Mauritius Becomes New Cruise Destination with Debut of Costa Crociere

Mauritius, the splendid island in the Indian Ocean renowned for its endless white beaches and lush vegetation, is set to become a new international cruise destination. In December 2007 Costa Crociere will become the first operator worldwide to offer Indian Ocean cruises departing from Mauritius.

“In 2008 we will confirm our role as leaders in innovation,” commented Costa Crociere SpA Chairman & CEO Pier Luigi Foschi, “and we will be able to offer our customers a truly unique holiday destination, never before marketed by a cruise operator.”

Following the opening of new routes in Asia and out of Dubai last year, next winter there will also be cruises from Mauritius, which are already proving to be popular judging from the advance bookings. For these cruises we’re aiming in particular at customers in all main markets of reference in Europe and Asia.

In the course of the 2007/2008 winter season the Costa Marina, a 25,600 gross tonnage member of the Costa fleet with total Guest capacity of 1000, will set sail from Mauritius every Saturday on six 14-day cruises (16 days counting the flights to and from Italy and elsewhere in Europe) in the Indian Ocean.

The first departure is scheduled for December 21, 2007, with the last one on February 29, 2008. The itinerary includes 2-day stopovers in Mauritius and Mahe (Seychelles), and one-day calls at Mombasa (Kenya), Mayotte, Nosy Be (Madagascar), Toamasina (Madagascar) and Reunion.

The Costa Marina will bring a total of around 11,000 passengers to Mauritius, mainly Europeans, in particular from Italy, France, Germany, Spain and the UK. They will fly from Europe (Milan, London and Paris) to Mauritius and embark there on the liner. Guests are also expected to arrive from Asia and China, where since March 2006 Costa Crociere has had two representative offices promoting and marketing all its cruises.

The cruises out of Mauritius on the Costa Marina will feature guided shore excursions in each port of call, with the chance to visit some of the local highlights.