Costa to Resume Cruising on Third Cruise Ship in Europe

After Costa Cruises successfully resumed cruising on the Costa Deliziosa and Costa Diadema, the line announced that its new flagship, Costa Smeralda, will relaunch operations on Oct. 10.

It will operate five departures from Savona of a new weeklong itinerary that only calls in Italy. The ship will call at La Spezia, Cagliari, Naples, Messina and Civitavecchia.

On Nov. 14, Costa Smeralda is scheduled to resume a one-week itinerary from Savona to ports in Italy, France and Spain. Costa is working with the national and local authorities of the countries included in this itinerary to provide safe experiences.

The Costa Safety Protocol includes antigen swab tests for all guests and crew before embarkation, temperature checks while disembarking and returning to the ship, reduced capacity, visits to destinations only with protected excursions and physical distancing onboard and at the terminals. Onboard, the enhanced protocols include the use of protective face masks.

Costa Smeralda, which was christened in Savona on Feb. 22, is a tribute to Italy. It has 16 restaurants and areas, including a new restaurant for families with children.

It also is the first Costa ship to be powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) that helps it almost completely eliminate sulfur oxide emissions (zero emissions) and have a 95 to 100 percent reduction in particulate matter.

The ship’s daily water requirement is met by the direct transformation of sea water through the use of desalination plants. There is also 100 percent separate waste collection and recycling of materials such as plastic, paper, glass and aluminum, which are carried out onboard.