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Msc Orchestra News

13 Jul 2021

Italy Bans Cruise Liners from Venice

© radko68 / Adobe Stock

Italy on Tuesday banned cruise liners from Venice lagoon to defend its ecosystem and heritage, moving to end years of hesitation and putting the demands of residents and culture bodies above those of the tourist industry.The government decided to act after the United Nations culture organization UNESCO threatened to put Italy on a blacklist for not banning liners from the World Heritage site, cabinet sources said.The ban will take effect from Aug. 1, barring ships weighing more than 25…

07 Jun 2021

First Post-COVID Cruise Ship Leaves Venice Amid Protest

(Photo: No Grandi Navi)

The first cruise ship to leave Venice since coronavirus restrictions were eased set sail on Saturday, but some local residents protested over the return to normal, unhappy about the passage of giant liners through the historic lagoon city.Hundreds of people rallied on land and small boats fluttering flags saying "No big ships" surrounded and followed the 92,000-tonne MSC Orchestra as it departed Venice port en route for Croatia and Greece. "We are here because we are against this passage but also against a model of tourism that is destroying the city…

02 Apr 2015

“AIDAcara” Opens Kiel’s 2015 Cruise Shipping Season

AIDAcara (Photo: Port of Kiel)

Kiel’s 2015 cruise shipping season gets under way on Easter Saturday, April 4th. That’s when the first ocean-going cruise ship of the year, “AIDAcara”, ties up at the Ostseekai Terminal after calling at Lisbon, Le Havre and Dover. During the coming season Kiel expects a total of 127 calls by 23 different luxury cruise liners, many of them very big ships of more than 250 m in length. The Managing Director of the Port of Kiel (SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co. KG) Dr. Dirk Claus said: “The trend towards ever bigger cruise ships continues.

28 Jun 2014

P&O Cruises’ “Adonia” Joins the Windjammers For the 1st Time

“The Kieler Woche regatta – an international top sailing event and at the same time the biggest summer festival in northern Europe – is setting new standards and attracting in-creasing numbers of cruise ships”. The comment comes from Dr Dirk Claus, Managing Director of the Port of Kiel (SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co. KG). This year for the first time, a record sixteen cruise ships have berthed in the port of Kiel during the festival, which is being held from June 21st to June 29th. Three of them – the “MSC Orchestra”, the “Braemar” and the “Adonia”, along with an inland river cruise ship – were joining the big Windjammer Parade, which is the maritime highlight of the Kieler Woche and was being held on Saturday June 28th.

25 Feb 2014

MSC Preziosa: The Ultimate in Cruise Ship Tech

MSC Cruises recently added a new state-of-the-art liner, the MSC Preziosa, helping the Italian company, truly a family business, attain the status of third largest cruise line in the world. MSC Preziosa is a Fantasia class cruise ship owned and operated by MSC Cruises. It entered service in March 2013 as an enhanced version of its sister ships, MSC Splendida and MSC Fantasia, and is identical to MSC Divina, which was launched in 2012. Built at the STX shipyard in St. Nazaire, France, MSC Preziosa is the new flagship of MSC Cruises. The new ship gained immediate recognition famous courtesy of its christening by actress Sophia Loren, and was significant as it signified that MSC Cruises is now the third largest cruise line in the world.

20 Sep 2009

Kiel Cruise Shipping Season Draws to a Close

As this year’s cruise shipping season draws to a close, Dirk Claus, the Managing Director of the Port of Kiel (SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co. KG), reported that it has been a positive one. The season ends on Monday September 21st with the visit of Marco Polo. Dirk Claus said at the Seatrade Europe Trade Fair in Hamburg that “this year Kiel has been visited by many especially big cruise ships. We were able to well exceed our passenger target of 250,000 passengers.” During the season, 21 different cruise ships called a total of 117 times and more than 290,000 passengers boarded or left a cruise ship in Kiel, compared to 222,000 in 2008. The biggest ship to call this season was the 102,600 GT Costa Magica, followed by the 92,400 GT MSC Orchestra and the 86,000 GT Eurodam.

21 Jan 2009

Port of Kiel Passenger Totals Rise, Cargo Falls

Port of Kiel (SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co KG) Managing Director Dirk Claus said: “passenger and cargo traffic developed in different ways last year. We just missed the 5 million ton mark in cargo handling, but at the same time we can look back on the port’s highest passenger totals for ten years. Given the current global economic situation, it’s a good thing that we are so multi-faceted in the Port of Kiel. The number of passengers passing through Kiel last year grew by 12.6 %. “The significance of sea tourism has increased a lot over the past few years and has grown into an important market segment for the Port of Kiel”, said Claus. “Our investment in terminal facilities is now paying off”.

29 Mar 2007

Aker Yards and MSC Signed Cruise Ship Contract

Aker Yards has signed a contract with MSC Cruises to build a 4th MSC Musica Class Cruise ship. The MSC Magnifica will be built at Aker Yards, Saint-Nazaire and delivered in 2010. The value of the contract is approximately $546.8m (EUR 410 million.) The contract is subject to financing. Like its three predecessors (MSC Musica, MSC Orchestra and MSC Poesia, this 89,600 GT cruise ship is 294 metres long and just over 32 metres wide, and complies with the Panama Canal Standard. MSC Magnifica will carry up to 4,000 people on board (including crew) and have 1275 passenger cabins, 80% of which being outside. Aker Yards is presently completing the construction of MSC Orchestra, which will be delivered in May.

23 Mar 2006

Italian Cruise Line Plans Expansion

MSC Cruises announced its plans to expand its seven-ship fleet by adding a new vessel every year through 2009, and to kick off its "Beautiful. Passionate. Italian." campaign featuring actress Sophia Loren. Loren will appear in a $4 million campaign, starting off this month on print, billboards, subway signage and taxi toppers in south Florida and New York. Loren already is the godmother of the MSC Lirica, which will be home-ported in New York by 2007, and will christen the 2,550-passenger MSC Musica in Venice, Italy, during June. That ship is one of two new arrivals this year; MSC Orchestra is the other. The cruise line also will take delivery of the MSC Fantasia and MSC Serenata, which can accommodate 3,300 passengers each, during 2008 and 2009, respectively.

22 Mar 2006

Another Ship to Join MSC Fleet

MSC Cruises has signed a contract ordering one ship and taking out an option for another. The confirmed buy is the fifth ship order for the line. The cruise line, which has its North American headquarters in Fort Lauderdale, said its contract with Chantiers de l'Atlantique is for a Panamax ship. The new ship is to be delivered in March 2008. MSC Cruises already had contracts with Chantiers de l'Atlantique to build two Panamax and two post-Panamax vessels. Post-Panamax ships are too large to fit through the canal. The latest addition and option are for vessels in the same class as the 89,600-ton MSC Musica, due for its inaugural sailing July 1. MSC Orchestra, the second Panamax ship, is scheduled to join the fleet in 2007.