“We are the pacesetter in the German cruise market and intend to remain so, both in terms of product development and sustainability. And if you compare us to other brands, we have by far the youngest guests. The average age is 42,” Alexander Ewig, senior vice president of marketing and sales, told Cruise Industry News.
“Our product is focused on connecting people, bringing people together when they come onboard, which means parties and having a real leisurely atmosphere. There is no captain’s dinner and no need to dress up.
“We offer a more informal, down-to-earth experience, with a huge focus on our entertainment and everything that goes with that. The ships are built around the theatrium (combination of atrium and theater) in the center. We are also much more family-oriented than the other German brands. All of this serves to totally differentiate us in the market.”
The big news for AIDA today is its evolution program. Ewig explained: “We are extensively modernizing the first three Sphinx class ships, the AIDAdiva, AIDAbella and the AIDAluna in 2025 and 2026.
“The focus will be on a new interior design of the ships, new restaurants, new suites, lounges and more. In addition, technical equipment and systems will be updated. It is the biggest modernization program in the history of our company.”
With seven ships in the Sphinx class, AIDA is also starting to think about the other four, according to Ewig.
In other new developments for 2025, in November AIDA is going back to the United States for the first time in five years on its 128-day world cruise sailing round trip from Hamburg. Ewig said that the AIDAdiva will be sailing down the East Coast, through the Caribbean, transiting the Panama Canal, and then up the West Coast. It will be the first Panama Canal transit of an AIDA vessel, he noted.
Also, for the winter of 2025, AIDA will be back in Asia, but changing its deployment to Japan and China from Malaysia, Indonesia and Vietnam this past winter.
“After Covid, we have also introduced more longer cruises roundtrip from Hamburg to the Caribbean, without any air travel involved,” Ewig added.
Called Winter Escapes, the concept is being extending to a 43-day cruise aboard the AIDAluna roundtrip from Hamburg to Brazil in January 2026, staying in Rio during carnival.
Meanwhile, AIDA has also been increasing its footprint in Northern Europe year-over-year, according to Ewig, with more sailings from Warnemunde, Hamburg and Kiel.
“Sailing from Germany makes our cruises more accessible to the market,” he said. “Our guests do not have to fly but can drive or take the train to the port. This summer we have 11 of our ships in Northern Europe and three in the Mediterranean.”
Started two years ago, a unique initiative by AIDA is its so-called dialogue program engaging with local communities. Explained Ewig: “Calling in Rotterdam, there was some local pushback. So, we invited people to come aboard the ship and explained our efforts to protect the environment and to be sustainable. As we created a dialogue with the community, the complaints we had went away.”
Having introduced the first LNG-fueled cruise ship and tested alternative power sources, including batteries, Ewig said: “Since we have tested many new concepts, our approach at the moment is to figure out which solutions work and may be viable. You have to be careful not to throw too many balls in the air, since we have to catch them too, and find the best solutions for the future.
“After Covid and coming back to the market very successfully last year, our focus is on growing the market,” Ewig said. “Even if we are the clear market leader with 50 percent of the German cruise market, the cruise industry is still a niche in the tourism market, so there is still opportunity to grow and get more first-timers to cruise.”
Excerpt from the Cruise Industry News Quarterly Magazine Summer 2024
