PHOTO: MSC Divina is returning to Miami year-round starting in November. (Courtesy of MSC Cruises)
MSC Cruises is hoping the second time is the charm for MSC Divina when it returns to homeport in Miami in November 2015. Back in 2013 the ship began what MSC executives first described as year-round sailings out of Miami, but it was repositioned less than six months later.
Now the ship will once again sail year-round from Miami to the Caribbean starting in November. The ship will then be joined in November 2017 by MSC Seaside, one of the line's new mega-ships, giving the line two vessels homeporting out of Miami. "Seaside is revolutionary in design, including the most interactive Aqua Park at sea," said Rick Sasso, MSC's president-North America. "We'll also feature a renovated and expanded dedicated berth and terminal at PortMiami."
MSC Cruises executives say the company now has a much larger sales force and a much larger fleet that will able it to sustain and grow sailings from Miami. The move also represents the growing line's firm commitment to the North American market, which will be backed up later this year by an extensive advertising campaign.
"North America is a key market for MSC Cruises as the company works to double its capacity by 2022," said Gianni Onorato, CEO of MSC Cruises. "Since the arrival of MSC Divina in Miami in November 2013, we've seen significant growth in the market and strong demand by consumers and travel agents for MSC Divina to sail from North America year-round."
MSC said Divina's currently published itineraries through April 2016 will remain unchanged. New itineraries from April 2016 through March 2017 will rotate between Eastern and Western Caribbean routes and include stops in St. Maarten, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Mexico, and the Bahamas.
April 2016 through March 2017 sailings on MSC Divina will open for booking on Friday, May 1. As a special launch promotion, MSC will offer consumers a value-added offer that includes shipboard credit, a beverage package and a Wi-Fi package, depending on the category of stateroom booked. The line also will offer 18 percent flat commission for group bookings, along with free stateroom upgrades and shipboard credit for group guests.
Separately, MSC has created a special Mediterranean itinerary for North Americans on the 3,274-passenger MSC Fantasia. She will sail Mediterranean cruises with seven ports in seven days from Genoa. This itinerary includes a visit to Cannes followed by a call to Palma de Mallorca and Barcelona. From Barcelona, MSC Fantasia visits Corsica and the city of Ajaccio, followed by Naples, the Cinque Terre or Florence and Tuscany through a call in La Spezia, before returning to Genoa.
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