MSC Cruises Takes Delivery of Latest Ship Virtuosa
by Daniel McCarthy
MSC Virtuosa will debut with a series of sailings starting on May 8. Photo: MSC Cruises.
MSC Crusies on Monday announced that it had officialy taken delivery of the latest ship in its expanding fleet, MSC Virtuosa, the second of MSC’s Meraviglia-Plus class of ships after MSC Grandiosa.
MSC took delivery of the ship during a ceremony at Chantiers de l’Atlantique in Saint Nazaire on Monday. The ship is currently scheduled to welcome guests starting on April 16 with four Mediterranean sailings before moving to Kiel in North Europe where it will start a series of sailings starting on May 8.
“The delivery of MSC Virtuosa at such a challenging time for our industry symbolizes how as a family company we continue to look at the longer term and build our future,” executive chairman Pierfrancesco Vago said at the ceremony.
“We remain committed to building each time some of the most innovative ships in the world when it comes to their environmental performance, featuring nothing but the most advanced available technology at sea. Just as importantly, with each new ship we continue to push boundaries and innovate our product, offering new and unique experiences for our guests.”
As a sister ship to Grandiosa, and a Meraviglia-Plus ship, Virtuosa will feature the signature MSC two-deck promenade under a LED sky dome; the MSC for Me experience, and MSC Yacht Club. Other features include 5 pools, a top-deck rope course, 21 bars, 4 main restaurants, 5 specialty restaurants, and more. All of the 19 decks onboard will also be named after famous composers.
It will also feature the “world’s first humanoid bartender at sea,” according to Vago.
According to MSC, the ship is also one of the most environmentally-conscious ships to come into service with a hybrid exhaust gas cleaning system on all engines, an advanced wastewater treatment system, and more.
Even with COVID-19 continuing to impact the cruise industry, the ship is the first of two ships that MSC plans to launch this year—Virtuosa will be joined by MSC Seashore later this summer. Once Seashore debuts, MSC’s fleet will feature 19 different ships with another four expected to come by 2025.
