Costa Cruises to Debut Costa Serena in French Port on May 19

Costa Cruises will inaugurate its newest ship, the Costa Serena, in Marseille, France, on May 19, marking the first time Costa has inaugurated a ship in France and the first christening of any cruise ship in Marseille, the cruise line.

“Our company and our brand have a long, consolidated tradition in France, where we’ve been operating for almost 60 years,” said Costa Chairman and CEO Pier Luigi Foschi.

Mr. Foschi said that France is Costa’s second largest market, after Italy, and that 14 percent of its guests, an estimated sales equivalent of 150,000, will be sourced from France in 2007. Costa has been calling in France since the 1980’s, the company said, and was the first to regularly stop in Marseille, making it a base for the Costa Romantic in 1996.

Costa added that 25 percent of Marseille’s 380,000 cruise passengers in 2006 came from Costa ships. The city forecasts 450,000 visitors will spend time in port there in 2007.

The 112,000-ton and 3,780-guest Costa Serena will be the 12th member of the Costa fleet and is currently under construction at Fincantieri’s Genoa-Sestri Ponente shipyard.