Costa Cruises, the Italian Cruise Line has cemented its place as the most popular cruise line in Italy and across Europe by reaching 1 million customer bookings 5 weeks earlier than its previous record in 2007. When Costa reached 1 million customers in 2007, it marked an achievement as a first, not only for Costa but for the cruise industry as a whole.
Costa Crociere S.p.A. Group Chairman & CEO Pier Luigi Foschi said: “We have done even better than last year, when we celebrated the record of 1 million customers, set in mid-July, for the first time in Europe.
This is a truly excellent performance, which consolidates and confirms our position as Europe’s number one cruise line and rewards the efforts of the 15,000-plus people who work in Costa Cruises”.
Costa Cruises has now laid out plans to reach 1.5 million customers in 2010, a feat that would need an increase of 35% in just 3 years. A current fleet expansion comprising of 5 new ships by 2012 will go a long way in achieving this aim and ensure a 17-strong with berths for 46,400 guests by 2012.
Costa Cruises is also the first operator in the world to market cruises in the Far East with departures from China, in the Arabian Gulf with departures from Dubai and in the Indian Ocean with departures from Mauritius.
