Costa Cruises Holds Coin Ceremony For Costa Venezia, The First Costa Ship Built For Chinese Guests
The coin ceremony was held at Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone (Italy).
Costa Venezia will enter service in 2019, bringing new authentic Italian experience to Chinese guests.
Genoa, November 1, 2017 - Costa Cruises, the Italian brand of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's largest cruise company, today held the traditional coin ceremony for its new ship Costa Venezia at Fincantieri, one of the world's largest shipbuilding groups, shipyard in Monfalcone (Italy). She will be the first Costa ship built and designed specifically for Chinese guests, entering into service in 2019.
During the coin ceremony, one newly minted commemorative coin was officially placed in the ship's keel as a symbol of good luck and blessings for the crew and passengers onboard the ship and her future journeys. The event connected Italy and China to mark this milestone, which was attended by government officials, trade partners and senior executives from Costa Cruises.
"Costa Cruises is thrilled to have a new ship that is built to offer the best experience to Chinese consumers," said Michael Thamm, CEO of Costa Group and Carnival Asia. "The Costa Venezia demonstrates our strong commitment and confidence in the world's fastest growing cruise market. Her arrival in 2019 will further enhance our offerings for Chinese guests to reinforce our leading position in China."
Costa Venezia will be 135,500 tons, offering 2,116 passenger cabins for a total of 5,260 passengers. The design of the ship will be dedicated to the city of Venice. Chinese guests onboard will enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime experience immersing themselves in a multi-sensory "virtual" trip in Venice, featuring food, art, music and entertainment. Come nightfall, guests may join an onboard version of the Carnival of Venice, the city's famous festival known for its elaborate masks.
"With the Costa Venezia, Costa Cruises is proud to showcase the allure of one of Italy's most famous and culturally rich cities and regions to Chinese consumers," said Mario Zanetti, President of Costa Group Asia. "The planned addition of the ship to our Asia fleet is part of our continued efforts to innovate and consistently exceed our guests' expectations by providing authentic and memorable Italian experiences to everyone who sails with us."
The inaugural cruise of Costa Venezia will be departing in early March 2019 from Trieste (Italy) to Shanghai, visiting countries such as Greece, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Vietnam and Japan, following Marco Polo's famous journeys between Italy and China. Tickets for the world inaugural cruise will be available also for European guests.
A second ship specially designed for Chinese guests, sister to Costa Venezia, will be delivered by Fincantieri in 2020. Costa's new ships for Asia will be the 13th and 14th cruise ships built in Italy by Fincantieri for Costa, with a total investment worth more than 6 billion euro. The projects are expected to employ thousands of shipyards workers and employees of allied industries in Italy. The benefits in terms of employment will extend beyond the yards, especially regarding the fitting-out of the interiors of the cruise ships, with the involvement of contracted suppliers, most of which are Italian firms.
In addition to Costa Venezia and her sister ship, the Costa Group has an additional four new ships (two for Aida Cruises and two for Costa Cruises) to be delivered by 2021, that will be the first-ever cruise-ships powered at sea by Liquefied Natural Gas, built by Meyer shipyards in Turku (Finland) and Papenburg (Germany).
With the arrival of Costa Venezia, Costa Cruises will reposition Costa Fortuna, one of the five Costa ships now operating in Asia, back to the Mediterranean to reinforce its cruise options in this strategic region.
In 2006 Costa Cruises was the first international cruise company to enter China, and it has established a leading presence in the market. With the kick off of "Costa's New Decade" in China, it will strive relentlessly to exceed guest expectations by continuously innovating to deliver the most delightful onboard experiences.
Costa cruises are marketed in China as "Italy at Sea", offering an authentic Italian and European experience for Chinese guests, with high-quality hospitality, style, cuisine and entertainment.
The Costa Group is the leading cruise company in Europe, headquartered in Genoa (Italy). The 27 ships of the brands Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises and Costa Asia together have a total capacity of 76,000 beds. The fleet will be further strengthened by six new vessels by 2021. The company has a global workforce of 27,000 employees working onboard and in its 20 offices in 14 countries.
For additional details:
Costa Cruises
Press Office - Tel. +39 010 5483523 / 010 5483068 - costapressoffice@costa.it
Gabriele Baroni – Communication Director – mob. +39 3497668013 - baroni@costa.it
Davide Barbano - Media Relations Manager - Tel. +39 010.5483523 - +39 334.6525216 – barbano@costa.it
Cristiano de Musso – Head of Corporate Communication – Tel. +39 010 5483068 – mob. +39 3346805095 - demusso@costa.it
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