When did MSC first come to the US?

[J0Y0US]

When was the first MSC cruise out of the US? What about its first full "season"?

I tried looking it up but couldn't come across anything but from my understanding MSC is "newer" compared to other cruise lines for the US/Caribbean.

[Hlitner]

50 minutes ago, J0Y0US said:

When was the first MSC cruise out of the US? What about its first full "season"?

I tried looking it up but couldn't come across anything but from my understanding MSC is "newer" compared to other cruise lines for the US/Caribbean.

I believe the first MSC ship to be positioned in the USA was the Divina...back in 2013!  So, MSC has had a presence here for 9 years.  The company has gradually been increasing its presence in North America as they continue to add ships to this market.  Those who cruised here on the Divina, in the early days, would have noted that a majority of passengers were Europeans who flew to the USA to go on a line with which they were already quite familiar.  These days you have a very good mix of Europeans and North Americans.

 

MSC is not a new cruise line as it is over 30 years old!  It is still a family-owned company (Aponte) with very deep pockets since MSC''s Container Ship is #1 in the world.  The company continues to add new ships (nearly 2 a year) and is also in the process of starting Explora Journeys which will be a small ship (900 passenger) luxury cruise line (with 6 ships to be launched within the next few years).

 

Hank

[dexddd]

We first sailed Divinia 2017.  Researched a couple years in advance.  Not much info here at the time.

 

Our sailing probably 80% non US.

 

Had a great time.

[perakcruiser]

1 hour ago, Hlitner said:

I believe the first MSC ship to be positioned in the USA was the Divina...back in 2013!  So, MSC has had a presence here for 9 years.

No, 2009 or earlier. Probably earlier. The Poesia sailed from Europe to New York in Winter and did her Caribbean rounds from Fort Lauderdale. I don´t remember any details except that it had Key West as a destination sometimes. 

Edited July 30, 2022 by perakcruiser

[quattrohead]

I think MSC Poesia was in the USA in 2009, we first booked it in 2012 for a February 2013 cruise out of Fort Lauderdale.

[Oxo]

We were on the Lirica back in Jan 2006 and April 2006 out of Fort Lauderdale.

Rick Sasso came from Celebrity to take over US operations.

[J0Y0US]

Interesting and its funny how it kept going back a little further and further on each response so far.

 

If I end up cruising MSC in September I might ask them on the ship as well if they know.

[wcook]

According to that internet thing, MSC did occasional sailings before, but the Divina in ‘13 was the first long term NA ship. 

[CTGirl74]

My very first cruise was on the MSC Poesia in March 2013. Fort Lauderdale to the Bahamas. It was the first annual Monsters of Rock cruise. My third cruise will be on Meraviglia in October 2023 from Brooklyn, NY, to NE & Canada.

[J0Y0US]

22 minutes ago, wcook said:

According to that internet thing, MSC did occasional sailings before, but the Divina in ‘13 was the first long term NA ship. 

 

Ya I was trying to search and normally I have google-fu but it was failing me likely because while the first long term ship in NA was in 2013 they were visiting routinely back to the early 2000's.

[SirWolf]

2 minutes ago, J0Y0US said:

 

Ya I was trying to search and normally I have google-fu but it was failing me likely because while the first long term ship in NA was in 2013 they were visiting routinely back to the early 2000's.

That’s correct.

MSC basically tested the waters (so to speak) with smaller ships before entering the US market in 2017 with MSC Seaside which was the 16th largest cruise ship in the world at that time.

They have currently 1 smaller and 2 larger ships sailing from US ports.. expanding to 4 large ships in season 2023/2024.

[Hlitner]

55 minutes ago, SirWolf said:

That’s correct.

MSC basically tested the waters (so to speak) with smaller ships before entering the US market in 2017 with MSC Seaside which was the 16th largest cruise ship in the world at that time.

They have currently 1 smaller and 2 larger ships sailing from US ports.. expanding to 4 large ships in season 2023/2024.

Your post made me smile.  The Divina (the first MSC ship to be based in the USA) is over 139,000 tons.  While some folks might consider that small, to me it is huge!  My first cruise was back in the 70s on a 14,000 ton ship.  We still routinely cruise on lines (such as Seabourn) that have ships in the 30 - 40,000 ton size.     The truth is that MSC does not have any SMALL ships.  This is why we are soon going to book a cruise on their new Explora Journeys ships which will carry 930 passengers on a vessel about 66,000 tons.  In my world that is still not a "small" ship but it is getting down to a reasonable size.

 

Speaking of ship sizes you might want to consider that nearly all the luxury vessels are well under 100,000 tons!  

 

Hank

[shipgeeks]

Melody, 2002.

[capitalbarry]

MSC started sailing from USA in 2008, but I sailed on   MSC- Orchestra -03/ 14/2009 Southern Caribbean from Fort Lauderdale 

[capitalbarry]

6 hours ago, J0Y0US said:

When was the first MSC cruise out of the US? What about its first full "season"?

I tried looking it up but couldn't come across anything but from my understanding MSC is "newer" compared to other cruise lines for the US/Caribbean.

MSC- Orchestra -03/ 14/2009 Southern Caribbean 7day, but MSc started in 2008, out of Fort Lauderdale

[sidari]

We sailed on the Poesia 2012 TA from Barcelona to FLL, we also sailed on the First Divina TA in 2013 from Venice to Miami, MSC cut the cruise a day short so they could bring the ship in to port with no other ships there, over 1,000 US guests left the ship rather than stay onboard in Miami for two days.

I believe Poesia had sailed winter itineraries from 2006 from FLL

.

Edited July 30, 2022 by sidari

[shipgeeks]

We sailed on MSC Melody, out of Port Everglades, in early 2002.  I can recall a lot about the cruise!

[rkacruiser]

For several years, based on what I recall, MSC would base a ship in Port Everglades for a Winter season.  Lirica, Opera come to mind.  Press releases often began to state that a year round presence in the North American cruise market was coming.  Didn't happen.  Lots of press when Divina was going to be based year round.  And, then, it wasn't.  I think the appearance of Orchestra was the beginning of a change of deployment thinking, then, followed by a couple of years (or more) of the deployment of Poesia.  Reviews, I remember, of Orchestra were all over the map with more negative than positive.  The reason I remember this was when I shared an elevator in the Mid-Port Parking Garage returning to our cars from a couple from Orchestra.  I asked about their cruise and they had nothing but complimentary comments.  

 

34 minutes ago, shipgeeks said:

We sailed on MSC Melody, out of Port Everglades, in early 2002.  I can recall a lot about the cruise!

 

I'd be interested in remembering what you recall.  

[jansarts]

  We were on the Lyrica in  April 2007, out of Ft. Lauderdale, the Orchestra in  March 2009 and the Poesia in 2010 or 11, The Divina  ,Miami a few years later,Seaside Miami as well. Meraviglia Port Canaveral, Divina Again . The Divina in a few weeks.

 

[RD64]

MSC Opera from Lauderdale in March 2006. This was the second year the Opera sailed from FLL.

 

[shipgeeks]

OP, Thanks for starting this.  You have led me back to my journal, and to my cruise books from those days.

Interestingly, although we sailed MSC in 2002, I just found in a Frommer's guide, 2000, that MSC expanded into the Caribbean market in 1998, offering 11- and 12-night itineraries January through March.  Melody had been recommended to us by the social hostess on a Premier ship several years earlier.  

She was built in 1982, and had a passenger capacity of 1,076.  Our OV standard cabin was roomy, at 185 square feet, with a tub in the bathroom.  There were three pools, one with a magrodome.

Some notes from my journal:

Dinner was at 9pm.  There was a very small buffet at breakfast and lunch, but I learned, several days into the cruise, that meals were expected to be taken in the dining room, at one's usual table.

Lots of music and dancing throughout the day and evening.

Enormous aft lido deck.

My first hint that many non-Americans are aboard: a young man in a tiny Speedo, then a not-young man in a tiny thong bikini.  Very few t-shirts anywhere.

Crew show included a program by the onboard Flamenco dancers, followed by the Samoan crew (engineering department?) dancing, including a fire dance.

Some of the foods were "the best I've ever had", while some were so-so.

 

[gkbiiii]

I did a two night sailing on MSC Posea, (Port Everglades, FL) December 2010.  It was a gorgeous ship, sorta like the European Celebrity, however dining and service were very strange, but the two specialty dining rooms (Japanese & Italian) were outstanding.  Ship seemed to be run, by odd, thuggish, Russian Mafia like men.

Edited December 31, 2022 by gkbiiii

[JT1962]

It’s interesting how many in the US still haven’t heard of MSC. I was on the Meraviglia in January and several people on the pier from other ships in Costa Maya were asking questions about the ship, cruise line, where it sailed from, etc. Most had never heard of MSC, but were impressed by the ship.

[Galveston Cruiser]

We sailed the MSC Orchestra from Genoa to Ft, Lauderdale 12/08 arriving 1/09

Her first sailing to the U.S.

Loved!!!

[mowogo]

On 12/31/2022 at 8:47 AM, JT1962 said:

It’s interesting how many in the US still haven’t heard of MSC. I was on the Meraviglia in January and several people on the pier from other ships in Costa Maya were asking questions about the ship, cruise line, where it sailed from, etc. Most had never heard of MSC, but were impressed by the ship.

It is really only recently that MSC has even done a push beyond Florida in their advertising.  I’d say for many people the Seascape being featured on the Today Show was likely the first time they heard of MSC in the US.