After completing customs procedures, passengers disembarked from the ship and left the port to visit the city center as well as the ancient cities of Pergamon and Ephesus, and the House of the Virgin Mary.
Speaking to journalists, Norbert Stiekema, Managing Director of MSC Cruises, the company operating the ship, stated that Turkey is one of the most important destinations in the Eastern Mediterranean.
Stiekema highlighted that Turkey offers everything a tourist could look for, saying, “We bring many guests from abroad to your beautiful country because of the high level of customer satisfaction. There is significant interest in Turkey from abroad, and for this reason, we consider the ports in Turkey.”
MSC Cruises Turkey Director Işın Hekimoğlu mentioned that the ship will be at Izmir Port 24 times between May 13 and October 21.
Hekimoğlu noted that they aim to host 25,000 Turkish guests on their ships within three years, stating, “As we move towards this goal, our aim is to raise awareness about cruise travel. We try to explain to our guests how accessible and exploration-filled a vacation option it is.”
The ship will depart from the port this evening.
source: aa.com.tr/ prepared by Melisa Beğiç