Tag Archives: Fantasia-class ship

MSC Updating Yacht Club Restaurants Across Fantasia-Class Ships

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MSC Updating Yacht Club Restaurants Across Fantasia-Class Ships

MSC Cruises announced upgrades to the MSC Yacht Club restaurants, part of the company’s “ship-within-a-ship” concept.

The company said in a press release that the refurbishment will be rolled out across its three Fantasia-class ships, set to undergo drydocks in December 2026, April 2027 and February 2028.

The restaurant onboard its fourth Fantasia-class ship, the MSC Splendida, has already been updated.

The new interior of the MSC Yacht Club restaurant features a modern layout with darker tones, soft textures and sophisticated lighting, the company explained.

Guests can choose from a variety of menus and have a dedicated 24/7 culinary staff as well as a sommelier on-hand, ensuring what MSC describes as an elevated dining experience.

Following her refurbishment at the Palumbo Malta Shipyard, the MSC Splendida began her winter sailings in the Mediterranean in early February.

Itineraries now available to book on the ship include:

Seven-night sailings from Barcelona (Spain) – February through May 2026

The voyages explore Marseille (France), Genoa, Naples, Palermo (Italy), and La Goulette for Tunis (Tunisia).

Seven-night sailings from Barcelona (Spain) – May through November 2026

The voyages visit Marseille (France), Livorno, Cagliari, Palermo (Italy), Valletta (Malta).

Eight-to-nine-night itineraries from Buenos Aires (Argentina) – November 2026 through March 2027

Destinations visited during the voyages include Rio de Janeiro, Ilhabela, Ilha Grande, Balneario Camboriu (Brazil), and Punta del Este (Uruguay).

Nine-night sailings from Trieste (Italy) – April through November 2027

These voyages include calls to destinations such as Split (Croatia), Piraeus (Greece), Kusadasi, Istanbul, (Turkey), Corfu (Greece), and Bari (Italy).

Additional enhancements to Fantasia class ships include a redesigned Future Cruise office onboard, where guests can plan and book their next cruise while on their current voyage.

MSC Cruises announces return to UK next year

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By Hollie-Rae Merrick

MSC Cruises is returning to the UK next year with a short series of ex-UK sailings from Southampton.The line will base Fantasia-class ship MSC Splendida in Southampton for six sailings, having pulled out of the UK market this year.

Among the sailings will be MSC’s first round-Britain itinerary starting in a UK port. Previous cruises had embarked in Hamburg.

Giles Hawke, MSC’s executive director for the UK and Ireland, said he hoped the “staggered return” of ex-UK sailings would be built on in 2017.

“A lot of our guests and agents have been asking us to base a ship in the UK,” he said. “People love travelling with us and want to embark in the UK with us.”

The line’s 2016 programme also includes new northern Europe cruises and longer Mediterranean sailings.

During the summer season, MSC will offer 270 sailings across 22 itineraries, made up of nine core seven-night Mediterranean itineraries, seven Med sailings of between nine and 12 nights, and new Baltic and Norwegian fjords cruises.

For the first time, a Fantasia-class ship will operate the Dubai winter season, with Bahrain making its debut on the itinerary.

Over the past year, the line has focused on fly-cruise, but the 2016 programme also includes cruise-only prices.

Hawke said: “We have responded to feedback by making cruise-only an attractive option for those who wish to make their own arrangements or for agents who want to create their own packages.”

For simplicity, cruise-only fares for European itineraries will be set £150 lower than fly-cruise packages, and £400 lower for the Caribbean and Middle East.

Upgrades from outside to balcony cabins on Fantastica fares are also available for £50 a person.

Bookings before August 31 will qualify for savings of up to £300.

The 2016 brochure has a new look and feel, with more space dedicated to each itinerary.

It also includes four pages of information about the four ships MSC has on order.

MSC sets out plans to triple UK passengers

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MSC Cruises has set out ambitious plans to grow the number of UK passengers it serves.

According to chief executive Giles Hawke, the company reckons it can attract 200,000 Britons per year by 2017 – up from 60,000 today and an almost threefold increase.

Mr Hawke made these comments in an interview with Travel Weekly, mentioning a raft of new marketing initiatives intended to support the campaign.

MSC, which mostly serves the Mediterranean cruise market and recently announced it will add a further four ships to its fleet, also plans to charter three flights per week from Heathrow to ferry Britons into Italian ports.

Two of the planes will fly to Genoa, with the other landing in Venice.

In time, though, MSC wants to reintroduce Mediterranean cruises that actually depart from the UK itself, potentially by launching a Fantasia-class ship in 2016.