MSC CRUISES’ DISTINCTIVE EXPERIENCE RECOGNIZED BY PROFESSIONALS AND GUESTS ALIKE AROUND THE WORLD WITH SOME 30 AWARDS IN 2015

Earlier this year, MSC Cruises in Germany was awarded a Bronze Lion at the Cannes Lions, the world's biggest annual awards show and festival in the creative communications industry. The award recognised the impact of the marketing initiative involving MSC Magnifica during the 825th Hamburg Harbour Anniversary last year, when the 95,128 GT ship entered the harbour with its horn playing the iconic tune Seven Nation Army - which created a huge online buzz and resulted in millions of views around the world .

Additionally to the above international recognition this year, MSC Cruises Germany was awarded several other prizes that include the 2015 German Cruise Award for the best family product, and also the annual "Deutscher Kreuzfahrtpreis 2016” for the MSC Yacht Club, the luxury ship-within-a-ship concept unique to MSC Cruises. Furthermore, in relation with MSC Magnifica’s awe-inspiring entrance of the harbour in Hamburg last year, MSC Cruises also received the "Best Marketing Award" by the Travel Industry Club Germany.

In the UK, MSC Cruises also gathered critical success with awards that include Best for Entertainment (MSC Lirica) from Cruise Critic Cruisers’ Choice Awards, Best Cruise Line from Silver Travel Advisor and Best for the Mediterranean from Travel Weekly Cool Cruises Awards.

In the meantime, in Ireland, MSC Cruises was named Best Cruise Company at the Travel Media Awards in Dublin. The award was voted for by Ireland’s travel media (both national and trade) as a testament to the strength of the brand and the Company’s media profile in that market.

Also in Spain, in 2015 MSC Cruises garnered critical success from various travel industry players such as Best Cruise Company of the Year from the famous Condé Nast Traveller Magazine and Best Ship in the Mediterranean for MSC Divina at the Cruise News media Group’s Excellence Awards. Furthermore, the overall quality of MSC Cruises’ fleet was acknowledged when the Company was awarded the title of Most Modern Fleet at the Leaders Tourism Awards by the Spanish trade magazine Graceta3.

In the USA, in 2015, Cruise Critic US Editors’ Picks Awards presented MSC Cruises with the award for Best Standard Cabins (Ocean View/Balcony Staterooms) across the whole fleet, and MSC Divina was awarded Best Production Show for Witches of Paris from Porthole Cruise Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief Awards. On the trade side, MSC Cruises took home six Travel Weekly Magellan Awards, including a gold award for MSC Divina in the category of overall contemporary ship. In addition to the awards, amongst other recognitions, Fodor’s Travel has included MSC Divina in one of the best cruise ships for kids.

MSC Cruises is the market leader in Brazil and South America, and has up to five ships that will spend the austral summer in Brazilian waters in 2015/16. This year, MSC Cruises Brazil, following a poll taken by Paulistas, was elected the best choice for cruises by Revista São Paulo, a broadly-read magazine in the region.

In Portugal, a country in which MSC Cruises is leader, the Company won Best Cruise Company at the Publituris Portugal Trade Awards 2015, the annual Portuguese tourism award hosted by Publituris, the most important Portuguese trade newspaper.

Finally, in 2015, the 2015-2016 Cruise Industry News Annual Report declared MSC Cruises the number one cruise line in Europe, including in the Mediterranean. The Report, which is one of the most reputable sources of information for the industry, stated that MSC Cruises conquered the leading rank in the industry thanks to a deployed capacity across the Continent of about 1.1 million passengers.