Mein Schiff 2

Announcing its second ship, Mein Schiff 2, which will start service in May of 2011, TUI CRUISES will double its capacity in the German market. The 1997-built, 77,713-ton, 1,898-passenger Mercury will be transferred from sister company Celebrity Cruises and redesigned and modernized at an estimated 50 million euro before entering service for TUI. The acquisition price was not disclosed.

Richard Vogel, CEO, described the TUI ships as “feel-good-ships.” That means, he told Cruise Industry News, “that spa and wellness experiences have high priority, including healthy foods and personal trainers.”

German Market

According to the European Cruise Council, Germany produced just over one million passengers in 2009. German brands, carried approximately 600,000, according to Cruise Industry News estimates.

Phoenix Reisen

Phoenix Reisen is the second largest cruise operator in Germany, Michael Schulze, director of cruise, told Cruise Industry News. The company usually operates three ocean-going ships on exclusive and long-term charter agreements and 40 to 50 river vessels worldwide. 

Starting in 1988, Phoenix was chartering the Maxim Gorki and presently has the Albatros, Amadea and Alexander von Humbolt under charter and will be adding the Artania in 2011, replacing the Alexander van Humboldt. The Artania is presently sailing for P&O CRUISES as the Artemis.

Hapag-Lloyd

With four ships sailing radically different itineraries and covering the globe, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises continues to offer unique products to mainly German-speaking guests, according to Sebastian Ahrens, managing director

Industry 2010

The worldwide cruise fleet consists of some 281 ships in 2010 that can carry nearly 18 million passengers and is expected to generate revenues in excess of $24 billion.

And there is more:

Venice is projecting more than 1.6 million cruise passengers in 2010, up from approximately 1.42 million in 2009.

After two years of service, CDF Croisieres de France Managing Director Antoine Lacarriere told Cruise Industry News that “this winter we expect to actively explore acquiring a newer and larger ship.”

Reducing the burdensome tax will go a long ways toward getting cruise capacity back in the Alaska market, according to John Binkley, president of the Alaska Cruise Association.