MSC SINFONIA

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Medevac off Zakynthos

The Kefalonia Port Authority was informed in the afternoon of Sep 18, 2019, that a 79-year-old passenger of the "MSC Sinfonia" had fallen ill while the ship was west of Zakynthos and was in need of immediate hospital care. The patient was medevaced and then transported to the port of Argostoli, where he was transferred to the Kefallinia General Hospital by ambulance.

Storms caused superficial damage off South African coast

During a cruise along the South African east and south coasts as far as Cape Town, to which the "MSC Sinfonia" started on Apr 23, 2016, in Durban, the ship experienced very stormy weather along the KwaZulu-Natal and Wild Coasts. Swells were reaching over ten metres, which resulted in some superficial damage on the ship. With more storms being reported along the way, the captain took the decision for the safety of the ship and comfort of the passengers to take shelter in Port Elizabeth on Apr 24 until the seas had calmed down. The damage caused in the initial storm was repaired immediately and since then was a waiting game with one front after another between the ship and Cape Town. The decision to go into Port Elizabeth for shelter has been very costly, with refunds for two cancelled cruises and the repatriation of those stuck in Port Elizabeth but expecting to make Cape Town over the weekend. 200 passengers elected to stay on to Cape Town and everyone else was home already. Passengers will receive full refunds for cancelled cruises and a 25 percent discount on the next cruise booked. The storms have impacted over 6000 passengers on a couple of cruises to Walvis Bay and a few shorter cruises. The ship left Port Elizabeth on Apr 30 and headed to Cape Town where it arrived on May 1.

SA’s ports gear for bumper cruise season - Revamped MSC Sinfonia arrives in Durban

SOUTH Africa’s ports are ramping up for a bumper cruise season with at least eight luxury cruise ships and over ten passenger vessels of varying sizes set to ferry international and domestic tourists to and from the country’s port cities‚ according to the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA). The South African cruise season kicked off officially in October with a number of smaller vessels already having called at South Africa’s ports en route to and from travel hotspots in Africa‚ Europe‚ the Far East‚ the Mediterranean‚ South America and more. However, the MSC Sinfonia — the largest and most popular cruise ship in the local cruise calendar — marked a highlight in the 2015/16 cruise calendar when she arrived in her home port of Durban in the early hours of Thursday. This was her first South African call this season. Fresh from a €50m revamp‚ the already impressive vessel has been upgraded with new features and facilities‚ including lengthening by an extra 24 metres and the addition of around 200 extra balcony cabins with capacity for around 500 more passengers. The upgrades called for close collaboration between TNPA and MSC to ensure that the longer vessel could be accommodated at South African ports. TNPA’s port manager for the port of Durban Moshe Motlohi said: "The newly lengthened MSC Sinfonia will now be accommodated at the longer M berth in the Port of Durban. http://www.bdlive.co.za/business/transport/2015/11/22/sas-ports-gear-for-bumper-cruise-season