MOBILITY & MEDICAL
INCLUDING SPECIAL NEEDS FOR MOBILITY, MEDICAL AND DIETARY REQUIREMENTS
MSC Cruises and its staff have always been attentive to the needs of their guests, and constantly strive to offer the best possible service, meeting international accessibility standards.
For information on the assistance provided on board and at our port terminals, please consult the sections below.
You can also find information related to special needs in the General Booking Conditions, the Conditions of Carriage section.
Guests can inform MSC Cruises of any special requirements by filling in the relevant form available here and at all accredited travel agencies. This information should preferably be provided at the time of booking, or, at the very latest, at least 30 working days before sailing (for pregnancy at least 2 weeks).
This allows us time to provide the best possible service for our guests, which depends on the facilities and resources on board each ship. If we are notified after this deadline, we will do everything in our power to provide the services requested, but this may not be possible at such short notice.
if you booked through our website, the documentation should be sent to the following email address: il898-reservations.cruises@msc.com. However, If you booked your cruise through a travel agency, the documentation should be sent directly to your travel agent.
MSC Bellissima, MSC Divina, MSC Euribia, MSC Fantasia, MSC Grandiosa, MSC Meraviglia, MSC Preziosa, MSC Seascape, MSC Seashore, MSC Seaside, MSC Seaview, MSC Splendida, MSC Virtuosa, MSC World America (from 2025) and MSC World Europa have Braille signs in public areas, in lifts and at the entrance to the cabins; all the ships have deck indicators in the lifts and fully accessible public areas, decks and tenders. For their safety, and depending on their level of disability, guests may be requested to travel with a carer or service dog.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
Service animals
Suitably trained and certified service dogs are allowed on board all ships, assuming that they are in a good state of health and possess all necessary documents for entering the foreign countries visited during the cruise. Some Port of Call, due to local regulations, can require other prerequisites so it can be useful to check the countries along the booked itinerary.
The guest is personally responsible (with the aid of the carer if applicable) for the custody, feeding and general care of the animal during the whole stay on board.
Guests with partial hearing disabilities can travel alone, only if they request the installation of a TDD System kit in their cabin. This kit, available in limited numbers on all ships, includes light and vibrating devices, a text phone and an analogue alarm clock.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
Guests undergoing peritoneal dialysis treatment can travel as normal, bringing with them all medicines and equipment that may be required during the cruise.
MSC Cruises does not provide individual hemodialysis.
Guests who are stable and able to independently manage home peritoneal dialysis may sail on cruises that do not include trans-ocean crossings or remote itineraries.
Guests will be responsible for supplying all equipment, medications and supplies necessary to self-perform dialysis.
Guests should contact their medical supply company to arrange for dialysis supplies for the entire cruise. Guests are responsible for ensuring adequate supplies of dialysis fluids are on board stored in their cabin before sailing.
The shipboard medical staff are not trained in management of peritoneal dialysis.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
Enteral And Parental Nutrition
MSC Cruises does not provide enteral or parental nutrition, but guests who independently manage it are welcomed onboard. Guests are responsible for providing all feed and equipment required for the cruise.
Children with special needs have normal access to all on-board services and facilities. Although the entertainment staff do not offer a childcare service, they are trained to provide a wide range of entertainment aimed specifically at children. Please note that no one-to-one supervision service is offered on board our ships.
All children, including those with special needs, are assigned to a certain entertainment area depending on their age. If necessary, children or young people with special needs can be placed in a lower age group (with the agreement of their parents), or they can take part in specific activities, together with their parents if required.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
MSC Cruises S.A. makes every effort to accommodate our guests’ dietary requirements whenever possible.
We keep special dietary needs in mind when planning our menus and serving our meals.
MSC Cruises S.A. is aware that some foods may cause an allergic reaction in certain guests due to intolerance of some ingredients such as the 14 major recognized allergens listed in the Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011; therefore, guests are invited to inform the Company of any such allergy at the time of booking but not later than 30 days prior to sailing (by duly filling out the Special Needs form). We further ask guests to report such allergy or intolerance to Reception – Guest Service and the Maître d’hôtel in the Main Dining Room upon first boarding the ship and prior to consuming any food or beverage onboard. Although there are several options at our various restaurants, special dietary and food requests can be accommodated in our main dining rooms only.
Despite our efforts, we cannot exclude the possibility of cross contamination between foods. We recommend our guests who are aware of allergies or intolerances always bring with them their emergency medications as prescribed by the doctor to be able to react in case of any allergic reaction.
When booking a tour with a meal included or when dining at Ocean Cay, please remember to always communicate your allergy/intolerance to the appropriate staff.
For medical reasons or for infants, guests can specifically request some food to be blended onboard. Guests can also bring their special sealed food on board, following written approval from the Company. Products to be taken onboard should respect EU food labelling / packaging regulations, should not have imminent expiry date, once open should be consumed as per instruction on the label. Inside your cabin you find a cooler, which is not a fridge, therefore it cannot be used for storing food. It is recommended to bring with you freezing bags. No homemade food is allowed. The onboard personnel is not authorized to store or manipulate (cook, heat ect) food that our guests bring on board.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
Gluten Free
MSC Cruises offers gluten-free menus (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) in the main restaurants on most of its ships.
Please be advised that on MSC Armonia, MSC Sinfonia,MSC Opera and MSC Lirica guests can find only a limited selection of pre-packaged gluten-free snacks such as, biscuits, croissants, sponge cakes and muffins. Coeliac guests are therefore advised to book a cruise on any other fleet ships.
Kosher & Halal meals
Kosher meals (pre-packaged breakfast, lunch, and dinner) may be available on board for an additional charge of €25/$30 pp/day. Kosher meals can be consumed in the main restaurants and must be booked at least 30 days before the ship’s departure.
Halal products (beef, lamb and poultry) may be available on board following the former request of the guest at least two months before departure.
Vegetarian/ Vegan meals
Vegetarian and Vegan-friendly dishes are incorporated into our main restaurant menus and buffet restaurant culinary offer.
Guests with food intolerances, allergies and/or needs must inform MSC Cruises of their needs via the Special Needs Form and, once on board, confirm their requirements at Reception-Guest Service and/or with the Maître d’hôtel.
Guests are advised to consult their National Health Service prior to the cruise for information regarding recommended vaccinations. MSC Cruises declines all responsibility for guests who do not adhere to the recommendations on the prevention of infectious diseases or do not have the appropriate vaccinations to enter a particular port during the cruise.
MSC Cruises SA does not permit guests who be more than 23 weeks pregnant at any time during the cruise to sail onboard. This is for maternal and fetal safety, as specialist obstetric and neonatal care is not available on board.
Pregnant guests who will be 23 or less than 23 weeks gestation at any time during the cruise will need to submit a letter from their obstetrician/gynecologist confirming the following:
- Ultrasound confirmed expected date of delivery (EDD)
- That the pregnancy is low risk
- That the guest is fit to sail on board a ship with no immediate access to specialist obstetric or neonatal care
- Letters should be sent by email to Special Needs at the moment of the booking and at least 2 weeks before sailing date. A copy must be presented at check-in on the day of embarkation.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
Our onboard medical facilities meet or exceed the standards for cruise ship medical centers adopted by CLIA and include basic diagnostic and treatment abilities, however the ship’s medical centers are not required to be and are not equipped to the same standards as a land-based hospital. They are staffed by full-time registered doctors and nurses, including paramedics on some ships. In addition to twice-daily clinic hours, medical staff are available 24 hours a day in an emergency.
Our Medical Centers are intended to provide acute care for illness and accidents that may occur while on holiday and not to provide long-term care for patients with chronic illnesses or as a substitute for regular health care. The medical staff on board is not available for daily care unless you are hospitalized in the ship’s medical Center. You must be able to care for yourself, including dressing, eating, and attending the ship’s safety drills. ” If you cannot care for yourself independently in these areas, please make arrangements to ensure you can do so.
If guests become ill or injured during the voyage and the diagnostic and/or care needs exceed the capabilities of the on-board medical Center, guests will be transferred to medical facilities ashore.
Charges for medical services rendered on board are added to your shipboard account, and an itemized account will be provided to submit to your insurance company.
Please note that many health insurance plans do not cover the cost of medical care at sea, in foreign countries, or for air evacuation unless this has been specifically arranged. Guests are encouraged to obtain travel medical insurance before travel to be reimbursed for services rendered.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
MSC recommends that guests pack enough medication to last 14 days (about 2 weeks) after the end of their cruise. We strongly recommend carrying some medication with you in your purse or carry-on bag while traveling. Remember to leave all medication in its original container. We recommend carrying a prescription record or written list of your medications in case they are lost. The list should include the name of the drug, dosage and times taken. In case of emergency, the Medical Centre can assist in replacing medications, however if the exact item is not carried on board, an equivalent may be issued.
Please note that the cabin coolers are not fridges and therefore are not suitable for refrigerated medications. We suggest that you bring cool bags with ice blocks, or request medication cold storage in the medical Center. Medication stored in the medical center fridge can only be accessed during opening hours.
Restrictions may apply to travelling with certain controlled drugs. Guests are responsible for ensuring they meet any specific requirements for the countries they are travelling through. It is recommended that guests carry and retain a signed, dated explanatory medical letter from their treating physician detailing the indication for use of any prescription medication. Onboard staff will not routinely ask to see the documentation; however, it may be requested if there are queries by local authorities or additional information is required.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
All decks, public areas and tenders are designed to be as accessible as possible for guests with reduced mobility. Some ports or tender services may not be accessible with a mobility device. In addition, there are varying numbers of specially fitted-out cabins available on each ship in the fleet. For safety reasons, guests requiring assistance may be requested to travel with a carer.
Wheelchairs are available on board for guests to use during embarkation, disembarkation, and emergencies only. Guests that require constant use of a wheelchair or any other form of support must bring their own equipment with them. It is the responsibility of the guest to check with the relevant producers/suppliers that this equipment is safe to take on board and use on a cruise ship, and to organize both its delivery to the departure terminal in good time for embarkation, and its collection at the end of the cruise. Due to limited safety constraints on some cruises, it is important to inform MSC Cruises of your need to bring the mobility device (wheelchair/scooter) at the time of the booking
For detailed information on the ports of call and excursions suitable for guests who experience mobility problems, read the relevant pages in this section, and once on board check the accuracy of the information provided.
To inform us of your special need or special requirement, please fill in the form at the following link Special Needs Form
Cabin Facilities
The accessible cabins are larger and offer more space for movement than regular cabins and come with extra facilities and equipment to meet special needs.
Accessible cabins, fitted out especially for guests with disabilities and/or reduced mobility, are available on the following ships:
MSC Armonia, MSC Bellissima, MSC Divina, MSC Euribia, MSC Fantasia, MSC Grandiosa, MSC Lirica, MSC Magnifica, MSC Meraviglia, MSC Musica, MSC Opera, MSC Orchestra, MSC Poesia, MSC Preziosa, MSC Seascape, MSC Seashore, MSC Seaside, MSC Seaview, MSC Sinfonia, MSC Splendida, MSC Virtuosa, MSC World America (from 2025) and MSC World Europa.
Tender Service
Guests must be fit and mobile enough to access and disembark the tender. If guests have impaired mobility or use a mobility aid such as a walking stick, cane, or walker, then they must carefully consider their ability to embark the tender safely before making their way down to the platform. Guests must consider the use of steps, the possibility of a gap and height difference between the platform and the tender, and the potential sudden movement of the tender when deciding to embark on the tender. Crew members are not permitted to carry wheelchairs and mobility scooters into the tender. For the safety of all passengers and crew members, all guests must be able to independently embark and disembark the tenders. Carriage by tender may be refused by the master or any of his officers if there is any doubt as to the safety of any guest.
Mobility Scooter/Wheelchairs
Mobility Scooter /Wheelchairs can be brought on board MSC Cruises ships: scooters must be stored, and batteries recharged in your cabin which is fitted with 110V sockets (US type sockets) and 220V sockets (German type sockets) avoiding connecting when using the hairdryer. Keep in mind that the scooter minimizes the available space within your cabin. Due to safety considerations, wheelchairs and scooters cannot be stored in the corridors.
Your personal scooter should be able to fit in a standard cabin with a limited entry doorway (58 cm (about 1.9 ft) on MSC Divina and MSC Armonia, 68 cm (about 2.23 ft) on MSC Lirica, MSC Sinfonia and MSC Opera, 62 cm (about 2.03 ft) on the others). If your scooter is larger than the dimension reported for your chosen ship, you should book an H cabin or rent a smaller scooter. Segways and other similar vehicles cannot be operated on board. They shall be confiscated and can be taken off the ship to be used while in port.
Also please note that the aluminium gangways used if the ramp cannot be operated are less than 80 cm (about 2.62 ft) wide.
