MSC Magnifica's restart delayed to late September

Related to Greece

In connection with the recent introduction of additional testing measures for residents of Italy having traveled to Greece, MSC Cruises is seeing cancellations and a softening in demand since the ship’s itinerary includes as many as three ports in that country. This has led to the decision to delay the restart of the ship by four weeks.

MSC Cruises said it believes reservations will start to pick up again in the coming weeks, citing the itinerary's appeal. MSC Magnifica’s sales are open to residents of the Schengen area, at the same time, the company said that in this early phase of restart the majority of passengers are expected to be Italian nationals and residents.

Costa's all Italy routes

Costa Cruises, meanwhile, plans its restart carrying only Italian residents initially. The line will resume Sept. 6 and visit only Italian ports at first.

MSC Magnifica's departures from Aug. 29 to Sept. 19 are canceled. The first cruise is now planned to depart from Bari, Italy, with an unchanged itinerary on Sept. 26.

MSC Grandiosa continues in the Western Mediterranean

MSC Grandiosa continues offering seven-night cruises with embarkation in the Italian ports of Genoa, Civitavecchia, Naples and Palermo, and a stop at Valletta, Malta. This program began a week ago Sunday.

Passengers on MSC Magnifica's canceled sailings will be protected on another cruise — in particular, on MSC Grandiosa in the Western Mediterranean — or offered a future cruise credit for any ship and sailing through 2021.