The 2018 cruise season is off to a tremendous start in Hamburg, and some 220 calls making up 880,000 passengers will be the story by the end of the year. Those calls include 26 cruise lines and 50 ships, according to Sacha Rougier, managing director of Cruise Gate Hamburg. The numbers round out another record year.

“After three years of tremendous growth, almost 60 percent, 2019 will stabilize this progress and we are taking necessary steps for growth in the near future with a new urban terminal in the city center,” Rougier said.

Among the highlight was the port’s 829th anniversary in May, which saw 10 cruise ships and more than one million guests on the banks of the river Elbe. The occasion also saw TUI Cruises christen its new Mein Schiff 1.

Ten maiden calls are scheduled over the course of the season, with the AIDAnova being the last on November 19.

“Three of the eight AIDA Cruises ships that are scheduled to come to Hamburg in 2018, the AIDAsol, AIDAperla and AIDAnova, either rely on green shorepower from the local grid or electricity generated from zero-emission liquefied natural gas,” Rougier said.

MSC Cruises is also building up, with the Meraviglia joining the Preziosa on Hamburg-based cruises for the height of the season.

Rougier said the port had invested not only in modern infrastructure over the years, but also in supplying alternative energy.

Rougier hopes to bring that mindset to all of Northern Europe as a new council member of the Cruise Europe group.

Hamburg offers three urban cruise terminals that have suitable berths for day visits or overnight calls as well as infrastructure for effective turnaround services, including excellent parking facilities, Rougier explained

“From 2021 on, Hamburg will offer a new, highly modern HafenCity terminal in the midst of a huge commercial shopping and hotel complex within the vibrant HafenCity Area – and adjacent to the Elbphilharmonie,” he continued.

The new terminal will offer two berths and capable of processing 3,600 guests at a time.

“One of Hamburg’s trump cards is the population’s enthusiasm for cruise ships,” Rougier continued. “As two of our terminals are in the city area, we strive to encourage the people´s acceptance toward the cruise industry.”