Carnival Corporation has been making strategic changes to its Italian brand, Costa Cruises, as a result of the pandemic and now more fleet moves may be coming.
In Carnival’s third-quarter earnings release, the company said it was evaluating further moves for Costa.
“Given Costa Cruises’ significant presence in Asia, particularly China, which remains closed to cruising, the brand continues to evaluate deployment options and fleet optimization alternatives beyond the previously announced transfers of Costa Luminosa to Carnival Cruise Line as well as Costa Venezia and Costa Firenze to the COSTA by CARNIVAL concept,” the company said.
The Costa Luminosa recently transferred to Carnival Cruise Line, while the Venezia will move to the Costa by Carnival concept and sail from New York in 2023, followed by the Firenze moving to Costa by Carnival to sail from the U.S. West Coast in 2024.
The Costa Magica remains out of service, as does the Costa Serena, which had been positioned in Asia year-round.
Two other Costa ships, the Atlantica and Costa Mediterranea transferred prior to the pandemic to Carnival’s joint venture with China State Shipbuilding Corporation and remain out of service with Costa branding.
Costa Mediterranea in the Port of Amsterdam, Photo credit Spacejunkie2
Costa Cruises has detailed its full cruise fleet restart plan, starting with the Costa Toscana sailing on March 5, according to the Carnival Corporation brand.
Deployment and sales are now open from spring 2022 to winter 2022-2023, with ships calling at 179 ports with cruises from three to 127 days.
“We are seeing the growth in demand for holidays, and I am sure that this trend will increase further in the coming weeks,” said Roberto Alberti, SVP & Chief Commercial Officer of Costa Cruises.
“We think our offer is the best ever, thanks to elements that combine unique experiences, both onboard and ashore. Our rich itinerary program suits every need and includes some great new features, such as cruises to Turkey. Our cruise experience has been profoundly enriched and will allow guests to discover destinations in an authentic way, also thanks to extended stops in some ports. Furthermore, our guests will be able to enjoy their vacations on a fleet with latest generation ships, which combine sustainable innovation with entertainment, hospitality and well-being.”
Summer Season Start-Up Program:
Costa Toscana – March 5 (Mediterranean)
Costa Favolosa – April 28 (Mediterranean)
Costa Venezia – May 1 (Mediterranean)
Costa Smedalra – May 7 ((Mediterranean)
Costa Pacifica – June 4 (Mediterranean)
Costa Luminosa – Atlantic Islands
Costa Fortuna – June 12 (Northern Europe)
Costa Diadema – May 5 (Mediterranean)
Costa Fascinosa – May 1 (Atlantic Islands)
Costa Deliziosa – April 15 (Mediterranean)
Costa Firenze – April 7 (Mediterranean)
For the height of the summer season, four ships, the Costa Fortuna, Costa Favolosa, Costa Fascinosa and Costa Diadema, will be deployed in Northern Europe.
Costa said that for winter 2022-2023, it will deploy the Firenze in the Middle East while the Venezia will stay in Istanbul for 11-day cruises for the winter. The Diadema will offer two-week sailings to the Canary Islands. The Costa Pacifica and Costa Fascinosa will be in the Caribbean while the Costa Smeralda will be offering one-week cruises in the Western Mediterranean. The Costa Toscana, Costa Favolosa and Costa Fortuna will be in South America.
In addition, the Costa Deliziosa will be offering a world cruise, departing from Venice on January 6, 2023, or from Savona on January 11, 2023.
The Costa Luminosa’s grand cruises are also back, departing from Genoa on January 8, 2023, and from Buenos Aires on February 27, 2023, going from the Mediterranean to Tierra del Fuego and back, sailing up the Amazon River to Manaus.
Also of note, Costa said the Serena’s program to resume cruising in Asia will be announced soon.
The first Carnival China Cruise Shipping newbuild was floated out last week at Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC).
“We at Carnival are committed to supporting to CSSC and our joint venture CSSC Carnival which is the foundation of Carnival’s China strategy,” said Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corporation, in a video address celebrating the float out of hull 1508.
“We are committed to building CSSC Carnival into a successful and fully functioning Chinese-flagged cruise company,” Donald continued.
The ship is one of two on order for Carnival’s joint venture brand with CSSC, where Carnival is a minority partner. The brand will serve the domestic Chinese market and has already taken ownership of Costa Atlantica and Costa Mediterranea.
The new ship touched water for the first time in Shanghai, and will now move to an interior fit-out stage before her delivery in 2023. A sister ship will follow in 2024; there is an option for four additional ships on the contract.
The new builds are on the Carnival Vista-class platform, with CSSC working in partnership with Fincantieri.
Wetravel2u's Weblog 