MSC Cruises will resume its South African sailings on December 6, following approvals in the most recent Government Gazette.
The well-known MSC Orchestra will homeport in Durban and Cape Town for the local 2021/22 season and offer two-, three-, four- and seven-night voyages up to May 11, 2022. The vessel has recently undergone a major refurbishment programme and replaces the MSC Musica, which was originally earmarked for South Africa in the upcoming cruise season.
MSC Orchestra will sail a total of 41 local cruises from Cape Town and Durban. In Durban embarkation will be at the soon-to-be-inaugurated KZN terminal.
Highlights include Pomene Bay in Mozambique, a marine safari experience complete with its own beach club, and Portuguese Island and other destinations in Southern Africa.
Stringent health and safety measures will be implemented on board MSC Orchestra and at all destinations where the ship will call. These measures are based on a protocol MSC introduced in August 2020 for the wellbeing of passengers, crew and the destinations served by its vessels.
The MSC Cruises’ protocol has safely protected hundreds of thousands of guests since its introduction on cruises in Europe, North America and the Middle East.
Ross Volk,MD of MSC Cruises South Africa, said: “We are delighted to have received confirmation and approval from the government that cruising, and with it our local season, can proceed. I believe that our return to sailing will provide a welcome boost to the South African economy in terms of direct and indirect employment, as well as offering safe and relaxing cruise holidays.
“We have worked co-operatively since last year with all of the relevant authorities, ports and destinations to demonstrate that our new health and safety protocol can ensure the wellbeing of guests, our crew and the communities that MSC Orchestra will visit during the season. We now look forward to receiving details of the health and safety guidelines that will allow us to finalise our protocol for the start of our sailing programme.”
MSC Cruises currently plans to accept guests who have been vaccinated against COVID-19 as well as those not vaccinated, but this is subject to the requirements of either the South African government or any of the other countries that MSC Orchestra is set to visit during the season.
The government, to date, has not mandated that passengers must be fully vaccinated before a cruise holiday nor have other countries in MSC Orchestra’s Southern Africa itineraries.
MSC Cruises, however, strongly urges its guests to be fully vaccinated before their voyage for their own wellbeing and that of other passengers, the ship’s crew and communities in the destinations that MSC Orchestra will visit.
All passengers – both vaccinated and unvaccinated – must take a COVID-19 RT-PCR test within 72 hours of their cruise departure and provide proof of a negative result in order to board.
Unvaccinated guests over the age of 18 years will additionally have to undergo an antigen lateral flow test at the embarkation port, costing R300 per person.
All guests will be required to have an insurance policy to cover COVID-19-related issues such as cancellation, interruption, repatriation, quarantine and medical assistance and related expenses. Guests can choose MSC Cruises’ new Hollard COVID-19 Protection Plan that will provide coverage before, during and after their cruise. In collaboration with Hollard Insurance, the plan covers cancellation charges as well as medical and related transport expenses.
Health screening of all guests in the cruise terminals will include a temperature check and a health questionnaire.
Guest embarkation flow will be managed by assigning a specific arrival time to guests, which will be indicated on their cruise ticket. The guests will be asked to respect the timing and will not be allowed to enter the terminal until their time slot, in order to comply with the local social distancing regulations.
MSC Orchestra is equipped with a 24/7 Medical Centre staffed by professional doctors and nurses and has a contingency response plan agreed in collaboration with the relevant authorities ashore.
Additional health and safety measures include extended sanitation on board and the wearing of face masks in indoor public areas or where social distancing cannot be guaranteed.
With MSC Orchestra’s sailings set to commence on December 6, MSC Cruises has had to cancel its original proposed Southern Africa November voyages. The planned 14-night New Year’s Eve cruise during the coming season has also been altered into three 4-night cruises and one 2-night sailing as a result of a lack of available ports in the original itinerary.
All guests whose reservations are affected by the cancellation are eligible for a future cruise credit voucher to the value of their current cruise package as well as compensation in line with the length of their cruise.
