MSC CRUISES’ MSC MAGNIFICA SETS SAIL WITH 10-NIGHT CRUISE VACATIONS IN THE WEST AND EAST MEDITERRANEAN
- Stunning itinerary on one of MSC Cruises’ most charming ships visiting destinations at six historic and beautiful European gems in Italy, Malta and Greece
- MSC Cruises’ second ship restarts operations with implementation of rigorous health and safety protocol following safe and effective restart of MSC Grandiosa in August
Geneva, Switzerland, October 20, 2020 –
MSC Magnifica departed Genoa, Italy yesterday and became the second MSC Cruises’ ship to welcome guests back on board since Europe’s leading cruise line restarted operations in August.
The ship has commenced a stunning 10-night voyage of relaxation and discovery in the West and East Mediterranean Sea with planned calls at the port of Livorno for visits to Florence and Pisa, Messina in Sicily, Piraeus for Athens, Katakolon for Olympia, Valletta in Malta, and Civitavecchia for Rome, before returning to Genoa.
MSC Magnifica will operate six enriched, long Mediterranean cruises before the end of the year, including a special 8-night Christmas voyage that will depart Genoa on December 18, 2020.
This is the second ship to implement MSC Cruises’ comprehensive health and safety protocol, that has been endorsed by external medical experts and formally approved by the relevant national and regional authorities. The comprehensive safety-first measures designed to protect the wellbeing of guests, crew and communities visited were first implemented in August when
MSC Grandiosa became the world’s first major cruise vessel to return to service. The Company’s flagship has now completed nine 7-night voyages and positively demonstrated the protocol’s effectiveness. The measures include protected “social bubble” ashore visits, allowing guests to also enjoy destinations at each port of call.
The MSC Cruises health and safety protocol includes universal health screening of everyone – guests and crew – which includes tests for COVID-19 before they can board a ship; elevated sanitation and cleaning measures throughout the vessel; managed social distancing; wearing of face masks in public areas; and technology to aid track and trace on board. In this initial phase, the ship’s capacity has also been reduced to 70 percent to ensure social distancing can be guaranteed on board.
For this initial phase of the restart of operations in the Mediterranean,
MSC Grandiosa and
MSC Magnifica are currently welcoming guests who are residents in Schengen
[1] countries only.
For more information about MSC Cruises’ new health and safety measures, visit
here.
ENDSAbout MSC Cruises MSC Cruises is the brand leader in Europe, South America, the Gulf region and Southern Africa with more market share in addition to deployed capacity than any other player. It is also the fastest growing global cruise brand with a strong presence also in the Caribbean, North America and the Far East markets.
Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, MSC Cruises is part of MSC Group, the privately held Swiss-based leading shipping and logistics conglomerate with over 300 years of maritime heritage. MSC Cruises — the contemporary brand — has a modern fleet of 17 vessels combined with a sizeable future global investment portfolio of new vessels. The fleet is projected to grow to 23 cruise ships by 2024 with options for further vessel orders in place through 2027.
MSC Cruises offers its guests an enriching, immersive and safe cruise experience inspired by the Company’s European heritage, where they can enjoy international dining, world-class entertainment, award-winning family programs and the very latest user-friendly technology on board. To learn more about MSC Cruises’ itineraries and experience on board its ships please see
here.
The Company’s number one priority has always been the health and safety of its guests and crew, as well as the communities at the destinations its ships serve. In August 2020, MSC Cruises implemented a new comprehensive and robust health and safety protocol to become the first major line to return to sea. To learn more about MSC Cruises’ health & safety protocol please see
here.
MSC Cruises has long been committed to environmental stewardship with a long-term goal to achieve zero emissions for its operations. The Company is also a significant investor in next-generation environmental marine technologies, with the objective to support their accelerated development and availability industry-wide. To learn more about the Company’s environmental commitment please see
here.
Finally, to learn more about the MSC Foundation, MSC Group’s own vehicle to lead, focus and advance its conservation, humanitarian and cultural commitments please see
here.
[1] Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Greece, Spain, France, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Austria, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden and Switzerland.