
15 New Cruise Ships Debuting in 2021
By : Sarah Bretz
What a rollercoaster of a year 2020 has been. We are beyond excited to put 2020 in the rearview and look forward to a better and brighter year in 2021. One of the things to look forward to is over a dozen new cruise ships in 2021.

The Grand Central Atrium on Carnival’s Mardi Gras. (Rendering courtesy of Carnival)
As the cruise industry prepares to ramp back up, we’ll look at what new ships will debut in 2021.
New Cruise Ships in 2021
Jump to a cruise ship that’s coming soon to a port near you:

Viking Venus
Scheduled Debut Date: January 2021
Line: Viking
Size: 47,842 gross tons/930 passengers
Itineraries: the Mediterranean and Northern Europe
Highlights:
LivNordic Spa with thermal suite
Two-story Explorer’s Lounge with floor-to-ceiling windows and Mamsen’s, a counter-service venue serving things such as waffles, sandwiches, and soup
Manfredi’s Italian restaurant serving freshly-made pasta
All-balcony cabins
Aft infinity pool
Wintergarden lounge area with a glass-roof, afternoon tea is served here
Included wifi and select shore excursions in each port
Wintergarden area (Photo courtesy of Viking)
Mardi Gras

Scheduled Debut Date: April 2021
Line/Class: Carnival Cruise Line/Excellence/Excel Class
Size: 180,000 gross tons/5,282 passengers
Itineraries: Caribbean
Highlights:
BOLT rollercoaster
Family Feud Live game show
Two-story RedFrog Tiki Bar
Shaq’s Big Chicken counter service restaurant
Exclusive Loft 19 sundeck
WaterWorks aqua park
Adults-only Serenity Retreat sundeck
Bonsai Teppanyaki restaurant
Odyssey of the Seas
Scheduled Debut Date: April 2021
Line/Class: Royal Caribbean/Quantum Ultra Class
Size: 169,379 gross tons / 4,200 passengers
Itineraries: Mediterranean and Caribbean
Highlights:
Glow-in-the-dark laser tag
SkyPad bungee trampoline
Whimsical Alice-inspired Wonderland restaurant
North Star observation capsule that takes passengers high above the upper deck
Two-story The Lime and Coconut bar
RipCord by iFly skydiving simulator
Giovanni’s Italian Kitchen & Wine Bar restaurant
Bionic Bar with a robotic bartender
Odyssey of the Seas at the shipyard (Photo courtesy of Royal Caribbean)
MSC Virtuosa
• Scheduled Debut Date: April 2021 •Line/Class: MSC Cruises/Meraviglia Plus Class •Size: 181,000 gross tons / 4,800 passengers •Itineraries: Mediterranean, Northern Europe, and the Middle East
Highlights:
Cirque du Soleil shows in a circular-stage theater
MSC Aurea Spa with thermal suite
Kaito Teppanyaki Restaurant & Sushi Bar
16 indoor bars and five outdoor bars
MSC Yacht Club, an exclusive ship-within-a-ship area
One of the largest water parks at sea
French-Vietnamese dishes in the Indochine Restaurant
MSC Virtuosa (Rendering courtesy of MSC Cruises)