Fans of MSC Cruises will be delighted to learn that not one, but two brand new mega ships are due to be added to the fleet of the prestigious Italian Line.
Valued at £567 million each, the two new ships are set to debut in 2017 and 2018, according to a new contract with the Italian shipyard Fincantieri, and there is even an option for a third ship to be built in the works. The move is set to bring about the creation of a whole new class of huge cruise liners which are expected to weigh in at 154,000 tonnes, and hold a capacity of 5,300 passengers.
The ships are being built under the project name ‘Seaside’, and will be the largest ships every built by Fincantieri. If the sheer size of the prospected ships is to be taken into account, the pair are also set to break a personal record for MSC Cruises, with the line’s largest ship to date, the MSC Divina, clocking in at almost 11,000 tonnes lighter than the new vessels. If anything, you can’t accuse the company of being short of ambition,
The first of the two is scheduled for delivery in November 2017, while the second is arriving in May 2018. At 323 metres long, 41 metres wide and 70 metres high, the new ships are set to become some of the largest ships to grace the waters. But the staggering statistics don’t stop there. They’ll feature 2,070 cabins each, as well as over 43,000 square metres of public areas for passengers.
It’s easy to think that the massive size of the ships will make them a little unwieldy to navigate into smaller ports, but MSC Cruises themselves have assured prospective customers that the design and versatility of the new ships means they will be able to dock in almost any port around the world.
Even with the size concerns, there’s no doubt that destinations around the world are due to see a wealth of MSC Ships in the next decade.
Just this year MSC Cruises have also placed an order with France’s STX shipyard for two 167,000 tonne vessels, due to arrive in 2017 and 2019. In fact, the overall plan for the line is to double its fleet capacity in 2022 – and there’s no doubt that these up-and-coming gargantuan cruise liners will help with that no end.
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