MSC Bellissima

MSC Bellissima is a cruise ship operated by MSC Cruises. She was constructed at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique in Saint-Nazaire, France.[2]

MSC Bellissima in Saint-Nazaire (France) shipyard on 19 February 2019
History
Name: MSC Bellissima
Owner: MSC Cruises
Operator: MSC Cruises
Port of registry: Valletta,  Malta
Ordered: 20 March 2014
Builder: Chantiers de l'Atlantique
Laid down: 15 November 2017
Launched: 14 June 2018
Christened: 2 March 2019
Acquired: 27 February 2019
Maiden voyage: 4 March 2019
In service: 4 March 2019
Identification:
Status: In service
General characteristics
Class and type: Meraviglia-class
Tonnage: 171,598 GT[1]
Length: 315.83 metres (1,036.2 ft)[1]
Draught: 8.75 metres (28.7 ft)[1]
Decks: 18[1]
Installed power: 38,400 kilowatts (51,500 hp)
Propulsion: 2 × ABB Azipods[1]
Speed: 21.8 knots (40.4 km/h; 25.1 mph)[1]
Capacity: 4,500

The ship joined MSC Meraviglia in the company's Meraviglia class of cruise ships. She has a tonnage of 171,598 GT and a capacity of 4,500 passengers.[1][3] The ship debuted in March 2019.

MSC Cruises announced the suspension of all North American itineraries until 30 June 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[4]

History

MSC Cruises and STX France cut the first steel of MSC Bellissima on 28 November 2016,[5][6] with £750 investment.[7] Her keel laying and coin ceremony happened on 15 November 2017.[8] It also features 2,217 cabins and 1,418 balconies that can accommodate 5,686 guests,[9] with the length of 315.8m and a width of 43m.[10] On 14 June 2018, the ship was floated out.[11] Her sea trials took place in December 2018.[12] Andrea Bocelli, alongside his son, performed during the christening of the ship.[13] The ship joined MSC Meraviglia in the company's Meraviglia class of cruise ships which it has a tonnage of 171,598 GT and a capacity of 4,500 passengers.[14][3]

MSC Bellissima in Saint-Nazaire the day before its departure on 26 February 2019

Her delivery ceremony took place on 27 February 2019. MSC Bellissima was officially named on 2 March 2019, at Southampton, by the actress Sophia Loren.[15] The original ceremony in a marquee on the quayside had to be abandoned due to high winds, so a substitute ceremony was quickly organised and Loren pressed a button on the ship's bridge to smash the bottle of champagne on the ship's bow.[16]

MSC Cruises collaborated with Harman International to bring "ZOE," the first virtual assistant to be featured on any cruise ship, to MSC Bellissima and future MSC Cruises ships.[17] In September 2019, as a part of MSC Cruises' longstanding relationship with Swarovski, MSC Bellissima featured a suite fully embellished with 700,000 crystals.[18]

On 13 February 2020, MSC Bellissima was featured on Ultimate Mega Cruise Ship on Channel 5 in the United Kingdom.[19]

Route

MSC Bellissima departed for her maiden voyage on 4 March 2019,[20] and made an inaugural call in Spain on 12 March 2019.[21] She will spend her maiden season in the Mediterranean, before re-positioning to the Persian Gulf in November 2019, cruising from Dubai for the winter season,[22][15] and made a maiden call at Doha, Qatar in December 2019.[23] She will then be redeployed to Asia to serve MSC's China program in Spring 2020.[11][15] In 2020, the ship will be heading in Asia,[24] such as China.[25]

Incidents

Coronavirus pandemic
See also: COVID-19 pandemic on cruise ships § MSC Bellissima

On 21 March 2020, officials from the Indian state of Telangana reported that a 33-year-old crew member of MSC Bellissima had tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.[26] The crew member was also reported to have been to Dubai, and was stable at the time of the report.[26]

On 24 March 2020, it was reported that three Azoreans who were former passengers of MSC Bellissima during its cruise to Dubai from 7 March 2020 to 14 March 2020 had tested positive.[lower-alpha 1][27]

On 2 April 2020, a 22-year-old crew member of MSC Bellissima, who had quarantined himself at home in Trappeto, Sicily after returning from Dubai, announced that he had tested positive that day.[28] On 10 April 2020, a dancer from Klagenfurt, Austria, who performed in Cirque du Soleil shows aboard MSC Bellissima, tested positive for the virus while she was still on board the ship.[29][30] The crew member was tested a day before she was scheduled to leave for home, and the result came as a surprise as she had been asymptomatic.[30] As of 4 May 2020, she has been stuck aboard MSC Bellissima for 50 days.[29]

Notes
  1. Two cases were from São Miguel Island, a 31-year-old man and a 22-year-old woman, while one case from São Jorge Island had been diagnosed previously, but had been in contact with a newly-diagnosed case from Terceira Island.[27]

References
  1. "MSC BELLISSIMA (9760524)". Veristar Info. Bureau Veritas. Retrieved 25 March 2019.
  2. "MSC Bellissima Cruise Ship: Review & Photos on Cruise Critic". www.cruisecritic.com. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  3. "MSC Bellissima Ship Stats & Information- MSC Cruises MSC Bellissima Cruises: Travel Weekly". www.travelweekly.com. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  4. "MSC Cruises is latest to suspend operations through summer". 30 April 2020.
  5. "Cruise ship launch timeline | MSC Bellissima| MSC Cruises". MSC Cruises Australia Website. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  6. "MSC Cruises Finalizes Contract for Two New Meraviglia-Plus Ships". TravelPulse. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  7. "Why you should join your grandparents for a cruise holiday". 21 September 2019.
  8. "MSC Cruises Cuts Steel for First Meraviglia Plus-class Ship, MSC Grandiosa; Coin Ceremony Held for MSC Bellissima". www.cruisecritic.com. Retrieved 13 September 2019.
  9. "MSC Cruises' Zoe: meet Bellissima's new AI companion". Ship Technology. 23 May 2019.
  10. Holland, Kaye. "Introducing the world's newest cruise ship – does MSC Bellissima live up to its name?". The Telegraph.
  11. "MSC Bellissima Casts Off for Sea Trials | World Maritime News". worldmaritimenews.com. 20 December 2018. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  12. Mathisen, Monty (21 December 2018). "MSC Bellissima Departs from Chantiers de l'Atlantique For Sea Trials". www.cruiseindustrynews.com. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  13. "World of Cruising Magazine - MSC Bellissima Adds Andrea Bocelli to Star-Studded Naming Ceremony". World of Cruising Magazine. 25 February 2019.
  14. Sloan, Gene. "New cruise ships for 2019: MSC Cruises' MSC Bellissima". USA TODAY.
  15. "MSC Bellissima Christened". The Maritime Executive. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  16. Ross, Andrew. "Star-studded naming of MSC Bellissima halted by bad weather". Daily Echo. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  17. "This New Cruise Ship Will Have Virtual Assistants to Give You Everything You Could Possibly Need". Travel + Leisure. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  18. "MSC Bellissima to debut Swarovski suite, Grandiosa will have fine art experience". Seatrade Cruise News. 9 September 2019. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  19. "MSC Bellissima becomes star of Channel 5 documentary". Cruise Trade News. 13 February 2020.
  20. Staff, C. I. N. (27 February 2019). "Chantiers de l'Atlantique Delivers MSC Bellissima". www.cruiseindustrynews.com. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  21. "MSC Bellissima Makes Inaugural Call in Spain". 12 March 2019.
  22. "MSC Cruises' newest mega cruise ship MSC Bellissima will cruise roundtrip from Dubai in 2020 -". 12 February 2018. Retrieved 22 May 2018.
  23. Staff, C. I. N. (2 December 2019). "MSC Bellissima Makes Maiden Visit to Doha". www.cruiseindustrynews.com.
  24. "MSC Bellissima is heading to Asia in spring 2020". seatrade-cruise.com. 24 April 2018.
  25. Mathisen, Monty (24 April 2018). "MSC Bellissima to China in 2020". www.cruiseindustrynews.com.
  26. "Two more persons test positive for COVID-19 in Telangana". Telangana Today.
  27. "Açorianos que participaram no cruzeiro devem contactar a Linha Saúde Açores". Açoriano Oriental.
  28. "Trappeto, positivo un ragazzo di 22 anni che lavorava sulle navi MSC". 2 April 2020.
  29. red, kaernten ORF at (4 May 2020). "Kärntnerin sitzt seit 50 Tagen auf Schiff fest". kaernten.ORF.at.
  30. "MSC Kreuzfahrten: Crew nach Hause geschickt - Cirque Du Soleil Artistin in Isolation mit positivem Befund". 5 May 2020.
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