“Wave season has been phenomenal,” said Josh Weinstein, president and CEO of Carnival Corporation, on the company’s first quarter earnings call and business update.

Weinstein said the best week for bookings came at the end of February, and that strength had continued into March.

“In North America, our Carnival brand continues to propel us forward breaking new booking records every single week in January and February,” he said. “Booking volumes for our North American brands have been running in excess of 2019 levels for the last six months and booking lead times are now back.”

Of note is the company’s new Carnival Italian Style concept with the Carnival Venezia, which recently sailed as the Costa Venezia.

Undergoing her Carnival conversion in Navantia, the ship is slated to start revenue service in June from New York. Weinstein said the vessel was nearing 100 percent occupancy in the third quarter.

Weinstein added that demand for the company’s European brands had also accelerated.

“It is catching up to the U.S. market in the recovery cycle. Demand trends are improving across all regions.”

Booking volumes hit a record for European brands during the first quarter, according to Weinstein, with strong-close in demand and producing a lengthening of the booking curve.

Australia, meanwhile, remains about a year behind in the recovery cycle and Asia is about two years behind. China remains closed to international travel, Weinstein said, noting it previously accounted for about one million guests prior to the pandemic.