Carnival Cruise Line is sending yet another Fantasy-class cruiseship for recycling.

The 70,500-gt Carnival Fascination (built 1994) is the fourth of the eight-strong class of cruiseships to be sold for scrap. These ships have long been regarded as the workhorses of the Carnival fleet.

Previously Carnival had indicated that it was selling only unrefurbished units of the class, and had earmarked the upgraded Carnival Fascination for long-term cold lay-up in Cadiz.

Christine Duffy, who heads the flagship brand of Miami-based Carnival Corp, announced the sale on Wednesday, and at the same time confirmed the demolition sale of the 70,400-gt Carnival Imagination (built 1995), which TradeWinds first reported in August.

The Carnival Imagination was subsequently beached at an European Union-compliant ship recycling yard in Turkey, and Aliaga-based sources claim that the Carnival Fascination will also meet its end there.

Four retained

Duffy said Carnival will retain the remaining four upgraded Fantasy-class ships for further use when it eventually resumes its cruise operations.

"While we are sad to see the Carnival Fascination and Carnival Imagination leave our fleet, it is a necessary move as it allows us to focus on ships that offer the greatest variety of features and stateroom accommodations for our guests," she explained.

Carnival Corp has recycled five cruiseships since the onset of the pandemic, and sold a further seven for further trading.

Earlier this week, chief executive Arnold Donald said the company is planning on dumping as many as 18 ships in a move he claimed would help Carnival emerge from the pandemic "a leaner more efficient company".

The company said the vessels were either leaving "or expected to leave" the fleet, representing a 12% decline of pre-pause capacity but only 3% of 2019 operating income.

Cruise sale-and-purchase brokers suggest that the sale of at least one Princess cruiseship is being negotiated with Japanese interests, as are potential scrap deals involving some of the remaining late 1980s/early 1990s-built ships still owned by various subsidiaries.

Carnival has been the most proactive seller of ships since the cruise industry shut down. Royal Caribbean Group has scrapped three ships, while no ships have been sold yet by Norwegian Cruise Line Holding, MSC Cruises and Genting Cruise Lines.