Pirate threat prompts MSC to alter cruise ship itinerary

[mercedes]

The 1,064-passenger MSC Melody is changing course to steer clear of pirates off the coast of Somalia.

In a statement issued early Friday, the Italy-based line said recent events in the region has prompted it to order the vessel -- currently on a three-week cruise from Durban, South Africa to Genoa, Italy -- further out to sea as it passes around the pirate-plagued Horn of Africa.

The new routing will add 400 miles to the ship's travels and force it to skip a port call in Safaga, Egypt -- gateway to Luxor and other Egyptian ruins and a highlight of voyages through the region.

The ship will go ahead with calls at Aqaba, Jordan (gateway to the ruins of Petra) and Sokhnan, Egypt (a jumping off point for daytrips to the pyramids of Giza). The new itinerary also will offer more time in the Seychelles with an overnight stop at Port Victoria.

"MSC Cruises always places the safety and comfort of its guests before all other considerations," the line said in the statement.

MSC says the new itinerary adheres to the navigation recommendations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Maritime Security Centre for the Horn of Africa, a coordination center run by the EU Naval Force to safeguard shipping in the region.

[mercedes]

The 1,064-passenger MSC Melody is changing course to steer clear of pirates off the coast of Somalia.

In a statement issued early Friday, the Italy-based line said recent events in the region has prompted it to order the vessel -- currently on a three-week cruise from Durban, South Africa to Genoa, Italy -- further out to sea as it passes around the pirate-plagued Horn of Africa.

The new routing will add 400 miles to the ship's travels and force it to skip a port call in Safaga, Egypt -- gateway to Luxor and other Egyptian ruins and a highlight of voyages through the region.

The ship will go ahead with calls at Aqaba, Jordan (gateway to the ruins of Petra) and Sokhnan, Egypt (a jumping off point for daytrips to the pyramids of Giza). The new itinerary also will offer more time in the Seychelles with an overnight stop at Port Victoria.

"MSC Cruises always places the safety and comfort of its guests before all other considerations," the line said in the statement.

MSC says the new itinerary adheres to the navigation recommendations of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Maritime Security Centre for the Horn of Africa, a coordination center run by the EU Naval Force to safeguard shipping in the region.