The Costa Firenze and the Costa Venezia are now set to remain out of China until at least early 2024, as Costa made 2023 summer European cruises available on both ships on its booking engine.

Custom built for the Chinese market, the sister ships now appear poised to spend the 2023 summer season in Europe.

After returning to the Middle East for the 2022-2023 season, the Costa Firenze is debuting in Northern Europe. Starting in May 2023, the 2020-built vessel is offering a program of eight-night cruises to the Norwegian Fjords, departing from Kiel, Germany, and Copenhagen, Denmark.

The Costa Venezia, meanwhile, is set to repeat its 2022 deployment. Based in Istanbul, Turkey, the vessel will continue to offer Eastern Mediterranean cruises next year.

The program includes two different seven-night itineraries that can be combined into a single two-week cruise visiting eight ports in Greece and Turkey. 

Also available for booking, the itineraries for the 2023-2024 winter feature longer cruises in the Eastern Mediterranean for the Venezia and a third consecutive season in the Middle East for the Firenze.

The 4,232-guest Costa Venezia was the first Costa ship designed specifically for the Chinese market.

After being delivered in February 2019, the vessel arrived in China in May of the same year, launching cruise service from Shanghai.

With the pandemic hitting Asia first, the ship was among the first to have its operations halted in January 2020.

In 2021, with ports in Asia continuing to be closed, Costa brought the ship back to Europe in time for the 2022 summer season.

Also tailor-made for Costa’s Chinese guests, the Costa Firenze was delivered in 2020 but never sailed in Asia.

Instead of China, the 4,232-guest vessel debuted in the Western Mediterranean in July 2021.