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'MS Elation''' is a Fantasy class cruise ship owned by Carnival Cruise Lines. She sails on four and five day itineraries to Baja, Mexico from San Diego, California. Beginning in February 2009, the Elation began making stops at Avalon on Catalina Island with her first visit on February 16, 2009. The vessel is the first to home-port in year-round. She was the first Carnival ship (and the first cruise ship in general) to be equipped with Azipods for propulsion. The pods give the Elation better maneuverability compared with her sister ships. On September 17th, 2009, Carnival Cruise Lines announced that the MS Elation will be deployed to Mobile, Alabama to operate four- and five-day western Caribbean cruises beginning in May 2010, replacing the Carnival Fantasy''.Elation coming to Mobile http://blog.al.com/live/2009/09/carnival_cruise_lines_to_deplo.html

Carnival Cruise Lines is a cruise line operating a large number of cruise ships. Originally an independent company founded in 1972 by Ted Arison, it is now a branded division within Carnival Corporation & plc, a publicly traded company which owns a number of different cruise brands.

Carnival was a pioneer in the concept of shorter, less expensive cruises. Its ships are known for their Las Vegas-style decor and entertainment. The line calls its ships The Fun Ships, and there are a wide range of activities offered on board. Its trademark is the smoke stack, or funnel, which is red, white and blue and shaped like a whale's tail. The mascot for Carnival is "Fun Ship Freddy", a character in the shape of Carnival's distinctive funnel.

New offices for Carnival will open in 2009 in Southampton, United Kingdom.

In 1996 the Carnival Destiny of 101,000 gross tons became the largest passenger ship in the world at the time. As of 2008, the latest and largest ship in the Carnival Fleet is the Carnival Splendor. Currently, a new 130,000 gross ton ship is under construction, the Carnival Dream. The Carnival Dream entered service on 21st September 2009. After several voyages in the Mediteranean she is set to offer weekly Caribbean cruises from Cape Canaveral from 5 December 2009. A sister ship, the Carnival Magic, is set to debut in June 2011.

John Heald is the senior cruise director of Carnival.