Carnival’s Conquest class is five ships — Carnival Conquest, Glory, Valor, Liberty and Freedom — built between 2002 and 2007. They run from 110,000 to 110,556 gross tons, all carry approximately 2,980 guests, and every one has 13 decks. That is the tightest class in Carnival’s fleet: 556 gross tons separates the largest from the smallest, about half of one percent. Because the hulls are effectively interchangeable, the decision is entirely about departure port and itinerary rather than which ship.
Five ships built over five years, and 556 gross tons separate the largest from the smallest. Same guest count, same deck count, same layout. The Conquest class is the one place in the Carnival fleet where the question of which ship to book has an honest answer of “whichever one is going where you want”, and everything written to the contrary is padding.
Which Conquest-class ship to book
Book on the itinerary, not the hull. That is the real advice for this class and it is worth stating before the list. All five carry approximately 2,980 guests across 13 decks, and the tonnage spread is about half of one percent. There is no hull here that gives you a materially different week.
Carnival Freedom is the largest and newest. 110,556 gross tons, in service since 2007. It is the last of the five and the biggest by 76 tons over Carnival Conquest, which is a difference you will never perceive.
Carnival Conquest is the lead ship. 110,480 gross tons, in service since 2002. The hull the other four were built from.
Carnival Valor (2004, 110,438 tons) and Carnival Glory (2003, 110,000 tons) sit in the middle. Carnival Glory is the smallest of the five, by 556 tons.
Carnival Liberty (2005, 110,428 tons) completes the set. Approximately 2,980 guests, 13 decks, like every other ship on this list.
Why a class this uniform is useful
You can book the second one without re-researching. If you sailed a Conquest-class ship and liked it, the other four are the same proposition. That is genuinely rare — most classes in the wider market vary enough that the class name only narrows things down rather than settling them.
It makes the itinerary the whole decision. Which is how it should be. Five near-identical ships spread across departure ports means you can pick the sailing that suits your dates and travel plans without trading away the onboard experience to get it.
The size is the point. Approximately 2,980 guests puts these ships at roughly half the capacity of Carnival’s largest, which carry approximately 5,282 across 19 decks. Fewer people means faster boarding, shorter queues and less of the week spent waiting. On a four- or five-night Caribbean run that matters more than an extra waterslide does.
What you are giving up: the newest venues. These hulls entered service between 2002 and 2007. If you want what Carnival has built since, look at the Vista class or newer — and our Carnival page lays the fleet out.
The five ships in order
Carnival Conquest (2002) — 110,480 gross tons, approximately 2,980 guests, 13 decks.
Carnival Glory (2003) — 110,000 gross tons, approximately 2,980 guests, 13 decks. The smallest in the class.
Carnival Valor (2004) — 110,438 gross tons, approximately 2,980 guests, 13 decks.
Carnival Liberty (2005) — 110,428 gross tons, approximately 2,980 guests, 13 decks.
Carnival Freedom (2007) — 110,556 gross tons, approximately 2,980 guests, 13 decks. The largest in the class.
We have written these guest figures as approximate deliberately. Our source records the capacity for these hulls without stating whether it counts two passengers per cabin or a fully sold ship, so calling it a double-occupancy figure would be claiming more precision than we have.
How this class sits in the Carnival fleet
Around 110,000 gross tons puts the Conquest class in the middle of the mainstream fleet — larger than the small ships that reach minor ports, well under the flagships. It is the size at which a ship has a full range of dining and entertainment without needing a plan to get anywhere.
Above it: the Vista class at 133,596 to 135,225 gross tons carrying approximately 3,934 to 4,208 guests, and above that the Excel ships at 181,808 to 183,521 tons. An Excel-class hull is roughly two-thirds larger than a Conquest one and carries about 2,300 more people.
Below it: the Spirit class at roughly 85,900 to 86,100 tons carrying approximately 2,124 guests, and the Fantasy pair at 71,909 and 71,925 tons. Those are the hulls that reach the smaller ports, and they board faster still.
Which makes the Conquest class the default rather than the compromise. It is large enough that nobody runs out of things to do and small enough that the ship never feels like an airport. Most people who say they want a mid-size ship are describing this one without knowing its name.
If you are cross-shopping lines rather than ships, our cruise lines comparison is the faster route, and the cabin guide matters more on a ship this size than the hull choice does.
Common questions
How many Conquest-class ships are there?
Five: Carnival Conquest (2002), Carnival Glory (2003), Carnival Valor (2004), Carnival Liberty (2005) and Carnival Freedom (2007).
Which Conquest-class ship is the biggest?
Carnival Freedom at 110,556 gross tons, ahead of Carnival Conquest at 110,480. The gap across the whole class is 556 tons, which is not a difference you can feel.
Are Conquest-class ships all the same?
Structurally, close to it. All five carry approximately 2,980 guests across 13 decks, and the tonnage spread is about half a percent. This is the one Carnival class where picking by hull genuinely does not matter.
How does the Conquest class compare to Carnival's newest ships?
An Excel-class ship carries 5,282 guests across 19 decks against roughly 2,980 across 13 here. The Conquest ships are about half the size, which means fewer venues but faster boarding and shorter queues.
Is a Conquest-class ship too old?
The class entered service between 2002 and 2007. Age shows in the venue line-up rather than in the sailing, and the smaller guest count is a genuine advantage on a short Caribbean itinerary.
The Conquest class is a solved problem. Five ships that do the same thing competently, spread across enough ports that one of them probably sails the week you want. Spend the research time on the itinerary and the cabin instead.
Tell us your dates and your departure port and we will tell you which of the five is on it. We do not charge a fee for booking it.