After having its repositioning cruise via the Red Sea cancelled, the Costa Toscana is sailing around Africa on its return to Europe.
Currently the largest ship in Costa Cruises’ fleet, the LNG-powered vessel is set to spend the summer in the Western Mediterranean following a winter program in the Middle East.
After completing its itineraries in the region on March 9, the Costa Toscana set sail from Dubai without passengers earlier this month.
Heading south on the Indian Ocean, the 5,224-guest cruise ship visited Port Louis, Mauritius, for a technical call on March 20.
Continuing its journey to Europe, the ship is now sailing to Namibia for a second technical stop. After bypassing South Africa, the Toscana is scheduled to arrive in Walvis Bay on March 27.
Following the month-long repositioning voyage, the vessel is expected to resume its regular schedule on April 11.
On that day, the Costa Toscana is set to depart from Spain on the first cruise of its summer program in the Western Mediterranean.
Sailing roundtrip from Barcelona, the four-night voyage features visits to Marseille, France, and Savona, Italy.
During the 2024 summer, the vessel is scheduled to offer regular seven-night cruises to Italy, France, and Spain.
Costa Toscana’s original repositioning cruise was cancelled in late January due to the current tensions in the Red Sea area.
“As you can well understand, the critical situation that is currently affecting the maritime traffic along the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden is constantly being monitored with the maximum attention,” Costa said in the cancellation notice.
“Given recent developments on the security environment and future uncertainties in the area, working in close consultation with global security experts and government authorities, we have made the difficult decision to cancel the cruise,” Costa explained.
Departing from Dubai, the planned itinerary was set to visit additional destinations in the United Arab Emirates and Oman before arriving in the Mediterranean via the Red Sea and the Suez Canal.
