants are the Canal Grande and Marco Polo restaurants.

Cabin category’s include: Interior, Oceanview, Balcony, Suite, or Terrazza.

The “best” deck on the Carnival Venezia depends on your travel style. However, Deck 5 is widely considered the overall favorite due to its exclusive Terrazza staterooms, and Deck 6 or 7 Midship are ideal for quick, quiet access to dining and entertainment.

The cruisers on Carnival Venezia, we met and spoke to mentioned Decks 5, 6 and 7 as best decks on the ship, which is close to many amenities and activities.

The Carnival Venezia is a highly rated, elegant ship praised for its beautiful, Italian-inspired decor, specialty restaurants, and engaging entertainment.

Each room includes, dedicated stateroom attendant, Soft, cozy linens, Plenty of closet and drawer space, In-room safe for valuables, Television and Stateroom climate control.

Sails To: Bahamas, Bermuda, Canada/New England, Caribbean. Sails From: Manhattan, New York City, NY; Port Canaveral (Orlando), Fl; Miami, FL. Duration: 2 – 5 Days, 6 – 9 Days, 10+ Days.

It was our 1^st time sailing on Carnival Venezia, in May 17-28 2026, for 11 days Caribbean Sailing.

So I will share my experiences, about the ship, food, entertainment, and people I met on the ship who have cruised on Carnival Venezia, many times who shared their experiences and why they keep coming back.

Carnival Venezia Ship: It is an elegant ship, not too big easy to navigate through the ship. It took me 4 hours to figure out where everything is on the ship. If I needed help I asked the staff who directed me to my destination to where I needed to go. So this was a very good thing. I did make notes before I went on the cruise to get familiar with the layout and what was on each deck and that was very helpful for me.

It was very clean all the 11 days I was on it. Staff was working around the clock to make this happen day in and day out.

As I was taking my morning walks on the Deck 12, the floor was wet, and I saw the workers standing and immediately moping the wet floor on a regular basis, so nobody slips or falls or have any other accidents.

Sometimes once the announcements were made over the speaker you might not hear them you had to go outside your room to hear what was being said. I was a little concerned about that, I had my room service guy talk to guest services, once he spoke with them, that was handled very fast and we had no issues with this matter.

Food and Dining: Deck 10 Lido Marketplace, is the Buffett which is free and has all kinds of foods, during, breakfast, Lunch and Dinner. I ate many times at the buffet, the food was very fresh, well cooked, and I mostly eat fish, fresh fruits, vegetables, pasta options, many dessert options which included cakes, Swirl Ice cream , Vanilla , Chocolate and strawberry flavors, which were pretty good, I tried all three, I liked the chocolate flavor best.

Food was different on a daily basis there were Ice Tea and Lemonade drink options also included free of charge , or you could drink filtered water, which I drank on a daily basis, I took my own bottle which I filled up an daily basis and carried it in my backpack , to keep me dehydrated.

I am not a drinker, so I did not take a drink package. Which includes different drink option packages, which you have to pay additional money for.

For the 11 days I was on the cruise, I had my breakfast and dinner daily at the Canal Grande restaurant dining places. The Canal Grande Restaurant even incorporates a Venetian-style gondola and canal design into the dining room decor. Which is included in your price.

On first day I went and met Mr. Adrius from Lituaninia and Tareek from Bosnia, who were the head of food operations, I told them that I was going to eat breakfast, and dinner and wanted to get an ocean view table, they immediately told me you will be assigned a table for early dining at 5-15 pm, and that they will hold it for me for 10 minutes, if I don’t make it it will be assigned to someone else for that night.

I told them I will be on time and for the 11 days, I had early dinning and was always on time. Breakfast was a little different set up, you had to get there earlier, and then once you check in via your Carnival App, you was assigned a seat.

Adrius and Tareek, took extra care of me and many people at the dining room, almost 500 people were dinning every night that is a lot of people to feed.

I was told certain options were Kosher, and I requested Halal, option was not available. So I passed on the meats. I eat fish options, vegetarian Indian style food, Pasta, gourmet salads of all kinds. Desserts were Ice creams, Sugar free chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream, fresh fruit, Ice cream cake, cheesecake and so many desserts.

Breakfast and (Brunch was mostly served during sea days), options here were absolutely out of this world, Omlettes, of all kinds, I had egg white omelette with vegetables and melted Mozzarella cheese, daily I loved it so much I had it every day of breakfast, Avocado toast, bagel toasted with cream cheese and fresh lox, sprinkled with mini-capers, Parfait (Not with greek yougurt), but it was very fresh and tasty.

Indian breakfast I tried on a couple of occasions, I was not too crazy about it. Cereal, French toast, eggs benedict, with lox, Coffee and Orange juice, there was additional options if you wanted to buy specialty coffees, like cappuccino, and freshly squeezed fruit and vegetable juices, which you had to pay additional for, or it could be included in your drink package, but was well worth it.

We also eat at Guy’s Burger Joint, completely included in your cruise fare and features an exclusive “Fun Italian Style” menu you won’t find on standard Carnival Cruise Line ships. Located poolside on the Lido deck, this collaboration with celebrity chef Guy Fieri blends.

Since I don’t eat meat burgers,  I ordered an Off-Menu Veggie Burger: Veggie burgers are not explicitly listed on the menu board, but you can request one directly from the grill cooks, which I did, it was made with a bean and other  Vegan indigridients, with melted Provolone Cheese , with lettuce and tomatoes, with French fries, after that i went to the Fixin’s  Bar: You can fully customize your meal at the nearby self-serve toppings bar, which features options like crispy bacon, sautéed onions, mushrooms, pickles, and extra hot sauces.

I added Sautéed onions, Pickles and a splash of the Donkey Sauce: For those unfamiliar, Guy’s famous signature sauce is a jacked-up garlic, mustard, and Worcestershire mayo.

This was a perfect burger, for lunchtime, for me. It was filling and I eat this same burger on a good few occasions. I do highly recommend this, if you are a burger lover, then Guy’s Burger Joint is the place to be at. If you want the vegan burger like myself make sure you speak to the server and let him know that you want the veggie burger, they will be very happy to accommodate your request.

I tried food at Il Viaggio: Specialty dining restaurant, had a burrata salad, and a Brazzini fish with vegetables, and potatoe. It tasted very fresh cooked Italian style, the atmosphere is lovely. Service was excellent, I just eat one time and did not have time to go back.

Carnival Deli, I had a tuna melt with Mozzarella cheese and side of fries, it was not too bad, the only issue here is that it gets very busy and if you don’t mind waiting then you can get a sandwich of your choice, I personally did not go back to the Carnival Deli, because there were lines there all the time.

Pizzeria del Capitano. Carnival Cruise pizza is a well-loved culinary treat available onboard its famous cruise ships, Menu options include five hand-tossed thin-crust pizzas: Margherita, Funghi, Pepperoni, Quattro Formaggi, and Prosciutto.

Pizzeria Del Capitano serves pizzas made fresh in about 12-inch pies with four slices each, and Caesar salad is available upon request. Gluten-free pies are also available and do take additional time.

I tried the Margherita, full pie with thin crust and extra mozzarella cheese, after you put a little garlic and black pepper, this pizza, rivals NY Pizza. (Keep in Mind NY Pizza is best in the world).

It tasted crunchy, the sauce you can barely taste as it was melted in the Mozzarella (Make sure you ask for extra Cheese and thin crust pizza), to get a pizza like this. I went back on many occasions, while watching a movie and taking a look into the ocean. Keep in mind lunch hour and dinner hours have a lot of lines, make sure you make this request when the line is less and the workers have time so they can make this pizza for you.

Other free food choices include: BlueIguana Cantina: Fresh tacos, burritos, and a popular salsa bar. Tomadoro: Mexican/Italian fusion serving tacos, meatball subs, and breakfast burritos.

Carnival’s corporate culinary operations are overseen by Chief Culinary Officer Emeril Lagasse. Onboard the Carnival Venezia, the ship’s dedicated culinary team is led by Executive Chef Simon (Chef Simone), who oversees the vessel’s multiple galley kitchens, dining rooms, and specialty venues like Il Viaggio.

Il Viaggio by Emeril Lagasse: This exclusive “Fun Italian Style” venue showcases regional Italian dishes. Signature “Favorito” items curated by the ship’s Italian executive chefs include Sicilian-inspired Pollo Parmigiana Pizza and Lombata Milanese.

The Chef’s Table: A VIP, multi-course dining experience hosted by the Executive Chef. The roughly $99 event features a behind-the-scenes galley tour, champagne toasts, and dishes not found on regular menus.

I also want to give a shout out to the Christian from Italy Executive chef, for taking time to prepare certain dishes, we could eat, due to our religious observance and to certain allergies.

The Executive Chef Christian, came out of few occasions to find out if our food was correctly prepared and that we were having a good culinary experience. I would say that was very highly appreciated on the Executive Chefs side, as he had to oversee hundreds of meals for guests during dinner, and make time to come to ask us if everything was fine. That was a class act on his side.

I also like to give a shootout to some people in dinning.  Andrius from Lithuania and Tarriq from Bosnia, maître d’ who were in charge Canal Grande restaurant dining room. Both these guys were wonderful always happy social, greeting you every time, you came for breakfast and dinner.

I want to thank our head waiter who took care of us for 11 days, while were cruising, Reymark from the Philippines, he was the best, he had the appetizers, ready , with our salads, and main dish, as soon as we finished one course, he would bring the next. To get us out in half hour, so we can get ready for our night show.

Also I like to thank Remuth from India, who bought us our bread and lemonade when requested. Allan from Indonesia took care of us during breakfast, wonderful personality, always asking if you need anything else and going above and beyond.

I also wanted to thank the front office staff who would book your seat nightly and check you in every time you came for breakfast and dinner.

I wanted to thank Anastasia from Belarus, in charge of booking tables, every night she would give us the same table, looking right into the ocean, she would tell us if we were 15 mins late the table will be given to someone else.  We were never late and had the same table every night for the 11 days of cruising we did.

Mariella from Philipines and Erika from Colombia, will greet us at the opening of the dining room and check us in, and grab our hands and lead us to our table, always smiling, happy, and social. Willing to help.

I have traveled on many cruises, and dined on many places, this was the best service, and I had from executive chef, to maître d’s, waiters, food servers, front staff , never seen anything like this. I would go as far to say Carnival for us is king of food and service, for now.

When I mention this, I really mean this, as I am also food editor for our World Liberty TV, Food and Wine Channels and blogs .Which I have been doing reviews over 20 years, right here in New York the Food capital of the world.

I believe in tipping on a nightly basis, so the people feel appreciated and they too feel happy, this is important to do, as a lot of these workers, work in the cruise industry and have a family they support back home and every dollar they earn they end up sending it back home to support their family members.

We did this with food staff members, and room service staff who were also good in helping and make our cruise very pleasant.

On the final night I gave each of the Food staff members and room service staff a special gift bag, to thank them again for their great service and how much I appreciated each and every one of them. This was very important to me, because it gives them a boost, that they too are someone in society and they need to be recognized for their skills.

Shows and Nightlife: Teatro Rosso: The ship’s main, multi-deck theater—inspired by dramatic Venetian design—hosts Playlist Productions, which are full-scale, musical stage shows.

Marcus Anthony Show: We saw the following shows, Marcus Anthony Carnival Cruise Lines’ #1 headliner for over 25 years, Marcus Anthony has entertained worldwide on both land and sea. For over 18 years he has been a #1 headliner with Carnival Cruise Line and has been dubbed “King of That Sweet Soul Music.” Marcus has also worked with Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Lines.

Marcus Anthony’s lyrical virtuosity has allowed him to work with some of the industry’s most respected entertainers such as Mary Wilson, Ben Vereen, Naiomi Judd and Ms. Patti LaBelle. He has also performed for Spain’s Prince Felipe.

 Viva Variety: Melissa Mclauglin: Melissa has been performing over 22 years internationally and across the seven seas. She is one of a kind, specially known for engaging audiences with her blissful yet vulnerable delivery and personality. Her unique sound and renditions of classic favorites as well as her bluesy-soul pop and country vocals will bring tears to your eyes.

Viva Variety: Glen Foster: Illusionist & comedy magician Glen Foster performs his magic tricks while getting the whole family to laugh!.

I also saw some Broadway productions, which was very New York style show, which I was impressed with and enjoyed the show.

The other shows were more a less, to an older group of cruisers, who like to hear the classic songs, Marcus Anthony was singing, Motown classics and he even did a Michael Jackson song.

Melissa Mclauglin, sang a good variety of songs and was in the audience walking around, shaking hands, while singing, very nice lady I did get to take a pic of here together with me.

I did go to the PunchLiner Comedy club, from 5-45pm & 7pm it is (PG)  8-15pm & 9:45pm (R-18+) to the early show, the comedians, were upcoming making a name for themselves, I enjoyed their jokes and sense of humor.

You can sing along at the Piano Bar, listen to guitarists and live bands around the ship. I listened to a couple of entertainers at the Piano Bar, and it was very entertaining, people were doing a sing along.

A few different bands performed, I met a couple from North Carolina, they had a friend who performed in one of the bands, and they were very happy to see him and his band perform. According to them they enjoyed the performance very much.

I did enjoy the movies, on the top deck, while eating my thin crust pizza from Pizzeria del Capitano, there were a lot of people setting back and enjoying the movies, which started around 7-30pm nightly.

I enjoyed watching the following movies: Dirty Dancing, F1: The Movie and Wicked for Good. It was a great experience seeing the sunset on the highest part of the ship, while enjoying the movie on a giant screen.

We also participated in Captain Claudio Cupisti, Formal captains’ cocktail party, with his senior officers, where we took pictures with the Captian and his senior staff.

We also attended on many occasions, Park West Gallery art auctions, seeing art by masters like Picasso, Salvador Dali, Peter Marx, and many more artists, from around the world.

William Earp –Jones Principal Art Auctioneer for Part West Gallery from South Africa, and his staff did a wonderful job. What I enjoyed most was the talks about Picasso, a 45 minute talk, about him and his art works.

Also Peter Marx artist, world renowned Artist, From New York. Which to me was a learning experience, as William our host mentioned, that Peter Marx, was one of the people alongside Lee Iacocca, former chairman of Chrysler, to raise $150 Million dollars to restore and repair the statue of liberty.

Mr William also spoke about many upcoming artists, there style of art, painting and creativity. I really enjoyed this so much. As living in New York, you have so much museums one goes and see’s so much.

First-timer or lifelong collector, Park West’s cruise ship art auctions are built for all, and our selection showcases it. Each voyage brings a freshly curated lineup of originals, limited editions, and works across every style, medium, and price point.

From your bid to your first piece: cruise art auctions are meant to be experienced. By everyone. Imagine it: the bids open low, the paddles blur as they are raised, and somewhere between the third round and the and auction become the best few hours you’ve experienced on the water. Strangers are cheering each other on; auctioneers crack jokes between lots. And yes—our guests walk out with art they’ve fallen in love with while wondering why they waited so long to try it.

Our onboard art teams have spent years inside the world of fine art. They learn the artists, the movements, the stories that make each piece unique, moving, and worth owning. Step into cruise lines with onboard art galleries between auctions and find them, they’re genuinely happy to talk.

Browsing with no agenda? Just discovered a piece that stopped you in mid-sentence?

They’ve fielded every question, from seasoned collectors to beginners asking something sharp. Those are their favorite questions. No background in art required. Show up and find the piece you can’t stop looking at.

I did bid on an art work and was outbid right away, but I was able to get a piece of Art work, for attending at no charge, so I will put it in a frame and hang it high.

Next time you are on a cruise, do check out, Park West Gallery art auctions, as they are on over 100 cruise ships.

So in conclusion, it was our first Carnival Cruise, I will say the following. It was a good experience, we enjoyed our time, met very interesting people, Cruise ship, had a vintage look to it.

The Staff was very nice, had a pleasure of speaking with Captain Claudio Cupisti, during formal night a wonderful man who has been in this kind of work for over 42 years.

The Food was the best we ate, fresh daily different options daily, breakfast many choices daily, Sea day brunches, were my favorite, especially the 7 layer Chocolate cake melts in your mouth.

Many activities, shopping experiences, Spa’s specialty bars and so much more.

After this great experience, I look forward to doing another Carnival cruise, and having a wonderful experience on another ship. I am truly a big fan of Carnival.

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