Tag Archives: Costa Magica

Goddess of the Night Reportedly Detained by Italian Authorities

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The Goddess of the Night has reportedly been detained by Italian authorities while docked at the Port of Brindisi.

According to Reuters, the 2,720-guest vessel was seized on Wednesday following complaints about poor sanitary conditions onboard.

The ship, owned by Seajets, was impounded by order of local prosecutors to allow further investigations, the agency said.

The Goddess of the Night was chartered by the Italian government to serve as a floating hotel during the 50th Summit of the Group of Seven (G7).

The ship was supposed to accommodate police forces serving at the event, which is taking place in Italy’s Apulia region.

Since arriving in Brindisi earlier this week, however, the 103,000-ton vessel has been criticized for its poor sanitary condition, Reuters reported.

Unions claim that many cabins could not be used due to water leaks, broken air conditioning and malfunctioning toilets.

As a result, officers who were set to stay on the vessel have now been transferred to hotels and another ship, the news agency said.

Citing the local police forces, Reuters said that initial investigations carried out onboard showed “significant hygienic-sanitary criticalities and serious accommodation deficiencies.”

According to Italian media, the local government paid around 6.5 million euros to charter the Goddess of the Night for eight days.

The vessel was scheduled to house over 2,600 public security and police officers. In addition to the use of the ship’s staterooms and public areas, the charter deal included catering services, with three meals set to be served onboard per day.

Built for Carnival Corporation’s Costa Cruises brand, the Goddess of the Night was sold to Greece-based Seajets in early 2023.

The ship has been out of service since early 2020, the 2004-built ship is poised to soon launch service for a new cruise brand, Neonyx Cruises.

The first sailing of the brand, which will offer an adults-only product focused on parties and nightlife, is set to depart on July 15, 2024.

Costa Magica Sold to Seajets

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The Costa Magica has been sold to Seajets, a Greek ferry operator, according to Greek media reports and multiple industry sources.

The ship represents another Carnival Corporation vessel leaving the Costa fleet as the world’s largest cruise operator continues to shed less economical capacity.

Of note, it is the newest and biggest vessel to exit a Carnival-owned brand, with the Magica having the capacity for 2,720 guests at double occupancy and having been built in 2004 at a cost of $400 million. It was one of three ships Carnival said would leave the fleet in December. The AIDAaura will also be retired, and a yet-to-be-named Costa ship will follow.

The Marios Iliopoulos-led Seajets has purchased multiple secondhand cruise ships since the start of the pandemic. A handful of ships have since been scrapped, while the former Maasdam was sold to French start-up CFC and will soon enter service.

The Magica will soon join a number of other ships in a layup in Greece under the control of Seajets, including the former Veendam, Pacific Area, P&O Oceania and Majesty of the Seas.

While the former Maasdam was sold to CFC, Seajets has also retired some ships for scrap value including the Columbus and Magellan, two ships that it bought at auction following the demise of Cruise & Maritime Voyages

Carnival Cruise Line to boost fleet with two more ships

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Carnival Cruise Line will take delivery of an Excel-class cruise ship (pictured is arendering) source: CCL

One of the vessels is an Excel-class ship that had previously been assigned to sister line AIDA Cruises that will arrive in late 2023, as well as taking ownership of Costa Magica from another of its European sister lines. Costa Magica will go through a drydock, renaming and Carnival-branded conversion before joining the fleet in mid-2022.

These two ships are in addition to the new capacity growth represented by Mardi Gras, Carnival’s first Excel-class, LNG-powered ship which starts sailing from Port Canaveral on 31 July and its sister ship Carnival Celebration, which will be delivered and sail from Miami starting late-2022, as part of Carnival’s 50th birthday festivities.

The addition of these four ships will bring the Carnival fleet to 27 by year-end 2023. The cruise line said these ships “bring many new amenities and features for guests, as well as environmental benefits and enhancements as Carnival continues to exceed and expand targets for emissions efficiencies”.

“We are excited about these additions to our fleet which reflect the strong position Carnival has established in the US, the pent-up demand we continue to see for cruise vacations, and the overall plans by Carnival Corp to optimise capacity and growth in key markets,” said Carnival Cruise Line president Christine Duffy.

“While our immediate focus is on our restart of guest operations this summer, this is another cause for excitement at Carnival, and we will be announcing more detailed plans about homeports, itineraries and ship names very soon.”