Costa Cruises has launched its new luxury liner, Costa Fascinosa.
The 3,800-passenger ship was officially handed over at the Venice Passenger Terminal on 5 May 2012. It becomes the largest company’s largest cruise ship, together with its sister ship Costa Favolosa.
The EUR510 million (US$667 million) Costa Fascinosa set sail from Venice on 6 May on a short sailing to Slovenia and Croatia. On 11 May, the liner will depart Venice once again for its full inaugural cruise – a 10-day itinerary taking in Greece, Israel and Turkey. For the rest of the 2012 summer season, Costa Fascinosa will operate seven-day cruises from Venice and Bari to Greece and Croatia, before sailing to South America for winter 2012-13.
“The delivery of Costa Fascinosa is an important stepping stone on our company’s road to recovery,” said Costa Crociere’s Chairman & CEO, Pier Luigi Foschi. “It is confirmation that the long-term fundamentals of our business remain strong, since the investment of more than EUR500 million comes just two months after the EUR90 million revamp of Costa neoRomantica. After the recent incident (involving the Costa Concordia), despite the economic downturn and the impact on consumption, Costa has bounced back and booking volumes are back to the same levels recorded this time last year, ahead of even our own expectations. Our share of the market in the main countries where we operate has not been affected: we were, are and will remain number one in Europe. This is thanks to the quality of our product, the strength of our brand, which comes with a guarantee of more than 60 years of experience, and our unfailing customer loyalty. We will continue to work for our customers, offering them even better and safer cruises on fantastic ships like Costa Fascinosa.”
Costa Fascinosa will offer a range of facilities, including the 1,000m² aft lido entertainment area with sliding glass roof and 18m² movie screen, a 4D cinema, water park, multiple restaurants and bars, a casino, and the 6,000m² Samsara Spa.
