Costa Cruises is to launch a two-week itinerary aboard Costa neoClassica that will with ports of call in India and the Maldives in the winter of 2016-17, the company said in a statement.

“The Colours of India, between Yin and Yang itinerary provides a unique cultural trip with the possibility of dividing the cruise into two distinct seven day segments, with flights to Male and Mumbai,” Costa said.

The itinerary will run from 15 December 2016 to 10 March 2017 and the first call will be in the Maldives, where the ship will remain for two days. “Costa Cruises have partnered with Paradise Island Resort, where guests can enjoy the white sandy atoll, blue waters and coral reef,” the company said.

Leaving Male, the ship continues to Sri Lanka where guests will embark at Colombo. Guests will visit the Pinnawela Elephant Orphanage, one of the best-known attractions of the island, home to more than 60 elephants.

From Colombo, the cruise journeys to India where the first stop will be Goa, famous for its beaches and for its Portuguese colonial architecture, as well as being one of the 21 hotspots of biodiversity in the world. “Guests will be able to choose from a number of excursions, including a tour of the old city and of the capital, Panjim, and a visit to the Basilica de Bom Jesus, a UNESCO World Heritage site,” Costa said.

From Goa, guests will continue on to Mumbai, where the ship will stop for two days to allow guests to fully savour the distinctive contrasts of the city. Guests can visit the main attractions, including the Banganga Tank.

Heading back down the Indian coast, the journey will continue to New Mangalore before arriving at Cochin in the state of Kerala. “The ship will stop for another two days, giving guests time to explore the village of Kumbalangi and enjoy a houseboat ride in the Kerala Backwaters. Costa neoClassica will then return to Male or guests can embark at Mumbai,” Costa concluded.