MSC MUSICA ship, Haifa port (photo: Yoav Itiel)
It's a love story that started on a boat.
Raffaele Diamant from Haifa was a 17-year-old girl when she boarded the MSC ferry that sailed between the island of Capri and the port of Naples.
Gianluigi "Gigi" Aponte, the 22-year-old young captain from Sorrento, was orphaned as a child in 1962.
Following her, he moved to Geneva, where her family lived at the time when her father got a job as a banker.
They married and in 1970, a few years after that fateful meeting, they took out a $200,000 loan which was enough for them to purchase a cargo ship together.
In a short time they purchased the second ship, which they already named after her, 'Rafaela'.
Although she does not have an official title, she remains involved in the company's activities as the person responsible for the design of the ships.
Their children, Alexa and Diego, work at MSC.
The son, Diego Aponte, serves as the company's president and CEO. Esty and Miki Diamant, may their memories be blessed, Rafaela's aunt and uncle, founded the MSC representative office in Israel, in Haifa, in 1992. The deal of the decade: live a year on a luxurious cruise ship for $
30,000
The largest cruise ship that will sail this summer from the port of Haifa.
MSC MUSICA, yesterday (photo: Yoav Ityel)
The "music" will anchor in Cyprus, Greece and Turkey (Photo: Yoav Itiel)
MSC Group (Mediterranean Shipping Company - "Mediterranean Shipping Company") has occupied the top in the ranking of shipping companies in the world in the last two years.
The company owns 730 ships that can carry 4.8 million containers at any given time.
It employs over 30,000 people worldwide.
MSC is a huge company that remains privately owned and is not traded on the stock exchange.
The company's headquarters remain in Geneva and its owners 50%-50% to this day are the billionaires Raffaele and Jean-Luigi Aponte, the richest couple in Switzerland and the richest in the world, whose combined fortune this month was estimated by Forbes magazine at 62.4 billion dollars.
The MSC Cruises
subsidiary is today the third largest cruise brand in the world and the largest in Europe, South America, the Gulf region and South Africa.
Haifa has always remained important to her.
Yesterday (Thursday), MSC Cruises launched the cruises of the ship MSC MUSICA ("Music"), the largest cruise ship that will sail this summer from the port of Haifa to a variety of destinations in the Mediterranean basin.
Up to 3,200 passengers and another thousand crew members can sail on the MSC MUSICA, and for this season it has scheduled sailings that will depart every week on Thursdays, on the 28 sailings expected until the beginning of November, and with the idea of giving Israelis an atmosphere abroad as well, amounting to The 1,000 Israelis who will board only about a third of the passengers. The other 2,000 are tourists from various countries, and the company's past experience in Haifa shows that they mainly come from Spain, Italy, France, the USA, Germany and Russia.
On Thursdays, they get off the ship and usually take advantage of the free day in Israel for a quick organized trip to Haifa and the region, or to the holy sites of Christianity, in Jerusalem or Nazareth, etc.
From the port of Haifa the ship sails with berths in the city of Limassol in Cyprus, in Mykonos, Piraeus and Santorini in Greece (instead of Rhodes which was on the cruise route of MSC from Haifa in previous years), Kusadasi in Turkey and from there back to the port of Haifa.
,
One of the restaurants on board the "Muzika" (Photo: Yoav Itiel)
During the cruise there are 15 bars and lounges for the passengers to enjoy on the ship (Photo: Yoav Itiel)
Free buffet that is open 22 hours a day
MSC MUSICA includes 16 decks ("floors") and 1,275 cabins (passenger rooms) in the total selection from a room with a sea view to pampering rooms with a balcony or elegant suites.
During the cruise, passengers on the ship will enjoy 15 bars and lounges, a theater for live performances with over 1,000 seats, swimming pools, a spa, a casino and a variety of restaurants and styles, and for an additional (and reasonable) fee, a sushi bar with Japanese delicacies.
The restaurants serve Italian and international cuisine and there is also a free buffet ("buffet"), open 22 hours a day.
State-of-the-art playgrounds for children of all ages, a gym, dance clubs, sports fields such as tennis, basketball and soccer, and even a 240-meter running track.
In the field of entertainment, MSC MUSICA offers its guests day activities and night entertainment with a main show every evening.
The ship has a luxurious theater with 1,000 seats, a casino, a panoramic disco hall and more.
Every evening "Broadway" style performances at the La Scala theater.
The company promises special attention to the Israeli audience with an Israeli stand-up artist on every cruise, menus and daily content in Hebrew, an Israeli TV channel, and also a number of Israeli crew members and not only in the security team.
Considering that it is 7 nights of all-inclusive, and that Israelis do not need to spend extra on a flight, this is a "per person" product, which is reflected in reasonable prices per person in an interior double room: starting at $799 in July and starting at $599 in the month September.
Wine-beer-soft drinks for an extra charge and you can purchase packages in advance.
Water, tea and coffee in restaurants - free of charge.
You can order Glat-kosher food that is heated in the kitchen and arrives closed to the table.
Even if you pay extra.
The ship can accommodate up to 3,200 passengers and another thousand crew members (Photo: Yoav Itiel)
About 600 thousand passengers and tourists are expected in 2023 from Haifa
No wonder Eyal Atias, director of MSC Cruises Israel is optimistic.
"I believe that this summer we will reach new heights," he promises.
The company hopes to return next year with an even bigger ship and thus continue to grow its operations in Haifa port.
"Israel is a strategic target for the company, it is a hot spot," says the MSC management.
Zohar Rom, Director of Tourism and Cruises at the Port of Haifa, says that in general, the cruise season from the Port of Haifa is expected to be bigger than ever in almost every parameter.
According to him, a record number of 150 cruises will depart from Haifa this year, with both Israelis and tourists from around the world on them, who will arrive on flights to Israel and at the end of a tour of the country will board cruises in the port of Haifa.
In addition, approximately 200,000 tourists are expected to arrive in Haifa on cruises that will arrive in Israel from various destinations throughout the Eastern Mediterranean, and in total, approximately 600,000 passengers and tourists are expected at the Port of Haifa in 2023, an increase of over 70% compared to 2022, which was also a record year for all times
The season was opened about a month ago by the "Mano Shipping" company with the upgraded "Crown Iris" ship, and every year it offers a variety of cruises throughout the Mediterranean Sea with different sailing lengths.
Meno Shipping's sailings will continue from the port of Haifa, usually twice a week, until the month of November.
This is the first time since 2019 that we have opened a shipping season even before Passover.
Yesterday, MSC also joined our shipping list, and soon Royal Caribbean will also return and offer regular cruises from the port of Haifa.
A total of nine different companies will offer cruises from Haifa this year, and a total of 30 different cruise brands will frequent the Haifa port this year, this figure is also higher than ever before.
Mandy Salzman, CEO of the Haifa Port Company: "The Port of Haifa is committed to continuing to develop the field of cruises both as part of the strategic plan of the port's purchasers, the Adani-Gadot Group, to develop the Port of Haifa, and for the sake of the city of Haifa and for the sake of Israel's economy."
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