During the 25th special event “Protagonisti del Mare”, Costa Cruises presented a virtual reality preview of its new flagship, Costa Smeralda, currently under construction at Meyer shipyard in Turku, Finland.
Smeralda is due to become an authentic tribute to Italy, offering unique travel experience inspired by the hospitality of the “Belpaese”. Her debut is scheduled for October 20, 2019 with 15-day vernissage voyage from Hamburg to Savona. The itinerary will include 2-day stops in some of the most interesting European cities from a cultural and historic point of view, such as Hamburg, Rotterdam, Barcelona, Lisbon and Marseille.
On November 3, 2019, while still in Savona, the celebrations for the official naming of Costa Smeralda will commence. On November 4, 2019 the 6-day inaugural voyage will begin from Savona, calling at Barcelona, Marseille and Civitavecchia-Rome.
Costa Smeralda will continue sailing in the Western Mediterranean through April 2020, on week-long cruises.
The Costa flagship will be the first cruiser on the global market to be powered both at sea and in port by LNG (liquefied natural gas), the world's cleanest fossil fuel.