Costa Cruises has pulled the 6 650-guest Costa Toscana from her highly anticipated Dubai home-porting program for winter 2025-26, citing "ongoing regional operational issues." The LNG-powered flagship will instead remain in the Mediterranean, while all Arabian Gulf itineraries and repositioning voyages to and from the United Arab Emirates are being cancelled. Affected travelers will be offered alternative sailings or full refunds, according to the line's July 25 statement.
Key Points
- Why it matters: More than 40 000 booked travelers must now replan winter vacations.
- All Dubai turnarounds and Cape Town repositioning cruises are scrapped.
- Toscana will operate new Mediterranean and North-Africa cruises from Savona.
- Costa cites a "fluid" Middle-East security outlook and port-operation risks.
- Guests receive rebooking incentives or refunds plus protected loyalty points.
Snapshot
Costa Toscana had been set to run weekly round-trips from Dubai Cruise Terminal between December 2025 and March 2026, calling at Abu Dhabi, Doha, and Muscat. The program, launched only last year, was marketed heavily to European and U.S. travelers seeking mild-winter sun and Gulf Expo events. With the cancellation, Costa shifts capacity to seven- and ten-night itineraries that link Italy, Spain, France, and Morocco, starting November 13, 2025. The line said revised sailings will open for Sale "within days," allowing guests to lock in holiday-season alternatives quickly.
Background
Built in 2021 and powered by liquefied natural gas, Costa Toscana is the largest ship in the Italian brand's fleet, designed to home-port flexibly between Europe and emerging markets. Dubai has courted such mega-ships with expanded terminals and relaxed visa policies, helping the emirate top one million Cruise passengers in 2023. Yet the Gulf's cruise appeal remains vulnerable to geopolitical swings. April's Israel-Iran missile exchanges rattled insurers, while drone strikes near the Strait of Hormuz pushed war-risk premia higher. AIDA Cruises and several cargo lines have already modified regional routings, underscoring the operational headwinds Costa now cites.
Latest Developments
Refunds and Rebooking Options
Costa has begun emailing impacted guests, offering a full cash refund or a switch to any 2025-26 Costa voyage with price protection, free changes, and up to €200 onboard credit per cabin. Travel advisors can transfer bookings via the Go Costa portal, and loyalty points earned on the cancelled cruises will still accrue once a replacement sailing is selected. The line advised travelers to act within 30 days to secure comparable cabin grades before Mediterranean inventory tightens.
Security Concerns Ripple Across Cruise Lines
Costa's move mirrors a wider retreat from the Gulf after an uptick in regional missile activity and maritime insurance costs. MSC Cruises is "monitoring," while German sister brand AIDA pre-emptively axed its 2025-26 Dubai season earlier this month. Port agents report that vessel agents now face lengthy berth-allocation reviews, complicating schedule certainty. Analysts say redrawing winter deployments toward the Western Mediterranean and Canary Islands can absorb redirected capacity without steep fare cuts thanks to resilient European demand.
Analysis
Cruise itineraries are uniquely sensitive to geopolitical flashpoints because ships lack the redundancy of airlines, which can reroute with minimal lead-time. The Gulf's cruise renaissance was built on stable fuel prices, relaxed entry rules, and marquee attractions like Expo City Dubai. Yet its proximity to shipping chokepoints such as the Strait of Hormuz leaves operators exposed when regional tensions flare. By pivoting Costa Toscana back to Europe, the line sidesteps potential airspace closures, elevated piracy premiums, and the logistical strain of staging emergency guest airlifts. The redeployment also preserves the ship's LNG bunkering network, already mature in Mediterranean ports but nascent in the Gulf. For Dubai, the lost capacity dents a key tourism pillar just as the city targets 2 million cruise visitors by 2026. However, smaller vessels from TUI and Silversea remain committed, suggesting a partial rather than total pull-out. Travelers eyeing Gulf voyages should therefore book with flexible fare codes, monitor advisories, and consider comprehensive trip-interruption insurance.
Final Thoughts
Costa Toscana's withdrawal underscores how swiftly Middle-East volatility can reshape Cruise calendars. Travelers planning 2025-26 Gulf sailings should brace for further adjustments, stay in close contact with advisors, and verify refund terms before committing long-haul airfares. Vigilance and flexibility remain the smart course until regional stability returns to safeguard winter cruising from Dubai. Costa Toscana Dubai cancellation