By
Rebecca Gibson |
Costa Cruises has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Autonomous Region of Friuli Venezia Giulia in Italy to increase its presence in Trieste.
In addition to boosting Costa’s presence in Trieste, the agreement aims to promote Trieste as a cruise destination, an embarkation port for cruises to the Northern Adriatic and as a natural gateway port for tourists from Eastern Europe.
“This agreement confirms our commitment to supporting Costa Cruises’ development in Trieste, which we consider to be strategic for promoting tourism throughout our region,” said Debora Serracchiani, president of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region.
Signed on 4 July, the agreement also covers the development of a technical committee that will help to improve rail links to and from Trieste, in particular the rail link with northern and central Italy. The committee will also investigate the feasibility of establishing a fast hydrofoil service.
“Trieste is a strategic port for Costa and provides a great opportunity for guests to visit both the Friuli Venezia Giulia region and nearby Venice,” said Costa Cruises’ CEO Michael Thamm. “We are working proactively with regional and local institutions to develop the cruise industry in this beautiful city.”
In June, Costa partnered with Italian train operator Trenitalia to facilitate cruise passenger rail transfers to several of its embarkation and disembarkation ports in Italy. As part of the Rail & Cruise initiative, passengers and travel agents will be able to book a cruise with a special train fare on Trenitalia’s Frecce train service, which includes the new Frecciabianca connection from Turin to Trieste.
Costa will also boost cruise ship visits to the region, with Costa Mediterranea scheduled to make weekly two-day calls in the city from April to December 2015. On 1 November 2014, Trieste will be the first port to welcome the line’s new flagship Costa Diadema, which will overnight in the town as part of a celebratory event.