Bolivians stranded in Port of Barcelona to move to new cruise ship while waiting for visas

The 69 Bolivians stranded in a cruise ship owned by MSC in the Port of Barcelona will move to a new boat while waiting for their visas.

The travelers disembarked on Thursday morning in a special area in the port after reaching the Catalan capital on Tuesday and being unable to get off the boat because they did not have valid visas to enter the Schengen area.

After a deal between MSC and the Spanish government, the MSC Armonia, which the travelers boarded in Brazil before sailing to the Mediterranean, has now been able to continue its route to Italy. 

MSC set up a second cruise ship, this one sailing from Livorno in Italy, for the 69 Bolivians to be able to board and continue their paperwork process.

The boat was scheduled to leave the Catalan capital on Tuesday at 4:00 pm and continue to Corsica, Civitavecchia, Venice, before reaching Croatia as the final destination. 

On Wednesday, the 1,500 other passengers were offered a second day to visit Barcelona. Meanwhile, on Thursday at 6:00 am, 275 Brazilians disembarked to get on a flight to return to their home country.