The Carnival Magic launches in about a month and you can win a trip on her by building a model of a Carnival ship. Photo courtesy Carnival Cruise Line
By Jackie Roseboom
Kids and kids at heart can put their artistic skills to good use and build a ship for a good cause.
Carnival Cruise Lines is launching a “Build a Ship” contest that invites anyone 13 years or older to build a model of a Carnival ship out of everyday items and submit a photo of it to win a free cruise. The contest, which benefits St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, is the latest in a series of contests and other activities in anticipation of the May 1 launch of the line’s newest ship, Carnival Magic.
Participants are encouraged to be creative and use whatever they can think of to build a cruise ship. There are no limits on what household materials can be utilized.
Once the ship model is complete, entrants are asked to snap a photo of their creation and upload it to www.carnivalmagic.com with a title and a brief description of the materials used. Photos will be displayed in an online gallery on the Carnival Magic website.
The deadline for submissions is April 6. The winner will be chosen by an online vote open to the public and will be announced on April 26. A selection of five finalists will be chosen for the public vote. The grand prize winner will receive a seven-day Carnival Magic Caribbean cruise for four from Galveston, Texas, in an ocean view stateroom. The four finalists will receive a prize pack containing a digital camera and various Carnival logo items. Carnival will donate $1 to St. Jude, up to $10,000, for each entry and vote, as well as for each Facebook fan who “likes” the contest.
The Carnival Magic is set to debut in Europe with a series of seven- to 12-day Mediterranean cruises operating May 1 to Oct. 16. Following a 16-day trans-Atlantic crossing, Carnival Magic will launch seven-day Caribbean service from Galveston, Texas, on Nov. 14, becoming the port’s largest year-round cruise ship.
The 3,690-passenger Carnival Magic will introduce a host of exciting innovations, including the Caribbean-inspired RedFrog Pub; Cucina del Capitano, a family-style Italian restaurant that brings Carnival’s Italian heritage to the table; and SportSquare, an action-packed top-deck recreation area featuring cruising’s first ropes course and outdoor fitness area. Other features include Serenity, a relaxing adults-only retreat; The Lanai, a wraparound outdoor promenade with whirlpools that extend over the ship’s sides; and Ocean Plaza, a stunning indoor/outdoor café and live music venue. The ship will also have more than 19,000 square feet dedicated to children and families. That will consist of Camp Carnival (ages 2-11), Circle “C” (12-14) and Club O2 (15-17), a two-level miniature golf course, Carnival WaterWorks aqua park with water slides and attractions, an arcade and more.
Details and contest rules can be found on Carnival Magic’s website at carnivalmagic.com/contest.
Be sure and follow Cruise News Weekly on Facebook and Twitter as we sail on the Carnival Magic in early May, and look for a future review on these pages.
– Jackie Roseboom is a regular contributor to Cruise Guide, “Orlando Attractions Magazine” and CruiseNewsWeekly.com.
We’re in the top 5!
Please vote for our ship My children worked hard together as a team (shock!) and they get so excited every time we see another vote register for us. We used only “household objects” and included a pirate dog and warm chocolate melting cake (that was delicious by the way!) We wanted to make the ship big and somewhat interactive so we could show the “FUN” in our Funship Please at least take a look, and vote to give a dollar to St. Jude
Look for the big cardboard ship with the kids and the dog
http://www.carnivalmagic.com/contest/FinalistGallery.aspx