Engine Failure Forces Cancellation of MSC Bellissima Cruise

MSC Cruises was forced to cancel the ongoing cruise of the MSC Bellissima due to an engine failure, according to a report by United Daily News, a Taiwanese media outlet.

The Bellissima, which entered service in 2019, was operating a short cruise from Taiwan when the technical issue arose. The four-night roundtrip voyage had initially planned to call at Okinawa, Miyakojima, and Ishigaki after departing from Keelung.

Due to the engine problem, the ship was unable to return to its homeport on December 8 as scheduled and instead remained docked in Okinawa, the report stated.

This unexpected delay affected 1,800 Taiwanese passengers who were originally scheduled to disembark in Keelung.

“With the cooperation of relevant Taiwanese authorities, we are working closely with travel agencies and airline partners to book and arrange charter flights for these passengers,” MSC Cruises said in a statement.

Most passengers were expected to be flown to Taipei on Monday, December 9, 2024, according to United Daily News.

The engine issue also led to the cancellation of the MSC Bellissima's next scheduled voyage, which was set to depart from Keelung on December 8, 2024.

According to MSC Cruises, engineers from Europe traveled to Okinawa to carry out repairs on the 167,700-ton ship.

After relocating from Europe earlier this year, the MSC Bellissima became the largest cruise ship to operate in Asia. The vessel offers year-round itineraries from ports in Taiwan, Japan, China, and other Asian countries.

In December, the ship was scheduled to operate a series of four-night cruises departing from Keelung and Naha. Plans for early 2025 include repositioning the Bellissima to Shanghai to cater to the Chinese cruise market.