The Costa Fascinosa, the latest ship to join the fleet of Costa Cruises, Italy’s largest tourism group and Europe’s no. 1 cruise company, touched the water for the first time during her technical launch ceremony at the Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera.

Once the work to fit out her interiors has been completed, the Costa Fascinosa (114,500 gross tonnage and a capacity of 3,800 total Guests) will depart on her first cruise on 2nd May 2012. About 3,000 employees and 7,000 workers from linked industries are contributing to the construction of the ship, and most of the companies involved in the shipbuilding activities, about 500, are Italian. Costa Cruises’s total investment to build the Costa Fascinosa amounts to approximately 510 million euros.

The Costa Fascinosa’s technical launch ceremony was carried out according to seafaring tradition. The shipyard director invited the godmother, Mirca Pizzato, an employee of Marghera shipyards, to cut the ribbon and break a bottle of champagne against the bow of the Costa Fascinosa. Once the dry-dock basin where the ship took shape over the last few months had been filled with water, the hull finally had the chance to touch the sea for the first time. The launch ended with the welding of a coin at the base of what was once the mainmast, a custom considered to bring good luck.

“The launch of the Costa Fascinosa, less than one month after the delivery of the Costa Favolosa,
named in Trieste on 2nd July, confirms the soundness and commitment of our company. Costa Cruises continues to help to the sector’s development in Europe, creating jobs in Italian shipyards - declared Pier Luigi Foschi, Chairman and CEO of Costa Crociere S.p.A. - I can say that the strength of our brand, guaranteed by more than 60 years of experience, and the quality of our product will once again turn out to be the winning factors in what continues to be a difficult economic and geopolitical scenario.”

Since 2000, at a Group level, Costa Crociere S.p.A. (that along with the Costa Cruises brand includes AIDA Cruises, a leader in German-speaking markets, and Iberocruceros, which operates in Spanish and Portuguese-speaking markets) has developed a challenging investment plan to strengthen the fleet, involving 22 ships delivered from 2000 to 2013, for a total investment of 9.6 billion euros.

Fincantieri's CEO, Giuseppe Bono, commented: "Just a month after delivering the sister ship “Costa Favolosa”, Fincantieri is launching another flagship for Costa Crociere's partners. Although these two achievements are by no means enough to overcome the crisis in the industry, they are a source of reassurance and we believe that only by consolidating the alliance between two excellent Italian companies can we guarantee a future for two strategic sectors of our national industry, shipbuilding and tourism."

The Costa Fascinosa, as her name suggests (in Italian “fascinosa” means “charming”), was conceived as a tribute to the charm in all its forms: from people to places, icons of charm and seduction. The interiors are inspired by the seductive atmospheres of great historic films, the protagonists who made them famous and the works that brought success to the most celebrated theatres in the world. The new flagship will offer an intense and fascinating vacation experience, brimming with wonderful atmospheres and authentic cinematic locations. Interiors are designed to be works of art themselves: from fine furnishings, where the dominant colours are silver, gold and purple, to the sculptures and lights. With services that remain true to its name, some of the ship’s main innovative features will include 6 suites with veranda and private Jacuzzi; an entertainment area, for teenagers and adults alike, containing all the wonders of the virtual world, including 4D Cinema and Playstation World, video-games and a bar with ice-cream, drinks and popcorn. There will also be innovations for children, with a real outdoor Water Park, including a pirate galleon and castle. On board, Guests will find the best of all the latest innovations proposed by Costa ships: the “Samsara Spa", one of the largest wellness areas ever built on a cruise ship; a central swimming pool area extending over two decks, with a retractable glass roof, equipped with a giant screen; in addition to a Grand Prix race car simulator plus a golf simulator. The completely renovated stern swimming pool area will be particularly spacious: 1,000 m² dedicated to relaxation and fun, with new Jacuzzis facing the sea and a refreshing waterfall.

The Costa Fascinosa, like her sister ship the Costa Favolosa, will be on the cutting edge of cruise ship building technology also extends to environmental compliance, which has always been a Costa hallmark. Like other fleet members, the Italian Company’s new flagship will be equipped for “cold ironing”, namely a system whereby the ship is plugged into shoreside electrical power, enabling generators to be shut down during stopovers in port.

The Costa Fascinosa will make her debut with 2 mini vernissage cruises and an inaugural cruise. The first mini vernissage cruise, departing from Venice on 2nd May 2012, will be calling at Dubrovnik (Croatia), Capri (Italy), Savona (Italy); the second one will depart from Savona on 7th May 2012, calling at Corfu (Greece), Kotor (Montenegro), Venice. They will be followed by an 11-day inaugural cruise departing from Venice on 11th May 2012 to discover Israel, Greece, Turkey and Croatia, with calls at Bari, Corfu (Greece), Haifa (Israel), Smyrna (Turkey) and Dubrovnik (Croatia). For the entire 2012 spring/summer/fall season (up to November 2012), the Costa Fascinosa will sail 8-day cruises from Venice and Bari to Olympia (Greece), Santorini and Rhodes (Greece) and Dubrovnik (Croatia).