Costa Serena’s return leaves a gap in Costa’s Santos short-cruise program

Costa is bringing Costa Serena back to South America after 15 years, but the ship’s shorter season will leave behind a useful piece of Costa Favolosa’s program: the three- and four-night departures from Santos offered in November and December 2025.

I’d put more weight on that omission than on the return itself. The ship will take over only part of Favolosa’s 2025-26 program. Bringing a vessel back is welcome, but the dates and itineraries it actually sails are what make a deployment useful.

For 2026-27, Costa Serena will operate seven- to nine-night cruises from Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro, joining Costa Diadema on itineraries in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay.

This does not mean Costa is abandoning short cruises. Diadema will offer three- to seven-night sailings, with departures from Santos, Itajai and Buenos Aires. But that does not restore the early-season Santos departures.

A December arrival and unfinished business ashore

Serena will end a decade-long deployment in Asia with a world cruise departing Tokyo, calling in Chile and sailing through Tierra del Fuego before finishing in Buenos Aires on December 22, 2026. Rene Hermann, Costa’s institutional president for Brazil, outlined the route to Cruise Industry News in Brasilia. Built in 2007, the approximately 114,000-gross-ton ship can accommodate up to 3,780 passengers.

Hermann said Costa wants to restore the short-cruise program previously operated by Favolosa, but additional capacity depends on suitable ships and itineraries being available. He also spoke to the effect on Brazilian destinations.

“It is bad for cruise terminals, where there are fewer passengers, which impacts everything else,” he said.

That is the practical cost of the shorter season. A ship’s passenger capacity tells only part of the story when the program leaves out departures that previously brought people through a terminal.

Brazil’s Northeast coast will also remain outside Costa’s regular itinerary schedule for a third consecutive season. Salvador, Ilheus and Maceio were regular Costa destinations for decades, and Hermann said the company continues to consider returning. “We need to see operational costs lowering, so we can justify making the investment of having a ship doing an itinerary like that,” he said.

That makes the Northeast’s absence more than a scheduling loose end.

New parties off the Brazilian coast

Serena will introduce Costa’s Sea Destinations program to South America with two themed onboard parties off Brazil’s coast. The concept has been offered in Europe since 2024.

Off Copacabana, the ship has Brazilian Navy authorization to remain at anchor for a party, giving passengers views of the Rio de Janeiro beach from its decks. Hermann described it as an additional experience between calls at Rio de Janeiro and Ilhabela.

At Balneario Camboriu, Serena will move from its usual anchorage to another position nearer the city center for a second onboard party.

I like the idea of making the coastal setting part of the evening onboard. It gives these sailings something specific to their location. It remains an onboard addition, though, not an extra port visit.

Hermann said Costa could expand Sea Destinations elsewhere in the region if passengers respond favorably. Availability varies by ship and itinerary and remains subject to weather and operating conditions.

A leadership change, with the program already prepared

Costa announced in August that Americas president Dario Rustico would leave after more than five years. Hermann said Rustico chose to depart to pursue personal goals.

Jorge Serrano de Vidales, who currently leads Costa’s trade sales in Spain and Portugal, is scheduled to take over the Americas presidency in January 2027. “The operational staff already has everything ready for the season, so absolutely nothing will be changed,” Hermann said.

Until Costa confirms a deployment, its willingness to bring back the Santos sailings and Northeast ports is an intention, not a bookable cruise.

See current Costa Serena fares and itineraries on Cruise Lookup.