Costa Cruises has celebrated the christening of its new flagship Costa Toscana, the second LNG-powered cruise ship in the fleet. This comes after the vessel has been operating guest sailings since March 2022 in Italy.
Costa Toscana is Named
The Carnival-owned cruise line has officially named its new flagship in a ceremony while the vessel was docked at the Port of Barcelona, Spain. Costa Toscana was named by godmother Chanel, a young singer who has become successful in Spain and across Europe after the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest.
Chanel was joined by the Costa Toscana captain Pietro Sinisi for the traditional ribbon-cutting and the champagne bottle hitting the ship’s bow. The event was hosted by Carlos Sobera and Flora Gonzalez, two well-known stars on Spanish television.
Mario Zanetti, President of Costa Cruises commented: โIt is a great thrill to celebrate the christening of our Costa Toscana in Barcelona, a city to which we are particularly attached and where we have been at home since the beginning of our history. For this occasion, we have organized an event to celebrate the start of a summer that marks the serene resumption of travel and vacations.”
Also during the event was a performance by the Italian artist Andrea Casta, a “globetrotter” violinist who has performed all over the world, and an acrobat show performed at the aft of the vessel for the guests.
During Costa Toscana’s sailing to Valencia, the festivities continue with a special DJ house music show by Meduza and a gala dinner by Spanish chef Angel Leon.
“We must take advantage of this upswing to promote a more sustainable tourism that respects the environment and values local communities. Our commitment is expressed not only through technologically advanced ships such as the LNG-powered Costa Toscana, but also by supporting innovative projects whose scope goes beyond the tourism sector, such as Chef รngel Leรณnโs project,” Zanetti added.
The New Flagship
Costa Toscana first started sailing on March 5, 2022, with a maiden voyage from Savona, Italy. During the summer season, the new flagship will sail week-long itineraries in the Western Mediterranean, including calls to Savona, Civitavecchia, Naples, Ibiza, Valencia and Marseille. For the fall season, Costa Toscana will swap Ibiza with Palma de Mallorca.
The ship is identical to her sister Costa Smeralda, which which part of the same Excel-class and joined the fleet in 2019 as the first Costa ship to be powered by Liquified Natural Gas (LNG). Costa Toscana was constructed at the Meyer Turku shipyard in Finland and has a gross tonnage of 185,000.
Also Read: Costa Cruises Takes Delivery of Second LNG-Powered Cruise Ship
The passenger capacity of the vessel is 6,730, and a total crew of 1,646. The ship has 2,663 passenger cabins, with 1,550 being a balcony option, 13 pools and hot tubs, 11 restaurants, and 19 bars and lounges.