Genoa, March 28, 2019. Costa Cruises ships have resumed regular calls at the port of Genoa . The first to dock at the Andrea Doria port was the Costa Fortuna on March 26, a 103,000 gross ton ship with a capacity for 3,470 guests. The Costa Fortuna will depart from Genoa every Friday between March 29 and November 8, 2019, for week-long itineraries in the Western Mediterranean. The addition of Genoa brings the number of Costa destinations in the Mediterranean to 45, including seven ports on the Spanish coast (Barcelona, Tarragona, Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, Mahón, Valencia, and Málaga).
Genoa will receive a total of 40 port calls in 2019, 34 of which are part of the itinerary operated by the Costa Fortuna. This cruise ship will also call at the ports of Barcelona and Valencia in the spring and autumn, and Tarragona, Palma de Mallorca, and Ibiza during the summer. Costa Cruises has also confirmed that, starting March 23, 2020, the Costa Fortuna will be replaced by the Costa Pacifica (114,999 gross tons and a capacity of 3,780 guests), which will call at Genoa every Friday until November 13, 2020. Although the 2020 schedule includes the same number of port calls as in 2019—40—the greater capacity of the Costa Pacifica will allow for a slight increase in the number of visitors.
The arrival of these two ships in Genoa is a homecoming in every sense, as the Costa Fortuna and the Costa Pacifica were built by Fincantieri at the Sestri Ponente-Genoa shipyard and inaugurated in the Ligurian capital.
With the new operations at the port of Genoa, Costa Cruises expects 170,000 passengers to visit the Italian city. Upon arrival, cruise passengers will be able to enjoy at least nine excursions that will allow them to explore its streets and discover its fortresses, take themed tours about the presence of the Knights Templar or the city's haunted locations, or even enjoy the Rigui theme park.
“After so many years, we are particularly proud to celebrate the return of a Costa ship that will now make regular calls in the city of Genoa,” said Neil Palomba, CEO of Costa Cruises, SpA. “This return completes our presence in a city where we have operated for over 70 years at our headquarters and marks the starting point for our future here. In this regard, we continue to work with local institutions to identify the best solution for building a new cruise terminal in the port of Genoa. This new facility will complement our existing terminal in Palacrociere, Savona, our main home port, where we are making significant investments, and in La Spezia, where, together with other companies, we have been awarded a preliminary contract to manage cruise services and build a new terminal. Finally, I would like to thank the President of the Liguria Region, Giovanni Toti, the Mayor of Genoa, Marco Bucci, and the President of the Western Liguria Port Authority, Paolo Emilio Signorini, for their support. I am confident that our collaboration will yield further positive results.”
The Costa Fortuna's first voyage to celebrate its return home was a 3-day mini-cruise visiting Genoa, Marseille, and Barcelona between March 26 and 29. From now on, the ship will return to Genoa every Friday, calling from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm, with two different itineraries. In spring and autumn, in addition to Genoa, the ship will visit Marseille, Barcelona, Valencia, Civitavecchia/Rome, and La Spezia. During the summer months, the itinerary will include Marseille, Tarragona, Palma de Mallorca, plus a day and night in Ibiza and Olbia.
With the addition of Genoa as a home port, the company will consolidate its presence in the Italian region of Liguria, where it already maintains a significant operation in the ports of Savona and La Spezia. The Costa Group will thus guarantee 243 port calls in the region in 2019, representing the movement of approximately 1,200,000 passengers.
