Shipyard Strike in Spain: Carnival Liberty Forced to Change Shipyards and Cancels Cruise

Bild: Carnival Cruises
An ongoing labor dispute in the Spanish metal industry has led to significant disruptions during the routine shipyard stay of the Carnival Liberty. Since June 18, 2025, work at the Navantia shipyard in Cádiz, Andalusia, has been unable to proceed as planned due to strikes. Consequently, Carnival Cruise Line was compelled to relocate the vessel to another shipyard and cancel a scheduled cruise. According to Spanish media reports, financial compensation is being sought from Navantia. It is also reported that the cruise ship was used as leverage by the trade unions in the collective bargaining dispute.

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On Sunday morning, June 22, 2025, the Carnival Liberty departed the shipyard in Cádiz under pressure from the cruise line. The ship, with its hull painting still incomplete, set course for Chantiers Naval de Marseille in Southern France, where it arrived on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, to continue the maintenance work. The change of shipyard location, necessitated by the strike, represents a considerable logistical challenge, as extensive material transport to Marseille must also be organized.

The resulting delay means that the Carnival Liberty cannot resume operations as originally planned for July 06, 2025. Before that, the ship must re-enter dry dock in Marseille to complete, among other things, the hull painting. Numerous other works are also still unfinished.

The Carnival Liberty is expected to depart Europe in early July to resume its scheduled Caribbean cruises from and to New Orleans in the USA. The first currently bookable voyage is set to begin on July 27, 2025. According to Spanish media, Carnival Cruise Line is demanding 4.5 million Euros from the Navantia shipyard as compensation for the incurred economic damage.

For the coming years, eleven additional shipyard stays for Carnival Cruise Line ships are actually planned at the shipyard in Cádiz. However, these have not yet been definitively confirmed. The premature termination of the Carnival Liberty's dry dock stay could negatively impact future contracts for the shipyard location.