Darian Lipscomb was invited by the company to set sail on the inaugural voyage of the new Carnival Horizon... for a price.
A Virginia teen's choice of Snapchat handle has paid off in the form of a free dream vacation.
Carnival Cruise Line superfan Darian Lipscomb, 15, of Prospect, was invited by the company to set sail on the inaugural voyage of the new Carnival Horizon ship, for a small price.
Since Darian's Snapchat handle is @CarnivalCruise and the cruise line wanted it as their own, he had to give up the name in exchange for an excursion on the house.
Company reps took a trip to Virginia to personally surprise Darian with the offer, a stunt that made headlines around the country.
Now, Darian has had his luxury cruise and Carnival was there all along the way to document the once-in-a-lifetime experience.
From the ribbon-cutting ceremony on to shipboard water slides, personal cooking lessons and more, Darian clearly had the time of his life.
But Carnival wasn't done. In addition to the cruise, the company has offered to pay for the high schooler's college education and surprised him with the news aboard the Horizon.
The 3,954-passenger ship's features include a Dr. Seuss-themed aqua park, Bonsai Teppanyaki, the line's first teppanyaki venue, and Guy's Pig & Anchor Smokehouse and Brewhouse serving up "real deal" barbecue favorites created by Food Network star Guy Fieri, as well as four new craft beers that are brewed on board.
Darian's family got to experience all the ship's features along with him in April as they joined him on the two-week cruise.
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