MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

MSC cruises celebrated its 20th cruiser and two new ships in 2019

The achievement is a testament to MSC Cruises’ expansion since its establishment only in 2003, quickly becoming a global player in the industry

MSC Cruises — the Swiss-based world’s largest privately-owned cruise line — celebrated this past weekend a key global milestone in the company’s history, welcoming its 20 millionth cruiser on board the Miami-based MSC Seaside.

This significant achievement is a testament to MSC Cruises’ expansion since its establishment only in 2003, quickly becoming a global player with one of the highest growth rates in the industry and the introduction of 16 cruise ships over the span of 16 years. In 2019 alone, the company will have launched two new ships — MSC Bellissima in March and MSC Grandiosa in November — and will introduce its new island destination, Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, debuting in November.

“Reaching our 20 millionth cruisers is truly a milestone achievement for MSC Cruises, and a representation of how far we’ve come while building a global brand that serves guests from over 170 nationalities across five continents,” said Gianni Onorato, CEO of MSC Cruises.

“With our capacity set to triple by 2027, we will continue to raise the bar in two main areas, on board and ashore, offering our guests a unique experience each time they sail with us. MSC Seaside is the perfect example of this: she is one of the most innovative ships at sea in terms of design as well as onboard experience. She also features the latest and some of the most innovative environmental technology at sea.”

MSC Seaside not only complies with the highest international standards, she also received from international classification society RINA – in addition to the main class notations – its “Green Star 3 Design” certificate. RINA’s Green Star 3 – the latest and most comprehensive edition of the RINA’s Green STAR class notations – specifically recognizes that MSC Seaside reaches the greatest levels of eco-compatibility thanks to the relevance of the various innovative measures put in place which help reducing the environmental footprint during operations. These include, amongst others, the exhaust gas cleaning system, the advanced waste water treatment, systems for the prevention of oil discharge from machinery spaces, the ballast water treatment system, and the ship’s Environmental Management Plan.

MSC Cruises maintains a foothold as the world’s fastest growing cruise line with an ambitious €13.6 billion EUR investment plan in place, which will introduce a total of 17 ships between 2017 and 2027, bringing the fleet total to 29 cruise ships.

In addition to continued global expansion, MSC Cruises has placed a priority on increasing its presence in North America. To this end, by the close of 2019 MSC Cruises will have, for the first time, four ships sailing from Miami — MSC Seaside, MSC Meraviglia (arriving to North America for the first time in October 2019), MSC Divina and MSC Armonia.