For the past 10+ years, Carnival has been the 800-pound gorilla in Galveston cruising. That presence in the port is getting a little stronger. The cruise line just announced that starting in 2016, it will reposition the Carnival Breeze and the Carnival Liberty to Galveston, replacing the Magic and Triumph.

You’ll remember that Carnival just positioned the Carnival Freedom to Galveston, making it the third ship from the cruise line to sail from the port. Bringing the Freedom was big news. Its capacity means roughly 3,000 more passengers can sail from the Port of Galveston at any one time.

But in cruising, it’s all about adding something new and fresh to get your most loyal cruisers back on the ship. The Freedom was a great move in that regard. Repositioning the Breeze and the Liberty is even better.

Carnival Magic and Carnival Triumph have sailed from Galveston for years. And while the Magic is one of the fleet’s newest ships (launched in 2011), the Triumph has been one of the most troubled cruise liners. In fact, after the problems it faced in being stranded a couple of years ago, many people refused to set foot on the ship.

The Breeze and Liberty should change some of that, while offering some new features for Galveston cruisers. As explained in a recent press release from Carnival:

“Carnival Breeze offers such innovations as a multi-dimensional cinema experience called Thrill Theater, Bonsai Sushi full-service Asian restaurant and WaterWorks highlighted by a 312-foot-long slide, while Carnival Liberty offers a classic American steakhouse, the cocktail pharmacy-themed Alchemy Bar and a 14,500-square-foot spa.”

When all three ships are in place in late 2016, they are expected to carry 600,000 passengers annually from Galveston — roughly the population of Las Vegas.

Cruisers can expect to see the Liberty in port starting March 2016. The Breeze will arrive December 2016.

Photo: James Willamor

As if the past decade wasn’t exciting enough, 2015 looks to be the biggest year for Galveston cruising ever. During this year, 232 different departures are scheduled from the port. That includes the return of Disney Cruise Lines later in the year, and the placement of Royal Caribbean’s Liberty of the Seas — a “Freedom Class” ship that will be the largest cruise liner ever to sail from Galveston.

But the changes for 2015 get started a little earlier when Carnival begins sailing the Carnival Freedom from the port in February. The Carnival Freedom will be the third of the company’s ships to sail from the Texas coast during the year.

The Freedom will be criss-crossing the Gulf and Caribbean with a wide variety of itineraries. Trips include 4, 5, 6 and 7-day sailings to ports ranging from Nassau, Key West, Cozumel, Grand Cayman, Roatan, and more.

The ship is one of the newer vessels in Carnival’s fleet. Built in 2007, Freedom measures more than 950 feet, carries roughly 3,000 passengers and 1,150 crew. Meanwhile, the ship was upgraded in 2014, where it added Guy’s Burger Joint, Blue Iguana Tequila Bar, and the RedFrog Rum Bar, along with a host of other upgrades in amenities.

The Carnival Freedom is repositioning to Galveston from Port Everglades, Florida. Her first voyage will be a 6-day trip to Mexico on February 15th.

Photo: SwimPhoto

President Obama made a surprise announcement when he revealed plans for the United States to normalize relations with Cuba.

The island nation just 90 miles from U.S. borders has long been romanticized in American culture. Known for delicious rum, fine cigars, beautiful women, and antique cars, many Americans have longed to travel to explore Cuba.

But since the 1960s, Cuba has been one of the few places on the planet where it was all but impossible for most Americans to visit. Now, with relations seemingly getting better, does that mean you could see Havana as a stop on Galveston cruise itineraries?

First things first is to understand that many laws and regulations put in place in the past 50-plus years will have to be changed. Just because the President makes a statement doesn’t automatically make something the law of the land.

According to law firm Holland & Knight, however, one of the restrictions that will likely be lifted concerns ships stopping to port in Cuba:

“The restriction on foreign flag vessels calling on the U.S. if they have called in Cuba in the last 180 days will be modified in the case of vessels that called on Cuba and engaged in certain “humanitarian” trade. It is not expected that this restriction will be lifted on cruise ships in the short term, however, it is possible if there is pressure from the cruise lines.”

As well, U.S. citizens are still prohibited from most purchases in Cuba, which will have to be adjusted before American cruise passengers could reasonably expect to visit the island:

“U.S. citizens, permanent residents, companies organized under the laws of the U.S. (and their foreign subsidiaries), and persons or entities located in the U.S. are still largely prohibited from engaging directly or indirectly in any transactions with Cuba, unless such transactions fall within a general or special License.”

In short, don’t expect to lounge on Cuban beaches this summer. But we wouldn’t be surprised if in the next 5-10 years there are some cruises that begin traveling to the country as the rules are changed.

And frankly, Galveston would be an ideal port for trips to Havana/Cuba. Havana is just about 900 miles from the Texas coast — only 100 more miles than Cozumel. It is easily within sailing distance for a 7-day cruise.

Add to that the fact that competition for cruising dollars is heating up in Texas. Between Royal Caribbean, Carnival, Princess, and Norwegian, cruisers have a wide choice of which line to sail. That means the cruise lines will look for any way possible to differentiate themselves — including being the first to add exotic Cuban ports to their itineraries.

We’re excited about the possibility of opening up Cuba to American vacationers. We know it won’t happen overnight, but it’s likely that Galveston will be one of the first ports to service the area.

Sailing on a Royal Caribbean cruise in the near future? Interested in knowing just how much it will cost to have an umbrella drink while relaxing by the pool? We were able to snag pictures of the pool bar menus on a recent trip and have posted them here to give you a better idea of what to expect.

Take a look:

Yes, those figures are right. The cheapest beer is $4.75. Keep in mind that all prices will also have another 15% added as an automatic gratuity. No one ever said it was cheap to drink in paradise.

You may have noticed that Galveston parking rates on many lots have shot up lately. Due to a fee increase charged to independent parking lots to drop off passengers at the port, the businesses have had to charge more just to combat their rising costs.

Needless to say, the increased fees charged by the Port of Galveston have been controversial. In an effort to combat the change, one lot — EZ Cruise Parking — is taking a unique approach. They recently emailed out a new “Go Green” promotion that can save some passengers a lot of money if they are willing to skip the shuttle and walk a little bit.

Here’s the scoop: Since the port charges the parking lot for every trip its shuttle makes to drop off cruise passengers, EZ Cruise Parking is offering up to a $20 parking discount to those willing to instead walk from the lot to the port. This helps save the parking lot in fees charged by the port, and it is passing the savings on to you.

All you have to do is prepay on their website, and use coupon code “20parkwalk” if you are taking a 7-day cruise or “15parkwalk” if taking a 4-5 day cruise. For a 7-day cruise the prepaid price goes from $65 to only $45. That’s one of the lowest rates around.

If you want to take advantage of the promotion, you can click here to reserve your parking spot.