EXCLUSIVE DESTINATIONS, CUSTOMER INCENTIVES AND THE LAUNCH OF SPECIAL ECO-TOURISM AND MICHELIN FOOD & WINE EXCURSIONS

Costa Cruises’ 2010 brochure, available in all the countries where the Italian line operates, offers approximately 250 destinations and over 100 itineraries. With cruises in South America, the Mediterranean, Canada, the Far East, Greenland, the Indian Ocean, the Caribbean and Dubai, Costa’s ships will cruise the seas worldwide.

No other operator offers cruise vacations in Dubai, the Far East and the Indian Ocean. There will be even more holiday options in 2010 thanks to brand new itineraries and the addition to the fleet of Costa Luminosa’s sister ship Costa Deliziosa. Meanwhile, Costa’s ever popular itineraries will be enhanced with the introduction of new destinations and cruises of increased quality and quantity.

The innovations for 2010 go beyond the itineraries and the ships. Other big news concerns excursions, now with over 1,100 to choose from.

For the ecologically and socially conscious tourist, Costa Cruises 2010 brochure features 240 eco-tourism excursions. These specially guided tours comprise visits to parks, oases and nature reserves, with responsible travel reducing the impact on the ecosystem, providing insights into the host countries, conserving the environment and improving the wellbeing of local people.

Another major innovation is the advent of food & wine excursions. In 2010, guests cruising on a Costa ship will be able to choose special excursions with stops in restaurants listed in the 2009 Michelin Guide.

To make things even easier for customers and help turn their dream holiday into reality, Costa Cruises’ 2010 brochure features new incentives for families, groups and singles. These initiatives apply in addition to ‘ProntoPrice’, which offers big discounts and other unbeatable advantages for people who book well in advance.
The great money-saving initiatives include the ‘Family Value’ promotion (guests under 18 travelling in the same cabin as their parents cruise for free), the ‘Family Plan’ deal (special rates for families travelling in separate cabins, one for the adults and the other for the children), and ‘One and half’ (discounts for an adult sailing with children under 18).

Meanwhile, singles are entitled to a substantial reduction on the normal supplement, which will be as low as 30%, while groups of ten or more (whether they are friends holidaying together or people on incentive cruises) will be eligible for special discounts.

A new system of online check-in will also be introduced to provide an increasingly efficient service, negate the need for queues and ensure hassle-free departure. Guests will be able to take advantage of the new ‘web check-in’ simply by entering the reserved area at Crociere Mediterraneo, Caraibi, Offerte di Viaggi in Crociera sulle Navi Costa, filling out the embarkation form online at least ten days before the cruise, printing it and bringing it with them on the day of departure.

The main news regarding Costa Cruises’ liners and itineraries in 2010 is as follows:

• Costa Deliziosa will enter service in February 2010, together with her sister ship Costa Luminosa, at the ‘cutting edge of the fleet’, Costa Cruises’ most exclusive and innovative ships, intended for the company’s high-end customers. The Costa Deliziosa’s grand maiden cruise, departing on 7 February 2010, will last 37 days. The first part will be a 20-day extravaganza from Savona to Dubai, while the second, a 17-day stretch, will head east to India and the Maldives. Customers can book either leg or both together.

• Seven-day winter cruises in the Arabian Gulf with departures from Dubai and stopovers in the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Bahrain. Costa Cruises was the first operator in the world to market this destination, and will position the two most exclusive members of the fleet, the Costa Luminosa and Costa Deliziosa in this destination.

• A 20-day summer cruise to Greenland on the Costa Luminosa. This cruise will bring the chance to see breathtaking scenery, picture postcard fishing villages, rugged cliffs and spectacular waterfalls on one of the most beautiful and unspoiled islands on earth.

• 18-day winter cruises from Savona to Dubai on the Costa Europa. A unique itinerary crossing the Mediterranean, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea.

• 16-day winter cruises in the Indian Ocean, an innovation exclusive to Costa, sailing from Mauritius on the Costa Romantica and bound for the Seychelles, Madagascar, Kenya and Reunion.

• Far East cruises with departures from Singapore and China, another world first for Costa, with three ships deployed - the Costa Classica, Costa Allegra and Costa Romantica, which will replace the Costa Allegra from April 2010 onwards. The five to seven-day cruises will be offered once again, together with 14 to 16-day vacations, while there will be a new stopover in the Japanese city of Yokohama. The other destinations en route are Indonesia, the Philippines, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam and South Korea.

• Journey to the Eastern Mediterranean on a voyage of discovery in pursuit of the most ancient civilizations with new ports of call in Israel and Libya.

• A new seven-day itinerary on the Costa Marina with stopovers in some of the most exclusive Mediterranean travel destinations: Barcelona, Monte Carlo, Leghorn, the Costa Smeralda, Capri, Tunis and Minorca.

• New nine-day autumn cruises on board the Costa Magica featuring a stopover in Valencia, where guests can admire the futuristic City of Arts and Sciences complex designed by Santiago Calatrava.

• Four ships with over 2,700 oceanview staterooms fitted with private verandas affording a truly unique viewpoint on Northern European summer cruises. In addition to the Costa Luminosa, three other ships – the Costa Deliziosa, Costa Magica and Costa Atlantica – will be offering Norwegian fjord cruises as well as itineraries taking in Northern European and Baltic cities like Amsterdam, Helsinki, Copenhagen, St. Petersburg, Tallinn and Stockholm. The new stopovers include Santander (Spain) and Cork (Ireland).

• New spring cruises to Canada and the USA on the Costa Atlantica with three new ports of call: Charleston, Baltimore and Norfolk. Plus autumn cruises, during the best time of the year to see the stunning natural spectacle of the foliage on the Atlantic coast tinged with gorgeous autumnal shades.

• Two new grand transatlantic cruises on the Costa Atlantica, making the crossing between Northern Europe and North America, calling at New York and Boston as well as historical European cities like Le Havre and Copenhagen.

• South America for the first time on board the Costa Concordia, the flagship of the fleet and the largest vessel flying the Italian flag. She will be deployed on seven-day winter cruises in Brazil with departure from Santos. The Costa Concordia will be joined in South America by the Costa Magica and Costa Victoria, with sailings from Santos and Buenos Aires on itineraries around Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay.

• Caribbean winter cruises on three ships – the Costa Atlantica, Costa Fortuna and Costa Mediterranea – heading for the Antilles, Virgin Islands, Bahamas, Mexico, Honduras, Belize, Jamaica and Cayman Islands.