Costa Edutainment SpA, with decades of pioneering experience in the edutainment sector, is a leader in Italy in the management of sites and large public and private facilities dedicated to recreational, cultural, educational, and scientific research activities.
The word "Edutainment," a fusion of "Education" and "Entertainment," best defines the company's mission: to meet the growing demand for quality leisure time by combining culture, education, entertainment, excitement, and fun in unique and meaningful experiences. Costa Edutainment currently hosts over 13 million visitors annually, managed directly or through its subsidiaries.
It currently manages 12 facilities nationwide: in Liguria, the Genoa Aquarium, one of the largest aquariums in Europe; the City of Children and Young People, reopened in December 2022 under the Genoa Aquarium in its renewed guise as an experience museum dedicated to the five senses; the Biosphere; the Bigo panoramic elevator; and, from July 2022, the Caravelle water park and Caravelle Village in Ceriale; on the Romagna Riviera, the Cattolica Aquarium, the Oltremare 2.0, Aquafan, and Italia in Miniatura parks; in Tuscany, the Livorno Aquarium; and, in Abruzzo, the Onda Blu water park in Tortoreto (TE).
The group includes C-WAY, the edutainment tour operator whose mission is to manage incoming visitors to the sites and facilities managed by the group, enriching them with unforgettable travel experiences, respectful of the places and their values, enhanced by moments of discovery of Italian history, art, environment, and traditions. In approximately 100 destinations, it offers the best of Italy's heritage, always seeking new, unique and special itineraries that convey the beauty and identity of the places.
The Costa Edutainment Spa Group records over 3 million visitors per year managed directly and over 13 million visitors per year through its subsidiaries, over 900 employees and a turnover of approximately 79 million euros in 2024.
He managed the transformation of the old Rome Zoological Garden into a Bioparco from 1998 until July 2004, when Bioparco SpA was transformed into the Bioparco di Roma Foundation.
Until August 2017 he managed the National Museum of Antarctica, until February 2020 Dialogo nel Buio, the sensory exhibition-journey in the absence of light, and until September 2021 the Galata Museo del Mare.
Since 2004, Costa Edutainment has been a member of the Science Festival Association, organizer of the scientific event that takes place every year in Genoa and Liguria at the end of October.
Since 2008, Costa Edutainment has been a member of the Genova Palazzo Ducale Fondazione per la Cultura, an institution responsible for promoting the heritage of cultural initiatives and networks, as part of a strategy aimed at ensuring a strong link between urban redevelopment and the quality of culture for the city.
An entrepreneurial spirit, a strong educational mission, and close ties to the local community make Costa Edutainment a unique group in Italy, capable of ensuring high levels of local involvement and strong economic benefits in the areas where it operates.
The share capital of the Costa Edutainment group is held by the Costa family, with particular reference to the Chairman and CEO Giuseppe Costa, a 70% shareholder, and by the DeA Capital Group, through the Flexible Capital Fund, a 30% shareholder.
This investment aims to consolidate the group's leadership, continuing the path of constant growth seen in the pre-pandemic years, also through the acquisition of new parks and new facilities both nationally and internationally.
Costa Edutainment, a member of the Alliance for Sustainable Development (ASviS) since 2022, has consolidated its commitment to sustainability throughout its thirty-year growth journey, aiming to generate positive social and environmental impacts in the communities where it operates. Indeed, Costa Edutainment's approach to its business aims to balance economic, social, and environmental aspects, with the belief that a company's value can grow most when it integrates ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) criteria into its business processes.
Since 2014, Costa Edutainment has chosen to also report annually on the non-financial aspects of its business through the Integrated Report. In 2019, the company received the important recognition of the Special Prize in the Integrated Reporting category of the Oscar di Bilancio for the Best Italian Integrated Report from Ferpi, Borsa Italiana, and Bocconi University.
Costa Edutainment is also involved in Italian Entertainment Network (IEN), an Italian operator specializing in the management of large events and services for cultural activities, of which Beppe Costa, President of the Costa Edutainment group, is currently a director.
In September 2023, Beppe Costa, through Poggio 13, a company controlled by Costa, repurchased the bonds and minority shares of Opera20, of which he is currently Chairman, held by the American investor Pricoa Private Capital, thus acquiring 100% ownership. Through its subsidiary Opera Laboratori, Opera20 now manages all the "additional services" of over 60 Italian cultural institutions, including the Uffizi Gallery, the Galleria dell'Accademia in Florence, the Bargello Museums, the Archaeological Park of Pompeii and Herculaneum, the Royal Palace of Caserta, the Siena Cathedral Complex, Villa Giulia in Rome, the Pinacoteca di Brera, the Gallerie dell'Accademia in Venice, the Synagogues and Jewish Museums of Florence and Siena, as well as the Ghetto, the Jewish Museum, and the five synagogues of Venice. The Opera Group has 800 employees and a turnover of approximately 60 million euros, and also owns the Sillabe publishing house.
The Costa Edutainment and Opera Laboratori groups work closely together to consolidate their leadership in Italy in the edutainment sector and in the management and promotion of Italian cultural heritage.
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