What is it that gives a cruise ship its identity? Is it a name, a hull painting, or a statement piece of art in the atrium? Does it have more to do with cruise line branding or the people who pay to sail on it? Is it savvy marketing or simply a by-product of homeport positioning? The debut of the 215,863-gross-ton MSC World America, an American-focused megaship built by European cruise line MSC Cruises, makes for an interesting study in what may or may not appeal to the American clientele.
By Brittany Chrusciel
In April 2025 I was on board MSC World America for its inaugural sailing, round trip from Miami, to experience first-hand the many ways – both obvious and indirect – that MSC Cruises tweaked the vessel to appeal more to American families in addition to the rest of its diverse passenger mix.
“Remember, a ship like this sources 50 per cent [of passengers] from the American market and 50 per cent from the rest of the world, which is unique to us,” Suzanne Salas, EVP of marketing, e-commerce and sales, told CruiseTimes in an exclusive onboard interview. “We are seeing that split, which was expected, between the US and the rest of the world for a brand-new flagship on a seven-day cruise out of Miami. We expected and planned for that.”
Using the first-in-class MSC World Europa as a blueprint, the Italian cruise line’s first attempt at blending American thrills with European charms has hit most of its marks.
Targeted brand campaign
According to Nielsen, a US-based audience data, behaviour, and measurement analyst, the 2025 Super Bowl made history with 127.7 million viewers – the largest-ever audience for a single-network telecast. This was tremendous news for MSC, which debuted its “Let’s Holiday!” TV campaign during the event on 9 February. Featuring Drew Barrymore – godmother of MSC World America – and Orlando Bloom, the 60-second ad showcased the ship and playfully poked fun at the different but overlapping ways that Americans and Europeans take their vacations.
“That articulation for us in the US market is new,” said Salas, referring to how European style meets American comfort. “This brand campaign also helps consumers understand, ‘Okay, this is what this brand represents.’ And then they can come on board this ship, and we bring that to life in very meaningful ways. And so I think there are some changes that are big, but also some that are subtle and more meaningful.”
Growing US footprint
In an effort to cater to a growing US market, MSC chose the largest cruise port in the world to homeport MSC World America, and also spent five years building the largest cruise terminal in the world to host their newest flagship alongside three other ships. At 492,678 square feet, Terminal AA in PortMiami is not only spacious but also built for efficiency, with biometric scanners and facial recognition technology enabled to process up to 36,000 passengers a day. I arrived in the afternoon for boarding and breezed through check-in and security.
“There’s so much growth here [in Miami], we don’t see the ship moving to a different market for the foreseeable future,” said Salas. In fact, migrating to North American homeports is a strategic move by the cruise line, which will add Galveston as its fourth US homeport in November 2025, enlarging its North American footprint. MSC World Atlantic, the fourth ship in the World class series, is scheduled to sail from Port Canaveral when it debuts in 2027.
“When I started, I imagined we would get the US consumers to cruise, and then they would love it and book a European cruise. But that’s not what’s happening,” said Salas. “I think it varies for every guest – families or Boomers or solo travellers – and it depends. . . . If you do a three-night cruise first, you may want to do a longer cruise from the US. Or you may love it and want to do another weekend cruise. If you cruise out of Miami, you might want to cruise out of Port Canaveral next.”
Options for MSC cruisers sailing from the US will increase further from May 2026, when Seattle joins the cruise line’s list of US homeports for its inaugural season in Alaska.
Flexible itinerary offering
Offering a popular itinerary choice to Americans, MSC World America will sail weeklong Caribbean cruises round-trip from Miami, including a call on the line’s Bahamian private island, Ocean Cay MSC Marine Reserve.
“I think the important thing is choice, but really good choice,” Salas said. “We’re upping our hardware in the US. In Orlando, by the end of the year, we’ll have two very strong ships: the MSC Grandiosa to join MSC Seashore. So if you live in Orlando and do a three-night cruise, you can do a seven-night cruise next, or head to Europe.”
Salas emphasised that when Americans did decide to sail abroad, MSC was well positioned to offer them not just ample itinerary choices but also flexibility on embarkation ports in Europe. “So if you’re going on a seven-night cruise in the Med and you go to cities like Barcelona, Rome, and Athens, you can embark at any one of those ports,” Salas said. “It’s unusual, and that flexibility is a strong differentiator for us. It gives Americans a very compelling reason to choose us when they’re planning their vacation.”
Different tastes
For anyone who’s sailed a Royal Caribbean Oasis-class ship, the World Galleria on board MSC World America will feel familiar. Similar to the Royal Promenade, this hub of bars, restaurants, and entertainment brims with energy, music, and the promise of a good time – including plenty of dining options.
“What’s new are the grab-and-go options,” said Salas. “So Luna Park Pizza & Burger is a popular option, in addition to Promenade Bites and a grab-and-go option for Paxos” – a Greek restaurant on the outdoor Promenade.
Designed with Americana-style diners in mind, Luna Park features inviting neon signage in addition to multiple counters for complimentary fast food – a boon for families. “We knew it was important for the US guest to be able to run around and experience the ship but realise, ‘Hey, I’m hungry.’ So dining was a big area of focus, because dining is very important to the US audience when they’re cruising – and it should be,” said Salas.
In addition to the all-day, quick-service diner and plenty of sit-down restaurants like the first Eataly Caffè outlet at sea, it turns out that Americans also like stronger beer.
“As for some of the more subtle changes on board MSC World America, when we were working with the product innovation team in Geneva to make sure that this ship would have appeal to the US consumer, we went on MSC World Europa,” Salas told CruiseTimes. “And one of the subtle things we noticed was the beer in Masters of the Sea [brew pub]. There are just lighter beers, but Americans have a different taste in beer, so we then customised our beer selection [for MSC World America] and added some IPAs.”
Besides beer, thought has also been put into other, stronger alcoholic beverages. “Within the Gin Project, the menu is pared down, because Americans don’t have the same appetite for gin as do the Europeans,” said Field Sutton, director of communications at MSC Cruises. “It’s a different offering from the ones on other ships. The same idea applies to Elixir; not only is the menu more bourbon-forward than on MSC World Europa but also the music is different. The idea of a cocktail bar that people have in the US reflects very different music – not club stuff. We want to make sure that it offers the experience they think they’re going to get in a classic cocktail bar.”
Experiential top deck
Celebrity’s Edge class has the Magic Carpet; Carnival’s Excel class has the Bolt roller coaster; Disney Magic has the Aquadunk waterslide; and you would be hard-pressed to miss the cherry-red swing known as the Cliffhanger over the side of MSC World America.
“We know that Americans love experiences,” said Salas. “And they love to get out on their vacation on a cruise ship and experience things. There’s the iconic thrill ride on Seascape, it’s the Robotron, which has done very well for us. So we thought about what that would look like for MSC World America, and then we decided on the Cliffhanger. You see other cruise ships in the American market and [thrill rides] are a thing, and it works, because Americans love it. We know that the Europeans and customers from other markets will come on board the ship and enjoy [the top-deck attractions] as well, but it’s a must-have for the American market.”
Besides the Cliffhanger, Salas explained that during their tour of MSC World Europa they noticed a lot of open space with only lounge chairs on the top decks. Recognising the opportunity to build something new on board MSC World America was what helped develop the concept of the Harbour, a family-focused outdoor space with an aquapark and other activities on deck 20.
“We just knew there was an opportunity, looking at the US guest, to take that deck and make it much more experiential, and that’s the process that we went through with market research and the US team, along with the product innovation team at the HQ, to get to the absolute best offering for the US guest,” said Salas.
“We’re excited about all of the districts, but the Family Aventura district, which houses the Harbour, has such amazing offerings for families – and non-families as well. You don’t have to be travelling with the family to go on the Cliffhanger or go down the Jaw Drop [dry slide] or waterslides,” Salas added.
Blockbusters and laughter
Previous guests of MSC Cruises can attest to the company’s dynamic entertainment offerings that often cater to a multinational audience. A partnership with Cirque du Soleil brought stunning acrobatics and visual arts on board various ships, without having to lean on dialogue-heavy stage productions.
In crafting a roster of evening entertainment that would appeal to the American cruiser, MSC looked to adapt a cult classic film for its onboard World Theatre stage.
“From an entertainment perspective, we’ve really done a lot to make sure we have a competitive offering while staying true to our DNA and European heritage,” Salas said. “With that, we have Dirty Dancing in Concert in the main theatre, which is really exciting. It’s an American classic. Then you walk down this hall, and you have Queen Symphonic, which is an arena show in the UK. And Americans love Queen, but it’s a blend of European and American. We’ve upped our game on the entertainment for this ship as well, because that’s also an important element for the US market.”
Rounding out the new spaces designed to cater to the American guest is All-Stars, an American-style sports bar, and the Loft, a comedy club, neither of which existed on board MSC prior to World America.
“Americans love sports, they love comedy, and inside the club there are also duelling pianos and karaoke – all of the things that Americans love to do,” said Salas.
Critical verdict
For this American millennial with a young family, MSC World America appealed on many levels. It’s clearly a ship built for all ages, with plenty of indoor and outdoor spaces designed for families to spend time together, or at least adjacent to one another.
The Cliffhanger – inspired by the A’dam Lookout swing of Amsterdam – lived up to the hype and delivers on a thrill that is also aesthetically pleasing, fitting well alongside a ropes course and water park within the activity-packed Harbour. The calibre of talent throughout the various performances on board was at a very high level. Paxos is a stunning restaurant, and Elixir is a standout bar for mixology.
Some of the grumblings I heard from fellow passengers were not about the type of cuisine but the overall consistency of food quality. And for all the new bells and whistles jangling aboard the top decks of the ship, other guests I spoke to felt that the average size of cabin bathrooms was lacking – a point I would have to agree with. While allocating space is an understandably tricky assignment, I believe that slightly more square footage allocated to private bathrooms would make a sizeable difference on such a large vessel.
Personally, I find that the true selling point of MSC Cruises in the US is not only what they’ve done to cater to Americans but their innate Europeanness. From the ports of Florida, I have dozens of ships to choose from if I’m looking for a cruise vacation with an all-American feel. But MSC is distinguished by its chic design sensibility, authentic Italian pizza and gelato, a cultural mix in passengers that broadens horizons for all guests, and its philanthropic work through the family-run MSC Foundation.
Perhaps, more than anything, it’s the perk of finding a good cup of coffee in any venue on board. And that is a simple pleasure with universal appeal.
