As competing lines build exploration ships that carry just a few hundred, MSC Group plans to go big, building a fleet of 14-deck luxury ships that carry 1,000.
At a ceremony for the steel-cutting for the first ship, the company announced the brand will be called Explora Journeys. The first ship being built by Fincantieri in Italy is expected to set sail in 2023 while the remaining ships will in 2024, 2025 and 2026.
The Explora I will offer seven-day itineraries with what MSC is calling non-conventional arrival and departure times combined with overnight stays. The first cruises will visit major destinations such as Saint-Tropez, Bordeaux and Reykjavik, and less-visited ones like Bozcaada, Turkey, and Norway’s Lofoten Islands.
The ships will have 461 suites and what Explora calls residences, each with floor-to-ceiling windows and private balconies. The 14-deck ships will have three outdoor pools with 64 private cabanas and a fourth indoor pool with a retractable glass roof. Each ship will feature nine restaurants as well as several indoor and outdoor bars and lounges, along with spa and fitness facilities, the line said.
The ships will employ what Explora calls the latest “environmental-supporting technologies” and will be ready to adapt to alternative energy solutions as they become available, such as hybrid power generation. Built with ship-to-shore power capabilities to avoid CO2 emissions and will also have technologies to reduce underwater noise.
Michael Ungerer, CEO of Explora Journeys, said that the brand had “commissioned research, organized focus groups and hosted roundtable discussions with global specialists in luxury to design the perfect ship for our guests.”
