By
Alice Chambers |
Costa Cruises’ newest LNG-powered ship, Costa Toscana, began her maiden voyage from Savona, Italy, on 5 March 2022.
The maiden voyage includes a week-long itinerary calling at Marseille, France; Barcelona and Valencia, Spain; and Palermo, Civitavecchia and Rome, Italy.
Toscana is Costa Group’s fourth LNG-powered ship, joining Cosa Smeralda and two vessels sailing for sister brand AIDA Cruises – AIDAcosma and AIDAnova. The ship also features other technologies to ensure she operates sustainably, including desalinators, an intelligent energy efficient system and a recycling system.
Designed as a tribute to Tuscany by Adam D. Tihany, Toscana’s interiors feature Italian-made furniture, lighting, fabrics and accessories. The vessel offers 21 restaurants and food areas, as well as a central entertainment area spanning three decks, which is known as the Colosseo.
Costa Toscana’s debut marks the start of the rest of Costa’s fleet returning to service after the pandemic. Seven more vessels will soon resume operations, and the whole fleet is expected to be back in service by the end of summer 2022. In total, Costa Cruises will offer over 1,800 cruises, visiting 179 worldwide destinations between spring 2022 and winter 2022-2023.
“The departure of Costa Toscana represents a new step in the journey that will bring our fleet back to full capacity this summer,” said Mario Zanetti, president of Costa Cruises. “Our restart will bolster an ecosystem that before the pandemic generated an annual economic impact of €12.6 billion in Europe, including €3.5 billion in Italy alone, with over 63,000 jobs. I believe that cruises will soon be back to normal, with new protocols that will allow our guests to fully enjoy the experiences on board and ashore, with the return, for example, of free excursions for guests.”
See an aerial view of the ship here.