MSC Cruises to Base New Divina Ship in Miami for Winter 2013-14

MSC Cruises will base its newest ship, the 139,000-ton MSC Divina in the Port of Miami for the winter 2013-14 season. The Divina will be christened in Marseille, France, on May 26 by legendary actress Sophia Loren, who is the permanent godmother for all of MSC Cruises’ ships.

This coming winter season, MSC Cruises will operate the MSC Poesia from Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, but will move its South Florida homeport to Miami in November 2013 because it was able to obtain weekend slots and appropriate berthing facilities, according to Richard Sasso, president and CEO of MSC Cruises USA. The move follows Carnival Cruise Lines’ recent decision to base its Carnival Conquest in Miami starting November 2013 as well.

At a press conference at CLIA’s cruise3sixty conference in Fort Lauderdale, Sasso also hinted that MSC Cruises will bring more ships to North America, perhaps to New York City. “We will continue growing our presence in North America with more than one ship for longer than six months,” he said, adding that a formal announcement might be made in the next couple of months.

MSC Cruises, which launched an eight billion euro newbuilding campaign eight years ago, now has 12 ships, making it the “fourth-largest cruise fleet and the fastest-growing cruise brand in the industry,” Sasso said. “We’re not stopping now.” The next step is increasing MSC Cruises’ presence in the U.S. “Now North America must become more of a homeport,” Sasso said.

The MSC Divina -- named in honor of the Italian diva Loren -- is part of the Fantasia class but will be different in several ways from sister ships MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida. Divina will be the largest ship in the fleet, with 1,751 staterooms hosting 3,502 guests, double occupancy. Also new are an infinity pool and a “beach zone” aft.

Like its sister ships, MSC Divina will feature the MSC Yacht Club, a 69-suite luxury area described as a “ship-within-a-ship.” The Yacht Club has butler service, free wines and spirits in exclusive lounges and pool area, and other private venues such as Le Muse panoramic restaurant and Top Sail Lounge.

All MSC Divina guests will have access to three restaurants and a Tex-Mex alternative eatery; the Aqua Park with fountains and water jets; MSC Aurea Spa with Balinese-inspired treatments; children’s and teen areas; an interactive 4-D cinema; virtual Formula 1 auto racing simulator; and the 1,603-seat Pantheon Theatre.

Following the christening, MSC Divina sails May 27 on a six-night cruise to Venice, calling at Civitavecchia, Messina, Valetta and Dubrovnik. The ship will then begin a series of seven-night Eastern Mediterranean roundtrips from Venice and Bari, calling in Katakalon, Izmir, Istanbul and Dubrovnik, through October.

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