Costa Serena is a Concordia-class

Concordia class cruise ship

The Concordia class is a class of cruise ships that are operated by Costa Cruises and Carnival Cruise Lines, subsidiaries of Carnival Corporation & plc....

 cruise ship

Cruise ship

A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...

 for the Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 cruise line

Cruise line

A cruise line is a company that operates cruise ships. Cruise lines have a dual character; they are partly in the transportation business, and partly in the leisure entertainment business, a duality that carries down into the ships themselves, which have both a crew headed by the ship's captain,...

, Costa Cruises

Costa Cruises

Costa Cruises is a British-American owned Italian cruise line, based in Genoa, Italy.Founded in 1924, the company originally operated cargo ships, until the introduction of passenger services in 1947, with regular services between Italy and South America...

. The name Serena

Serena

-People:*Aldo Serena, an Italian former footballer*Michele Serena, an Italian former footballer*Fernando Serena, a Spanish former footballer*Bill Serena, a deceased American baseball player*Gustavo Serena, a deceased Italian actor and film director...

 was intended to symbolize harmony and serenity.

Since its inauguration, it has been the line's flagship

Flagship

A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...

. She entered service in mid-2007. The ship was constructed by Fincantieri

Fincantieri

Fincantieri - Cantieri Navali Italiani S.p.A. is a shipbuilding company based in Trieste, Italy. It was formed in 1959 and is the largest shipbuilder in the Mediterranean, and one of the largest in Europe...

 in Sestri Ponente

Sestri Ponente

Sestri Ponente is an industrial suburb of Genoa in northwest Italy. It is part of the Medio Ponente municipio of Genoa.-Geography:It is situated on the Ligurian Sea to the west of the city, between Cornigliano and Pegli...

. Her sister ship, Costa Concordia

Costa Concordia

Costa Concordia is a Concordia-class cruise ship owned and operated by Costa Cruises. She was built at Fincantieris Sestri Ponente yards in Italy...

, was launched in 2006. The two ships are the largest and longest ships in the Costa Cruises

Costa Cruises

Costa Cruises is a British-American owned Italian cruise line, based in Genoa, Italy.Founded in 1924, the company originally operated cargo ships, until the introduction of passenger services in 1947, with regular services between Italy and South America...

 fleet. A third sister ship, Costa Pacifica

Costa Pacifica

Costa Pacifica is a Concordia-class cruise ship for Costa Cruises. She was handed over to Costa Cruises in 29 May 2009. Her sister ships, Costa Concordia and Costa Serena, were launched in 2006 and in 2007, and another two sister ships, Costa Favolosa and Costa Fascinosa will be launched in 2011...

, was launched in 2009 and another two sister ships, Costa Favolosa

Costa Favolosa

Costa Favolosa is a cruise ship ordered for Costa Cruises in October 2007. Based on the Concordia class design, Costa Favolosa was laid down by Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard on 5 November 2009 and launched on 6 August 2010...

and Costa Fascinosa

Costa Fascinosa

Costa Fascinosa is a Concordia-class cruise ship that was ordered in October 2007 for Costa Cruises. Based on the Concordia class design, Costa Fascinosa will be constructed by Fincantieris Marghera shipyard in Venice...

are scheduled for launching in 2011 and 2012. The ship's godmother is Marion Cotillard

Marion Cotillard

Marion Cotillard is a French actress and singer. She garnered critical acclaim for her roles in films such as La Vie en Rose, My Sex Life... or How I Got Into an Argument, Taxi, Furia and Jeux d'enfants...

.

Inaugural event

May 19, 2007 marked the day of the Costa Serena's inaugural event. The event was held in Marseille

Marseille

Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 and featured fireworks and a laser show. At the same time as the actual inauguration, Costa held a inaugural event in the virtual world of Second Life

Second Life

Second Life is an online virtual world developed by Linden Lab. It was launched on June 23, 2003. A number of free client programs, or Viewers, enable Second Life users, called Residents, to interact with each other through avatars...

.

Media coverage

In 2009 the Costa Serena and its crew was featured in the six-episode National Geographic TV documentary series "Cruise Ship Diaries".

External links

• Costa Cruises official website
• "A Floating Pantheon" Media report