MSC Cruises to dock in India by 2015
The company that registered a 30 per cent rise in passenger numbers in 2013 will dock in India for the first time in 2015. India will feature on the route map of MSC Orchestra on a maiden voyage from the Emirates, partially circumnavigating Australia and
India features in the top- 10 emerging markets for MSC Cruises. It is the No. 7 emerging market for the company. This was revealed by Antonio
Paradiso, Executive Director - Emerging Markets, MSC Cruises. Seeing an everincreasing surge in India outbound that is taking cruise holidays, the company will boost its portfolio by including India in its itineraries after it adds four ships to its fleet. The ships are scheduled to be delivered by 2018. The company, which is a division of Mediterranean Shipping Company S. A, currently has 12 cruise ships.
Also, next year for the first time, India will feature on the route map of MSC Orchestra on a maiden voyage from the Emirates, down through the
We will boost our portfolio by including India in our itineraries after we add four ships to the fleet
Southern Hemisphere, partially circumnavigating Australia and
We see a huge demand for cruise tours to Europe from the Indian market.
arriving in Fremantle, Western Australia. “The ports of call in India will be Mumbai and Kochi. The 33-night voyage will start on February 21,” he informed.
According to Amit Mathur, Country Head, India, MSC Cruises, India is an important market for the company. “We see a huge demand for cruise tours to Europe from the Indian market. The company is seeing a huge demand for South Africa, European and Mediterranean cruise itineraries from the Indian clientele. We witnessed a 30 per cent rise in passenger numbers last year over 2012. This year, however, started on a slow note due to the elections. Business is picking up now and we will be focusing on cruise tour packages to Dubai- Abu Dhabi-Oman, and three- or four-night South Africa cruise packages this year.”