It’s not everyday that one gets to be part of the baptism of a ship! Just a few days ago already, I got to experience a bigger than life event (literally) which I may never get to live again.
As a Blogger, I have had the privilege to partake in many amazing and unforgettable experiences and the naming of the newest and hippest Costa cruise was definitely one of them!
It all began on Friday, February 20th in La Spezia, Italy where we all embarked the Costa Smeralda, a bigger than life ship that could be easily mistaken for a massive building complex housing thousands of apartments, if it was on land.
Everything seemed quite overwhelming and just too much to take all in at once. Thousands of people (around 6,000), all ready to immerse themselves in the world of Costa and enjoy a few days of holidays at sea with their loved ones and a score of journalists invited from all over the world to celebrate this unique occasion. Having said that, I’m still amazed at how well the ship is run and how exact everything seems to be – every single detail is in place and rigorously taken into consideration.
I was really eager and curious to explore this massive boat and get a feel for it.
ABOUT COSTA SMERALDA
Costa Smeralda was introduced to the world on December 21, 2019, a mystical day some would say. In the Persian calendar for example, Yalda as it’s called, is a day of celebration – the last night of fall and the longest night of the year. Yalda means birth and refers to the birth of Mitra, the mythological goddess of light. So quite fitting, isn’t it?
Fun Facts
- Costa Smeralda operates on a one-week itinerary in the Western Mediterranean with calls at Savona, Marseille, Barcelona, Palma de Mallorca, Civita Vecchia/Rome and La Spezia. This summer, it will also stop in Cagliari.
- She was named after one of the most beautiful tourist destinations in Sardinia (Costa Smeralda means “Emerald Coast”), and all her decks and public areas are named after, and designed based on, iconic Italian places.
- 16 restaurants and “food experience” areas, including those conceived for casual family dining.
- 19 bars (including the specialty bars like Illycafe, Nutella, Aperol, Campari, Ferrari)
- The first to introduce environmental innovation and lead the way in sustainable cruising for the cruise industry.
- The first museum (CoDe – Costa Design Museum) ever created on a cruise ship, with a selection of over 470 exhibits.
- Total number of passengers: approximately 6,554
- Total number of crew members: 1,678
- 45 different nationalities in the crew and 60 in the guests
- 8 languages spoken
- 25 shows weekly (as opposed to 14 on other ships)
ITALY’S FINEST DESIGN
Costa Smeralda is a true “Italian made” design experience. From the walls, chairs, fabrics and colors to the Murano glass chandeliers, they each breathe and embody Italian style and quality. Led by designer Adam D. Tihany, this project is a hymn to beauty.
The design teams collaborated with 14 iconic brands: Alessi, Cappellini, Cassina, Dedar, Driade, Emu, Flos, FontanaArte, Kartell, Molteni&C, Moroso, Paola Lenti, Poltrona Frau, Roda, and Rubelli.
The furnishings, lighting, fabrics and upholstery, and accessories were all made in Italy especially for the new flagship, by 15 partners who are all ambassadors of Italian excellence.
The decks represent different Italian cities – beginning on deck four with the city of Palermo, this journey heads north through 11 decks, where each one is themed to represent an Italian marvel like Capri, Rome, Venice, Florence and Milan, ending with Bellagio on deck seventeen.
Our Cabin
Being a newbie in the world of cruises, my expectations were probably based on biases I constructed in my mind from stories I heard or read. In all honesty, they weren’t the highest! I was a bit worried about being trapped in a room with four walls, a bed and hardly any light – a gruesome thought!
I always do my best to remain as open-minded and positive as possible to be surprised. And surprised I was! We opened the door of our cabin and the first thing that popped out was the view of the port and the blue skies. After the initial excitement subsided, I was astonished by the size of the room and its design – small but spacious at the same time, bright, minimalist with a keen sense of design and details. What a relief!
POWERED BY LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS (LNG)
The ship is as a “travelling smart city”, where sustainable technologies and circular economy concepts are applied to reduce the environmental footprint and support sustainable cruising. With her innovative technological propulsion system based on LNG, the most advanced fuel technology currently available to reduce emissions, she is able to virtually eliminate sulfur dioxide emissions (zero emissions) and articulate matter (95-100% reduction), while greatly reducing emissions of nitrogen oxides (direct reduction of 85%) and CO2 (up to 20%).
On board, special desalinisation plants process seawater directly to meet daily water supply requirements, and energy consumption is reduced to a minimum thanks to an intelligent energy management system. Waste is managed on board with 100% separate collection for recycling of plastic, paper, glass and aluminum, using an integrated approach inspired by circular economy projects.
Finally, the 4GOODFOOD program applied on board is designed to reduce food wastage and to recover food surpluses for social betterment in cooperation with the European Federation of Food Banks.
The Costa Group was the first cruise operator in the world to pioneer the advanced LNG propulsion system and has ordered a total of five new LNG-fueled ships, two of which – Costa Smeralda and AIDAnova – are already in service. They are part of the Costa Group’s fleet expansion plan, with a total of seven new ships slated for delivery by 2023 and an overall investment worth over €6 billion.
BAPTISM BY PENELOPE CRUZ
Costa Smeralda went all out on Saturday as she was being baptised by no other than her god mother Penélope Cruz! I’m sure even as a ship she’s overwhelmed by how special that is. Who wouldn’t want Penélope Cruz as their God Mother and being celebrated with fireworks?
To add more pizzazz, Italian multi-starred chef Bruno Barbieri, personally curated the gala’s cocktail hour.
The evening was filled with high energy, fun and surprising acts.
Costa Smeralda is a breakthrough for the cruise industry, as she represents an exceptional combination of environmental innovation, smart technologies and Italian excellence in design, food and experiences.
Perfect for families and friends who want to get away and discover new places without having to worry about planning it all.
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