The largest ever cruise ship for Costa Cruises has floated out onto the water for the very first time. The Costa Smeralda will join the fleet in October 2019.
Costa Smeralda Floats Out
Costa Smeralda is the largest ever Costa cruise ship which is currently under construction at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland. The huge mega ship has reached a major milestone by floating out onto the water for the very first time.
Neil Palomba, President of Costa Cruises, said:
“With LNG a breakthrough in fuel technology, Costa Smeralda represents a major innovation for the international market and an important step toward setting new standards for the entire sector. Costa Group is the market leader in Europe and China, and we continue to make sustainable tourism a key part of our industry leadership.”
A ceremony took place at the shipyard which also marks the next phase of construction. Costa Smeralda which will be the first ship fully powered by Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) will dock at the outfitting pier even more interior work now begins. All the main blocks have come together and the large focus will be on turning the huge ship into a floating hotel.
CEO of Meyer Turku, Jan Meyer, said:
“With the hull of the ship now completed, the next stage of the building process is proceeding to complete all these attractions and features, making sure at the same time that Smeralda will be a safe, reliable and comfortable ship to sail at sea. After the summer the commissioning and testing of the ships myriad of automatic systems will intensify both at the pier and at sea before delivery”, CEO Jan Meyer explains.
The 183,900-ton cruise ship will be delivered to Carnival-owned Costa Cruises in October 2019 and she truly will be a floating resort. Costa Smeralda will be inspired by Italy all over and introduce new features for guests to enjoy. Highlights include a three-level area in the middle of the ship named Colosseo and a large stairway on three decks facing astern which has an open-air balcony and glass floor on the top deck.
She will be the most advanced ship in the fleet and the same class as Aidanova which has already entered service for German-based Aida Cruises and the upcoming Mardi Gras for Carnival Cruise Line.
Also Read: Iconic Funnel Installed on Upcoming LNG Mega Cruise Ship
Costa Smeralda will have a maximum guest capacity of around 6,554 along with 1,646 crew members. Another sister ship will join the fleet in 2021.
