Valletta Welcomes Norwegian Pearl and MSC Euribia for First Time

Norwegian Pearl and MSC Euribia made first-time calls at Valletta on Tuesday, a same-day pair of maiden visits for the Global Ports Holding subsidiary. Norwegian Pearl called during a seven-night Mediterranean sailing from Barcelona to Ravenna, while MSC Euribia arrived without passengers during a delayed repositioning from Dubai to Northern Europe.

The arrivals came as Valletta prepares for about 435 cruise calls in 2026, after handling 385 vessel calls and 962,966 passenger movements in 2025.

The port announced the dual maiden calls in a social media post and did not include a named comment from Valletta Cruise Port, Norwegian Cruise Line or MSC Cruises.

Norwegian Pearl call included port ceremony

Norwegian Pearl hosted local authorities, port officials and ship officers for a traditional plaque exchange ceremony during the call. Valletta Cruise Port also arranged a local village band performance for guests arriving in Malta.

The 93,530-GT ship, built in 2006 with capacity for 2,394 passengers at double occupancy, reached Europe in mid-April and is operating its first Mediterranean itinerary of the season. The Barcelona-to-Ravenna cruise includes Valletta and calls at Corfu, Kotor, Dubrovnik and Split, with Ravenna providing Venice-area access for the sailing.

MSC Euribia arrived after a Suez Canal transit

The call brought no passenger traffic. The vessel had spent nearly two months docked in Dubai due to armed conflict in the Middle East. The 4,888-passenger, LNG-powered ship departed the region in mid-April for Northern Europe.

The vessel transited the Suez Canal on April 26 on its first passage through the waterway after its route changed from an expected sailing around Africa via the Cape of Good Hope. The Suez Canal Authority described the 331-meter ship as among the largest cruise vessels to use the canal, and Admiral Osama Rabie, the authority’s chairman, called cruise-ship transits “a positive indicator,” citing time savings and lower operating costs on the east-west route.

Canal officials boarded MSC Euribia during the transit and presented a gift to the ship’s master. The ship is scheduled to resume passenger service in Kiel, Germany, on May 16 for a Northern Europe summer program centered on the Norwegian Fjords.

More MSC and NCL calls scheduled through 2027

MSC Euribia is not scheduled to return to Valletta on its current deployment, but MSC Cruises is due to send a series of ships to the Maltese port through 2027. The new 205,700-ton MSC World Asia is slated to make weekly Malta calls during its inaugural season beginning in December 2026.

Norwegian Pearl is also scheduled for one additional Valletta call in November.