As the Grand Celebration sits in San Giorgio del Porto for a routine drydock involving some 400 workers, it has been revealed that the ship will be transferred from Iberocruceros to Costa Crociere later this year, becoming the Costa Celebration. The ship originally launched service for Carnival Cruise Lines in 1986.
After her 4.5 million euro drydock in Genoa, she will position to the Eastern Mediterranean for the summer, offering seven-day sailings from Venice and Istanbul. In November the 1,896-passenger vessel will lose her blue funnel for a yellow Costa one, and sail as the Costa Celebration.
The ship will be positioned out of Marseille, sailing long 15- and 16-day itineraries to the Holy Land with stops in Spain, Tunisia, Malta , Italy, Greece and two days in Israel.
It has also been announced she will sail from Venice and Istanbul on an eight-day program next summer (2015).
After peaking at four ships, this will leave Iberocruceros with the sole 1985-built Grand Holiday, scheduled to sail from Buenos Aires this coming winter.
