Carnival PLC Costa's Cruises return to Genoa

 
TIDMCCL 
 
Costa's Cruises Return To Genoa: Costa Diadema Sails Today 
 
Costa Diadema is the second ship operated by the Italian company to resume 
service and marks the return of cruising with Costa to Liguria and the Western 
Mediterranean. On October 10 it will be the turn of the flagship Costa Smeralda 
to set sail again while December 27 sees the debut of the new fleet member 
Costa Firenze, with both ships calling regularly at Liguria's three main ports. 
AlDAblu will be calling in La Spezia. 
 
The company has developed a health and safety protocol including COVID-19 swab 
testing for all guests and crew, temperature screening, tours of destinations 
on protected excursions, physical distancing thanks partly to a reduction in 
the number of passengers, new ways of enjoying shipboard amenities and 
services, enhanced sanitization and increased health care facilities. 
 
Infrastructure development, green transition, tourism development and social 
commitment are the four cornerstones of Costa's vision. 
 
GENOA, Italy, Sept. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Costa Cruises, the leading cruise 
line in Europe and a part of Carnival Corporation & plc  (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: 
CUK), announced that Costa Diadema will  depart from Genoa today. She is the 
second  Costa Cruises ship to return to the sea with a complement of guests. 
Costa Diadema's itinerary, which marks the return of Costa's cruise holidays to 
Liguria and the Western Mediterranean, only includes calls at Italian ports and 
is reserved for guests resident in Italy. After Genoa, her next ports of call 
will be Civitavecchia/Rome, Naples, Palermo, Cagliari and La Spezia. 
 
"At last Costa's cruises are back in Genoa and Liguria, which has been our home 
for over 70 years. We're setting sail again gradually and responsibly, with 
safety protocols that are unrivalled in the tourism industry. The initial 
response from our guests has been most encouraging," said Group CEO, Costa 
Group & Carnival Asia Michael Thamm.  "As Europe's number one cruise company, 
we have a responsibility to turn this difficult situation into an opportunity 
to come back stronger than ever, and to continue to develop the tourism and 
economic ecosystem of the destinations. We want to do it in close cooperation 
with all our stakeholders and we believe that Liguria has a leading role to 
play with us in becoming a model for others to follow based on four 
cornerstones: state-of-the-art infrastructures, like the new passenger 
terminals in Genoa and La Spezia; sustainable innovation, to improve 
environmental performance in ports, such as shore power, LNG; improved 
destination management and tourism development to better respond to the needs 
of today's travelers and expand our value creation capabilities; and support to 
the social needs of the community, for which we are committed through our Costa 
Crociere Foundation." 
 
Liguria is featuring prominently in Costa's return to cruising, with a total of 
around 80 calls in this part of north-west Italy between now and the end of the 
2020/21 winter season. From October 10 Savona will be the homeport for the 
flagship Costa Smeralda, the company's first vessel powered by LNG (liquefied 
natural gas), which will be offering one-week cruise holidays in the Western 
Mediterranean. After a series of cruises intended for the French market, from 
November Costa Diadema will also be moving to Savona, for 12-day cruises to the 
Canary Islands and 14-day cruises to Egypt and Greece.  Costa Firenze, the new 
ship under construction at Fincantieri's Marghera yard, will make her debut on 
December 27, again sailing in the Western Mediterranean, and calling at Genoa 
and La Spezia every week. Meanwhile, from October 22 to mid-December La Spezia 
will see the arrival of AIDAblu, operated by the Costa Group's German brand 
AIDA Cruises, on 7-day cruise vacations devoted entirely to Italy. Costa's 
cruises sailing on or after September 27 will be available for all European 
citizens who are residents in any of the countries listed in the most recent 
Prime Ministerial Decree. 
 
The embarkation of guests on Costa Diadema for today's first departure from 
Genova has been carried out in accordance with the procedures set out in the 
Costa Safety Protocol, which contains new operational measures in response to 
the COVID-19 situation, dealing with all aspects of the cruise experience both 
on and off the ship. The procedures, devised with the support of independent 
public health experts, are in line with - and in some cases even stricter than 
- the health protocols defined by the relevant Italian and European 
authorities. On arrival at the Stazione Marittima in Genoa, with staggered 
entrance times by virtue of online check-in, each guest had their temperature 
scanned, submitted a health questionnaire and was subjected to an antigen rapid 
swab test, with the possibility of an additional molecular swab test for any 
suspected cases. Prior to embarking, crew members were also subjected to a 
molecular swab test at intervals and were quarantined for 14 days. In addition, 
each member of crew will have a monthly test. 
 
Starting with the first call at Civitavecchia/Roma, the destinations on Costa 
Diadema's itinerary can be visited only by joining the protected excursions 
organized by the company for small groups of people on sanitized means of 
transport, and subject to temperature measurement before leaving and rejoining 
the ship. The shipboard amenities and entertainment have been redesigned based 
on the procedures in the Safety Protocol but still retain the distinguishing 
features of a Costa cruise holiday, thanks partly to the physical distancing 
enabled by the ship's reduced capacity. For example: repeat performances of the 
live shows for smaller audiences; a switch from buffet restaurants to seated 
dining; reduced capacity and minimum distance between tables in the theater, 
show lounge, bars and restaurants; staggered entrance for some facilities such 
as the spa, pools and kids' miniclub with a limited number of people allowed in 
at any one time. Also, there is enhanced cleaning and sanitization in all areas 
on board, including cabins, while the shipboard health services have been 
expanded. Other health & safety measures are the use of face masks whenever 
necessary, hand sanitizer dispensers throughout the ship and the introduction 
of self-service clinical thermometer kiosks. 
 
CONTACT: Costa Cruises Press Office, tel. [phone] / 010 
5483068,[e-mail]; Gabriele Baroni, Communication Director 
- cell [phone], [e-mail]; Rossella Carrara, V. P. External 
Relations & Sustainability Costa Group, cell 3497668005, 
[e-mail]; Davide Barbano, Media Relations Manager, cell 334 
6525216, [e-mail];  www.costapresscenter.com 
 
 
 
END 
 

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 21, 2020 02:00 ET (06:00 GMT)