The new Mein Schiff 2 from TUI Cruises was given a traditional welcome when she arrived in Kiel today from Copenhagen at the end of her maiden voyage.
The ship was met early this morning by the tug “Bülk” at the Friedrichsort light beacon on her approach from Copenhagen and escorted with a fountain display to Kiel’s Ostseekai Cruise Terminal.
Captain Kjell Holm and his crew were officially welcomed afterwards by Cathy Kietzer, the President of the Schleswig-Holstein state capital.
During an onboard reception she presented the traditional First Call plaque and the Guest Flag of the City of Kiel. “It’s a big day for our port”, said Kietzer. “We are delighted that the maiden voyage of “Mein Schiff 2” has brought her to us, here in the Kiel fiord. Kiel is the perfect turnaround port for cruises in northern Europe”.
This is the third year in a row that Kiel has been the base port for TUI Cruises in northern Europe. Mein Schiff 2 will set out from the Ostseekai Terminal a total of twelve times up to the start of September for cruises to the biggest cities on the Baltic, along the Norwegian fiords and to the North Cape and also Spitzbergen.
Dr Dirk Claus, Managing Director of the Port of Kiel said “cruise shipping in Germany has never before been in such demand as it is now. Port locations on the North Sea and the Baltic all profit from every additional ship that goes into service on the growing German market”.
