MSC Meraviglia to homeport year-round in New York City
MSC Cruises will homeport year-round in New York City for the first time, from April, 2023, with MSC Meraviglia.MSC Meraviglia, one of the largest and newest cruise ships in the fleet, will sail six- to 11-night cruises to the Caribbean and Bermuda in the winter, and New England and Canada in the summer.
The Caribbean cruises will visit Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve – the company’s private island destination in The Bahamas. The decision to cruise year-round from New York significantly expands the choices available to passengers, with MSC ships also homeporting in Miami and Port Canaveral in Florida.
With a dedicated cruise terminal under construction in PortMiami, the New York deployment is the latest enhancement of MSC Cruises’ presence in the North American market.
“New York is one of the most incredible and vibrant destinations in the world so by adding the city as a year-round homeport for MSC Meraviglia we are greatly enhancing our offering in North America,” said Gianni Onorato, CEO, MSC Cruises. He added that the new itineraries will have a very strong appeal “not only for our guests in the U.S but also for international holidaymakers,” who can take advantage of a huge range of intercontinental flights in New York.
“We designed our mix of itineraries to take advantage of New York’s geographic flexibility,” Onorato said, noting that the city’s location makes it possible to cruise to multiple destinations based on the season.
In addition to the cruises, MSC will also offer full-service packages, such as flights, 4-star hotel accommodation, pre-cruise excursions, pre-cruise check-in at a hotel, luggage service from the hotel to the ship cabin and transfers to the port. MSC Cruises is the largest privately-owned cruise line in the world, part of the family-run Italian shipping giant Mediterranean Shipping Company, which is the largest shipping company in the world as of 2021, when it overtook Maersk.
Although founded in the 1980s, the cruise line was European- and emerging-market-focused until 2013, when it homeported in the United States for the first time. Since then, it has been steadily growing its US presence with more ships and itineraries.
“MSC Cruises’ decision to deploy a ship year-round in New York is the latest example of the brand’s long-standing focus on the overall North American cruise market, which includes attracting more international holidaymakers and continuing to place some of its most advanced ships at U.S. ports,” the company said in a statement.
