MSC delays resumption of cruises for a month
MSC
25 Aug 2020
/ 17:02
CORFU. The first cruise ships will come to Corfu a month later than planned following the months-long suspension of cruises due to the pandemic.
MSC Cruises announced that it is postponing cruises scheduled to start on 29 August until 26 September.
The company said that with the recent introduction of additional testing measures for residents of Italy having travelled to Greece, they were seeing cancellations and a softening in demand since the ship’s itinerary includes as many as three Greek ports (Corfu, Katakolo and Pireaus). This has led to the decision to delay the restart of the ship by four weeks.
MSC Cruises believes that reservations will start to pick up again in the coming weeks due to the appeal of the itinerary.
Guests affected by the cancelled cruises will either be re-protected onto another cruise – in particular on MSC Grandiosa, which is currently sailing in the West Mediterranean - or will receive a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) where they have the opportunity to transfer the full amount paid for their cancelled cruise to a future cruise of their choice – on any ship, for any itinerary -- through to the end of 2021.
MSC Grandiosa is currently offering 7-night cruises with embarkation in the Italian ports of Genoa, Civitavecchia, Naples and Palermo and calling additionally at Valetta, Malta.
The postponement of the MSC cruises, however, hasn't stopped the protests from the business world about the so-called 'manipulated cruise'. The majority of businesspeople in Corfu are completely opposed to the policy that the company intends to follow, with its own health protocols and not allowing its customers to visit any businesses in Corfu Town.
The company said that with the recent introduction of additional testing measures for residents of Italy having travelled to Greece, they were seeing cancellations and a softening in demand since the ship’s itinerary includes as many as three Greek ports (Corfu, Katakolo and Pireaus). This has led to the decision to delay the restart of the ship by four weeks.
MSC Cruises believes that reservations will start to pick up again in the coming weeks due to the appeal of the itinerary.
Guests affected by the cancelled cruises will either be re-protected onto another cruise – in particular on MSC Grandiosa, which is currently sailing in the West Mediterranean - or will receive a Future Cruise Credit (FCC) where they have the opportunity to transfer the full amount paid for their cancelled cruise to a future cruise of their choice – on any ship, for any itinerary -- through to the end of 2021.
MSC Grandiosa is currently offering 7-night cruises with embarkation in the Italian ports of Genoa, Civitavecchia, Naples and Palermo and calling additionally at Valetta, Malta.
The postponement of the MSC cruises, however, hasn't stopped the protests from the business world about the so-called 'manipulated cruise'. The majority of businesspeople in Corfu are completely opposed to the policy that the company intends to follow, with its own health protocols and not allowing its customers to visit any businesses in Corfu Town.
