Image via I.Sarfatti
MSC Cruises has taken delivery of its latest ship MSC Seaview ready for her inaugural season in the Mediterranean.
MSC Seaview is the 15th ship to join the cruise line’s global fleet and its only new-build ship coming into service this year.
It is also the company’s third ‘next generation’ ship to launch in 12 months, and the largest ever built in Italy.
MSC Seaview, alongside MSC Meraviglia last May and MSC Seaside last November, has been built following a 10.5 billion euros investment by MSC Cruises.
It will sail in the Mediterranean this summer and in South America in the winter, which the cruise line says will strengthen its position in both markets. It is the second ship in the Seaside class, following the launch of MSC Seaside at the end of 2017.
MSC describes the new ship as a ‘game changer’ for passengers who want to make the most of the outdoors thanks to its generous public spaces on deck, and claims it “pushes the boundaries of pioneering ship building and design”.
MSC Cruises executive chairman Pierfrancesco Vago said: “MSC Seaview will bring yet another new distinctively innovative MSC Cruises product to the market as she boasts cutting edge design, and features the latest marine and environmental technology.
“She is an example of our commitment to bring the best and most innovative tonnage to the market, and our ambition to set each time a new standard in the industry.
“The Seaside class is yet another brand new, highly-innovative prototype that we introduce – the fifth to date, since we entered the cruising industry only 15 years ago. Moreover, I am proud to say, together with her sister ship MSC Seaside, it is the biggest ship ever built in Italy.”
The official delivery service took place at the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy, today (June 4). In keeping with tradition, Fincantieri’s shipyard director Roberto Olivari handed over an ampoule holding the first water that touched the hull when the ship was floated last year to Pier Paolo Scala, master of MSC Seaview.
The ship departs today for a three-day journey to its home port Genoa in Italy, where it will be officially inaugurated in a ceremony on June 9. Its first cruise takes place on June 10.
Its eco-friendly features include an exhaust gas cleaning system, advanced waster water treatment, and systems for the prevention of oil discharge from machinery spaces. It will receive a ‘Green Star 3 Design’ recognition from the international classification society RINA for attention paid to its environmental technology.
The company’s next ship, MSC Bellissima, will be completed in nine months’ time, the first of two Meraviglia class ships to come into service over a six-month period next year.