The Conquest Class, in one read
The Conquest-class ships — Carnival Conquest (2002), Carnival Glory (2003), Carnival Valor (2004), Carnival Liberty (2005) and Carnival Freedom (2007) — are Carnival's stretched evolution of the earlier Destiny-class hull, about 59 feet longer with an extra restaurant deck. At roughly 110,000 gross tons apiece, they're the mid-size workhorses of the fleet: older than Vista or Excel, but still genuinely popular, still frequently refitted, and each one meaningfully different from her "sisters" by now.
Fit scores, not review scores — these measure who the ships suit, not how good they are.
Value-focused families and couples who want a genuinely big, well-equipped Carnival ship at a fare well under the newer classes — from a wide spread of US homeports.
You want the newest hardware in the fleet — SkyRide, IMAX, BOLT and Havana all arrived on later classes — or you're picking a ship by "class" alone rather than checking that specific hull's refit history.
What actually defines the class
The platform itself was the innovation, not any one signature venue — and one refit program covers all five ships in name only.
A stretched Destiny hull
Conquest class took Carnival's earlier Destiny-class design and lengthened it by about 59 feet, adding an entire additional restaurant deck. That's the actual platform advance — more of everything, not a single new flashy feature.
Serenity, retrofitted onto every ship
The adults-only retreat is standard across all five now — but it wasn't original to this class. Serenity debuted on Carnival Inspiration in 2007 and was added to these ships afterward, at different times.
Five steakhouses, five different names
Unlike newer classes that share one specialty-dining brand fleetwide, every Conquest-class ship carries her own steakhouse name — The Point, the Emerald Room, Scarlett's, Diamonds and the Sun King. Same concept, five distinct identities.
One "program," an eight-year rollout
Carnival's Fun Ship 2.0 refit reached Liberty in October 2011 and didn't reach Freedom until February 2019 — over seven years later. If you're comparing two of these ships, the honest question isn't just "which class" but "which specific refit."
Feature explorer
What's shared across the class, and what genuinely isn't. Tap through.
Ship-by-ship, side by side
Five ships, five different answers on almost every row. This is the table to check before assuming "Conquest class" means one consistent experience.
| Conquest | Glory | Valor | Liberty | Freedom | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shipyard | Fincantieri, Monfalcone | Fincantieri, Monfalcone | Fincantieri, Monfalcone | Fincantieri, Monfalcone | Fincantieri, Marghera — the one sister built elsewhere |
| Delivered | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2007 |
| Steakhouse | The Point Steakhouse | Emerald Room Steakhouse | Scarlett's Steakhouse | Diamonds Steakhouse | Sun King Steakhouse |
| WaterWorks aqua park | Not currently listed | Added 2017 | Added 2025 | Added 2025 | Added 2019 |
| Fun Ship 2.0 completed | Oct. 2012 | Nov. 2012 | Apr. 2016 | Oct. 2011 — first of the five | Feb.–Mar. 2019 — last of the five, 8 years after Liberty |
| Most recent dry dock | Feb. 2026 | Mar.–Apr. 2026 | May–Jun. 2025 | 2025 | Oct. 2023 |
| 2026 homeport | Miami | Port Canaveral | New Orleans (→ Mobile, AL, 2027) | New Orleans | Port Canaveral |
| Cruise Critic member rating | 3.9 / 5 | 4.0 / 5 | 4.0 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 |
The five ships, and the one reason to pick each
Same platform, five different paths since. Tap between them.
Full ship guides: Carnival Conquest · Carnival Glory · Carnival Valor · Carnival Liberty · Carnival Freedom.
Which Conquest Class ship fits you?
Five quick questions. With five ships this spread out in age and refit history, homeport and "how fresh does it need to be" usually settle it.
How the Conquest Class is actually received
Cruise Critic's own member ratings run from 3.9 to 4.5 across the five: Conquest 3.9, Glory and Valor both 4.0, and Liberty and Freedom tied at the top with 4.5. None of the five appears in Cruise Critic's official "Best and Worst Carnival Ships" editorial feature, in either direction — that conversation currently centers on newer ships (Jubilee, Mardi Gras and Celebration at the top; Encounter, Adventure, Dream and Luminosa at the bottom). These five simply weren't part of that particular ranking exercise.
Independent aggregate rankings tell a genuinely different story, and we're not going to pretend they agree. One such ranking (CruiseMummy) places Freedom lowest of the five — a notable contradiction, since Freedom ties for the class's highest Cruise Critic member score. The likeliest explanation is methodology, not a hidden flaw: aggregate rankings weigh things like refit recency and amenity counts more heavily than individual member reviews do, and Freedom's Fun Ship 2.0 refit landed years behind her sisters'. We're presenting both figures rather than picking a side — reviewers genuinely disagree on this one.
Recurring, verifiable class-wide notes: value is a consistent theme (these are among the more affordable ways to sail a genuinely large Carnival ship), and the wide gap in refit timing means two ships in the "same class" can feel meaningfully different in freshness. If a specific venue or amenity is the reason you're booking, check that individual ship's current deck plan rather than assuming class-wide consistency.
Book Conquest Class
For a big, well-priced Carnival ship from a wide range of US homeports — and check the specific ship's refit history, not just the class name.
Book something newer instead
If SkyRide, IMAX, BOLT or Havana are must-haves — none of those exist anywhere in this class.
Ask Seabound about the Conquest Class
Tell us about your trip.
Homeport or driving radius, group size, kids' ages, budget and length — and we'll tell you which of the five actually fits, not just which "class" sounds right.
Instant answers from our guides · always verified against current Carnival information before you book.
Quick answers
What is Carnival's Conquest Class?
A five-ship class built between 2002 and 2007: Carnival Conquest, Glory, Valor, Liberty and Freedom. They're Carnival's stretched evolution of the earlier Destiny-class hull — about 59 feet longer, with an extra restaurant deck — and at roughly 110,000 gross tons each, they're the workhorse mid-size ships of the fleet.
Do all five Conquest-class ships have the same features?
No — despite being called sisters, each has its own steakhouse name (The Point on Conquest, the Emerald Room on Glory, Scarlett's on Valor, Diamonds on Liberty, Sun King on Freedom), and their refits have landed years apart. Carnival's Fun Ship 2.0 program touched Liberty in 2011 and didn't reach Freedom until 2019 — an eight-year spread for what's marketed as one program.
Which Conquest-class ships have WaterWorks?
Glory (added 2017), Freedom (2019), and Valor and Liberty (both 2025). Carnival Conquest's current deck plan doesn't list a WaterWorks aqua park — if a water park is a must for your trip, confirm directly before booking her specifically.
Where do the five Conquest-class ships sail from?
Carnival Conquest sails from Miami; Glory and Freedom from Port Canaveral; Valor and Liberty from New Orleans. Carnival has confirmed Valor is relocating to Mobile, Alabama for a year-round deployment starting in 2027.
Which Conquest-class ship is rated highest?
On Cruise Critic's own member ratings, Liberty and Freedom tie at 4.5 out of 5, the highest of the five. Independent aggregate rankings don't agree, though — one rates Freedom the lowest of the five ships. We treat that as a genuine reviewer disagreement rather than picking a side.