GENEVA — MSC Cruises’ flagship – MSC Grandiosa – is set to return to sea on Jan. 24.

The ship will resume its planned weekly cruises departing every Sunday from Genoa, Italy and calling in the Italian ports of Civitavecchia, Naples and Palermo as well as Valetta in Malta. Passengers will be able to embark from each port in Italy.

The news comes on the heels of Italy’s latest ministerial decree, which authorizes the resumption of cruise operations following the protection of health and safety protocols developed and authorized by the Italian health, transport and safety authorities last summer. Since then, MSC Cruises has safely welcomed over 30,000 guests onboard its two ships based out of Italy.

MSC Cruises was the first major cruise line to resume sailing in August 2020 following the global shutdown of the cruise industry last March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. MSC Grandiosa then set sail on Aug. 16 from Genoa for the first of its seven-night voyages in the Western Mediterranean. However, due to ensuing restrictive measures in Italy, MSC was forced to temporarily suspend all Italy-based cruise operations during Christmas and end-of-year festivities, through to the issuance of the ministerial decree.

For more details about MSC Grandiosa’s itinerary click here.