With their new Costa Smeralda it seems that Costa has returned to their Italian roots again, which has always been their trademark of course. But with their former flagship Costa Diadema (2014) and several vessels before with their Joe Farcus influenced and Carnivalized interiors, colorful and glitzy, they got off track a bit. But now, five years after Costa Diadema came online they have a new flagship, Costa Smeralda. And she is a very classy ship, more luxuriously appointed than her predecessors and… the Italian flair is back.
She was officially christened during a ceremony taking place in her atrium, the Colosseo, by Spanish Oscar winning actress Penelope Cruz who with a small hammer activated the device which released the bottle of champagne sending it smashing onto the ships bows.
It is not for nothing that she has an Italy-oriented design museum onboard, CODE, as Italy is the world’s foremost design counry, and as can be expected plenty design objects can be found onboard. Her interiors and layout are such that she can cope easily with her huge passenger carrying capacity of over 6000 guests.
Her interiors have been designed by a team led by Adam D. Tihany consisting of four different design-studios and they included lots of Italian elements, sometimes relating to the Sardinian coast after which she is named. Costa Smeralda‘s staterooms were designed by Milan-based architectural studio Dordoni Architetti.
Her atrium Colosseo is the focal point of Costa Smeralda and it is surrounded by lounges, bars and café’s. Led lighting in columns and in a circular cover on the ceiling make this a spectacular space. Then there is the already mentioned CODE – COsta DEsign – museum which has been created by Metteo Vercelloni and measures 400 square metres. It has items for daily use, like an espresso-machine or the Vespa-scooter, furniture, fashion and transport related items on display, showing why Italy is such a famous “design-country”.
Outside, aft there is the Piazza di Spagna. Two stairs on either side of the ship with amphi theatre-like seating in between make this a perfect place to relax and look over the stern to see the sun set…. Also on its top deck is the lido area with the La Spiaggia Beach Club. The lido area is divided in separate area’s by glass walls and features whirlpools and on its sides the Sole Bar, the Street Food corner and the Nutella-hazelnut Bar for sweet chocolate drinks and snacks can be found. This cooperation with the Nutella brand is not the only example of teaming up with a well-known brand. Onboard Costa Smeralda also the first Campari Bar at sea can be found which is full of red accents, matching the red Campari bottles of course.
Outside on top once again, the Volare Skywalk is a curved promenade partly made of crystal glass giving passengers a stunning view 65 metres above the waterline!
Costa Smeralda offers her 6520 guests staying in 2612 staterooms 15 restaurants and 17 bars. She is 337 meters long, 42 metres wide and measures 184.037GRT. Bright colours are used throughout, and helping guests finding their way around the ship: every deck has its own color in its corridors. Decks are named after cities and cabin decoration relates to the respective city of each deck, like on the photographic panel depicting Italian city views with an embedded television. Stateroom funiture has been designed by leading Italian furnutire manufacturers. Bathrooms will have a floor to ceiling window to make them feel more spacious.
Costa Smeralda is a near-sister to Aida Nova of German cruise operator Aida Cruises and she also runs on LNG, liquid(fie)d gas both at sea and while staying in port. LNG is very environmentally friendly as it significantly reduces exhaust gas emissions, like sulphur, nitrogen, carbon dioxide and particulate matter. However, the only port providing LNG is Barcelona. With her 3 LNG-tanks filled to cpacity, she can complete 2 week-long cruises. To make LNG fluid is has to be cooled to minus 161 degrees celsius and by heating it onboard it becomes gas again which can be used for propulsion. Heat from the engines is reused as energy onboard, even the elevators partly return electicity to thr ship’s network! Costa Smeralda does have engines running on regular diesel, but these are only used when extra power is needed, for example in bad weather or during difficult maneuvers. Further more she can hook up to shore power, but on her current route in the Mediterranean none of the ports provide this possibility. Of course single-use plastics are nowhere to be found on Costa Smeralda. Her builders and designers call her the “travelling smart city”.
Costa has initiated their 4GOODFOOD project which aimes at reducing food left-overs and preparing it for reuse for social purposes. Costa supports the “Food Gardens in Africa-project”, consisting of a 100 individual gardens in countries like Kenya, Mozambique, Madagascar, South-Africa and Tanzania. Left-over food onboard is donated to food banks in several ports in Italy, Spain and France. On the ship, passengers are made aware not to waste food, for example at the buffets when the slogan “Taste, not Waste” is used to encourage guests only to take the food they will actually eat. In the Laberatorio del Gusto (Taste Lab) passengers can prepare their own meals, and cooking-contests take place here between teams competing for the best presented and tasting dishes.
During her first summer Costa Smeralda will sail in the western Mediterranean. That is, what is left of it when she recommences cruising after the Corona-outbreak during which she is laid up just like the majority of the cruise ship fleet world wide. She will the reposition to Dubai where guests can combine their cruise with Expo2020 (if this goes ahead of course because of COVID-19) being held in Dubai at the time.
In all with Costa Smeralda Costa Cruises has gone back to its Italian roots, as she certainly is a showcase of “Italy’s finest”. And even better, a sistership will come online in July 2021 to be named Costa Toscana.
