Cruise ship MSC Bellisima has launched this week as the latest ship in MSC Cruises’ fleet. The 171,598-ton vessel can carry a whopping 5,686 and will be officially named in Southampton tomorrow before leaving for the Mediterranean. MSC Bellissima is equipped with cutting-edge guest technology to make life even easier for passengers. She is the first MSC Cruises ship to feature ZOE, the world’s first virtual personal cruise assistant, which has been added to MSC for Me.
The voice-enabled virtual personal assistant will be found in every cabin and can answer hundreds of questions about the cruise.
ZOE will be able to speak seven languages so can interact with cruise passengers from around the world.
On 4 March, MSC Bellissima will depart on her maiden voyage, which will take her to Genoa, Italy, where she will spend her inaugural season, offering Western Mediterranean cruises.
In November 2019, she will reposition to the Gulf, providing weekly sailings out of Dubai. In spring 2020 she will be deployed to Asia.
Bellissima is the ship for all seasons, with plenty of outdoor and indoor public spaces.
With a length of just 315 metres, she has been designed to be able to access most of the world’s cruise ports.
The vessel boasts a 96m long Mediterranean-style promenade featuring an 80 metre LED dome and has a deck surface area the equivalent of 63 football pitches.
Guests on board can enjoy a plethora of onboard entertainment. There are 210 activities each week for adults.
They can expect six different shows in the West End style theatre and two different Cirque de Soleil at Sea shows.
Guests can also admire the six elegant Swarovski staircases on board which have an incredible 640 crystals per step.
There are 12 different dining venues on board with a selection of complimentary, casual and speciality restaurants to choose from. There are also 20 different bars.
For those looking for a bit more activity, there is an aqua park where thrill seekers can choose from three action-packed water slides including a champagne bowl and two racing tube slides.
Younger guests can play in the Aquaplay spray area and kids and adults alike can climb aboard the Himalayan Bridge where guests attach themselves to a rope course and cross the ship, 80 metres above the water.
There are 11 different areas to dance plus nightly karaoke, dedicated nightclub and bars open until 2am.
In addition, there is a spacious 390 m2 Sportplex providing a large arena for guests to play sports and games with many activities and tournaments organised throughout the day.
Bearing testament to the Company’s commitment to protect the environment, MSC Bellissima has been equipped with some of the latest environmental technologies available.
These include, amongst others, a cutting-edge exhaust gas cleaning system, an advanced wastewater treatment plant, systems for the prevention of oil discharge from machinery spaces, a ballast water treatment system, and various energy-saving improvements – from heat recovery systems to LED lighting.
The launch comes after two MSC cruise ships were caught on camera colliding into one another in an Argentinian port.