Costa Cruises has extended its Far East programme to offer some of the highlights of Japan to adventurous UK cruisers

European cruise giant Costa Cruises has extended its Far East programme to introduce Japan with 14 and 15-night sailings for 2008.

The operator is offering a choice of two sailings on board Costa Allegra � 21 June 2008 for 15 nights or 12 October 2008 for 14 nights.

The 15-night June itinerary starts from Hong Kong and then calls at Keelung, Naha Okinawa, Kobe, Tokyo, Nagasaki and Cheju before ending in Tianjin. Prices start from �1,119 per person excluding flights.

The 14-night journey, departing in October, begins in Shanghai and then sails to Cheju, Nagasaki, Tokyo, Kobe, Naha Okinawa, Keelung and finally, Hong Kong. Prices start from �1029 per person excluding flights.

Costa Cruises was the first international cruise company authorised to operate in the Chinese market and repositioned its Costa Allegra in Hong Kong last year. The operator firmly believes with the increased interest in the Far East in general and the increased volume of UK visitors to the region the addition of Japan will be a big hit.

Costa Cruises� UK Managing Director, Marco Rosa said: �We�re hoping the addition of Japan will bring extra appeal to our Far East itineraries. The region is increasingly popular and very exciting as a destination. We know that UK cruisers are very adventurous and are always looking for the next new destination as demonstrated by the popularity of our China, Dubai and Indian Ocean itineraries with the UK market.�

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Costa Cruises is an Italian cruise company and the market leader in Europe and South America. In 2006 Costa carried a total of 880,000 cruise guests and this figure is expected to hit the one million mark in 2007. Its fleet, Europe�s largest and most advanced, has a total of 12 ships in service and three under construction. By 2010 the Costa fleet will be 15 strong with total guest capacity of approximately 30,800. All of the vessels fly the Italian flag and are deployed in the Mediterranean, Northern Europe, the Caribbean, South America, the Arabian Gulf, the Far East, Indian Ocean. Costa Cruises has been certified by RINA (Italian Shipping Register) with the BEST4, an integrated system of voluntary certification of corporate compliance with the highest standards governing social accountability (SA 8000, issued in 2001), environment (UNI EN ISO 14001, 2004), safety (OHSAS 18001, 1999) and quality (UNI EN ISO 9001, 2000). Costa Cruises is also an official partner of the WWF for the protection of the marine ecoregions of the Mediterranean, the Greater Antilles and Brazil. Costa Cruises also operates the brand AIDA Cruises, which is the number one cruise company for the German market with four ships in service and three under construction. Costa Cruises is a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc, the world�s largest cruise operator.

For more information or to book go to www.costacruises.co.uk or call 020 7940 4499

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