The Port of Kiel concluded this year’s cruise season with the call of AIDA Cruises’ AIDAnova on Saturday, November 4.
According to a press release, the port welcomed a total of 215 ship calls from 26 companies and a total of 1,174,000 cruise passengers, marking the port’s busiest season ever.
“We are closing the 2023 season with a good result. The development in the tourism industry shows a clear trend towards the cruise sector, which was also evident in Kiel this season,” said Dirk Claus, managing director of SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co.
“For us, the main issue is to make maritime tourism more environmentally friendly on the port side. Shore power was the dominant topic for us and will continue to be so in the coming season.”
Among the ships that visited the port during 2023 was the Disney Dream, the first ship from Disney Cruise Line to be welcomed in Kiel, as well as MSC Cruises’ Euribia.
Earlier this year, the port of Kiel achieved a milestone by becoming the first German port to supply a ship with liquidified natural gas. Since then, the AIDAnova and MSC Euribia have regularly bunkered LNG in the port of Kiel.
