The new built-for-China Costa Firenze touched water for the first time on Wednesday at Fincantieri. 

The float out ceremony was held at Fincantieri shipyard in Marghera, Italy, where the ship is being built with scheduled delivery on September 30, 2020. The 135,500-ton ship follows its sister, the Costa Venezia, which was delivered earlier this year. 

“The Costa Firenze is a further proof of Costa Cruises’ long-term commitment to China market,” said stated Vanessa Li, vice president marketing of Costa Group Asia. “We aim to bring the beauty of the Italian lifestyle to Chinese guests, offering them an authentic Italian vacation experience. Together with Costa Venezia, which is enjoying great success, the arrival of Costa Firenze will help boost the development of Chinese cruise industry. The potential for future growth remains enormous: cruise travelers in China currently represent less than 2 percent of Chinese people who holiday abroad.”

“Today we celebrate a milestone in the construction of the Costa Firenze through which the ship owner will strengthen commitment in an emerging market,” said Luigi Matarazzo, Fincantieri’s General Manager Merchant Ships Division. “For us Costa Firenze is the emblem of what we are able to do and where we intend to arrive, but she is also the product of the historical partnership with Carnival Corporation and Costa Crociere, which enhances the tradition of Italian manufacturing and know-how, projecting them towards other borders. Thanks to the effort of the Marghera shipyard, in a moment of exceptional growth of the cruise industry, we confirm our global leadership in this sector.”

The Costa Firenze is inspired by the city of Florence and will sail head to the Chinese market year-round late next year.