Since the beginning of the 20th century, world cruises have become the most coveted tourism product, one of the greatest aspirations of cruise passengers, but they were only within reach of a privileged few who had the time and money. However, the arrival of cruise lines like MSC Cruises will make this traditional object of desire, which often involves spending more than three months at sea, more accessible and popular, without diminishing its aura of adventure and discovery.
Article from CruisesNews magazine
The reason a cruise line like MSC Cruises offers a World Cruise can be found in several factors. The first is its undisputed leading position in destinations located on different continents, such as the Mediterranean, South America, South Africa, and so on. Since these are seasonal destinations, the need arises to move cruise ships from one destination to another. This is how the "Grand Voyages" were born, whose logical evolution is long-distance cruises and, ultimately, the circumnavigation of the Earth, the World Cruise.
Another very important factor is the growth of the fleet, which has allowed us to offer new destinations: first the Caribbean, then the Persian Gulf, China, Australia, and so on. The selection of long-haul cruises has grown year after year. It's worth remembering that MSC Cruises' origins lie with the Neapolitan shipowner Flotta Lauro. Its flagship, the Achille Lauro, offered several long-haul cruises in the 1980s, including one departing from Barcelona on January 29, 1981, called the "Grand Cruise to the Far East."
MSC Cruises carries more than 1.5 million passengers annually. To attract repeat customers, it needs to renew and expand its offerings to avoid losing its more experienced passengers who demand new destinations. Thus, from November 14th of last year, and for one month, members of the MSC Voyagers Club could exclusively book the World Cruise, while the general public could only do so from December 14th.
Gianni Onorato's drive is also evident. During his time at Costa Cruises, he spearheaded the company's first round-the-world cruise in 2011; and since joining MSC Cruises, this event has also quickly followed.
Gianni Onorato was the driving force behind Costa's first Round the World Cruise in 2011; and now he has promoted that itinerary at MSC Cruises.
From its inception, MSC Cruises has sought to offer a comprehensive experience under a single brand. Regarding service and luxury, the MSC Yacht Club aimed to attract passengers seeking exquisite and exclusive attention, along with all the amenities of a megaship. Geographically, MSC Cruises covered virtually every destination. And in terms of cruise duration, MSC Cruises has steadily increased its offerings, from short voyages of three or four nights to journeys of more than thirty days. The World Cruise completes this portfolio.
The “Grand Voyage” concept
Although MSC Cruises has offered long cruises practically since its inception in the nineties, the idea of grouping them all under the same commercial claim, or single brand, is relatively recent.
Thus, the “Grand Voyage” concept first appeared in 2012, with eight repositioning cruises to South America, the Caribbean, South Africa, and the Persian Gulf. In press releases and brochures for that season, across all MSC Cruises source markets, the repositioning cruises were grouped as “MSC Grand Voyages” with slogans such as “Embark on the journey of discovery you’ve always dreamed of with an MSC Grand Voyage.”.
The promotion emphasized the benefits of breaking from the routine of normal life for an extended period, traveling from one continent to another with more days at sea than on a standard cruise. MSC Cruises' advertising evoked memories of transatlantic voyages of a bygone era, when the journey was as important as the destination. MSC Cruises also sought to attract culturally curious cruisers, offering the perfect opportunity to experience a diversity of cultures, people, and places in a single trip. This included an onboard program of lectures, concerts, and even tango, samba, and rock 'n' roll classes. The promotion also highlighted culinary diversity, recreating typical dishes from the various ports of call while maintaining MSC Cruises' signature offerings, such as Italian Night, the Nutella Party, and Italian wine tastings.
The MSC Magnifica's itinerary is very well-balanced: in 120 days it offers a total of 49 stops in 32 countries. That's practically a stop every two days.
The 2013/2014 MSC Cruises brochure offered up to nineteen Grand Voyages, including, for example, the two itineraries of the MSC Opera and Sinfonia to South Africa. On October 25, 2013, the MSC Opera embarked on an 18-day voyage from Genoa, with stops in Villefranche, Valencia, Casablanca, Agadir, Dakar, and Walvis Bay, before arriving in Cape Town on November 11. The itinerary included ten days at sea, including six consecutive days between Dakar and Walvis Bay. The MSC Sinfonia offered a 20-day itinerary from Genoa, with twelve days at sea, including seven consecutive days between Mindelo, Cape Verde, and Walvis Bay. The brochure also included an 18-day voyage by the MSC Lirica between Civitavecchia and Dubai, with stops in exotic locations such as Aqaba (Jordan), Salalah, and Muscat (Oman).
One of the most exciting Grand Voyages of 2014 was the twenty-night cruise on the MSC Magnifica, sailing from Hamburg to Buenos Aires, departing on November 8th. Each day on board offered programs to suit all tastes, including relaxation activities, entertainment, exquisite cuisine, and a variety of cultural experiences related to the ports of call. The cruise offered twelve full days at sea and included the opportunity to participate in the Tenerife Marathon during the stop in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
In 2015, the MSC Orchestra became the first MSC Cruises ship to call at Australia, following a 33-night Grand Voyage crossing the Indian Ocean from Dubai. The journey began on February 21, 2015, and included stops in India, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia before arriving in Australia, where it docked in ports such as Cairns, Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, and Fremantle. The MSC Orchestra also offered two-day stops in Singapore, Mumbai, Sydney, Phuket, and Melbourne to enhance the immersive experience at each destination.
MSC Cruises' Grand Voyages are the strongest proof of this company's commitment to offering its customers innovative and attractive destinations.
The most important Grand Voyage of 2016 was undertaken by the MSC Lirica, which arrived in Shanghai on May 1, 2016, after a 60-day journey, initially from Rio de Janeiro, and later from Genoa. The itinerary was splendid: from Brazil to China via Europe, with the opportunity to visit some of the most attractive places on earth and encounter a vast array of people and cultures.
In the coming year, the most appealing Grand Voyage is undoubtedly the 20-night Venice-Miami cruise aboard the MSC Seaside (whose attractions were described in CruisesNews in issue 39), its first commercial cruise, departing from Barcelona on December 5, 2017. It offers stops in Cádiz, Funchal, Philipsburg, Charlotte Amalie, two days in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and arrival in Miami on December 20. Twenty days enjoying the latest features of the MSC Seaside, with the glamour of a “Grand Voyage.”.
Historical Background
: Issue 34 of CruisesNews traces the evolution of the round-the-world cruise from its origins to the present day, exploring the development of this tourism product and recreating the voyages of legendary ships such as the Caronia, the Queen Elizabeth 2, and the Sagafjord. Back then, a round-the-world cruise was an elite product, and the number of cruise lines offering it could be counted on one hand.
But against all odds, round-the-world trips are now one of the fastest-growing tourism products in recent years: you can now choose not only which luxury ship to circumnavigate on, but also the service segment, and even the type of ship, to make the trip: luxury, Upper Premium, Premium or standard, megaship or “yacht-like”, as all have entered this market.
This year, twenty-three cruises of more than 90 days have been marketed, most of them as World Cruises. Two cruise lines offer three circumnavigations with three different ships: Cunard (Premium) and the German company Phoenix Reisen (Standard). Five cruise lines offer two cruises of more than 90 days: Seabourn and Crystal (Luxury), Princess (Premium), and P&O and Costa (Standard). Six cruise lines market one circumnavigation: Regent and Silversea (Luxury), Oceania (Upper Premium), HAL (Premium), and Fred Olsen, Cruise & Maritime Voyages, and Aida (Standard). Contrary to what might be expected, competition in the World Cruise segment is fierce. This year, Azamara, Cruise & Maritime Voyages, and Aida offered their first circumnavigations. Viking Ocean Cruises arrives in 2018, and MSC Cruises debuts in 2019.
A World Cruise Itinerary Full of First Ports:
Many cruise lines market longer cruises (60 days or more) under names like “World Cruise” or “Great Cruise,” but in some cases, they don't offer a complete circumnavigation. However, MSC Cruises has decided to commit to a comprehensive itinerary for its first-ever World Cruise. Last February, Captain Giuliano Bossi, one of MSC Cruises' ambassadors with over 53 years of maritime experience, presented the World Cruise and described it as “a major project.” Captain Bossi will be on board for this itinerary, “a truly unique offering from MSC, with stops in some of the most fascinating cities on the planet.”
The round-the-world cruise is in fashion, and this year there are more than twenty ships offering that journey.
The circumnavigation will be westward from four embarkation ports in MSC Cruises' main source markets: Italy, embarking in Civitavecchia and Genoa (January 5, 2019); France, embarking in Marseille (January 6); and Spain, with the MSC Magnifica calling at Barcelona on January 7, 2019. The 119-day voyage begins, after stops in Spain and Portugal, with a transatlantic crossing to the Caribbean. There, far from the harsh European winter, the MSC Magnifica will offer up to nine tropical stops, combining idyllic islands and historic ports like Cartagena de Indias, before transiting the Panama Canal. It will be the first MSC Cruises ship to sail through this waterway.
And if the list of port calls in the Caribbean was extensive, the list along the American West Coast is no less so. From Puntarenas to San Francisco, the MSC Magnifica will offer up to eight port calls, three of them in California. The first leg of the journey concludes in San Francisco, during which passengers who embarked in Barcelona will have enjoyed twenty port calls. The MSC Magnifica will be the first cruise ship in the MSC Cruises fleet to call in California, with two-day visits to Los Angeles and San Francisco.
A round-the-world cruise has a thorny problem: most passengers prefer a port call to a full day at sea. However, a complete circumnavigation offers the opposite, with more days at sea than at port calls. This fact poses a headache for the engineers who design the itinerary. There are round-the-world cruises with many days at sea. For example, on the Queen Victoria's 120-day 2016 circumnavigation, 72 of those days were at sea. The MSC Magnifica's itinerary is very well balanced: the ship has to cover 32,260 nautical miles in 120 days, yet it offers a total of 49 port calls. That's practically a port call every two days, which is a significant advantage over competing itineraries.
But it's not just the number of days at sea that matters; the length of port calls also needs to be considered. Shipowners want to save fuel, so their vessels sail more slowly. This means either longer circumnavigations or shorter port calls. The MSC Magnifica offers a total of eleven two-day port calls; that is, one in four calls is a double stop, a high ratio for this type of itinerary.
Segments of a World Cruise:
Although there are no statistics on this, especially not for MSC Cruises, around one-third of passengers on a World Cruise complete the entire voyage, while the remaining 66% opt for a segment. Itinerary planners design the circumnavigation route as a series of cruises, and this reality dictates that the itinerary be divided into segments, which must end in ports with excellent air connections. Generally, the chosen ports are Dubai, Singapore, Sydney, Los Angeles, etc. MSC Cruises has opted for an itinerary with three segments: Atlantic/Caribbean, Pacific, and Indian/Mediterranean, with San Francisco and Melbourne as intermediate embarkation ports. Another aspect the cruise line considers is the coexistence of those completing the entire circumnavigation and those only enjoying segments, in terms of aspects such as availability of places on optional excursions, dining times, etc.
The second segment of the World Cruise begins in San Francisco and takes place in the Pacific. It is the most maritime of the three segments, so the distance between some ports of call is considerable. The longest stretch of nonstop sailing, five days, is found in this segment, with voyages such as San Francisco to Hilo (Hawaii), 2,018 miles; or the 2,380 miles between Honolulu and Papeete, in French Polynesia. This segment also offers the less common ports of call, and therefore the most attractive for a European cruiser, such as the three in French Polynesia (Papeete, Moorea, and Bora Bora); the two stops in Samoa, a typical World Cruise destination, which this year is offered by Cunard with the Queen Elizabeth and Queen Victoria, Phoenix Reisen with the Albatross, P&O with the Aurora, and Oceania with the Sirena; and Tonga. Or Fiji, with two stops in Suva and Lautoka, very common on cruises from Australia, but extremely rare in European cruise line catalogs. On this segment, passengers on the MSC Magnifica will cross the Equator and the International Date Line, milestones often commemorated with unique onboard parties.
After sailing 1,179 miles from Fiji, the MSC Magnifica will call at Auckland, New Zealand's most cosmopolitan city. The leg will conclude on the other side of the world, in Australia, a country and continent that is practically a must-see on a round-the-world voyage. The ship will arrive in the heart of summer, making two stops: first in Sydney, and then in Melbourne.
Many experts recommend trying a segment of a round-the-world cruise as the best way to discover if it meets your needs. Packages typically include hotel stays, tours, and flights coordinated with the different segments of a circumnavigation.
Voyages across the Indian Ocean:
The third segment begins in Melbourne and ends in the Mediterranean, crossing the Indian Ocean and passing through the Suez Canal. There will be a total of 19 port calls before the final stop in Barcelona, with three in Malaysia and four in the Persian Gulf. In this segment, there are no great distances between ports, with the exception of the five days of sailing to cover the 2,220 nautical miles between Fremantle (the last Australian port) and Singapore.
Fuel can also be saved by reducing the time spent in port calls. One or more hours less in each port means a potential reduction in cruising speed. To quantify this, the average time in port is used: the MSC Magnifica will offer an average of 13 hours in port calls, enough time to experience the destination's attractions, in addition to 12 overnight stays.
After leaving Malaysia, the MSC Magnifica offers two stops on two Indian Ocean islands: Ceylon and the Maldives. From there, it sets sail for the Persian Gulf, a journey of over 2,000 nautical miles followed by four stops in the Persian Gulf, one of the cruise destinations most heavily promoted by MSC Cruises in recent years. And before returning to the Mediterranean, the voyage offers the opportunity to visit Petra from Aqaba, in the heart of spring.
After crossing the Suez Canal, the itinerary offers two stops in Crete and Sicily before disembarking at the same four ports from which the journey could be started... but now in spring.
MSC
Magnifica for MSC's first World Cruise is no coincidence. Its Panamax size allows it to navigate the old locks of the Panama Canal, effectively making the itineraries of the first two segments possible. There is only one post-Panamax ship offering World Cruises, the Queen Mary, and Panamax ships have found a very important market niche in these long voyages, to the point that nine of the twenty-two ships offering circumnavigations this year are of that type. The MSC Musica is the second largest ship, after the QM2, to offer World Cruises.
The MSC Magnifica is the fourth ship in the Musica series, and the only one of the quartet with an indoor swimming pool. Its 58,000 kW of power also allow it a top speed of 23 knots, a very important detail for completing certain legs of the demanding itinerary, or for making up time in case of rough seas or delays of any kind.
In addition to its size, the MSC Magnifica will allow its guests to travel surrounded by comfort and style. Delivered in 2010, the ship offers a truly European design and refinement, along with a high percentage of modern and comfortable balcony cabins, and top-quality service, with four restaurants and eleven bars, as well as a wide range of onboard leisure and entertainment. From gourmet restaurants serving cuisine prepared with fresh ingredients to the extensive leisure options, including a 1,200-seat theater, casino, panoramic nightclub, 4D cinema, and much more, passengers on the MSC Magnifica can enjoy the service and design that are synonymous with the MSC Cruises brand.
Why a World Cruise with MSC Cruises?
• The advantages are countless, making a World Cruise the ideal trip.
• Crossing an ocean is an unforgettable experience: crossing the Atlantic, the Pacific, the Indian, and as a bonus, the Mediterranean, is a unique experience.
• Relax: port calls alternate with days at sea. There's no jet lag.
• Chasing summer. Feeling the changing weather day by day. Setting sail in winter clothes, then putting on shorts in the Caribbean and not taking them off until the end of the cruise.
• Experiencing the transition from the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern Hemisphere, where the stars are different. Crossing the Tropic of Cancer twice, then the Equator (where MSC organizes an incredible party, the so-called <
• In regions located on the Earth's equator, sunrise and sunset are shorter than in the rest of the planet because the sun rises and sets almost vertically, at a very rapid pace.
• After crossing the Atlantic in January, life on board is outdoors thanks to the pleasant weather, with many open-air parties.
• The passengers are multicultural, well-traveled, and culturally diverse, offering many opportunities to make interesting friends.
• And for those who enjoy international cuisine, a different à la carte menu is offered each night, featuring haute cuisine from various countries: Italian, Spanish, French, etc., as MSC Cruises never repeats a menu.
• MSC Cruises offers fifteen optional excursions included in the price of the World Cruise. It also provides significant discounts on services such as laundry, which are very useful on a trip of this scale.
