COSTA CRUISES AND DUBAI TEAM UP FOR INAUGURAL CELEBRATION OF NEW COSTA DELIZIOSA

First Cruise Ship to be named in an Arabian City – Inaugural Set for February 23, 2010
LONDON (November 9, 2009) – Costa, Europe’s Number One Cruise Line, and the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) announced today that the new Costa Deliziosa with be named in Dubai. Costa and DTCM will team up for the event, which marks the first time a cruise ship will be named in an Arabian city. The stunning new flagship of the Costa fleet will be inaugurated in the international locale on February 23, 2010. Today’s announcement was made at World Travel Market in London.

The naming ceremony will take place during the ship’s Grand Inaugural cruise, departing from Savona, Italy on February 5, 2010 and calling in Dubai from February 23-26. Costa guests sailing on the first leg of the grand maiden cruise will be able to attend the exclusive inaugural ceremony. The Costa Deliziosa (92,600-tons; 2,260 dbl occ) is currently being fitted out at Fincantieri’s Marghera (Venice) shipyard and will be delivered on January 29, 2010. Together with her sister ship, Costa Luminosa, christened on June 5 of this year, the Costa Deliziosa will be the most exclusive and innovative ship in the Costa fleet. Both ships will be deployed in Dubai during winter 2009/10, offering 7-night cruises from Dubai, complete with two overnights and visits to other UAE countries.

“Costa Cruises was the first and it’s still the major operator to believe in the value of this new cruise destination, confirming the pioneering spirit of our Italian company,” said Fabrizia Greppi, Costa Crociere S.p.A. Vice President of Corporate Marketing & Communication. “Thanks to the partnership and four years of activities with the DTCM, we have boosted our presence, bringing ships to Dubai which are ambassadors of the best of “made in Italy” in the world. For the coming winter season Costa will deploy in the area “top of the range” sister ships Costa Luminosa and Costa Deliziosa. The naming ceremony of our fifteenth ship, Costa Deliziosa, in Dubai confirms our strategy while strengthening the partnership between Costa Cruises and DTCM. We are working together towards the same goal of creating an unforgettable event rich with surprise and atmosphere, combining the charming tradition of an Arabian night with the unique Italian style by Costa Cruises.”

Mr. Saleh Mohammed Al Geziry, director of overseas promotions and inward missions for the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) said “the cruise industry plays a crucial role in the overall growth and development of the tourism industry in Dubai and the region. We realized its importance long ago and created the infrastructure and services that were needed to tap its potential.”  He added, “we welcome Costa’s decision and hope that it will be a boost for the regional cruise industry. We will continue to devote our efforts to further promote this most-promising sector of the tourism industry. Costa’s decision to name Costa Deliziosa in Dubai reconfirms the emirate’s potential as the regional cruise industry hub. We are delighted with their decision and guarantee our whole hearted cooperation and support to make the initiative successful. We are confident that this will help expand the cruise tourism industry in the region and stimulate other cruise operators to use the emirate as a cruise hub.”

The Costa Deliziosa naming ceremony further strengthens the ties linking Dubai and Costa Cruises. The Italian company, together with AIDA Cruises, a German brand also belonging to Costa Crociere’s group, was the first to market regular cruises in the Arabian Gulf, turning Dubai into a major cruise destination and contributing to its growth as a tourism destination.

In winter 2009/2010, Costa’s ships are expected to bring 140,000 passenger movements to Dubai thanks to the presence of three ships - the Costa Luminosa, the Costa Deliziosa and the Costa Europa, for a total of 32 calls. The estimated economic impact will be approximately  €14 million,* coming from Costa guests’ direct spending, shore excursions, transfers, cruise operation expenditures,  and general expenditures (food & beverage). In addition to Costa Cruises’ ships, one AIDA Cruises ship, AIDAdiva (69,200-tons  and 2,500 total guests), will call 20 times in Dubai during the winter 2009/10 season.

Costa’s operations in the area began in winter 2006/2007 with one ship, the Costa Classica (53,000-tons and 1,308 dbl occ). The immediate success of the new cruise destination prompted Costa Cruises to increase its capacity in the area year after year. Costa Cruises’ passenger movements in Dubai increased from 44,000 in winter 2006/07 to 100,000 in winter 2008/09. Costa Cruises’ ships have generated substantial and growing business for the emirate of Dubai and the other ports of call on the itinerary.

As per a WEFA report – one of the most respected economic information companies  -  tourism’s direct contribution to Dubai’s GDP stands at 19.89 percent, while the indirect contribution is 35 percent. Dubai is sailing ahead to become the ultimate cruise destination of the Middle East. The cruise industry is rapidly growing with 260,817 cruise tourists predicted to visit the emirate during 2009,  nearly a 25 percent increase over last year. In 2010, Dubai is expected to host 99 calls with over 383,000 passengers. The burgeoning cruise industry is set to grow further as the new Dubai Cruise Terminal becomes operational in January 2010.

In a survey, 80 percent of cruise passengers in Dubai revealed that they would extend their visit to the emirate during their next visit and 95 percent said they would recommend others to visit Dubai to enjoy its all-appealing facilities, pristine beaches and unparalleled shopping options.

In winter 2009/10 both Costa Deliziosa and Costa Luminosa will sail 7-night itineraries with two overnights in Dubai and one day calls at the ports of Muscat (Oman), Fujairah (United Arab Emirates), Abu Dhabi (UAE) and Bahrain.  The Costa Deliziosa will depart from Dubai on Sundays from March 24, 2010 to  May 9, 2010 the Costa Luminosa will depart on Saturdays from December 12, 2009 to April 10, 2010. In addition to the two Costa flagships, the Costa Europa will offer a brand new itinerary: 18-night winter cruises from Savona to Dubai and from Dubai to Savona – a unique itinerary crossing the Mediterranean, the Suez Canal and the Red Sea.

About Costa Deliziosa
The Costa Deliziosa is “the new jewel” of the Costa fleet –  the most exclusive and innovative ship intended for Costa’s “high-end” customers.  This is readily apparent in her cutting-edge design and use of premium materials such as various types of marble and granite, stucco applied by spatula using the technique known as “spatolato veneziano” and other decorative interior finishes including “parchment scroll” lamé, refined Zebrano wood and Wenge timber, Murano glass, and stylish polished and glazed steel.  Featured in the stunning atrium (a strong focal point on all Costa ships) are fine works of art, notably “Sphere” by Arnaldo Pomodoro and a piece by Mario Donizetti.

Whether it’s fun or relaxation, there are an incredibly large number of entertaining things to do on board, all involving the use of leading-edge technology. These include  4D cinema, a roller skating track, the latest generation golf simulator with a putting green, a Grand Prix race car driving simulator and  the exclusive 23,000 square-foot “Samsara Spa” complete with spa accommodations offering direct access to the wellness center. The ship also features “PlayStation World,” an area onboard dedicated exclusively to PlayStation3, as well as “PlayStation on demand” cabin service.

Costa Cruises is Italy’s largest tourism group and Europe’s Number One Cruise Line.  For more than 60 years its ships have sailed the seas of the world, offering the best in Italian style, hospitality and cuisine and providing dream vacations filled with fun and relaxation. In 2008, 1.2 million guests chose to cruise with Costa, a record for the European cruise industry. The company’s 14 fleet members, each with her own distinctive characteristics and unique style, all fly the Italian flag and sail each year to 250 destinations in the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, the Baltic Sea, the Caribbean, South America, the United Arab Emirates, the Far East and the Indian Ocean. Three more new ships are due to enter service by 2012.

Costa Cruises has been certified by RINA (Italian Shipping Register) with the BEST4, an integrated system of voluntary certification of corporate compliance with the highest standards governing social accountability (SA 8000, issued in 2001), environment (UNI EN ISO 14001, 2004), safety (OHSAS 18001, 2007) and quality (UNI EN ISO 9001, 2008). All the ships in the Costa fleet have been assigned RINA’s Green Star notation certifying that they are operated in compliance with the highest environmental protection standards. Costa Cruises is an official partner of WWF Italy for the protection of the Mediterranean Sea. In Mediobanca’s 2009 survey of over 3,700 Italian enterprises that recorded revenue of at least 50 million Euros the previous fiscal year, Costa Crociere S.p.A. ranks 10th in terms of profitability and 65th in terms of sales. In the “Global Reputation Pulse 2009” international study, Costa Cruises ranked first among Italian “service industry” companies. Pulse scores are a measure of corporate reputation of the 600 largest enterprises located in 32 countries worldwide.

Costa Crociere S.p.A. is a member of Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world’s largest cruise company.

*Partially based on equivalent expenses by cruise guests in EU ports as estimated by the European Cruise Council in 2008.