The middle east will get two new ports of call for MSC Cruises‘ winter 2023-24 itineraries.

80,000 return air seats are also being added as part of the cruise line’s “Fly&Cruise” program.

A new seven-night itinerary will be offered by the MSC Virtuosa, sailing from Dubai to Doha in Qatar, stopping at Manama in Bahrain, Abu Dhabi, and Sir Bani Yas Island before returning to Dubai.

MSC Virtuosa will serve as a cruise ship hotel for the Abu Dhabi Formula 1 race taking place from November 24 to 26. Guests can choose from three embarkation ports: Dubai, Doha and Abu Dhabi.

A total of 22 seven-night voyages will be offered by the MSC Opera in 2023-24, sailing from Dubai to Abu Dhabi, Sir Bani Yas Island, Khasab in Oman or Fujairah in the UAE, Muscat in Oman, and then back to Dubai.

MSC Orchestra will operate a new itinerary from Safaga in Egypt in the winter of 2023-24 from there to Jeddah, Aqaba for Petra in Jordan, Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, Sokhna Port for Cairo, Egypt, and back to Safaga for Luxor. International guests can also embark at Safaga, Jeddah, Sharm El-Sheikh, and Sokhna Port.

At MSC Cruises, Achille Staiano is senior vice president of global sales, and stated: “Winter cruises in the Middle East are increasingly popular with guests from all over the world, and our business in the region is growing rapidly. Our increasing business will result in an increase of 80,000 return air seats in 2023-24 with leading airlines flying into a variety of embarkation ports for our three ships.