“The MSC Seaside has lots and lots of new features that will entertain our guests. A seven-day cruise may not be enough,” said Roberto Fusaro, president of MSC Cruises USA.

The company has spent money, time and a lot of effort to lay the foundation in North America ahead of the Seaside, which arrived in Miami in late December.

A dedicated product team now works out of South Florida in tandem with MSC’s headquarters in Geneva, managing the Seaside’s hotel, food and beverage and crew recruitment, along with other areas.

“It allows us to tweak the product for American needs,” Fusaro told Cruise Industry News.

An expanded terminal was opened, Terminal F, at PortMiami, with a significantly expanded waiting area, and a VIP area for Yacht Club guests.

“Everything is geared toward offering a fantastic product, not only on the ship, but before people get to the ship,” Fusaro said.

That will all lead to what is most key: generating demand for MSC’s year-round ship in the North American market, and potential plans for much more down the road.

“The ship is fantastic, beautiful, and what we are doing is conveying that message,” Fusaro said.

The marketing drive is also helping to export passengers to MSC ships in Europe.

“We have a significant number of Americans cruising on the new Meraviglia. The advanced bookings from the U.S. for that ship in Northern Europe (summer 2018) are doing very well,” he continued. “The Seaview is also launching in the Med this summer and that is getting a lot of bookings from the U.S.”

Excerpt from Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine: Winter 2017/2018