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Carnival, founded in 1972 and headquartered in Miami, is the world's largest cruise line. The line's humble origins pigeonholed it as the cruise industry's version of a floating fraternity party for a long, long time. But that's yesterday and while Carnival still commands a certain reputation for a flashy, neon-esque atmosphere -- and by no means stints on elaborate lounges and discos -- its ships continue to evolve. In particular, Carnival's earned kudos for enhancing cuisine (never a high point in the old days), investing in a top-notch children's' program, and expanding its itinerary offerings beyond its traditional Caribbean and Bahamas trips to regions like Alaska and Atlantic Canada. It even offered its first European itineraries in 2002; while successful, the company has not yet revealed if it will, in future, add a regular series of European voyages to the roster. Carnival also offers a wide variety of cruise lengths. Currently they range from three-to 17-day voyages. Carnival is one of the world's most innovative cruise lines. Among its firsts: It's currently the only major cruise line to build and operate a completely smoke-free cruise ship, though not for too much longer. Carnival has announced it will repositioning Carnival Paradise, its butt-free vessel, in September to the West Coast and, in the process, drop the non-smoking requirements. Carnival pioneered the concept of building regional "drive to" ports, expanding its embarkation centers beyond Miami to places like New Orleans, Galveston and New York. The company offers a vacation guarantee program that allows passengers unhappy with their cruise the chance to disembark at the first port and get a refund. And the line continues to update and upgrade its ships with an aggressive newbuild program. The 18-ship fleet received three new additions in 2002: Carnival Pride, Carnival Legend and Carnival Conquest. 2003 marked the debut of Carnival Glory, the second in the Conquest class. 2004 will be a big year for Carnival as two more vessels emerge from Italy's Fincantieri shipyard: Carnival Miracle in March 2004, part of the Spirit class, and Carnival Valor, another Conquest class. The company expects a fourth Conquest class ship to launch in 2005, which would bring the fleet total to 22. The explosive expansion at Carnival Cruise Line extends beyond just its ships. Parent company Carnival Corporation is the industry's biggest; other cruise lines in the family fold include Costa Cruise Lines, Cunard Line, Holland America Line, Windstar Cruises and Seabourn Cruise Line. In a year-long effort, Carnival Corp. has acquired P&O Princess (now named Carnival plc), which adds the following companies to Carnival's portfolio: Princess Cruises, Swan Hellenic, P&O Cruises, Ocean Village, AIDA, A'ROSA, and P&O Cruises Australia. Carnival Corp. now operates 70 ships totaling more than 110,000 lower berths with 13 new ships scheduled for delivery between now and mid-2006. It also operates three riverboats on Europe's Danube River, Holland America Tours, and Princess Tours in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon. The stock is traded on both the New York and London Stock Exchanges, Carnival Corporation & plc is the only entity in the world to be included in both the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100 indices. Carnival offers an incredibly diverse range of onboard activities, from traditionally-oriented napkin folding classes, Vegas-style revues and kitchen tours to funkier fun like belly flop pool contests and water slides. All of its ships offer size-appropriate spa and fitness facilities and have multiple pool areas. From Carnival Destiny-class onward, one pool always lies under a retractable roof so it can be used year-round. Casinos on Carnival ships are elaborate, Vegas-style rooms with all the neon and flash one would expect. Carnival is increasingly experimenting with dining venues on its ships. The revamp, which falls under the umbrella "Total Choice Dining," includes a four-tiered staggered dining time arrangement in ships' main restaurants; passengers can choose 5:45 p.m.; 6:15 p.m.; 8 p.m.; and 8:30 p.m. Beyond traditional dining, Carnival is gradually introducing specialty eateries, such as an Asian-themed restaurant (Carnival Destiny, Carnival Triumph, Carnival Victory, Carnival Spirit, Carnival Pride, Carnival Conquest, Carnival Glory), a New York-style deli (Carnival Destiny, Carnival Triumph, Carnival Victory, Carnival Spirit, Carnival Pride, Carnival Conquest, Carnival Glory) and a pre-dinner sushi bar (Jubilee, Celebration, Fantasy, Ecstasy, Imagination, Inspiration, Elation and Paradise, Carnival Conquest, and Carnival Glory). Other new concepts include a patisserie (Fantasy, Ecstasy, Elation, Paradise, Carnival Destiny, Carnival Triumph, Carnival Victory, Carnival Spirit, Carnival Pride, Carnival Conquest, Carnival Glory) and the Nouveau Supper Club, an upscale boutique restaurant (Carnival Spirit, Carnival Pride, Carnival Legend and Carnival Conquest, Carnival Glory). In the spa arena, Carnival's renamed its Nautica Spa. The new moniker, adopted fleetwide, is SpaCarnival. Other highlights include Internet cafes and the recent introduction of in-cabin amenity baskets. The newfangled additions Carnival is gradually implementing on its ships vary wildly between vessels with, for the most part, the newer, bigger liners having the more sophisticated accouterments. This is definitely one cruise line where, despite much uniformity, ship-by-ship research is a good idea if there are particular features of interest. Passengers are a broad crisscross of (mostly) middle America; according to Carnival, 30% of its passengers are under 35, 40% are between 35-55 and 30% are over 55. Children's Programs: Carnival has invested heavily in Camp Carnival, its youth program, with increasingly elaborate facilities, counselor-guided programs and activities, and special dining menus. Camp Carnival is divided into four categories. Toddlers (2 - 5), Juniors (6 - 8) Intermediate (9 - 11) and Teens (12-15). There's a playroom for under-3s. Generally, families may find the fleet's newer ships have the best kids' facilities but this is one area where ship-by-ship research is important. Carnival Vacation Guarantee: One innovative program exclusive to Carnival is Carnival's Vacation Guarantee. It provides that if a passenger is dissatisfied with their cruise experience, they may disembark in the first non-US port of call and receive a refund for the unused portion of their cruise fare. To be eligible for the refund, guests must notify the purser's office on board prior to the first port of call. Carnival will reimburse the cost of coach air transportation back to the port of embarkation. The refund will be prorated depending on the number of days left at the point the guest disembarks. The Carnival Vacation Guarantee has been extended for departures through and including December 15, 2003. Past Guest Program:Past passenger status on Carnival extends to frequent cruiser discounts on Carnival Corp. members, such as Holland America, Costa, Cunard Line, Seabourn and Windstar. For more info: Go to Carnival's Web site and click on "past guest" under the "fun for everyone" heading or call 888-CCL-GUEST.