The ship was the fourth of Carnival Cruise Lines' Fantasy-class built by Kværner Masa-Yards at its Helsinki New Shipyard in Finland.

[2] The ship was registered under the Panamanian flag and mostly home-ported in San Juan, Puerto Rico, sailing in the Caribbean year-round.

[5] After the destruction caused in the United States Virgin Islands by Hurricanes Irma and Maria, Carnival Fascination was chartered to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) from October 15, 2017, until February 3, 2018, to house relief workers at St Croix.

Coco Cay is a private island in the Bahamas owned by rival cruise line Royal Caribbean International.

[18] In June 2010, Carnival Fascination lost engine power due to a technical malfunction while returning to Jacksonville, Florida.

[20] In February 2020, the ship canceled a call to Saint Lucia over a COVID-19 scare, after a crew member reported illness, with flu like symptoms.