UPCOMING U.S. FLAGSHIP MSC SEASCAPE COMPLETES SUCCESSFUL SEA TRIALS

• MSC Seascape, the second ship in the Seaside EVO class, enters final phase of preparation for inaugural season in the Caribbean in four months
• The innovative ship will feature elegant dining venues and immersive entertainment options, all while bringing guests closer to the sea

GENEVA, Aug. 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- MSC Seascape successfully completed her first intensive systems tests at sea during a multi-day trial from August 17-20. This will be MSC Cruises' fourth Seaside-class ship and second in the Seaside EVO subclass built by Fincantieri in Italy, which is one of the world's largest ship building groups.

The Seaside EVO ships are an evolution of the innovative and popular Seaside class with striking design features, stunning public spaces, and exciting new experiences for guests. MSC Seascape pays tribute to the beauty of the ocean and is designed to help guests enjoy new horizons at sea.

Rubén A. Rodríguez, President, MSC Cruises USA, said: "Seeing our new U.S. flagship achieve another major milestone on the way to delivery is incredibly exciting for all of us here at MSC Cruises. Guests love our ongoing commitment to bring the newest and most advanced ships to the U.S. because it gives them access to the very best cruising has to offer. MSC Seascape takes everything that's fantastic about our Seaside-class ships and makes it even better, and sending her to gorgeous destinations like Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve creates an unbeatable vacation experience—on land and at sea."

The 169,400 GT ship will be delivered to MSC Cruises in late November and will come into service in December 2022, sailing year-round from Miami to the Caribbean. Following MSC World Europa, MSC Seascape will be the second MSC Cruises ship to launch this year.

Cruise lovers can be first on board by sailing MSC Seascape's delivery trip across the Atlantic. The MSC Grand Voyage will depart Civatavecchia (Rome) on Saturday, November 19 and make stops in Spain, Portugal and Bermuda prior to arriving in New York City on Monday, December 5—making it a memorable way to spend Thanksgiving at sea.

The naming ceremony for MSC Seascape will take place in New York on December 7, 2022, at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal. The new ship will offer two different seven-night itineraries:

• Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve and Nassau in The Bahamas, San Juan in Puerto Rico, and Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic
• Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve, Cozumel in Mexico, George Town in the Cayman Islands and Ocho Rios in Jamaica

As with her sister ship, 65 percent of MSC Seascape's public spaces have been completely reimagined from the original Seaside class design. These spaces will bring the guest experience to the next level and offer beautiful venues and locations to discover new horizons at sea:

• 98 hours of live entertainment per cruise, 7,567 square feet of dedicated kids' space, and cutting-edge amusement options
• 2,270 cabins with 12 different types of staterooms and suites with balconies, including coveted aft suites
• 11 dining venues—plus 19 bars and lounges—with plenty of options for dining and drinking outdoors
• Six swimming pools, including a stunning aft infinity pool with incredible ocean views
• The MSC Yacht Club will be one of the largest and most luxurious in MSC Cruises' fleet, offering more than 32,000 square feet of space with sweeping ocean views from the foredecks of the ship
• An expansive waterfront promenade even closer to the water, stretching nearly 1,800 feet
• A spectacular glass-floored Bridge of Sighs on deck 16 with a unique view of the ocean

The ship will feature the latest environmental technologies, which include selective catalytic reduction systems on each of the four Wartsila 14V 46F engines to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions by up to 90 percent by converting the gas into harmless nitrogen and water. MSC Seascape's hybrid exhaust gas cleaning system will remove 98 percent of Sulphur Oxide from its emissions.

MSC Seascape is fitted with best-in-class wastewater treatment systems with purification standards higher than most wastewater treatments facilities on land. The vessel is equipped with advanced waste management systems, ballast water treatment systems approved by the United States Coast Guard, the latest-technology systems for the prevention of oil discharges from machinery spaces, and various energy-efficiency improvements – from heat recovery systems to LED lighting able to save energy.

The ship will feature an underwater radiated noise management system to reduce and isolate the potential effects on marine mammals.

To find out more about MSC Seascape, please visit here.

MSC Cruises is the world's third largest cruise brand as well as the leader in Europe, South America, the Gulf region and Southern Africa, with more market share in addition to deployed capacity than any other player. It is also the fastest growing global cruise brand with a strong presence in the Caribbean, North America and the Far East markets.

Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, MSC Cruises is one of the two brands that sit within the Cruises Division of MSC Group, the leading privately held Swiss-based shipping and logistics conglomerate with over 300 years of maritime heritage. MSC Cruises – the contemporary brand - has a modern fleet of 19 vessels combined with a sizeable future global investment portfolio of new vessels. The fleet is projected to grow to 23 cruise ships by 2025, with options for six more vessel orders in place through 2030.

MSC Cruises offers its guests an enriching, immersive and safe cruise experience inspired by the Company's European heritage, where they can enjoy international dining, world-class entertainment, award-winning family programs, and the very latest user-friendly technology on board. To learn more about MSC Cruises' itineraries and experience on board its ships, click here.

The Company's number one priority has always been the health and safety of its guests and crew, as well as the communities at the destinations its ships serve.  In August 2020, MSC Cruises implemented a new comprehensive and robust health and safety protocol to become the first major line to return to sea. To learn more about MSC Cruises' health & safety protocol, click here.

MSC Cruises has long been committed to environmental stewardship, with a long-term goal to achieve net zero emissions for its operations by 2050. The Company is also a significant investor in next-generation environmental marine technologies, with the objective to support their accelerated development and availability industry-wide. To learn more about the Company's environmental commitment, click here. 

Finally, to learn more about the MSC Foundation, MSC Group's own vehicle to lead, focus and advance its conservation, humanitarian and cultural commitments, click here.

SOURCE MSC Cruises USA