Cruising enthusiasts don’t have to put the sunscreen and flip flops away just yet, as MSC Cruises confirmed their new 2020/2021 Winter Programme will go ahead (summer for South Africans).
There is hope yet that South Africans will still cruise this year.
‘We have reviewed and updated our complete Winter 2020/2021 Season, starting in late October and we are pleased to now confirm the full details,’ Gianni Onorato, MSC Cruises’ CEO said in a statement.
‘Our Winter programme sees us offering cruises in all of the regions of the world where we traditionally operate and whilst there are some updates to the original planned deployment of specific ships, we are still able to offer our main itineraries so that guests can enjoy the holiday that they booked with us.’
MSC South Africa said they are monitoring the situation in the country closely, and should circumstances change, the cruising company will respond with an ‘applicable solution that embraces our ethos of health and safety first.’
‘We are engaging with government at all levels to ensure that all factors have been considered, which include extensive health and safety protocols,’ Managing Director for MSC Cruises South Africa Ross Volk told IOL.
‘We are confident that by the time of our first sailing, the situation ashore with the global Covid-19 pandemic will have improved sufficiently to allow for people to start thinking even more freely about taking a holiday.’
Due to set sail from Cape Town and Durban ports in October this year, South Africans can look forward to hopping aboard the MSC Orchestra, (replacing MSC Musica) as well as the MSC Opera to various destinations, said MSC in a statement.
The destinations include Maputo, Mozambique, Portuguese Islands, Pomene, Mozambique and Port Elizabeth, as per the original planned itinerary.
A highlight for the season will be a 14-night New Year cruise on MSC Orchestra visiting five spectacular destinations, including an overnight stay in Port Louis, Mauritius, MSC states.
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