Costa Magica is a cruise ship for the Costa Crocierecruise line. She debuted in 2004 as a sister ship to, built on the same platform as the of the Carnival Cruise Line. Costa Magica pays homage to some of the most famous destinations in Italy including Positano, Portofino, Bellagio, and Sicily which are all incorporated into her public rooms and restaurants. At, she is one of the largest in the Costa Crociere fleet.
Design and description
The vessel was designed by the American architect Farcus and is the sister ship to. As built Costa Magica had a gross tonnage of 102,857 and. This later increased to 102,784 GT and 9,859 DWT. The cruise ship measures long overall and between perpendiculars with a beam of. The ship is powered by two diesel engines turning two fixed pitch propellers creating. Ward states the ship has two azimuth thruster pods. This gives Costa Magica a maximum speed of. The vessel is also equipped with seven electric generating sets creating. Costa Magica has 1,359 cabins total ranging in size from. 522 have a balcony. The cruise ship has capacity for 2,718 passengers and has a crew of 1,068. There is a nine-deck atrium with a bar on the lowest level, a spa and a three-deck theatre.
On 12 March 2020, two passengers aboard were reported to be tested positively for COVID-19 while quarantined in Martinique. The ship, with 3,300 people on board, had been disallowed entry to several sea ports including Grenada, Tobago, Barbados and Saint Lucia, due to over 300 Italian nationals on board. On 16 March, the ship was allowed only to take on provisions and refuel at St. Maarten with no one allowed to leave the ship. It was later reported that passengers from the ship disembarked in mid-March leaving just the crew aboard. The ship then travelled to Miami, Florida but was not allowed to dock there. 13 crew members were evacuated from Costa Magica and to hospitals in Miami after displaying COVID-19 symptoms. The rest of the crew were tested aboard both ships which were lying off Miami and Eventually, the ship stopped three miles offshore from Miami, and on 26 March, the U.S. Coast Guard reported evacuation of six sick crew members from the ship. On 30 March, those who tested negative were taken to the airport and put aboard charter flights to repatriate them to their home nations. Those who tested positive remained aboard the ships, which then sailed for Europe. An update by CNN on 3 April 2020 stated the ship remained near Miami after "six crew members with respiratory symptoms were evacuated from the ship, and then transported to a hospital". The Port of Miami had not provided consent for the vessel to dock but all passengers had previously disembarked at Guadeloupe.
