MSC Cruises is resuming its operations at the Port of Valencia. The next Friday, July 30th, the state-of-the-art MSC Grandiosa will dock in Valencia, a service that will operate every Friday with a full-day stopover until November 5th, when the summer and autumn season concludes. This was announced this morning at a press conference by the Vice President of MSC Cruises, Gianluca Suprani, who was accompanied by the President of the Port Authority of Valencia (APV), Aurelio Martínez, and the CEO of MSC Spain, Francisco Lorente.
“It is important that the sector is returning to normal, slowly but safely, which is what we all want and desire. It is an important industry for the city and its surrounding area. In fact, the paralysis of cruise activity, which has lasted for 15 months, has caused losses that the Port Authority of Valencia estimates at around 72 million euros, affecting sectors such as tour operators, guides, public transport and taxi drivers, the hospitality industry, and tourist destinations,” explained Aurelio Martínez.
Cruise activity in Spain was halted on March 13, 2020, and resumed on May 6 (for domestic cruises) and June 7 (for international cruises). In the Port of Valencia, the first domestic cruise ship arrived on June 27 with the MAIN SCHIF 2, and the first international cruise ship, the AIDA PERLA, docked on July 8.
According to the Port Authority of Valencia (APV), it is estimated that more than 100 cruise ships could arrive in Valencia this season, which is still marked by COVID-19. The city of Valencia is a medium-sized and sustainable cruise destination, with annual growth of 2%, approximately 400,000 visitors, and 200 cruise ship calls per year. Specifically, in 2019, Valencia recorded 203 cruise ship calls and 435,000 cruise passengers, 16% of whom embarked and disembarked at the Port of Valencia, using the city as a home port.
The president of the Port Authority of Valencia (APV) emphasized that “activity has resumed with the highest levels of health and safety guarantees, both for cruise passengers and crew, and, very importantly, for the residents of the destinations and cities visited.” Along these lines, as with all cruises, excursions for MSC Grandiosa passengers will be conducted in small, bubble groups, following safety protocols established by the authorities and the cruise line itself.
“We have developed a very rigorous and strict protocol based on international and national regulations, together with a group of experts, to be able to resume cruise activity with the highest level of safety. It is a dynamic protocol that adapts to the evolving epidemiological situation, and will continue with 'bubble' excursions to guarantee the safety of the communities we visit,” explained Gianluca Suprani, who thanked institutions such as the Valencian Regional Government and State Ports for their collaboration.
In this regard, the MSC Grandiosa, with a capacity for 6,000 passengers, has reduced its occupancy to 70%, with an isolation area in place. After its stop in Valencia, the ship will sail a route that includes Barcelona, Genoa, La Spezia, and Rome. The Vice President of MSC Cruises pointed out that, thanks to this protocol, the company has been able to launch eight cruise ships so far in the Mediterranean and Northern Europe, and will begin a Caribbean route in August. Suprani emphasized that “the market is eager to return to sailing; we are seeing a very high level of bookings, almost similar to 2019. This is encouraging news, the result of the great effort we have made to address this situation.”.
The Vice President of MSC Cruises also announced that the city of Valencia will be a port of call for the new luxury cruise line Explora Journeys, stating that “Valencia is an area that people enjoy visiting and is becoming increasingly important in transit operations. It is also a departure point for residents of this part of Spain, who have an ideal port here to begin their holidays.”.
