While we here at Cruise Currents (and presumably most people involved in the cruise industry) would prefer to move on from the tragic sinking of the Costa Concordia, it seems that it has been tough to do so lately as interest once again spikes in the removal of the ship. Today, we have come across a […]
Earlier this month, Costa Cruise’s CEO, Michael Thamm, announced the line would absorb the smaller Ibero Cruises into the Costa brand by the end of the year. The announcement was made public at a travel agent conference aboard the Costa Luminosa earlier this month. Ibero Cruises is Spain’s second largest cruise line, behind Royal Caribbean Ltd.’s Pullmantur Cruises, and […]
The Costa Voyager, Costa neoRiviera and Costa Classica will be entering dry dock at San Giorgio del Porto shipyard in Genoa this month for planned maintenance and refurbishments totaling more than US$13.5 million. The first Costa ship to enter the yard was the 48,200-ton Costa neoRiviera, from Nov. 5 through Nov. 12; the 24,400-ton Costa Voyager enters the yard today […]
Costa Hires Company To Lift & Transport Costa Concordia Costa Cruises has announced that they have hired a company to lift and transport the Costa Concordia. A $30 million contract was signed with Royal Boskalis Westminster, a Dutch salvage company, to use the Dockwise Vanguard, a semi-submersible ship, designed to carry other ships. The Dockwise Vanguard will […]
Costa Cruises has acquired the former Grand Mistral of the Iberocruceros fleet. The newly acquired ship will be renamed Costa neoRomantica and will enter service with Costa in late November. According to Costa, the Grand Mistral was recently renovated in 2005 and received new suites and cabins in 2007. The new Costa neoRivieria will feature three […]
The Costa Concordia’s raising from the shore of Giglio is scheduled to begin at 6 am Rome time on September 16th. The raising of the Costa Concordia will finally bring the ship upright and even in the water. More information on her raising can be found here. The raising of the Costa Concordia can be […]
A quick briefing of the latest news developing in the cruise industry. Costa Cruises Cancels Sailings To Egypt Costa Cruises, citing continuing political instability in Egypt, has cancelled all remaining calls at Egyptian ports on her cruises for the remainder of the 2013/14 fall and winter season. Costa has claimed that the calls in Egypt […]
Earlier this week, an Italian judge rejected Captain Francesco Schettino’s plea bargain and ordered him to stand trial for the deaths of 32 passengers and causing a shipwreck last January. The trial is expected to begin on July 9th and will take place in the Italian city of Grosseto, the city closest to the Costa Concordia’s […]
Costa Cruises will offer the first-ever round-trip world cruise from China in 2014. Departing Shanghai March 22, Costa Atlantica will sail an 83-day journey that spans five continents and three oceans, and calls at 23 destinations in 16 countries. The 2,680-guest, 85,700-ton Costa Atlantica will first stop at Vietnam, then take a westerly course to […]
Costa Cruises will celebrate its 65th anniversary Sunday, March 31, 2013, which is 65 years to the day since the ship Anna C departed on its inaugural cruise from Genoa, Italy, to Buenos Aires, Argentina. The ship carried 768 passengers and was the first vessel in Costa’s fleet dedicated to passenger transport, marking the beginning of […]
Amenities & Activities The Costa Mediterranea provides a good amount of activities and amenities that will keep cruisers of all age busy throughout the entire cruise. For younger kids, they can hang out in the Costa Kid’s Club, swim in one of the three pools, or even take a spin down her 3 story tall water […]
Costa Cruises is offering six new itineraries for the 2013-14 winter season that span the Canary Islands and North Africa, United Arab Emirates, eastern and western Mediterranean, the Caribbean and South America. Costas global strategy for the 2013-14 winter season focuses on supporting development of emerging markets as well as continuing to offer the lines most […]