One million cruise passengers

(Kiel, 18th September 2023) At the weekend, the seaport of Kiel reached the mark of one million cruise passengers in one season for the first time. On Saturday, the MSC Euribia, AIDAnova and Excellence Coral called at the PORT OF KIEL, and on Sunday the AIDAbella and AIDAluna visited Ostseekai.

"Cruises have gained in popularity and our shipping company customers are recording good booking figures. We are pleased about this. The fact that we are welcoming one million cruise passengers to Kiel for the first time this season is of course something special. This year we are expecting a record year. For the next few years, we expect the cruise business to stabilize at a similar level, which we are very well able to handle with our terminals and operational processes," emphasizes Dirk Claus, Managing Director of SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co. KG. Kiel had already seen a positive trend in the cruise business in recent years, which had been put on hold by the slump during the Corona pandemic. In addition to the strong presence of the major European cruise lines AIDA, Costa, MSC and TUI, in recent years North American shipping companies, such as Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruise Line and Disney Cruise Line, have increasingly chosen Kiel as a cruise destination in the Baltic Sea region for their fleets. As recently as 2022, Kiel's seaport recorded its busiest season ever with 243 calls and 835,000 passengers. For the current season 2023, 222 cruise calls have been announced.