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MSC Lirica makes Abu Dhabi home - and MSC Opera lines up for next winter

MSC Lirica has arrived in Abu Dhabi, becoming the first cruise ship to home port in the United Arab Emirates capital.

And MSC Cruises immediately announced that the even larger MSC Opera will cruise out of Abu Dhabi in 2012/13.

The 59,000-ton MSC Lirica arrived from Genoa, Italy at Mina Zayed’s new temporary cruise terminal where the liner, her passengers and crew, were given a warm welcome with a spectacular fireworks display.

MSC Lirica almost immediately set sail on the first of 19 seven and eight-night itineraries for the 2011/12 winter season cruising around Abu Dhabi and the Emirates and calling at Muscat, Al Fujairah, Khasab in Oman and Dubai with 95 calls and rotations.

Sheikh Sultan Bin Tahnoon Al Nahyan told guests at the welcoming ceremony that MSC Lirica would be remembered for breaking new ground in Abu Dhabi.

“We hope she has set a course that many others will follow,” he said. “Many of the guests MSC Lirica has brought here – and many more she will in the future – will see the UAE capital for the first time. We hope it will not be their last.”

Pierfrancesco Vago, CEO of MSC Cruises, commented: “I am proud of what we’ve achieved so far and confident this is just the beginning of a great new era for cruise tourism in the United Arab.”
“Signalling our firm faith in Abu Dhabi as an innovative and highly desirable new holiday destination, we plan to bring a further ultra-modern ship – MSC Opera – to Abu Dhabi in 2012/2013.

“This ship, which has a larger capacity than MSC Lirica with 867 cabins, will sail 25 cruises with 125 calls and bring a further 54,000 passengers per year to the area.”
The new temporary cruise terminal at Mina Zayed is capable of simultaneously accommodating 1,300 passengers and has been designed to cater for the 2011/2012 and 2012/2013 cruise seasons.
The terminal spans some 2,000 square metres and comprises two dedicated halls – one a luggage-handling facility, the other a passenger centre complete with a waiting lounge, security section, prayer rooms, offices, visitor information centre, currency exchange as well as customs and immigration facilities.