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MSC CRUISES: SERVICE WITH A BUTLER!

BUTLERS DESIGNATED TO NEW VIP AREA ON NEXT GENERATION OF MSC CRUISES’ SHIPS

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. (Oct. 10, 2007) – Close your eyes and think of a long sea voyage visiting places steeped in history and culture. Then imagine this trip being made extra-special by the service of a butler who will look after you, turning your cruise into a truly unforgettable experience.

This will become a reality on board MSC Fantasia and sister ship MSC Splendida, the biggest ships built for a European ship owner. These two new ships will join the fleet in November 2008 and spring 2009, respectively, marking the beginning of a new concept for cruises and a new era for vacations at sea.

MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida are the first ships in the fleet to have an exclusive VIP area. On board MSC Fantasia this will be called the “MSC Yacht Club” and will consist of 99 spacious suites. Other reserved areas will include a bar, solarium, 2 Jacuzzis, 1 pool with a skydome, an observation lounge (an area with its own bar and concierge plus a magnificent panoramic view) but above all, 24/7 “Butler Service, with one butler for every five suites.

“Butler Service” will provide assistance from check-in to transporting luggage and, if requested, unpacking and organizing personal belongings, serving English tea after 5 o’clock and meals in the stateroom on request, as well as cigars, wines, liquors and champagne. The butler also will be in charge of booking spa treatments, reserving a table at the restaurants and excursions – even organizing a small party in the suite.

To provide the perfect “Butler Service” on board MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida, Giovanni Mautone, Dining Services Manager of MSC Cruises, will be in charge of this new on board service. To equip himself with the necessary qualification, he graduated from “The International Butler Academy” in Warnsveld, the Netherlands.

MSC Fantasia and sister ship MSC Splendida will be 135,000 tons each, 1,092 feet long, 124 feet wide and 196 feet high. These two giants of the Seas will be 6 times the height of the Tower of Pisa, 393 feet taller than the Eiffel Tower and as tall as a 23 story building. Maximum speed will be 23 knots, with a 40 Mega Watt intake for the propulsion, equivalent to a 120 Ferrari! The ships will also have a total of 1,800 kms of electric cabling (the distance from Naples to Nantes) and 65,000 power points.

On board facilities will include:

1,637 staterooms, to host 3,900 passengers and 1,300 crew: 80% of the staterooms will be outside staterooms, of which 109 will be suites;

290,000 square feet of public space will include a theater (seating capacity 1,700), “Aqua Spa” the wellbeing center (occupying 16,000 square feet) with a thermal cave, 5 restaurants (including a Tex Mex with its open kitchen and a panoramic restaurant), 4 pools (3 outside and one covered with a transparent ceiling) with hydromassage and Jacuzzi, a sports bar and jazz bar, shops, casino, disco, Formula 1 simulator and interactive 3D cinema – all geared up to provide maximum enjoyment to the on board guests;

The Children’s Area will cover 4,000 square feet, dedicated to equally important ‘younger’ guests, and will feature a “Water Slide” (this will be located to one side of the disco and span the height of two decks, offering an impressive visual impact).

For more information about MSC Cruises, visit a local travel professional or www.msccruisesusa.com.

MSC Cruises currently has a fleet of eight ships: MSC Orchestra, MSC Musica, MSC Sinfonia, MSC Opera, MSC Armonia, MSC Lirica, MSC Melody and MSC Rhapsody, cruising in the Mediterranean all year round, Northern Europe, Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean and South America. The fleet will increase to 12 ships by 2010. In the spring of 2008 MSC Poesia, the third ship in the “Musica” class will join the fleet, followed in the autumn of 2008 and spring 2009 by MSC Fantasia and MSC Splendida. These will be two of the largest ships built by a European ship owner. Then in 2010 MSC Magnifica, the fourth ship in the Musica class will enter service.

MSC Cruises is a partner of the city of Venice and a member of the Club - ‘Friends of Venice’ as well as one of the supporters for the project ‘Venice Blue Flag’ which sets the standards for the carbon emissions.