Double Drowning Tragedy Strikes Carnival’s Celebration Key

It is always a sad and tragic situation when a cruise guest passes away, and it was doubly sad on Celebration Key on Friday, August 15, 2025 with two separate drowning incidents less than one month after the port opened.

Lifeguards and emergency personnel at Carnival Cruise Line’s private Bahamian destination responded immediately to both situations, but in each case, the guests sadly passed away.

While little information has been released at this time, the cruise line did supply a statement to Cruise Hive confirming the individual events.

“Our lifeguards and medical team responded to two separate water emergency incidents at Celebration Key on Friday — one in the lagoon and one at the beach. Sadly, both guests have passed away,” Carnival confirmed.

According to Our News Bahamas, both guests were American citizens. One was a 79-year-old man, the other a 74-year-old woman.

One guest was snorkeling from the beach, while the other passed while enjoying one of the port’s freshwater lagoons. It is not clear whether the incident happened in the family-friendly Starfish Lagoon or the more laid back, adult-friendly Oasis Lagoon.

No further information about either guest has been released, though Carnival Cruise Line and Bahamian authorities are undoubtedly conducting a full investigation into each incident.

It is possible that medical incidents may have precipitated each drowning, or the guests may have overreached their own capabilities while in the water.

Two ships, Mardi Gras and Carnival Elation, were visiting Celebration Key on Friday. The cruise line has noted that one guest was from each vessel. “One guest was sailing with family on Mardi Gras and one guest was sailing with family on Carnival Elation. Our thoughts and prayers are with the guests and their families and our Care Team is providing assistance,” the statement read.

It is not known which guest was a passenger on which ship.

Carnival Elation is currently sailing a 4-night Bahamas itinerary from Jacksonville, Florida. The ship departed on Thursday, August 14, and was at Celebration Key from 2:30-8:30 p.m. on Friday. The private port was the ship’s first destination on the cruise.

Meanwhile, Mardi Gras is sailing a 6-night Eastern Caribbean itinerary that departed Port Canaveral on Sunday, August 10. The visit to Celebration Key from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. was the Excel-class ship’s last port for the voyage.

Both ships have continued on their sailings. Cruise Hive’s thoughts are with the family members, friends, and crews aboard both vessels at this very difficult time.

Drownings Do Happen on Cruise Vacations

These are not only drowning incidents reported recently. On Friday, August 8, an elderly Vietnamese couple tragically drowned on Milos in Greece amidst strong winds and rough waves.

Though the couple was not swimming at the time, the woman was knocked into the water by the winds and the man jumped after her in a rescue attempt. Sadly, both individuals passed.

Drownings can happen when travelers overestimate their swimming abilities or are unfamiliar with currents, waves, and other factors as they enjoy tropical destinations.

In September 2023, a 26-year-old guest drowned on MSC Ocean Cay Marine Reserve, MSC Cruises’ private island in the Bahamas. It is possible an underlying medical condition was a factor in that incident.

In May 2023, a guest aboard Carnival Splendor drowned while swimming at Mystery Island in Vanuatu. A medical incident was believed to contribute to that tragic situation as well.

Cruise guests should always be cautious about their swimming abilities in unfamiliar waters and be sure to swim with companions in case of an emergency.

Melissa Mayntz

Melissa has been offering her expertise on cruises since 2017 and reporting on cruise news since 2021. her work has been featured in newspapers, blogs, and websites on a wide range of subjects, but cruises remain her favorite topic to cover. She has been on more than 40 voyages to the Caribbean, Mexico, Alaska, Hawaii, and more, and always has at least one more sailing booked on the horizon.