MSC CRUISES STEPS UP PRESENCE IN SOUTH AFRICA WITH INTRODUCTION OF SECOND SHIP

MSC Cruises has announced today that in the 2020/2021 cruise season the Company will bring two ships to South Africa’s shores. This will mark the first time that two different classes of MSC Cruises’ ships will be deployed in South Africa, MSC Opera (Lirica Class) and MSC Musica (Musica Class).

Ross Volk, Managing Director for MSC Cruises South Africa commented: “The deployment for the first time of two classes of MSC Cruises ship to South Africa for the local 2020/2021 cruise season will allow us to meet more fully the growth in demand we have experienced over the past few years. As such, it is also as a further sign of MSC Cruises’ long-standing commitment to this key market and its tourism.”

From December 2020 MSC Opera will homeport in Cape Town, joining MSC Musica – which will be based in Durban as of November.

MSC Musica and MSC Opera, which was completely refurbished in 2014 as part of the Company’s Renaissance Program, will together offer over 60 cruises next season. The two ships will serve alternate routes, providing South African and international cruisers with a wider choice of cruise options to suit their needs.

Highlights of these itineraries include: Pomene Bay in Mozambique, a marine safari experience, complete with its own beach club; the MSC Pomene Safari Beach Club, exclusively for MSC Cruises guests; and, Portuguese Island, a small, uninhabited island set between the African coast and the Indian Ocean, Maputo, the capital of Mozambique and Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

Ahead of the season, both ships will offer Grand Voyage itineraries to southern Africa – with MSC Musica already available to book online. Both ships will leave Venice, Italy departing on October 25, 2020 (MSC Musica) and November 8, 2020 (MSC Opera) on their way to Cape Town and Durban, respectively. Highlights of these MSC Grand Voyage cruises include the famous Suez Canal transit, the city of Aqaba in Jordan, Port Louis, the lush capital city of the island nation of Mauritius, known for its contrasting white-sand beaches fringed with tropical rainforests, and La Possession, of the neighboring island of Réunion, before arriving on South African shores on December 5 in Cape Town and November 20 in Durban.

Guests wishing to explore South Africa by cruise already in the 2019/2020 season can book onto MSC Orchestra. She will make her maiden voyage there this November, offering three-, four-, five- and 11-night sailings out of Durban and around the South African coastline until April 2020. See here for further information and bookings.

For more information on MSC Cruises, visit www.msccruises.com.

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