6,000-Passenger Cruise Ship Arrives in Port Canaveral (First of Its Class Based in US)

After a 15-day crusing from Barcelona, the primary Meraviglia Plus-class ship from MSC Cruises arrived in Port Canaveral, Florida.  The ship is scheduled to stay in Port Canaveral by way of April 2026.

Port Canaveral has been on a roll recently, having as soon as once more taking the title of “World’s Busiest Cruise Port”.  Providing over 1,000 cruises annually throughout 7 completely different cruise strains, there’s a brand new ship on the town.

MSC Grandiosa arrived in Port Canaveral as we speak, after making a brief cease in PortMiami yesterday.  That is now the second ship from MSC Cruises crusing out of the port, and this marks the primary time {that a} Meraviglia Plus-class ship has been primarily based within the U.S.

The 6,334 max-passenger (4,842 at double capability) ship joins MSC Seashore in Port Canaveral.  MSC Seashore affords largely 3- and 4-night sailings with a wide range of different durations (5-11 days).

At 181,541 in gross tonnage, MSC Grandiosa is the bigger of the 2 ships and can supply a mixture of 7-night Caribbean and Bahamas cruises all through its winter season.

New Itineraries

The arrival of MSC Grandiosa provides MSC Cruises better publicity and extra selection for his or her future passengers who sail out of Florida. Whereas MSC Seashore focuses on brief cruises to the Bahamas (together with stops on the line’s non-public island, Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve), Grandiosa will deal with a wide range of itinerary varieties.

Brief Bahamas Sailings: The ship affords a number of 3- and 4-day sailings to The Bahamas in January. These journeys embrace a cease at Nassau and MSC’s non-public island, Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve.
Prolonged Voyages: The ship additionally affords 8-day Western Caribbean and Bahamas cruises (just like the December twenty seventh crusing) and distinctive 14-day back-to-back cruises that mix two completely different week-long itineraries, going to locations like Puerto Rico, the Cayman Islands, and Jamaica.
7-Day Sailings: The 7-day sailings will primarily alternate between Japanese and Western Caribbean itineraries, with calls at Ocean Cay, Nassau, San Juan , Puerto Plata, Cozumel, and Grand Cayman.

Onboard MSC Grandiosa

MSC Grandiosa was inbuilt 2019 and was the primary Meraviglia Plus-class ship with the cruise line.  This new class is barely bigger than Meraviglia-class, with some extra facilities.

The brand new ship in Port Canaveral has an enlarged Galleria Grandiosa, an indoor promenade that’s longer than in Meraviglia-class ships, and options extra retailers and eating venues. This house has the signature 80-meter-long LED Sky Display as nicely, which options some particular impact reveals in addition to setting the temper in décor for the day.

Grandiosa additionally options two new unique Cirque du Soleil at Sea reveals particularly designed for its enhanced Carousel Lounge, a glass-walled venue close to the aft of the ship. The rise in measurement (at 181,541 gross tons versus 171,598) means extra public house and capability for the water park and household areas.

Trying Forward

The ship’s homeporting in Florida will final for the complete winter cruise season. Following its Caribbean deployment, MSC Grandiosa is scheduled to make a Transatlantic Grand Voyage again to Europe in April 2026 to start its summer time season within the Mediterranean, the place it’s going to sail from ports like Barcelona, Spain, and Genoa, Italy.