Nick Offerman is the new face of Carnival Cruise Line. The company just unveiled a new commercial with the much-loved comedy actor for its latest campaign, Nick Offerman Finds His Fun Again.
In the ad, Offerman is an overworked carpenter, who clearly needs to let his hair down before choosing to embark on a Carnival Cruise Line adventure. If Ron Swanson can have fun on Carnival Cruise Line trip then anybody can.
No Shortage of Fun
Nick Offerman on Ropes Course (Carnival Cruise Lines)
(Carnival Cruise Lines)
Of course, there is an inevitable shade of his Parks and Recreation protagonist’s dry deadpan, with a dash of good old Offerman goofiness. “Heights are afraid of me,” declares the actor as he stands atop Carnival’s dizzying Ropes Course.
As most prior Carnival Cruise Line guests will testify, there is no shortage of fun on these journeys. The Florida cruise giant has more than its fair share of diversion onboard, and Offerman gets through several others in the short, 30-second clip.
Carnival Cruise Line’s variety of indoor and outdoor amenities means guests are never bored and always engaged in something. Offerman manages to fit in water slides, a rope course, an aquapark, Japanese Teppanyaki, and a beach visit during his adventure.
From Wooden Canoes to Floating Cities
Nick Offerman Woodworking (Carnival Cruise Lines)
(Carnival Cruise Lines)
The star of The Last of Us and dozens of other projects may be the last person regular cruise line travelers would expect to encounter. His ethos has always been one of solitude in nature, driven by a love of the outdoors and working with wood.
Then again, there is a strong link between Offerman and traveling by water: the expert woodworker has built several bespoke wooden canoes from scratch. What’s more, he has made award-winning films and written books dedicated to his love of the craft.
His 2008 instructional video, Fine Woodstrip Canoe Building with Nick Offerman, won the Paddling Film Festival Best Instructional Film award, according to Paddling Magazine. Furthermore, his debut book, Paddle Your Own Canoe (2013), focused on this journey, among other early life memoirs.
A Seasoned Family Traveler
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Carnival is Calling (Carnival Cruise Lines)
(Carnival Cruise Lines)
So what brings Offerman to an all-action Carnival Cruise Line vessel? Alongside the new ad campaign’s release, Offerman spoke to Parade’s Richard Chachowski about his connections to family fun and his unlikely maritime association.
“Getting out on a ship to shoot these commercials was my first time on a cruise ship,” he reveals. Yet, he was pleasantly surprised by how his time with Carnival Cruise Line gave him the natural surroundings he craves.
What’s more, his stay onboard sparked a fascination with these floating cities, not least their many diligent crew members and experts below deck.
No Different from a National Park
Carnival Liberty (Carnival Cruise Line)
(Carnival Cruise Line)
Nonetheless, being above deck and seeing the horizon, clouds, and sunset gave Offerman the natural environment he loves so much. It was such a positive experience, he says, that it even gave him an inkling “to write about it as though I’m in a national park.”
Fond memories of travel-based bonding with his family as a child reinforced to Offerman why family vacations are so crucial to an American’s DNA. Visits to national parks in a Suburban packed with six family members gave this established actor a solid appreciation for why anyone can enjoy Carnival Cruise Line journeys.
He believes families almost owe it to themselves to escape their daily, device-tethered existence and choose an experience together. “Then there’s this great company with this boat that’s like a town and … with any amenity you can think of,” he adds. “We’re going to go enjoy the weather and the sun with all of these delicious trappings.”
Endless Activities and Entertainment
Find Your Fun Again (Carnival Cruise Lines)
(Carnival Cruise Lines)
With Offerman’s words ringing so true, it comes as no surprise that the 2025 World Cruise Awards have nominated Carnival Cruise Line ships in three categories. Fittingly, Carnival Cruise Line has a chance to win for entertainment, activities, and families.
In any event, the company already has a Nick Offerman-shaped testimonial to equal any international gong. “Ships: am I right?” is his closing line in the new commercial. After finding his fun side again with Carnival Cruise Line, Nick Offerman may be very right indeed.
The World Travel Awards Gala Ceremony takes place in December at Exhibition World Bahrain.