Hamburg - The cool city that German tourists keep to themselves

Hamburg, Germany is a prominent European port on the river Elbe, bridging continental Europe and Scandinavia.  This MSC Northern Europe Cruises destination boasts magnificent buildings overlooking the harbor, numerous canals, and the Speicherstadt, the world’s largest warehouse district. 

MSC Cruises excursions offer plenty of exciting things to see including:
• Speicherstadt: the Warehouse Town
• Hamburg by Land and Sea
• Lübeck

Speicherstadt is the world's largest complex of warehouses, spanning an area of 630,000 square meters. Built between 1883 and 1927, its home to remarkable Neo-Gothic brick buildings — including museums. Explore its labyrinth of alleys, canals and bridges on an MSC Cruises excursion, where you’ll learn more about this renowned UNESCO World Heritage Site and its world-famous architecture.

Hamburg is renowned for its elegant boulevards, stately buildings, and emerald green parks. On an MSC Cruises excursion you’ll enjoy a breathtaking tour of the canals, the riverside, and other fascinating city landmarks. Begin with a captivating drive through HafenCity and the Speicherstadt — the historic warehouse quarter. Next, admire Hamburg's waterways by boat and the magnificent views of its skyline. Discover City Hall, Planten un Blomen botanical park, the trendy Jungfernstieg area, and the iconic St. Michael's Church. A view of 17th-century houses in the Krameramtsgasse closes this delightful tour.

Lübeck, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a charming old city on the river Trave, characterized by its remarkable Gothic architecture. Take a scenic MSC Cruises excursion to one of the most beautiful ports in Germany where you’ll discover elegant alleyways, courtyards, and the remains of a medieval development. Admire the renowned Holtenstor (Holsten Gate), the Hospital of Holy Spirit, and the world's largest mechanical organ at St. Mary’s Church. Finally, enjoy a delicious German lunch before returning to Hamburg.

Entertainment - The Sea at its most magical

Enjoy entertainment around the clock on an MSC Cruises' adventure, from enriching indoor and outdoor activities during the day to magical Broadway-style entertainment and dazzling casinos at night. With cinemas, tournaments, bowling, billiards, Flight and F1 Simulators, arcades and more, we've got plenty of fun for the entire family.

Rotterdam - A melting pot of cultures

Le Havre / Paris - A dazzling example of contemporary architecture

As you sail on your MSC cruise to France, you’ll come to Le Havre, the country’s second-largest port, which takes up half the Seine estuary. However, the town itself, home to almost 200,000 people, is a place of pilgrimage for fans of contemporary architecture.
 
Le Havre – “The Harbour” – is the principal trading post of northern France and a port of call of our MSC Northern Europe cruises. Following its near-destruction during World War II, Le Havre was rebuilt by a single architect, Auguste Perret, between 1946 and 1964.

The sheer sense of space can be exhilarating: the showpiece monuments have a winning self-confidence, and the few surviving relics of the old city have been sensitively integrated into the whole. While the endless mundane residential blocks can be dispiriting, even those visitors who fail to agree with Perret’s famous dictum that “concrete is beautiful” may enjoy a stroll around his city. A shore excursion on your MSC Northern Europe cruise can also be the opportunity to discover Rouen, the capital of Upper Normandy, one of France’s most ancient cities.

Standing on the site of Rotomagus, built by the Romans at the lowest point where they could bridge the Seine, it was laid out by Rollo, the first duke of Normandy, in 911. Captured by the English in 1419, it became the stage in 1431 for the trial and execution of Joan of Arc, before returning to French control in 1449.

Rouen today can be very seductive, its lively and bustling centre well equipped with impressive churches and museums. North of the Seine at any rate, it’s a real pleasure to explore. As well as some great sights – Cathédrale de Notre-Dame, all the delightful twisting streets of timbered houses – there’s history aplenty too, most notably the links with Joan of Arc.

Southhampton / London - Thousands of years of trade

Despite its pummelling by the Luftwaffe and some disastrous postwar urban sprawl, the thousand-year-old city of Southampton has retained some of its medieval charm in parts and reinvented itself as a twenty-first century shopping centre in others, with the giant glass-and-steel West Quay as its focus.
 
Core of the modern town is the Civic Centre, a short walk east of the train station and home to the excellent Southampton City Art Gallery that’s particularly strong on contemporary British artists. The Western Esplanade runs alongside the best remaining bits of the old city walls.

Rebuilt after a French attack in 1338, they incorporate God’s House Tower, at the southern end of the old town in Winkle Street, which currently houses the Museum of Archaeology. Best preserved of the city’s seven gates is Bargate, at the opposite end of the old town, at the head of the High Street; it’s an elaborate structure, cluttered with lions, classical figures and defensive apertures. A shore excursion on your MSC Northern Europe cruise from Southampton can be the opportunity to discover the capital of England, London.

For the visitor, London is a thrilling place. Monuments from the capital’s glorious past are everywhere, from medieval banqueting halls and the great churches of Christopher Wren to the eclectic Victorian architecture of the triumphalist British Empire. You can relax in the city’s quiet Georgian squares, explore the narrow alleyways of the City of London, wander along the riverside walks, and uncover the quirks of what is still identifiably a collection of villages.

The capital’s great historical landmarks – Big Ben, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, St Paul’s Cathedral, the Tower of London and so on – draw in millions of tourists every year.