Costa Cruises takes delivery of new LNG mega ship Costa Toscana

Costa Cruises took delivery of its newest ship, Costa Toscana, from the Meyer shipyard in Turku (Finland) on Thursday, December 2nd.

Costa Toscana is the second Excellence-class cruise ship in the Costa fleet, joining Costa Smeralda, and is the sixth of nine planned vessels in the wider Carnival Corporation fleet.

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Powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG), the maritime sector’s most advanced technology for reducing emissions, Costa Toscana is part of a move by several major cruise lines to become more environmentally friendly.

All the Excellence-class cruise ships operated by AIDA, Costa, P&O, and Carnival are LNG-powered, while also featuring other ‘green’ technology, such as an intelligent energy efficiency system that reduces wastage and 100% separate collection and recycling of plastic, paper, glass, and aluminium.

Costa Toscana will be followed by AIDAcosma in the coming months, and Carnival Celebration and P&O’s Arvia in 2022, with Carnival Jubilee due in 2023.

“Costa Toscana reinforces our commitment to sustainable  innovation by further contributing to the use of LNG applied to cruise ships, a technology that we pioneered,” said Mario Zanetti, President of Costa Cruises.

He added that Costa is developing further innovations, such as fuel cells and batteries, with the aim of eventually achieving  the first cruise ship with net zero emissions, a goal that has also been publicly declared by fellow Italian cruise line MSC Cruises.

“Thanks to her excellent and innovative features and services, Costa Toscana will be able to attract new cruise guests, supporting us in consolidating our presence in the Mediterranean and our gradual restart plan,” he said.

LNG improves the environmental performance of cruise ships, both at sea and during calls in ports, as it eliminates sulphur oxide emissions and reduces particulate matter by 95%, while also significantly reducing nitrogen oxide emissions by 85% and CO2 by up to 20%.

Following her delivery to Costa Cruises, Costa Toscana will depart on her first passenger voyage on March 5th, 2022. The week-long itinerary out of Savona, Italy will call in Marseille, Barcelona, Valencia, Palermo and Civitavecchia/Rome.

She will remain in the Western Mediterranean throughout the year, with summer cruises to Savona, Civitavecchia/Rome, Naples, Ibiza, Valencia, and Marseille. On her autumn itineraries, Palma de Mallorca will replace Ibiza.

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Costa Toscana features sustainability throughout her design and decor. The driftwood used to furnish the islands of the new Archipelago restaurant were collected by the “Guardians of the Coast”, an environmental education program for the protection of the Italian coastline promoted by the Costa Crociere Foundation.

Costa Cruises will donate part of the proceeds from every meal served in the restaurant to the Costa Crociere Foundation to support environmental and social projects.

All her furnishings, lighting, fabrics and accessories are Made in Italy, and have been designed specifically for Costa Toscana by 15 suppliers.

The new ship features a Solemio Spa, several entertainment areas including a huge multi-deck theatre, dozens of themed bars, 21 restaurants and dedicated spaces for children and families.

Her 2,600 state rooms have been designed to reflect Italian style and taste. The “terrace over the sea” cabin’s category will offer a terrace cabana where guests can have breakfast, sip an aperitif and enjoy the view.