Eye on Travel

Radio Guest List—MSC Seaside, PortMiami, Florida—January 6, 2018

Locations in this article:  Miami, FL

This week’s broadcast of Peter Greenberg Worldwide comes from aboard the MSC Seaside sailing out of PortMiami in Miami, Florida. Launched just last month in December 2017, the MSC Seaside is the newest ship in the company’s fleet. The ship’s most standout feature is its unique design, which gives travelers more outdoor space than any other cruise ship. Chairman of MSC Cruises USA, Rick Sasso, joins the show to talk about how the cruise line remains a family owned company despite their size, which has given them more ability to focus on the guests. Celebrity Chef Roy Yamaguchi explains the Pacific Asian influences of his restaurants on the MSC Seaside and how cruise ship restaurants differ from those on land. Travel Weekly Senior Editor Tom Stieghorst joins the show to give his thoughts on the new vessel and what new elements it has, as well as MSC’s expansion in the North American market. There’s all of this and more as Peter Greenberg Worldwide broadcasts from the MSC Seaside.

Click here to listen to the show streaming from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, January 6, 2018.

Have a travel question? Ask Peter. Call 888-88-PETER (888-88-383), email him at peter@petergreenberg.com, or tweet your questions to @petersgreenberg (include #AskPeter).

Rick Sasso, Chairman of MSC Cruises USA, speaks about MSC’s rapid fleet growth and their expansion into the North American cruise market. They are currently a household name in the cruise industry in Europe. They also have the highest number in new ships ordered for the next ten years of any cruise line and claim to be the fastest growing cruise line in history.

Tom Stieghorst, Senior Editor at Travel Weekly, talks about MSC’s desire to stand out in the U.S. market. He explains how MSC took a design that other cruise lines didn’t want because it was too “radical” and different. Instead, MSC wanted to enter the U.S. market with a more distinct look, such as wrap around decks and the longest zipline on a cruise ship. From an exterior view it looks different than any other cruise ship.

Anne Kalosh, US Editor of Seatrade Cruise Review & Seatrade Cruise News, shares her experience of the MSC Seaside, including Roy Yamaguchi’s three restaurants on board and the amount of varying experiences on the ship, such as the ziplines, waterpark, and an aft with a low-level pool closer to the ocean.

Pier Paolo Scala, Captain of the MSC Seaside, tells us about the speed of the new MSC ships and how surprisingly silent the ship is—even during docking and using its thrusters. He also speaks about how this ship compares to the many other vessels he’s sailed around the world.

Colleen McDaniel, Senior Executive Editor of Cruise Critic, explains why the MSC Seaside feels very different than many other cruise ships.

Gary Kelly, CEO and President of Southwest Airlines, discusses Southwest’s success and how their business model has allowed them to keep costs low and give those savings back to customers. They have low operating costs because of using a single type of aircraft, and they are very strategic about the markets that they enter. Another big factor for keeping their costs low is that unlike other airlines, they don’t use hubs, but instead are a point-to-point airline.

Roy Yamaguchi, Celebrity Chef and Restaurateur, dishes about his passion for cooking and the Pan-Asian and Pacific Asian influences in his cuisine and how he’s adapted those for the MSC Seaside. Aboard he focused on stir frys, bold flavors, and working around sourcing restrictions.

James Shillinglaw, Editor-in-Chief of the ‎Performance Media Group, discusses MSC Cruises’ rapid expansion, and how after 300 years of owning ships they are ready to tackle the American market. He also tackles some of the more interesting features of the ship, such as the indoor pool and chocolate fountain.

Bill Panoff, Chief Executive Officer of the PPI Group, describes the European flare of the MSC Seaside and their need to create brand recognition in the United States. As ships get larger they work to keep guests on board longer to present more experience and boost revenue. He also expounds on the increased prevalence of technology aboard ships and increased automation.

Gary Gladding, Head of Entertainment for the MSC Seaside, talks about the evolution of entertainment aboard cruise ships. He explains that on a Caribbean destination ship, unlike many European vessels, there are an increased number of passengers who don’t leave the ship and cruise for the onboard experiences. In these cases, the ships have become the destination.

By Darra Stone for PeterGreenberg.com