2 April saw Hamburg welcome the ‘MSC Lirica’ to its new home port within the scope of a celebratory reception on board the cruise ship. Between April and October, the ‘MSC Lirica’ will be heading out from and back to Hamburg on a total of 25 cruises.
Hamburg. In the early morning hours of 2 April, the ‘MSC Lirica’ secured its moorings at its new home port. The symbolic presentation of the Hamburg admiralty plaque to the captain of the ‘MSC Lirica’, Captain Corrado Iaconis was undertaken by Harbour Master Jörg Pollmann from the Hamburg Port Authority. Also attending the reception were Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO of MSC Crociere S.A., Michael Zengerle, CEO of MSC Kreuzfahrten Deutschland GmbH and Senator Frank Horch, President of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Transport and Innovation.
A trip on the ‘MSC Lirica’ is particularly suitable for those new to cruising as there are numerous ‘mini-cruises’ from Hamburg to Helgoland as well as three- to five-day short trips throughout Northern Europe on offer. ‘In the coming season, all-in-all the ‘MSC Lirica’ is offering an exciting range of 21 different ports of call and route distances from the Hanseatic metropolis,” explained Michael Zengerle during the on-board event. A fact that ably emphasises the diversity of the routings available from Hamburg.
The port of Hamburg is becoming increasingly important for MSC Cruises. In 2013, the ‘MSC Magnifica’, which was also christened in Hamburg and has a passenger capacity of around 2,518, will ultimately adopt Hamburg as its home port.
Senator Horch and Pierfrancesco Vago consider the cooperation between Hamburg and MSC to be highly beneficial for all those involved and are convinced that the coming years will see further development of the partnership.
‘The MSC Magnifica was named in one of the finest cities in Germany. Hamburg is an important gateway to both Northern Europe and other cruise destinations. If for no other reason than that, I am convinced that relations between MSC and the City of Hamburg will progress to the mutual benefit of all,” stated Vago .
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Source: HamburgCruiseCenter, April 11, 2012