<p>With less than seven months until its maiden voyage, the new Carnival Magic&nbsp;reached  another construction milestone when it was &ldquo;floated out&rdquo; earlier this  week&nbsp;from her outfitting quay at the Fincantieri&nbsp;shipyard in Monfalcone,  Italy.<span></span></p>
<p>The initial stages of a cruise ship&rsquo;s construction take place in a  dry dock facility.&nbsp; Once exterior outfitting is completed, the dry dock  is flooded with water and the ship is &ldquo;floated out&rdquo; and moved to a wet  dock facility where construction continues. &nbsp;&nbsp;</p>
<p>Exclusive images and video of the Carnival Magic&rsquo;s float out can be viewed at www.carnivalmagic.com, under the &ldquo;How It&rsquo;s Made&rdquo; section.</p>
<p>The next major milestone of the Carnival Magic &ndash; sea trials in the  Adriatic Sea &ndash; are slated for early next year in anticipation of the  ship&rsquo;s May 1, 2011, European debut.</p>
<p>The most innovative &ldquo;Fun Ship&rdquo; to date, Carnival Magic&nbsp;will  offer a host of new facilities and features, including the RedFrog&nbsp;Pub,  a Caribbean-inspired watering hole with its own private label beer,  Cucina&nbsp;del Capitano, an Italian family-style&nbsp;restaurant that brings the  heritage of Carnival&rsquo;s captains to the table, and SportsSquare, an  expansive sports complex featuring the first-ever ropes course and  outdoor fitness area at sea.</p>
<p>Other innovations include Carnival WaterWorks aqua park, a Serenity  adults-only retreat, The Lanai, a wrap-around promenade with whirlpools  that extend out over the ship&rsquo;s sides and a stunning indoor/outdoor caf&eacute;  and live entertainment venue called Ocean Plaza.</p>
<p>Carnival Magic&nbsp;is slated to debut with a nine-day cruise from Venice to Barcelona May 1-10, 2011, followed by a series of seven- to 12-day Mediterranean voyages from Barcelona &ndash; the line&rsquo;s first departures from that port.&nbsp; Following a 16-day trans-Atlantic crossing, Carnival Magic will launch seven-day Caribbean service from Galveston Nov. 14, 2011, becoming the largest cruise ship ever based in Texas year-round.</p>
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