ANTONIO’S VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF CRUISE

Antonio Paradiso is Vice President of International Sales for the MSC Group Cruise Division. Here, he reveals why cruise passengers are getting younger and why choosing tea for British guests was so tough In May 2021, MSC Virtuosa was the first big ship to sail around the UK and we welcomed many guests who had never sailed before. A lot of those people are now repeat cruise passengers who loved the experience and thought, ‘it’s not what I was thinking, it’s actually really cool and I want to do it again.’ The new-to-cruise market is vital to the industry, with MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys (Antonio looks after both lines) getting a lot of bookings from this audience. We tell holidaymakers why they should book a cruise – good value; lots to do; multiple destinations – and how so much is included in the ticket price, from first-class entertainment to some of the world’s best food. We’re attracting a younger crowd on social media who like the look of the fun things on our ships, like the waterslides and parties and now we’re seeing people in their 30s and 40s try out cruising. Whatever age they are, our customers are a lively bunch and they know what they want – like British tea onboard. One of the hardest things I had to do is pick which British tea brand MSC cruise ships should carry. It was a choice between Yorkshire Tea or Tetley and Yorkshire Tea won.