''MSC Meraviglia'' is a cruise ship owned and operated by

MSC Cruises MSC Cruises ( it, MSC Crociere) is an Italian global cruise line registered in Switzerland and based in Geneva, with operations offices in Naples, Genoa and Venice. It was founded in 1989 in Naples, Italy, as part of the Mediterranean Shipping C ...

, built at the

Chantiers de l'Atlantique Chantiers de l'Atlantique is a shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France. It is one of the world's largest shipyards, constructing a wide range of commercial, naval, and passenger ships. It is located near Nantes, at the mouth of the Loire river and ...

shipyard in

St. Nazaire Saint-Nazaire (; ; Gallo: ''Saint-Nazère/Saint-Nazaer'') is a commune in the Loire-Atlantique department in western France, in traditional Brittany. The town has a major harbour on the right bank of the Loire estuary, near the Atlantic Ocean. T ...

, France, by STX France. ''MSC Meraviglia'' is the lead ship of MSC's new "Vista Project" vessels, the ''Meraviglia'' class, with following in 2019. Each vessel has a passenger capacity of 4,500. When it entered service in June 2017, it was the sixth largest cruise ship in the world, behind Royal Caribbean's s and .

History

The ship initially operated in the western Mediterranean also cruised in

Northern Europe The northern region of Europe has several definitions. A restrictive definition may describe Northern Europe as being roughly north of the southern coast of the Baltic Sea, which is about 54th parallel north, 54°N, or may be based on other g ...

as of summer 2019, but repositioned to the United States for the first time, to

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

and Miami, in fall 2019, to sail to the

Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...

as part of a North American expansion program by MSC.

Design and construction

The vessel's name was announced, and steel was cut, at a ceremony held at Chantiers de l'Atlantique on 20 April 2015. The ship was formally named on 3 June 2017 by her godmother, Italian actress

Sophia Loren Sofia Costanza Brigida Villani Scicolone (; born 20 September 1934), known professionally as Sophia Loren ( , ), is an Italian actress. She was named by the American Film Institute as one of the greatest female stars of Classical Hollywood ci ...

at a ceremony in Le Havre, which also featured

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

actor

Patrick Bruel Patrick Benguigui (; born 14 May 1959), better known by his stage name Patrick Bruel (), is a French singer-songwriter, actor and professional poker player. Biography Early life Patrick is the son of Pierre Benguigui and Augusta Kammoun, d ...

, musical group

Kids United Kids United was a French singing group between 2015 and 2021 that consisted of six, later five, children born between 2000 and 2009. It was created to support UNICEF campaigns and is sponsored by Hélène Ségara and Corneille , two Francophon ...

, and comedian Gad Elmaleh. The building of ''MSC Meraviglia'' was shown in the second episode of the Science Channel series, '' Building Giants'', and titled "Monster Cruise Ship". The ship's facilities include a promenade with a long LED roof, a water park with water slides, a rope course and a theater. The ship also has over ten dining areas and a spa.

Incidents

COVID-19 pandemic

On 26 February, during the COVID-19 pandemic in Mexico, Mexican authorities granted permission for ''MSC Meraviglia'', registered in Malta, to dock in Cozumel, Quintana Roo, because she carried a passenger presumed to be infected with COVID-19. The ship was previously denied access to ports in Jamaica and the

Cayman Islands The Cayman Islands () is a self-governing British Overseas Territory—the largest by population in the western Caribbean Sea. The territory comprises the three islands of Grand Cayman, Cayman Brac and Little Cayman, which are located to the ...

. Two cases of common seasonal flu were found. The CDC reported, as early as 22 April, that at least one person who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 had tested positive within 14 days after disembarking.

References

External links

MSC Cruises official site
{{MSC Ships , state=collapsed 2016 ships Ships built by Chantiers de l'Atlantique Ships built in France Meraviglia