Carnival Is About to Open a $600M Cruise Destination in Grand Bahama: Celebration Key

Grand Bahama is in a renaissance, from the new fate for its Lighthouse Point resort to a luxe Six Senses resort on the way, the island is having its moment. That includes Carnival’s big arrival next month. 

Grand Bahama is about to get a major tourism injection.

Carnival Cruise Line’s new exclusive cruise destination, Celebration Key, is now just weeks away from its debut, with the first passengers set to arrive on July 18.

The opening marks one of the most significant developments for Grand Bahama’s tourism sector in years — a purpose-built, $600 million project that’s expected to welcome more than 2 million passengers annually by 2028.

Located at Sharp Rock near Freeport, the 65-acre Celebration Key is more than a stop on the itinerary — it’s designed as a fully immersive Bahamian experience, complete with a mile-long beach, retail village, shore excursions, and a dedicated area for Bahamian vendors. For Carnival, it’s the first destination created specifically for its guests, and for Grand Bahama, it signals a long-awaited return to large-scale tourism investment.

In addition to the tourism arrivals, the project has generated hundreds of construction jobs and will support hundreds more once fully operational. Carnival has committed to ensuring Bahamian participation across all aspects of the destination — from food and beverage to entertainment and excursions.

Celebration Key will include five distinct “portals” tailored to different guest experiences, along with a deep-water pier capable of accommodating two of Carnival’s largest Excel-class ships simultaneously.

The destination will initially be served by ships from ports including Miami, Port Canaveral, and Galveston, with additional homeports joining in 2025.

As Grand Bahama continues to recover from the storms of 2019, tourism stakeholders say the opening of Celebration Key represents a turning point — one that could help reposition the island as a marquee cruise and leisure destination in the region.

The countdown is officially on.

Carnival has itineraries that visit Celebration Key next month for as low as $529 per person based on double occupancy. With that, you get an entry-level room on a three-day Bahamas trip that stops only on Celebration Key.