Carnival Corp. is seeking to further tap into the Spanish cruise market with Friday's announcement of a joint venture with Orizonia Corp., Spain's largest travel company and owner of the Iberojet Cruceros cruise brand. The brand operates two ships, the 834-passenger Grand Voyager and the 1,196-passenger Grand Mistral. Under the agreement, the two ships would be transferred to the joint venture company, with the intent to expand the fleet through the acquisition of existing ships from Carnival Corp.'s fleet. The deal gives Carnival Corp. a firmer grip in the Spanish tourism market, which Mickey Arison, chairman and CEO of Carnival Corp., calls "one of the fastest-growing segments of the European vacation industry." The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2007.
