MSC Cruises’ Executive Chairman, Pierfrancesco Vago, commented: “Today we are celebrating a truly unique moment, as it is the first time that key shipbuilding milestones for two different ships are celebrated on the same day. This is testimony to the strength and ambition of our investment plan.  

“The Meraviglia generation of ships is already setting a new standard for the cruise industry and is just one of the three brand new prototypes that we have designed to bring the cruise guest experience to the next level. MSC Grandiosa is named to signify magnificence and grandeur, a fitting name for this even richer, ultra-modern mega-ship.  

“Additionally, with MSC Grandiosa we also continue to innovate in product development. Just as MSC Cruises “democratised” the luxury cruise experience when we were the first cruise brand to introduce a ship-in-ship luxury concept - the MSC Yacht Club, we are now doing the same for art and culture with the very first fine art museum at sea.”  

Laurent Castaing, General Manager of STX France, commented: “Today as we celebrate a cutting of the first steel and then a keel laying in the same day, we are living an unprecedented experience that marks the beginning of a new era, both for our client and for our yard. For MSC Cruises, it is the realization of an extraordinary investment plan, which will elevate the Company to become one of the three largest players in the global cruise industry; for us, it is the illustration of our very healthy order book, which leads us to deliver two ships a year until 2022. We are partners in the same virtuous circle, where boldness and the performance of each is a benefit to the other.”