Page 12 - COBH EDITION 15th MARCH DIGITAL VERSION

Cruise Goss with Jackie Coakley

I was very privileged to attend the launch of the brand new
MSC ship Bellissima in Southampton last weekend. This is the
sister ship to MSC Meraviglia which visited us in Cobh in 2018.
She truly was a spectacular sight. Sophia Loren launched the
ship and Holly Willoughby hosted the event and we caught a
glimpse of her as she arrived earlier on embarking the ship
and being guided around by MSC staff.

There was a large Irish contingent of Irish Travel agents and
media invited onboard along with agents from all over the
Globe. We were treated to a fantastic launch party with Andre
and Matteo Bocelli entertaining us and then later onboard
there was a sumptuous gala dinner followed by parties all
over the ship with the complimentary drinks flowing. The fol-
lowing night we were treated to a big party with Craig David
on the decks held on the Galleria Promenade with it’s impressive 480 square metre LED
screen which changes colour and images.

Of course I did do some work and went to see all the various cabin types, checked out the
Spa and Kids zones and went about tasting all the delightful samples they had in the vari-
ous restaurants and bars ( all part of the job!!) I would highly recommend this ship and MSC
have really stepped up when it comes to service and food. Although it felt crowded and busy
at times, I think this ship will suit all ages and with so much going on and so many areas to
check out you will never get bored.
MSC Bellissima sails 7 nights ex Barcelona throughout the Summer and then heads to Dubai
for the Winter months and there are some great prices on her so check out my page Jackie’s
Cruise Page Cobh for updates.