It was a memorable day at Fincantieri's Monfalcone shipyard. On July 16, 2005 more than 2,000 invited guests flocked to the northern Italian town from all corners of the earth to board Carnival Cruise Lines' newest "Fun Ship", the 110,239 ton Carnival Liberty. That same afternoon, the giant vessel set off on a short pre-inaugural voyage to Dubrovnik and her summer home of Civitavecchia, signaling the start of a sell-out Mediterranean season.

In 33 years, Carnival Cruise Lines have grown from a one-ship budget operation to being the most popular cruise line on earth, strongly drawing on millions of die-hard Carnival fans in the Americas. So, what has made them so successful? First and foremost, Carnival has always managed to deliver what they promise: an upbeat cruise experience on well-designed ships that are a destination in themselves. Better call them "Fun Ships", a brilliant marketing slogan that has worked for decades and still says it all. With a current fleet of 21 "Fun Ships", Carnival has been looking beyond the Caribbean in recent years and the familiar red, white and blue whale fin funnels can now be seen in Alaska, Hawaii and New England. After testing the waters in 2002 with Carnival Legend, it took Carnival until 2005 to take the plunge in Europe. With a sell-out series of 12-day Mediterranean cruises on their brand new Carnival Liberty, the cruise line quickly proved the strength of their brand on both sides of the Atlantic. So, what's like to discover the Mediterranean on a "Fun Ship"? Ship Parade joined Carnival Liberty's short pre-inaugural voyage. And boy, did we have fun!