The pre-dawn sky was lit up by the world’s newest cruise ship, MSC Seascape, as it sailed past the Statue of Liberty and up the Hudson River to dock at Pier 88 at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal. The ship, which is one of the largest cruise ships ever to dock in Manhattan, is more than 170,000 gross tons with a capacity of 5,877 guests. Additionally, it is one of the more environmentally advanced cruise ships at sea, featuring the latest generation of environmental technologies and solutions.
MSC Seascape’s arrival in New York marks the end of a 17-day journey from the shipyard where it was built in Italy. The ship is in New York for a traditional maritime Naming Ceremony, which will take place on Wednesday evening and include good luck wishes for her many future sailings from Hollywood legend and celebrated Godmother of the MSC Cruises fleet, Sophia Loren. The ceremony will conclude with the customary breaking of a bottle of champagne against the hull.
MSC Cruises, which is part of the Geneva, Switzerland-based Cruise Division of MSC Group, chose New York for MSC Seascape’s Naming Ceremony to celebrate the brand’s growing commitment to the U.S. market and upcoming launch of service from the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal. The service will result in local job creation with MSC Meraviglia operating year-round on a variety of itineraries covering Florida, The Bahamas, the Caribbean, Bermuda, Canada, and New England.
Rubén A. Rodríguez, President, MSC Cruises USA, said, “We have ambitious growth plans in the U.S. and New York City plays a critical role in that expansion. We already host a large number of guests from the tri-state area on our ships sailing from Florida and around the world, and we are excited to bring a modern and glamorous ship like MSC Meraviglia to New York next year to give cruisers a wide choice of itineraries, whether they’re looking for sunny Caribbean skies or Canada’s beautiful autumns. Having the brand new MSC Seascape here this week is our way of celebrating a fantastic future of cruising for New York City.”
MSC Seascape will depart New York on Thursday en route to Miami, where it will offer two different 7-night itineraries for its inaugural season in the Caribbean. The Eastern Caribbean itinerary will call at Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve and Nassau in The Bahamas, San Juan in Puerto Rico, and Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic. The Western Caribbean itinerary will call at Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, Cozumel in Mexico, George Town in the Cayman Islands, and Ocho Rios in Jamaica.
MSC Cruises is the world’s third-largest and the fastest-growing cruise brand. Its fleet of 21 modern and highly innovative cruise ships is deployed globally and calls at more than 150 destinations across 70 different countries and five continents. Each year, MSC Cruises ships welcome over four million guests from more than 170 nationalities. The arrival of MSC Seascape in New York City marks a significant milestone in the brand’s commitment to the U.S. market and the growth of the global cruise industry.