DRMumbai: MSC Cruises organised a ship showcase to trade partners and media on-board MSC Lirica at New Mangalore, Goa and Mumbai, recently.
MSC Lirica will be doing long cruises out of Dubai visiting New Mangalore, Mumbai and Goa during winter 2018-19. It is again scheduled to touch the three ports in March 2019.
Kunal Sampat, General Manager – India, MSC Cruises said, “India is not a price sensitive market as many in the travel trade believe. It is a value for money market.” To validate his argument, he added, “The maximum number of bookings done from the India market are for the categories of cabin, balcony and above.”
Cruise holidays are an experience incomparable to any other kind of vacations. If one considers the per person per night cost, a cruise vacation works out to be compelling because everything onboard is included in the price and can be pre-booked at really attractive rates.
MSC Cruises which registered a whopping 800 per cent growth from 2003 to 2013 is on a massive fleet expansion and modernisation drive. Its Renaissance program, kick-started in 2014, saw over £200 million invested into extensively overhauling the entire Lirica Class of ships.
As part of the fleet expansion drive, 17 new ships will be added in the next decade for which £13.6 billion has been set aside. Three distinctive new prototypes designed around guest experience were unveiled in 2017: Meraviglia Class, Seaside Class and World Class. Immediate launches include the MSC Bellissima, the MSC Grandiosa in 2019 and the MSC Virtuosa in 2020. The first MSC World Class will hit the waters in 2022.
MSC Cruises will also enter the ultra-luxury segment with the launch of the first vessel in 2023 and follow it up with a new vessel every year till 2026. “These will redefine luxury cruising. £2 billion has been committed towards this program which was flagged off in 2018,” informed Sampat.
The new ships will come with the latest and best-in-class environmental technology and other cutting-edge maritime solutions. They have been bestowed with a highly-innovative design as well as ground-breaking options for guest comfort and relaxation. Guests will have access to Zoe – the first cruise digital assistant, designed to provide them with a simple and stress-free way to find out information in the comfort of the cabin. Available in seven languages, this innovative service is the evolution of MSC Cruises’ digital innovation program MSC For Me designed to connect guests with their cruise experience.
A variety of accommodation options are available, certain to spoil guests: 75 per cent cabins with balcony; flexible modular cabins for families; terraced balcony cabins; luxury suites with whirlpool bath and a variety of MSC Yacht Club suites.
