Dawn and the Wonderful MSC Peosia Photo credit Spacejunkie2
Another MSC Cruises ship is resuming service today as the MSC Poesia welcomes guests back in Civitavecchia, Italy.
Returning after a two-year absence, the 2008-built vessel is kicking off a summer season in Northern Europe with a repositioning voyage to Warnemunde.
The 14-night cruise features visits to 12 different ports in Italy, France, Spain, Portugal, England, Sweden, Denmark and Germany.
A highlight of the port-intensive itinerary is a visit to El Ferrol. Located in Northern Spain, the unusual cruise port also serves as a getaway to other cities in the region, including Santiago de Compostela.
Continuing its summer schedule, the Poesia offers a series of cruises to the Baltic and Scandinavia departing from Copenhagen and Warnemunde.
Ranging from seven to 21 nights in duration, the itineraries feature visits to Norway, Finland, Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and more.
The program – which stretches through mid-September – also includes a one-time cruise to Iceland and Greenland. The 21-night voyage visits seven ports in the region, such as Nuuk, Qaqortoq, Reykjavik and Akureyri.
The MSC Poesia was built at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in St. Nazaire, France. The 93,300-ton vessel entered service in 2008, as the third ship of MSC’s Musica Class.
According to the company, the ship features sophisticated and elegant décor and features 236,000 square feet of public spaces.
Among its many public areas, the Poesia offers two swimming pools, four hot tubs, a 13,000-square-foot spa, and four restaurants – including a Sushi Bar alternative dining restaurant.
With a capacity of 2,550 guests, the vessel boasts 1,275 staterooms, of which 80 per cent face the outside and 65 per cent are equipped with a private balcony.
With the MSC Poesia, a total of four ships resumed service for MSC Cruises in April.
As the Carnival Sensation is retired from service, Cruise Industry News looks at the history of this popular Fantasy-class vessel.
1990: The Fantasy entered service as the lead ship of an eight-vessel class that also includes the Sensation – a 2,040-guest vessel built by the Kvaerner Masa-Yards in Finland, at a cost of $300 million.
1993: The Sensation is christened in November, with four Carnival vice presidents serving as godmothers: Vicki L. Freed, Roberta Jacoby, Cherie Weinstein and Geri Donnelly. The vessel then sets sail on its inaugural voyage, launching a year-round program of weekly Caribbean cruises from Miami.
1998: After undergoing its first mandatory drydock, the Sensation is repositioned, debuting in Tampa. In December, the vessel launches a series of week-long cruises to Grand Cayman, Cozumel and New Orleans from its new Florida homeport.
2000: The Sensation is reflagged, with its registry port changing from Monrovia, Liberia, to Nassau, Bahamas.
2002: As Carnival shifts its fleet around Florida and the Gulf Ports, the Sensation is transferred to the short cruise market. Still sailing from Tampa, the vessel takes over the 1986-built Jubilee’s schedule in August, offering four- and five-night cruises to the Western Caribbean.
2004: With the new Carnival Miracle debuting in Tampa, the Sensation is once again repositioned. This time, the vessel debuts in New Orleans, launching a series of four- and five-night cruises to Mexico in October.
2005: As Hurricane Katrina hits Louisiana in September, the Sensation is diverted to Galveston with two of its scheduled cruises now departing from the Texas port.
2005: Soon after, the vessel is chartered to FEMA as part of the Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in New Orleans. During a six-month period, the Sensation remained docked in the Gulf region while serving as a temporary house for people affected by the natural disaster.
2006: After its first significant renovation, the Sensation resumed service in March. With new features that included a nine-hole mini-golf course, larger kid facilities and a reconfigured aft lounge, the vessel kicked off a series of short cruises to the Bahamas from Port Canaveral.
2007: In line with other ships of the fleet, the Sensation received the Carnival prefix to its name, becoming the Carnival Sensation.
2016: As part of a deployment shuffle, the ship is replaced in Port Canaveral by the Carnival Victory and returns to Miami. Starting in February, the Carnival Sensation debuts a program of five- and four-night cruises from its new homeport, with itineraries visiting the Caribbean, Mexico and the Bahamas.
2020: On March 9, the vessel departed on what ended up being its last revenue cruise. Leaving from Miami, the five-night voyage included visits to Grand Cayman and Ocho Rios. Soon after the voyage, the vessel entered a lay-up status, along with the entire Carnival fleet.
2022: As part of reviews of its fleet and homeport strategies, Carnival announced the retirement of the Carnival Sensation in February. A few weeks later, in late March, the vessel sailed from Miami to Aliaga, where it is set to be scrapped over the next months.
AIDA Cruises, Carnival Corporation’s German brand, has announced replacement ports in the Baltic and not call in Saint Petersburg this summer.
The AIDAdiva, AIDAmar, AIDAnova and AIDAvita will see calls in Russia cancelled and replaced by destinations such as Riga (Latvia), Copenhagen (Denmark), Oslo (Norway) or Visby (Gotland/Sweden).
The AIDAdiva will call at the Latvian capital Riga or Copenhagen instead of Saint Petersburg on its seven-day Baltic Sea roundtrip from Warnemünde starting between May 14 and October 8, 2022. The voyage with a departure date of May 7, 2022, will include a visit to Hamina in southern Finland.
For the seven-day round trips in the Baltic Sea with the AIDAnova from Kiel with departure dates between May 14 and October 15, 2022, AIDA Cruises has developed alternative routes in the Baltic Sea as well as to Norway and Denmark. Baltic cruises now include an extended stay in the Estonian capital Tallinn. Copenhagen/Kalundborg is also new on the itinerary.
The AIDAnova is now setting course for Scandinavia on new voyages. In addition to a visit to Copenhagen and Kristiansand, AIDAnova’s guests can enjoy a two-day stay in Oslo.
On its 10 day Baltic cruises, the AIDAmar will call at the port of Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland and the Latvian capital Riga instead of Saint Petersburg.
In addition, the first sailing of the AIDAvita will depart on July 24, 2022.
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