Costa Victoria

The 1996-built Costa Victoria was Costa Cruises' only Sky-class ship. The company ordered a sistership (under the name "Costa Olympia"). However, during its construction, the shipbuilding yard Bremer Vulkan (Bremen Germany) went bankrupt and the unfinished hull was sold to NCL-Norwegian Cruise Line. Costa Olympia (as Norwegian Sky) entered service in 1999. With the same (modified Costa Olympia design) is also the NCL ship Norwegian Sun (2001-built).

On June 13, 2020, the shipowner Carnival Corporation sold Costa Victoria to San Giorgio del Porto SpA (shipyard in Genoa Italy) which specializes in ship repair and conversion projects. The new shipowner (Genova Trasporti Marittimi) is a fully-owned subsidiary of Genova Industrie Navali Srl (2008-founded company, part of GIN Group). The cruise ship's 10 scheduled departures from homeport Savona (July 5 through October 12) were canceled. Read more at Costa Victoria's CruiseMinus / accidents page.

Before the scrapping in 2021, the vessel (IMO number 9109031) was Italy-flagged (MMSI number 247109000) and registered in Genoa. Following the purchase from Costa-Carnival Corporation, on June 13, the ship arrived and anchored off Piombino Italy. Renamed "St Victoria" by new shipowner Piombino Industrie Marittime (2020-21), the boat's AIS transponder went silent on June 27, at 8:44 UTC. The 25-years-old liner remained inoperational in Italy until 2021 as the new owner considered using it as a permanently moored/dockside hotel ship. In mid-January 2021 was announced that the boat will be soon towed to Turkey's Aliaga Shipbreaking Yard (near Izmir) to be beached and scrapped.

Initially, the new shipowner GIN Group announced plans to use the vessel as a floating hotel for its workers and ship crew at the company's owned drydocks in Genoa (T Mariotti Shipyard, specializing in luxury newbuilds) and Marseille (Chantier Naval de Marseille, which has the Mediterranean's largest drydock). However, these plans were never implemented. After being berthed for 6+ months in Port Piombino, Costa Victoria rusted to the ground and became unseaworthy.

The 1928-passenger liner Costa Victoria (max capacity 2394 passengers plus 790 crew) was more Spartan decorated, missing the neon-tinged "wow" factor for which the interior architect and designer Joe Farcus is best known. Costa Victoria was an older cruise liner (1996-launched, 2018-refurbished). During the major drydock refit in 2004 were added 242 balconies and mini-cabins. However, she became a truly “new ship” when she left Singapore's Sembcorp Marine Shipyard (on November 11, 2013) successfully completing a USD 18 million refurbishment project. The vessel's last drydock was in 2018.

Besides the ship's staff and crew, passengers were also served by Peper robots - the latest cyborg technology implemented fleetwide in 2016. These humanoid robots greet and guide passengers upon embarkation. They also assist them throughout the cruise by providing information and tips on onboard dining, entertainment, enrichment program (workshops, pre-scheduled events), casino and shopping promotions, shore excursions and tours. Pepper robots are mobile and communicate in 3 languages (English, German, Italian). They can also interpret human emotions by analyzing voice tones and facial expressions.

Decks and Cabins

Costa Victoria staterooms (964 total, in 9 grades) included 20x Suites, 242x Balcony, 311x Oceanview and 391x Inside cabins. Most staterooms were sized between 120-150 ft2 (11-14 m2). The ship had 6 wheelchair-accessible (ADA) cabins. The largest accommodations were the 6x Window Suites (335-475 ft2 / 32-45 m2).

The boat had 13 decks, of which 11 were passenger-accessible and 9 with cabins.

Shipboard dining options - Food and Drinks

Ristorante Sinfonia is one of the 5x restaurants on Costa Victoria. It is located on deck 5 and offers two fixed dinner seatings. Like the Sinfonia, Ristorante Fantasia is the second MDR, also on deck 5. It features the same menu as the Sinfonia restaurant. Ristorante Buffet Bolero is the casual restaurant onboard Costa Victoria. It is open for breakfast and lunch and consists of a number of stations serving a selection of food. Afternoon tea is also served with drinks, sandwiches, and cakes available for passengers. The ship also offers complimentary 24-Hour Room-Service.

Follows the complete list of Costa Victoria restaurants and food bars.

• Ristorante Fantasia (forward Dining Room, complimentary; serves open-seating breakfast and lunch, 2 fixed dinner seatings - at 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.)
• Ristorante Sinfonia (aft Dining Room, complimentary; dinner-only with 2 fixed dinner seatings - at 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.)
• Ristorante Buffet Bolero (self-service buffet restaurant, complimentary; offers breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea at 4-5:00 p.m., and dinner; in the evening is transformed into Pizzeria, complimentary, with waiter service)
• Caffe Terrazza (outdoor seating area served by buffet’s grill station; smoking zone)
• Gelateria e Grill Nettuno (“Neptune Ice Cream Bar and Grill”, part of the Bolero buffet)
• Club Il Magnifico (158-seat dinner specialty restaurant; reservations-only)
• La Tavernetta (Pizzeria restaurant, complimentary; offers fresh pizza by the slice).

Shipboard entertainment options - Fun and Sport

The Costa ship Victoria had two dining rooms, casino, theater lounge, wellness complex (Spa, fitness), 3x swimming pools, 4x jacuzzis. Unlike newer ships, the gym and spa were buried on Deck 6, and the so-called “theater” looked more like a lounge room with a stage. Following the Singapore upgrades, Victoria's passengers were provided with both cabin key and onboard charge card.

Follows the complete list of Costa Victoria lounges, clubs and other entertainment venues (for kids, teens and adults).

• Atrio Planetarium (7-deck high Atrium with floor-ceiling windows, glass-wall elevators, live music entertainment; served by Bar Planetarium)
• Terme Pompei Spas (via a partnership with Elemis) - Steam Room, Sauna, Treatment Rooms, Piscina Coperta (adults-only swimming pool with a Spa Whirlpool)
• Pallestra (Gym with modern equipment; daily-scheduled program with free aerobics and fitness classes, Yoga and Pilates were chargeable)
• Venus Beauty Salon (Salone di Bellezza, plus barber services)
• Giardino d’Invierno (“Winter Garden” lounge)
• Grand Bar Orpheus (bar lounge with dance floor and live entertainment)
• Discoteca Rock Star (Disco Nightclub with its own bar and nightly DJ program)
• Arcadia Boulevard (shop for photos by the ship’s photographers)
• Area Bambini Peter Pan (kids playroom; Squok Club kids program with supervised activities; complimentary babysitting / between 11:30 PM - 1:30 AM)
• Area Foto (Photo Gallery and Shop)
• Bellavista (foyer)
• Teatro Festival (2-level theatre / main show lounge)
• Concorde Plaza (3-deck high observation and show lounge for nightly live entertainment / after the theater’s show)
• Galleria Montmartre (Art Gallery)
• Gioelleria e Profumeria (jewellery and perfumes shop)
• Negozio “Duty-Free” (shop for tobaccos, liquors, convenience goods)
• Portobello Market (shopping alley with duty-free brand boutiques)
• Sala Carte Jolly (cards room)
• Capriccio Lounge & Bar (wine bar with dance floor and grand piano)
• Tavoli da Gioco (Video Games Arcade)
• Casino Montecarlo
• Bar Sirena (outdoor)
• Biblioteca and Internet Point (Library with Internet computers)
• Cappella (Wedding Chapel, also used for religious services)
• Pista da Ballo (dance floor)
• Piscina Pools (sundeck area with 4x Whirlpools)
• Squok Club - kids lounge with Mini Club (3-6 yo) and Maxi Club (7-11 yo), playing rooms; complimentary kids program, supervised activities, complimentary babysitting
• Teen Zone - teenagers' lounge with Teen Junior (12-14 yo) and Teen Club (15-17 yo) rooms, complimentary supervised activities, themed parties, sports contests
• Campo da Tennis Wimbledon (combined Basketball-Volleyball-Tennis Court)
• Solarium (sundeck/sunbathing area)
• Jogging Track

Itineraries

In the period 2012-2018, Costa Victoria itinerary program was based on Asian cruises to port destinations in Japan, Vietnam, Taiwan, South Korea (leaving out of homeports Singapore and Hong Kong China).

In 2017-2018, the ship was homeported in Laem Chabang (Bangkok) for roundtrips in the Gulf of Thailand. Costa Victoria arrived in Bangkok on January 11, 2017, following a repositioning cruise from Singapore. Until January 25, the ship had scheduled three 4-night itineraries in the Gulf of Thailand, visiting Koh Samui Thailand, Sihanoukville Cambodia and Phu Quoc Island Vietnam. Followed a 4-night relocation itinerary to China.

In summer 2018, Costa Victoria served a 7-day Mediterranean cruise program with roundtrips from Italy (Civitavecchia-Rome, Savona), Spain (Barcelona) and France (Marseille Fos). The list of call ports included La Spezia, Olbia (Sardinia), Ibiza Town (overnight), Palma de Mallorca and Tarragona (Costa Daurada) (overnight).

During summer 2019, Costa Victoria operated in the Mediterranean on 7-day roundtrips from homeport Bari Italy. The program ended with the Suez Canal repositioning cruise to India (28-day Venice to Mumbai). For winter 2019-2020, the ship was homeported in Male (Kaafu Maldives) and Mumbai.