MSC Cruises has cancelled the next sailing onboard the MSC Opera as the ship awaits completion of the investigation into its collision with Uniworld’s River Countess. Repairs to the damage the ship sustained during the incident are already complete, MSC says.
“As these procedures are taking a few days longer than originally expected, and we now know that the ship will not be able to depart in time for its next sailing, we have taken the difficult but necessary decision to cancel the upcoming cruise sailing from Bari on June 8 and from Venice on June 9,” the cruise line said in a statement shared with Travel Agent.
MSC says that it has informed its guests and travel partners regarding the cancellation. Guests on the cancelled sailing can opt for a full refund of their cruise fare and incurred travel expenses, as well as any pre-booked services. The cruise line is also offering a 50 percent discount on a future seven- to 21-night cruise before the end of 2020.
The MSC Opera struck the River Countess while the river cruise ship was docked at the San Basilio Cruise Terminal in Venice, Italy, on Sunday, June 2. At the time, MSC had said that its ship had experienced a technical issue while accompanied by two tugs, causing the ship to graze the dock at San Basilio and collide with the River Countess.
Due to damage to the River Countess, Uniworld was also forced to cancel six upcoming cruise-tour dates, which had been originally scheduled for June 7, 14, 21 and 28, July 5 and 12. The river cruise ship is scheduled to make its return July 21 when it sets sail from Venice as part of the company’s July 19 cruise-tour date, which begins in Milan.
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