Costa Serena Starts Cruising Early From South Korea and Taiwan

Costa Cruises established cooperation with Asian travel firms to restore the Costa Serena, the first Costa ship in Asia since 2020, to service. After three years, the 114,000-ton cruise ship will return to service six months early.

Costa contracted with South Korean and Taiwanese travel partners for 30 cruises between June and September 2023. The ship will undertake six South Korean voyages in June and 24 Taiwanese cruises from July–September.

“The additional cruises announced are an important signal for the resurgence of the industry in Asia,” said Costa Cruises President Mario Zanetti. “We accomplished this huge result thanks to our longstanding presence in Asia, strong relationships with local partners, and the recent reopening of several countries to cruising.”

Costa said in 2022 that it would reorganise its Asian business, reduce workers, and focus on other markets due to the restricted Asian markets. The Costa Serena cruised East Asia before the pandemic, and Costa had a significant presence in China. After the pandemic, Costa completed two Chinese-market cruise ships.

“International cruise lines have restarted routes in Asia one after another, and cruise travel has increased,” said Costa Cruises Chief Operating Officer Roberto Alberti. He anticipated more Costa ships after the Costa Serena.

These initial cruises, spanning 4–7 days, visit East Asian sites in Japan, such as Sasebo, Kagoshima, Otaru, Hakodate, Naha, Miyakojima, and Ishigaki.

South Korean ports of Busan, Sokcho, and Pohang, as well as Taiwan’s Keelung, will serve as departure points.

Busan, Sokcho, Pohang, and Keelung are South Korean and Taiwanese departure ports.

In late 2022, Carnival Corporation, Costa’s parent company, indicated it would continue to restructure Costa’s operations with the Chinese and Asian markets closed. The cruise line returned to pre-pandemic capacity in Europe, the Caribbean, and South America.

During the hiatus, Costa sold one ship, handed two to Carnival’s joint venture with China, and transferred one to Carnival Cruise Line. Carnival Corporation said that two Costa ships would be sold in 2023 to launch a new “Costa by Carnival” programme.

Fincantieri’s Costa Serena debuted in 2007. Costa’s ninth cruise ship will return to operation with 3,780 passengers. The line had previously announced intentions to relaunch the ship’s Caribbean voyages in December 2023 for the winter season of 2023-2024.

Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and Japan resumed international cruises in January. Genting’s Resorts World Cruises operates two Asian-based cruise ships, and Royal Caribbean International has returned to the Asian market. With China relaxing its COVID-19 rules, more Chinese visitors are expected to return to the market.