By
Eve Smith |
MSC Cruises is to deploy MSC Splendida alongside MSC Bellissima in China in 2024, making it the only international cruise brand to homeport two vessels in the country that year. China last hosted international cruises in 2020.
MSC Bellissima will start sailing cruises from Keelung in Taiwan in January 2024, and will then make its debut in Shenzhen, China, on 29 June with eight sailings of two- to five-night itineraries that include calls to Hong Kong and Japanese destinations Okinawa, Yaeyama Islands and Miyako Island. It will operate eight sailings between 31 July and 6 September with six nights from Shanghai to Japan, visiting destinations including Fukuoka, Kagoshima, Osaka, Okinawa and Shimonoseki.
MSC Splendida’s winter 2024 itineraries from Shenzhen will be finalised soon.
“The day that the first spring 2024 itineraries for MSC Bellissima were announced the number of direct sales bookings in a single day hit the highest record in our history in the country, with family cabins and MSC Yacht Club suites contributing the largest share of revenue,” said Helen Huang, president of MSC Cruises China. “There is clearly a strong demand for vacations at sea in China and our decision to deploy two modern vessels in 2024 demonstrates a rapid recovery in its cruise industry and an appetite for premium voyages.”