Costa Cruises is positioning two new ships in Dubai for 2010 to meet growing demand for its Persian Gulf cruises.
Costa Deliziosa, launching in February 2010, will be based in the emirate from March to May, alongside Costa Luminosa, which is being named in Genoa in June and will be based in Dubai between December and April.
They will both be sailing seven-night cruises calling at Muscat, Oman, Fujairah and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates and Manama City, Bahrain.
Before starting its Dubai season, Deliziosa will be sailing a 37-day maiden voyage, split into two – a 20-day cruise from Savona to Dubai and a 17-day itinerary from Dubai to India and the Maldives and back.
There are also new 18-night cruises between Savona and Dubai on Costa Europa, sailing through the Suez Canal and Red Sea.
For 2010, Costa is returning to Israel and Libya, and has new spring cruises to Canada and the US, with maiden visits to Charleston, Baltimore and Norfolk.
It will have three ships in the Far East sailing from Singapore and China, four ships in Northern Europe, visiting the Norwegian fjords and Baltic, and a 20-day summer cruise to Greenland on Costa Luminosa.
Costa has also expanded its choice of shore excursions, offering new eco-tourism tours visiting parks, oases and nature reserves, and food and wine trips to restaurants listed in the 2009 Michelin Guide.
The 2010 brochure, out next week, features free cruises for under 18s sharing a cabin with two adults. For parents who want their privacy, a new Family Plan allows parents to book a separate cabin for their kids at a special rate.
The single supplement has been reduced and now starts from 30%.
Editor’s note: This article originally referred to the ‘Arabian Gulf’, and was amended to use the more common ‘Persian Gulf’ on February 26. Thanks to readers who queried this.