MSC Meraviglia makes its stateside debut

Largest stateside for MSC Cruises and largest in Manhattan

The 171,598gt vessel, with double-occupancy capacity for 4,488 passengers, becomes MSC Cruises’ largest ship sailing from North America and set a record for the largest alongside at Manhattan.

As MSC Meraviglia continues its inaugural sailing along the East Coast, the ship will also become the largest ever to call Boston, Portland and Bar Harbor.

Ken Muskat, EVP & chief operating officer for MSC Cruises USA, said MSC Meraviglia marks a major milestone for the company as its fourth ship based in the region, joining MSC Seaside, MSC Armonia and MSC Divina.

Meraviglia’s wonders

With a name that means ‘wonder,’ MSC Meraviglia sports a two-story Mediterranean-style promenade lined with shops and specialty restaurants. These include HOLA! Tapas Bar and Ocean Cay, restaurants by Spanish chef Ramón Freixa, who has two Michelin stars, and Jean-Philippe Chocolat & Café, a chocolate atelier by world-renowned pastry chef Jean Philippe Maury.

In addition to six different full-scale theatrical productions every night in the main theater, the ship offers two Cirque du Soleil at Sea shows created exclusively for it, ‘Viaggio’ and ‘Sonor.’ These are performed in a purpose-built entertainment and dining venue, the Carousel Lounge. Immersive programs for kids and families include a winter-themed aqua park with four water slides, a Himalayan bridge suspending cruisers high up above the ship, an interactive XD cinema, two full-size bowling lanes and multiple LEGO-designed kids’ clubs.

MSC Yacht Club offers an exclusive ‘ship-within-a-ship’ concept, featuring private access, special amenities and 24-hour butler service.

Introduced in June 2017, MSC Meraviglia was MSC Cruises first ship to feature MSC for Me, a multi-channel digital program accessed via an app, interactive displays and stateroom TV. With this, passengers can book services, find information, plan activities, stay connected with friends and family and navigate around the ship.

Itineraries

MSC Meraviglia’s North American deployment begins with three sailings from New York, including two Canada/New England cruises and a repositioning voyage to new homeport, Miami. On this first Caribbean sailing, departing from New York Oct. 28, MSC Meraviglia will become the first to call at Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, MSC Cruises’ new private island destination in the Bahamas, on Nov. 9.

The ship also will feature MSC Cruises’ partnership with home and lifestyle expert Martha Stewart that launched earlier this year on all Caribbean sailings. This entails celebration surprise gift packages, holiday dinner menus and recipes, and specially curated shore excursions.

From Nov. 10 through April 5, MSC Meraviglia will sail two different seven-night western Caribbean cruises visiting ports in Jamaica, Grand Cayman, Mexico, Belize, Honduras and the Bahamas.

Back to Europe in spring 2020

Following its inaugural Miami season, MSC Meraviglia will return to Northern Europe for summer 2020 (April – October). Upon returning to the US in October 2020, the ship will once again sail three 10-night cruises from New York to Canada/New England before resuming weeklong Caribbean service from PortMiami.