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Costa Venezia, The First Costa Cruises Ship Designed For The Chinese Market, Comes Into Service

Built by Ficantieri at its Monfalcone shipyard, she will offerChinese clients the best of Italy, strengthening Costa's leadership in China.The ship is part of an expansion plan that includes 7 new ships arriving forthe Costa Group by 2023, with an investment of over 6 billion euros.


Monfalcone, February 28,2019 – Today, at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, in the presence of the Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister of Italy, Matteo Salvini and of the Deputy Minister of Infrastructureand Transport of Italy, Edoardo Rixi, Costa Cruises officially took delivery ofCosta Venezia, the Italian company's first ship designed specifically tooffer the Chinese market the best of Italy.

Costa Venezia is part of an expansion plan thatincludes a total of 7 ships being delivered to the Costa Group by 2023,for a total investment of over 6 billion euros.

With a gross tonnage of in at 135,500 tons, 323meters in length and a capacity for over 5,200 guests, Costa Venezia will bethe biggest ship introduced by Costa to the Chinese market, where the Italiancompany was the first to start operating in 2006 and is currently the leader.It will offer a series of unprecedented innovations designed specifically forChinese customers, introducing guests to Italian culture, lifestyle andexcellence, starting from the interiors, which are inspired by the city ofVenice.

As Michael Thamm, Group CEO Costa Groupand Carnival Asia, explains: "Costa Venezia will help us to further developthe cruise market in China, which has a great unexplored potential. Suffice tosay that, currently, 2.5 million Chinese people a year choose to go on a cruisevacation, which is less than 2% of the total number of Chinese people whotravel abroad. Moreover, Costa Venezia further strengthens Costa's bond withItaly: it is a ship built in Italy, by an Italian shipyard, which flies theItalian flag and which will make Chinese guests experience unforgettableItalian experiences. "

Giuseppe Bono, CEO of Fincantieri, said: "For us "CostaVenezia" is the emblem of what we are able to do and where we intend to arrive,but she is also the product of the historical partnership with CarnivalCorporation and Costa Crociere, which enhances the tradition of Italianmanufacturing and know-how, projecting them towards other borders". Bonocontinued: "As a consolidated industry leader, our contribution to thecruise industry, considering the units we delivered and those we have on order,will count on 143 ships in the coming years, with 1 cruise passenger in 3sailing on our jewels. As soon as "Costa Venezia" will enter into service inChina, putting on show what we are able to realize in a still unexploredmarket, I am sure that a new chapter will be opened in the successful historyof Fincantieri".

Arnold Donald,President & CEO of Carnival Corporation, stated: "The delivery of CostaVenezia is a further step in the growth of a strong and sustainable cruiseindustry in China, which someday, we believe will be the largest cruise marketin the world. The growth of the Chinese cruise industry will continue to openthe world to millions of Chinese travelers and bring ever increasing prosperityto its people".
"As the first ship built specificallyfor the Chinese market, Costa Venezia marks the start of a new era, not onlyfor Costa and Fincantieri but also for the Chinese cruise industry as awhole", says Mario Zanetti, President of Costa Group Asia."From conception to delivery, everything about Costa Venezia has beendesigned having the Chinese customer in mind. Costa Venezia will continue tooffer the authentic Italian experience that is a hallmark of Costa, but withfurther innovations that have never been seen before and which are designed tomeet the needs of the local market even better".

On Costa Venezia, Chinese guests will experiencethe uniqueness of Venetian and Italian culture. The ship's theatre is inspiredby the Venetian "La Fenice" theatre; the main atrium is reminiscentof "St. Mark's Square", while the main restaurants recall thetraditional architecture of Venetian alleys and squares. Actual gondolas,made by the Squero di San Trovaso artisans, can also be found on board. Guestscan also savor the delicacies of Italian cuisine, shop in the on-board shopswith many famous "Made in Italy" brands and enjoy the internationallyrenowned Italian entertainment, with a masked ball that will recreate themagical atmosphere of the famous Carnival of Venice. They will also feel athome with a wide choice of Chinese food on offer, the Chinese-style karaoke,many parties including the "Golden Party", full of surprises andgifts to be won every ten minutes.

The Costa Venezia naming ceremony is planned forMarch 1 in Trieste, with a spectacular air show by "Frecce Tricolori" acrobaticteam and a firework display involving the whole city. The vernissagecruise will depart from Trieste March 3, 2019, bound for Greece and Croatia. OnMarch 8, the ship will be back in Trieste for the start of its inauguralcruise: an exceptional, 53-day trip following the tracks of Marco Polothrough the Mediterranean to the Middle East, South East Asia and the Far Eastbefore docking in Tokyo. The vernissage and inaugural cruises will be the onlydepartures available to European and American guests wishing to enjoy avacation on the new ship. From May 18, 2019, Costa Venezia, in fact, will bededicated exclusively to Chinese guests, offering cruises in Asia departingfrom Shanghai.

After Costa Venezia, the group's next ship to comeinto service, in October 2019, will be Costa Smeralda, the new Costa Cruisesflagship and the first ship for the world market to be powered by LNG. A secondship designed exclusively for the Chinese market, a sister ship to CostaVenezia, is currently under construction by Fincantieri in Marghera and isexpected to be delivered in 2020.
Best Regards,
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