Three survivors have been found on the Costa Concordia cruise ship that ran aground on Friday night. Three passengers were killed and 30 injured as result of the incident, the causes of which have not yet been established.

Costa Cruises opens its sixth consecutive season in the Emirates with the inaugural call in Dubai of the flagship Costa Favolosa. The arrival of the vessel at the port was celebrated with a welcoming ceremony attended by Awah Al Ketbi, chief executive of AL Ketbi Consultancy, the company which runs the Costa representative office in Dubai, Captain Mauro Muratore and government officials and VIP guests from Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, tourism and maritime sectors.

Two major cruise liners have made their maiden voyages to Abu Dhabi boosting hopes the emirate will achieve its target of receiving 77 calls from ships in the current 2011/2012 season. Arriving in Mina Zayed earlier was the AIDABlu, which belongs to the German cruise line AIDA Cruises, while the Costa Favalosa is expected later today.

Costa Cruises, Europe’s number one cruise company, has announced that the naming ceremony for new flagship, Costa Fascinosa, will take place in Savona on 6 May 2012.

Costa Cruises has announced a new addition to its fleet - the Costa Voyager. Costa Voyager, formally part of the Iberocruceros fleet, will offer guests 416 cabins in total, including 16 panoramic suites and 12 suites with private balconies.

A rare piece of good news for the Italian economy has seen Costa Cruises double passenger numbers to become one of the country’s top ten most profitable companies. Costa Cruises’ ships have brought approximately four million cruise passenger movements to Italy’s ports in 2011 – 50 per cent more than last year.