MSC cruise line have unveiled their new MSC Wellness Experience in collaboration with Technogym.
Announced yesterday on the 3rd March, the Swiss-based MSC cruise line announced that they are meeting the growing demand for wellness travel by launching an exclusive MSC Wellness Experience that’s been developed in partnership with Technogym.
MSC is the largest privately-owned cruise company and market leader in Europe, South America and South Africa and recently they’ve released a string of news announcements about their developing growth including the plans for new ships MSC Seaside and MSC Meraviglia, with a further two ships on order that have yet to be named. This latest Wellness Experience announcement also follows the news that MSC cruise line are collaborating with the world-famous Cirque du Soleil entertainment group to bring their incredible shows to the sea. The addition and development of the Wellness Experience shows that MSC are continuing to meet the growing demands for multi-faceted cruise experiences.
The Wellness Experience is designed to provide an end-to-end bespoke experience that allows MSC guests to achieve their personal wellness goals through the provision of exclusive menus, destination activities like sea kayaking and cycling tours and not to mention the on board fitness instructors who spent over a year working with the fitness, nutrition and technology experts at Technogym.
As the worlds leading supplier of technology and design driven products and services in the Wellness and Fitness industry, Technogym have supplied the last 5 Olympic games and every day 35 million people use their equipment and products to train.
Gianni Onorato, MSC Cruises Chief Executive Officer, commented: “The global wellness travel segment is projected to grow by nearly 10% annually over the next five years, as holiday-makers are increasingly seeking out ways to combine being active and healthy with their holiday. Through the launch of the MSC Cruises Wellness Experience powered by Technogym, the globally-recognised wellness experts, we are further expanding our offering and making available to our guests the first completely personalised, 360° wellness experience at sea.”
Mr Onorato concluded: “At MSC Cruises, we are passionate about providing our guests unique onboard experiences through close, personal attention to every detail. This new experience, which is designed in a way that is exclusive to our guests, further demonstrates our commitment to innovation – also by partnering with best-in-class experts in their own field – and to creating unforgettable memories on board our ships.”
Nerio Alessandri, Technogym President and Founder, commented: “For over 20 years we have been promoting the concept of wellness as a lifestyle made of regular physical exercise, a healthy diet and a positive mental attitude. Today wellness represents a global consumer trend that can impact on people’s life and health. This is why we are proud to partner with MSC Cruises to develop and deliver a unique and completely new wellness experience.”
By working together to create the experience, MSC and Technogym co-created a personalised programme with a wide range of dedicated activities and facilities. The experience features cutting-edge technology and state-of-art fitness facilities, a co-created food and beverage offering available throughout the day, exclusive shore activities as well as access to MSC Cruises Master Trainers certified by Technogym.
Understanding guests’ wellness motivations, such as the desire to look and feel better, improve sporting performance or health and happiness, is key to creating a motivational programme. For this reason, the experience begins well before the holiday as, once the cruise is booked, guests are invited to complete the Aspiration Finder™, the first-ever scientific online questionnaire developed by Technogym’s Research Department. The result of the questionnaire is a personalised Aspiration Map, which forms the basis for the programme.
Once on board, guests will receive a one-to-one appointment with the Master Trainer who will conduct an assessment consisting of a body scale analyser test combined with an in-depth consultation. In addition to this, guests will receive a health check-up carried out by the MSC Doctor.
An MSC cruise ship provides the perfect backdrop to motivate guests to get active and meet their wellness objectives. With breathtaking sea views and modern facilities, guests have an array of indoor and outdoor areas at their disposal where they can follow their personalised wellness programme. These include swimming pools, a scenic gym, open−air sports facilities and the ability to train on the adult-only top sun deck.
Further to this, participants to the Wellness Experience will receive complimentary internet access to enable the use of an MSC Cruises-only version of Technogym’s award-winning mywellness app. This cutting-edge platform will support their training programme on board and they can continue to use this once they return home.
The mywellness app tracks the movement of the users and assigns them a daily movement target. Using GPS and smartphone accelerometer functions, the app includes all the information on the MSC Cruises personalised training programmes and integrates training done both indoor on the gym equipment and outdoor on the running track, for example. Guests will also be able to access timetables to fitness classes and track their appointments when on board.
MSC Cruises Wellness Experience guests will also benefit from exciting new group fitness classes, developed with the fitness experts at Technogym and designed around Technogym’s ARKE equipment for core and bodyweight training, as well as Technogym Group Cycle class. In addition, a range of new on-trend fitness classes such as Bella Barre and Hula Fit will be introduced along with popular favourites including Tai Chi, Pilates, Yoga. Timetables for the group classes will be coded to help guests select the right classes for their Aspiration Profile.
Shore activities exclusively for the Wellness Experience participants have been specially designed to complement the onboard fitness programme so that guests can discover the sights at the ship’s ports of call whilst keeping active. The activities also provide the opportunity to socialise and meet like-minded people with similar wellness goals. Highlights include jogging around Ancient Olympia, a bike tour of Copenhagen, hiking up Mount Floiena in Norway, a fun triathlon in Cozumel comprising of kayaking, running and snorkelling or beach training in Rio de Janeiro.
The Wellness Experience also places a strong emphasis on nutrition. A wide range of delicious and balanced wellness menu options have been developed in partnership with the Technogym’s team of nutrition experts. The buffet will feature a dedicated wellness corner with a choice of dishes available at breakfast, lunch and dinner, designed to match the needs of the different Aspiration Profiles. The main restaurant will also feature healthy options that will be clearly distinguished on the menu to make it simple to select the right choice and there will be a wellness room service breakfast menu. The MSC Aurea Spa bar will also serve a new range of protein and energy drinks as well as an array of other wellness beverages.
Wellness Experience guests will have a choice of cabins on the upper decks and in the most desirable areas of the ship. In their cabin they will find a wellness mat and Technogym Wellness Bag™, sports clothing and a sports towel. There will also be a dedicated fitness TV channel with videos created by the experts at Technogym and the mini-bar will include sports drinks. Even the laundry of the sports kit is included to ensure that everything is stress-free.
The Wellness Experience is now open for booking for cruises starting in April 2017.
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