Carnival : Costa Cruises Celebrates Float Out Of Costa Venezia – Its First Ship Being Built Specifically For China Market

Being built at Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone as Costa first ship designed specifically for the Chinese market, Costa Venezia marks a major milestone for the Italian company and its commitment to future of Chinese cruise industry. The design of the ship is dedicated to the city of Venice. The vernissage cruise will depart from Trieste on 3 March 2019.

Monfalcone, June 22, 2018- Costa Cruises, the Italian company ofCarnival Corporation & plc(NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK), the world's largest leisure travel company, and Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri, one of the largest shipbuilding groups in the world, today celebrated the official float-out ceremony of Costa Venezia - Costa first ship designed and built specifically for the China market. The ceremony was held at Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, where the ship is being built.

As part of today's float-out ceremony, the new Costa ship officially reached the sea for the first time. The celebration followed the protocol provided by the seafaring tradition for such occasions, by flooding the basin where the ship took shape in recent months, following the cutting of the ribbon and the breaking of the bottle by the float-out ceremony's godmother Chiara Ustulin, an employee of Monfalcone shipyard. Costa Veneziawill enter service in March 2019, once the interior fittings have been completed.

More than just a new addition to its existing China-based fleet, the Costa Venezia marks a new milestone for the Italian company and its commitment to the future of the Chinese cruise industry.

'As our first ship built specifically for the Chinese market, Costa Venezia marks a new era not just for Costa Cruises and Fincantieri but for the Chinese cruise industry as a whole,' said Mario Zanetti, president of Costa Group Asia. 'From its initial conception all the way through to today's float-out ceremony and beyond, everything about Costa Venezia has been designed with the Chinese consumer in mind. Costa Venezia will continue to deliver on Costa Cruises authentic Italian experience while also providing a unique vacation experience that will resonate with Chinese guests by being fully tailored to their travel preferences.'

'Today we celebrate a milestone in the construction of Costa Venezia which, together with its sister ship, will strengthen Costa's commitment in an emerging market,' said Luigi Matarazzo, Fincantieri Executive Vice President New Building - Merchant Ships Business Unit. 'Thanks to the effort of the Monfalcone shipyard, in a moment of exceptional growth of the cruise industry, we confirm our global leadership in this sector and our long term relationship with Costa Cruises'.

Designed with the specific leisure and entertainment requirements for Chinese guests, Costa Venezia will bring to life the passion of Venetian and Italian culture. The ship's theatre will be inspired by the Venetian 'La Fenice' theatre; the main atrium will recall 'Piazza San Marco', while restaurants will be dedicated to the typical architecture of Venetian alleys. Costa Venezia will also feature original 'gondolas', made by local artisans. An enchanting masked party will recreate on board the magic atmosphere of the famous Carnival of Venice. Guests will also be able to sample the delights of fine Italian dining, luxury Italian shopping and world-class Italian entertainment, while enjoying home comforts such as a range of Chinese cuisines and Chinese-style karaoke and the 'Golden Party', with lots of surprises and gifts to be won every ten minutes.

Before arriving to China next May, Costa Venezia will set sail for two cruises, both departing from the Italian port of Trieste. On March 3, 2019 the vernissage cruise to Greece and Croatia, followed on March 8 by a 53-day inaugural cruise, in the footsteps of Marco Polo, making its way through the Mediterranean, the middle east, Southeast and East Asia, before arriving at Tokyo.The vernissage and the inaugural cruises will be the only departures available for European and American guests to enjoy a holiday on the new ship. Starting from 18 May 2019, Costa Venezia will be dedicated to Chinese guests, offering them an Italian twist throughout East Asia, with homeport in Shanghai.

Costa Venezia will mark the latest step in a long list of innovations from the first international cruise company to begin serving the local Chinese market in 2006. At a length of 323 meters and measuring 135,500 gross tons with a capacity of more than 5,100 guests,Costa Venezia will be Costa largest ship operating homeport cruises from China. Costa Venezia will also be followed by the launch of its sister ship in 2020, being built by Fincantieri at Marghera shipyard. These two new ships for Asia will bring to 14 the total number of Costa ships built by Fincantieri in Italy, for a total investment of over 6 billion euros. The projects for construction of the new ships require thousands of shipyard workers and ancillary employees. Employment benefits not only concerns the shipyards but, above all for the interior design, also external companies, most of which are Italian.

Overall, the Costa Group currently has seven new ships on order by 2023. Costa Venezia will be followed by Costa Smeralda, the new flagship of Costa Cruises, scheduled for delivery in October 2019.

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The Costa Group is the leading cruise company in Europe and Asia, headquartered in Genoa (Italy). The 26 ships of the brands Costa Cruises, AIDA Cruises and Costa Asia together have a total capacity of more than 74,000 beds. The fleet will be further strengthened by 7 new vessels by 2023. The company has a global workforce of 27,000 employees working onboard and in its 20 offices in 14 countries.

For more information:

Costa Cruises

Gabriele Baroni - Communication Director - Mobile: +39 349 7668013 - baroni@costa.it

Davide Barbano - Media Relations manager - Mobile: +39 334 6525216 -barbano@costa.it

Press releases and photos available onwww.costapresscenter.com

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Fincantieri is one of the world's largest shipbuilding groups and number one by diversification and innovation. It is leader in cruise ship design and construction and a reference player in all high-tech shipbuilding industry's sectors, from naval to offshore vessels, from high-complexity special vessels and ferries to mega-yachts, ship repairs and conversions, systems and components production and after-sales services.

Headquartered in Trieste (Italy), the Group has built more than 7,000 vessels in over 230 years of maritime history. With more than 19,500 employees, of whom more than 8,300 in Italy, 20 shipyards in 4 continents, today Fincantieri is the leading Western shipbuilder. It has among its clients the major cruise operators, the Italian and the U.S. Navy, in addition to several foreign navies, and it is partner of some of the main European defense companies within supranational programmes.

www.fincantieri.com

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