Two new megaships going to Costa Cruises

Last month, Carnival Corp. announced a multi-billion dollar contract for four giant new ships, with two bound for the company’s German brand AIDA Cruises.

On Tuesday, the Doral-based cruise company announced that the other two vessels — which will be able to hold a record 6,600 passengers at maximum capacity — will be built for Italy’s Costa Cruises.

The ships will be built in Turku, Finland by Meyer Werft. They are scheduled to be delivered in 2019 and 2020, the same years AIDA will welcome its new vessels.

Each of the four ships will encompass more than 180,000 gross tons and be able to carry more than 5,200 passengers at double occupancy. They will be powered by liquefied natural gas.

“These new ships will be phenomenal additions to our fleet, and we’re looking forward to seeing our Costa and AIDA brands bring this ground-breaking new ship design to life for our guests in a way that is customized for each brand,” Arnold Donald, CEO of Carnival Corp., said in a statement.

This story was originally published July 28, 2015 at 5:32 PM with the headline "Two new megaships going to Costa Cruises."