MSC Cruises appointed Gianni Onorato to CEO of the company, effective Sept. 2, 2013.
With almost 30 years’ experience in the cruise industry, Onorato has experience in senior executive leadership, serving as president of Costa Crociere for more than nine years. Onorato will be based in Geneva at the MSC Cruises headquarters. He will report to the MSC Board of Directors and to its Executive Chairman.
“I am thrilled to have been appointed to this exciting role and I am also particularly excited to move to Geneva, where MSC Cruises’ headquarters is based,” said Onorato. “I will do everything I can to add value to the company and help MSC Cruises maximize its industry-leading position. I look forward to starting work with the management team in this significant moment of the company’s growth.”
Pierfrancesco Vago will continue to lead the privately held cruise company in the role of executive chairman.
Norwegian Cruise Line released a list of newly appointed senior officers, including two captains, Rune Myre and Tommy Stensrud, who will take the helm of Norwegian Getaway.
Captain Rune Myre brings more than 28 years of experience to the Getaway, having joined Norwegian Cruise Line in 1998 and serving as first officer on board Norwegian Wind and Norwegian Dream. Myre is responsible for all aspects of the ship, its guests and crew. He graduated from the Tromso Maritime Academy in 1993.
While Myre is enjoying his vacation, captain Tommy Stensrud will take command of Norwegian Getaway. Stensrud began his nautical career 35 years ago serving in the Norwegian Navy. In September 2002, Stensrud was appointed captain of Norwegian Star and he is currently serving as captain of Norwegian Pearl. He also played a role in the launch of several Norwegian ships including Norwegian Star, Pride of America and Norwegian Jewel.
Other senior officers Norwegian identified by Norwegian to serve aboard the Norwegian Getaway include staff captain Niklas Persson, chief engineer Carsten Forsbo, chief engineer Oeystein Undrum and hotel director Sean Wumhoeringer.
Carnival Cruise Line's Carnival Conversations outreach program is offering a quarterly travel agent survey to get even more feedback from agents. This 63-question survey is the first ever offered by the line to travel agents, and is administered by a third party. Topics include general trade relations sentiment, specific elements of the line’s current pricing structure and preferred components for a potential future brochure.