Cruise exec Arison earned $5.4M in 2006

MIAMI --Carnival Corp. chairman Micky Arison made more than $5.4 million in base salary, bonuses and other compensation in 2006, according to a filing Friday by the world's largest cruise operator.

Arison received $850,000 in base salary and $2.6 million in bonuses -- an increase of $50,000 in base salary but $300,000 less in bonuses from 2005, according to Carnival's proxy statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Arison's base salary was set at $850,000 for 2007.

The filing also showed that stock options granted to Arison had a value of $1.47 million. And, he was compensated another $510,400 in perks and personal expenses, including $356,196 for personal use of Carnival aircraft.

That adds up to more than $5.4 million in compensation for the chief executive of a company that reported nearly $2.3 billion in net income in its 2006 fiscal year, which that ended Nov. 30.

Despite the profits, Carnival and other cruise lines dealt with sluggish bookings in the key Caribbean market and increased fuel costs in 2006. Shares of Carnival are down by about 11 percent in the past year.

Both Howard Frank, Carnival Corp.'s vice chairman and chief operating officer, and Bob Dickinson, Carnival Cruise Lines' president and CEO, saw their bonuses drop. Frank's bonus was $2.5 million, down from $2.8 million in 2005. Dickinson's 2006 bonus was about $1.1 million, down about $475,000 from the year before.

Miami-based Carnival Corp., with 12 brands sailing under its umbrella, is the world's largest cruise group, with more than 7 million passengers taking trips last year. It will become 11 brands when the planned sale of Windstar Cruises for $100 million to Ambassadors International Inc. closes this year.