The Carnival Luminosa has left drydock in Palermo, Italy, and is sailing to Dubai to pick up the ship’s crew before heading to Australia to begin cruising under the Carnival name. 

The 2,260-passenger Luminosa was previously a Costa ship. While in dry dock, the ship’s hull was given a new livery and a vintage funnel design featuring red, white and blue to match Carnival Cruise Line’s classic color scheme. 

The ship, which was registered last week with the Bahamas Maritime Authority, set sail Monday for the first time with a Bahamian flag.

The Luminosa will sail from Brisbane on a variety of seasonal itineraries from Nov. 6 to April 13. The ship will then reposition to sail from Seattle for the Alaska season in May. 

The ship’s move from Costa helps Carnival Cruise Line build capacity after shedding six of the line’s least efficient ships since 2020.

Separately, Carnival is also introducing “Costa by Carnival,” blending the ambiance of the Costa Venezia and the Costa Firenze’s Italian design with Carnival’s service, food and entertainment in the North American market. 

The Venezia and Firenze are expected to begin sailing from New York in the spring of 2023 and Long Beach, Calif., in spring 2024, respectively. 

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