MSC Cruises and FINCANTIERI celebrated the coin-laying ceremony for the new MSC Seaview, a milestone in the ship's construction and a long maritime tradition. The ceremony took place at the FINCANTIERI shipyard in Monfalcone, Italy. MSC Seaview is the third large, next-generation ship to enter service under MSC Cruises' ten-year investment plan, which runs until 2026.
Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO of MSC Cruises, commented: “MSC Seaview is one of four MSC Cruises ships currently under construction, part of an unprecedented 10-year investment plan of €9 billion, which underpins the next phase of our global growth as the world’s largest privately owned cruise line.”
Giuseppe Bono, CEO of FINCANTIERI, explained: “We always welcome each stage of this project’s progress with satisfaction. The order for MSC Seaview, as well as that of its sister ship MSC Seaside, whose float-out trial was completed in November 2016, is one of those that has enabled a significant recovery in the cruise market.”
MSC Seaview will be the highlight of MSC Cruises' ship deployment activities next year, entering service in June 2018 and sailing from Barcelona through the Western Mediterranean during its inaugural summer season. It will then continue on to Brazil from November 2018.
Mr. Onorato, CEO of MSC Cruises, added: “MSC Seaview will bring passengers closer to the sea through a pioneering terrace-to-the-sea concept and other unique design and product elements that allow them to make the most of the warmer weather. With one of the highest ratios of outdoor space at sea, travelers will also enjoy a greater number of balcony cabins, ocean views, and outdoor public areas, all carefully planned to allow them to fully enjoy the sea and the sun.”
Measuring 323 meters in length and displacing 154,000 tons, the MSC Seaview will have a maximum capacity of 5,179 passengers. It will be the second of two sister ships in MSC Cruises' Seaside class, to be built by Fincantieri. Its sister ship, the MSC Seaside, will enter service later this year, in December 2017, and will be christened in Miami, its home port.
