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Carnival Corporation & plc Orders New Ships for Costa Crociere, AIDA Cruises

New Vessels Will Add More Than 6,500 Total Lower Berths to Fleet, Build Upon Carnival's Leadership Position in European Marketplace

MIAMI, June 12, 2006 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Carnival Corporation & plc(NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), today announced that it has ordered two cruiseships for its European brands with an option for a third.

Included in today's order are a 92,700-ton vessel for Genoa, Italy-basedCosta Crociere, as well as an option for a sister ship, both to be built byItaly's Fincantieri shipyard, and a 68,500-ton ship for its Rostock,Germany-based AIDA Cruises to be built by Germany's Meyer Werft yard.

The new vessels will add more than 6,500 total lower berths to CarnivalCorporation & plc's fleet and build upon its leadership position within therapidly expanding European cruise market, with six million passengers expectedto set sail by 2015.

The new Costa ships will be built at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard andhave a basis-two capacity of 2,260 each. The first ship is scheduled to enterservice in spring 2009. If the option is exercised, the second ship is slatedto debut in fall 2010. The all-in cost for each vessel will be approximately420 million euro.

Including the new ship and option, Costa currently has five new vessels onorder from Fincantieri representing 13,520 total lower berths.

The new AIDA ship will have a basis-two capacity of 2,050. Scheduleddelivery is spring 2010. The vessel's all-in cost will be approximately 330million euro and marks the fourth 68,500-ton vessel ordered for the brand injust the past 19 months. Three other vessels, also being built at MeyerWerft, are slated to debut in 2007, 2008 and 2009.

All four vessels will operate under AIDA Cruises' informal "club resort"cruise concept which is marketed exclusively to German-speaking clientele andoffers a product aimed at younger, more active passengers who enjoy a host ofon-board amenities and facilities.

According to Carnival Corporation & plc Chairman and CEO Micky Arison,today's announcement continues the company's aggressive expansion strategy inthe European market.

"We have invested a great deal of time and money expanding anddiversifying the European cruise market which possesses incredible potentialfor growth. Costa is already the clear leader in the southern European marketand AIDA holds the same distinction in Germany. These new state-of-the-artships for Costa and AIDA will further bolster their positions in therespective markets and ensure that we have adequate capacity available to meetgrowing demand for European cruises," Arison said.

Commented Costa Crociere Chairman and CEO Pier Luigi Foschi, "We'vedemonstrated that the European market is seeking new itinerary alternativesand that requires a balanced mix of ships, especially for the more experiencedcruiser. Costa's new programs, including voyages featuring Dubai inwinter/spring 2006/2007 and a series of 13 cruises to the Far East scheduledfor spring 2006 to spring 2007, have received tremendous response from ourEuropean customers, including a number of sailings selling out in a matter ofdays. New ships will allow us to continue to diversify our cruise offeringsfor European vacationers," he said.

The German-speaking market is one of the fastest growing in Europe withone million passengers expected to set sail by 2010. "To keep pace with thisdramatic growth, we must continue to build ships and develop unique cruiseproducts such as AIDA that can cater specifically to the preferences ofGerman-speaking clientele," Foschi said.

Including the three new ships announced today, Costa and AIDA togetherhave nine new ships on order representing a collective 21,720 total lowerberths - more than any other European cruise line.

Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest cruise vacation group in theworld, with a portfolio of 12 cruise brands in North America, Europe andAustralia, comprised of Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, PrincessCruises, Seabourn Cruise Line, Windstar Cruises, AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises,Cunard Line, Ocean Village, P&O Cruises, Swan Hellenic, and P&O CruisesAustralia.

Together, these brands operate 80 ships totaling approximately 141,000lower berths with 16 new ships scheduled to enter service between June 2006and spring 2010. Carnival Corporation & plc also operates the leading tourcompanies in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon, Holland America Tours and PrincessTours. Traded on both the New York and London Stock Exchanges, CarnivalCorporation & plc is the only group in the world to be included in both theS&P 500 and the FTSE 100 indices.

SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc
06/12/2006
CONTACT: Media, US, Tim Gallagher of Carnival Corporation & plc,+1-305-599-2600, ext. 16000,
or UK, Sarah Lindgreen or Ruban Yogarajah, bothof Brunswick Group, +44-20-7404-5959;
or Investor Relations, Beth Roberts ofCarnival Corporation & plc, +1-305-406-4832
Web site: #

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