Costa Serena: How an Italian cruise ship became a floating athletes’ village for Asian Games 2026

The use of Costa Serena is part of a wider decentralised accommodation plan, marking a departure from the traditional single-site athletes’ village model. | Photo Credit: AFP

When the 20th Asian Games open in the Aichi-Nagoya region of Japan this September, thousands of the world’s best athletes won’t be sleeping in a purpose-built athletes’ village. Instead, many of them will bunk down aboard a 114,000-tonne Italian cruise liner floating in Nagoya Port. Here’s the full story of the Costa Serena and how it became one of the most talked-about pieces of Asian Games infrastructure.

What is the Costa Serena?

Costa Serena is a Concordia-class cruise ship built by the Italian shipyard Fincantieri for Costa Crociere (Costa Cruises), part of the Carnival Corporation group. The ship was ordered in 2004, launched in August 2006, and entered service mid 2007 — making the ship nearly two decades old by the time of the 2026 Games.

Key specifications:

Length: roughly 290 metres (950 feet)

Gross tonnage: about 114,000 GT

Passenger capacity: around 3,000–3,700 in normal cruise operation, with more than 1,500 cabins

Speed: 20 knots

Sister ships: Costa Concordia, Costa Pacifica, Costa Favolosa, and Costa Fascinosa

The Asian Games connection:

The 2026 Asian Games and Asian Para Games, hosted across Nagoya and the wider Aichi prefecture, run from September 19 to October 4. Rather than build a traditional, single-site athletes’ village, organisers chose a decentralised accommodation plan. Costa Serena is the centrepiece of that strategy.

Under the arrangement, the ship will remain docked at Kinjo Pier in Nagoya Port for the duration of the Games, effectively functioning as a floating hotel and residential facility for competitors and officials.

How many people will stay aboard?

Estimates from organisers and local Japanese media put the number of athletes and officials housed on the ship at roughly 4,000 to 5,000 — a substantial share of the total Games delegation. The vessel itself offers 571 cabins along with seven swimming pools, eight restaurants, and nine bars, giving organisers a self-contained facility with dining, recreation, and accommodation all in one place.

Everyone who doesn’t fit on the ship — reportedly another 2,400 or so participants — is being housed in nearby temporary container-style housing and local hotels.

Why charter a cruise ship instead of building a village?

The decision comes down to cost and speed. Building a dedicated athletes’ village involves years of construction and significant public expenditure, even though such developments are often repurposed as housing afterward. Chartering an existing cruise ship sidesteps that entirely.

The charter deal, negotiated through JTB’s Nagoya Business Division (the official Japanese agent for Costa Cruises) and signed in September 2025, is reportedly worth around 4.5 billion yen — roughly US$28–30 million. Organisers argue this is considerably cheaper than constructing new residential blocks from scratch in urban Nagoya.

The accommodation crunch behind the decision

The plan has taken on added significance because the scale of the Games ballooned well beyond initial projections. Organisers originally expected around 15,000 athletes and officials but the OCA later revised that figure upward to roughly 17,000 (about 11,000 athletes and 6,000 officials), partly due to the addition of new sports like teqball and padel to the programme.

What about Typhoon season?

One obvious concern: September and October fall squarely within Japan’s typhoon season, and Costa Serena will be moored at a fixed dock for weeks rather than sailing on a normal itinerary. Organisers have acknowledged the discussion this has prompted but say they’re confident in their weather forecasting and port safety protocols.

What happens to the ship afterward?

Costa Serena’s role as a floating accommodation facility will end after the Asian Games. The ship is scheduled to leave Tokyo on October 18, 2026, and embark on a 65-night voyage to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where it is due to arrive on December 22.