Dr. Seuss will join Carnival cruise ships

Carnival Cruise Lines’ 24 ships will get Dr. Seuss characters, breakfasts, books, movies and story-time starting in February and across the whole fleet by 2015, the line announced Wednesday.

In addition, two ships will get “Bookville,” a dedicated play space with décor and furniture inspired by Dr. Seuss.

The addition will catch Carnival up with some of its competitors who have incorporated brand-name characters into their cruise activities and spaces – not just Disney Cruise Lines but also Royal Caribbean, which has DreamWorks characters, and Norwegian Cruise Line, which has Nickelodeon.

Carnival says it carries more than 700,000 kids a year, nearly half the total number of children carried by the North American cruise industry.

“Our youth and family programming continues to be highly rated and extremely popular with the millions of families who sail with Carnival, but we’re constantly challenging ourselves to uncover unique and interesting ways to further enhance our guest experience,” Mark Tamis, senior vice president of guest operations for Carnival Cruise Lines, said in a press release.

All ships, starting with the Carnival Splendor in February, will get these features:

The Green Eggs and Ham Breakfast ($5 a person), a character breakfast featuring Seuss-inspired food – green eggs and ham, moose juice, goose juice, strawberries dipped in signature Seuss blue – as well as traditional breakfast items. The breakfast will be staged on the first sea day of each cruise.

A selection of Dr. Seuss books and toys.

Dr. Seuss movies will be shown on the Lido Deck giant screen overlooking the pool.

Seuss-a-palooza Story Time, A Rhyming Good Time, story time on a sea day.

Special events, including the Seuss-a-palooza Character Parade, photo opps, and character meet-and-greets.

Two ships will get the Seuss-themed Bookville play area – Carnival Vista, a new ship scheduled to enter service in early 2016, and Carnival Freedom, which will undergo a major refurbishment in May.