There were hardly any cruise ships on the seas during the corona pandemic. Now the industry is back on track for growth. The Aida boss speaks of the “strongest main booking phase in history” – but growth is currently being limited.
The first large boats have already visited the northern German ports – the main season for cruise ships begins in April. The terminals in Kiel, Hamburg, Rostock-Warnemünde, Bremerhaven and Wismar will then be served regularly again. The industry has overcome the crisis of the Corona years and large shipping companies have long since seen themselves on a growth path again.
Aida: “Strongest main booking phase in history” – but limited capacities
Felix Eichhorn, President of Aida Cruises, speaks of a successful start and a “very optimistic” outlook for 2024. “This was the strongest main booking phase in the history of our company.” There is potential, particularly in the German market. “Growth is currently only limited by the available capacities.”
Cruise bookings have returned to pre-pandemic levels, says MSC Cruises spokesman Dominik Gebhard. “And we see that the booking curve is rising again.” According to managing director Wybcke Meier, Tui Cruises’ “Mein Schiff” fleet recorded 45 percent of new customers last year. Bookings for 2024 would be higher than those for 2019.
Millions of cruise passengers expected in German ports
Shipping companies are already predicting high demand for 2025. Gebhard justifies the industry’s quick return after the Corona low with the desire for family time and shared memories: “In times of economic uncertainty, consumers tend to give priority to vacation.” The German Travel Association also reported an increased desire to travel in March of Germans despite the economic downturn and inflation. With an increase in sales of 41 percent compared to 2023, cruises are “one of the growth drivers in the market”.
Together, the five major German cruise cities expect passenger numbers in the seven-figure range for 2024. For Hamburg alone, the operator Cruise Gate Hamburg (CGH) expects 1.1 to 1.3 million travelers on 270 visits. Around a million cruise guests are expected to arrive in the port of Kiel on 173 calls, while 101 calls with a total of around 265,000 passengers are expected in Bremerhaven. The first cruise ships docked in all three cities in January.
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In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania the cruise season starts later. The “AIDAmar” will be the first ship of the year to call at Warnemünde on April 14th, and 147 calls are expected by the end of the season. Wismar is planning ten calls and 5,000 passengers. The “Hanseatic Inspiration” starts on May 26th.
Shore power as a stage for sustainability goals
Energy consumption, emissions and waste – cruises are not necessarily considered an environmentally friendly way to travel. Port operators and shipping companies want to make vacations on large ships more sustainable. The World Shipowners Association ICS has set climate neutrality as a goal by 2050. Aida Cruises wants to be at “net zero” by 2040, while its competitor Tui Cruises wants to offer at least some climate-neutral trips by 2030.
One factor is the electricity consumed by ships in the port. Without shore power, the ship’s engines must continue to run. However, the decisive drivers are not ports or shipping companies: the EU requires shore power supply in all important ports by 2030.
Hamburg is planning additional shore power systems at terminals
In Hamburg, cruise ships have been able to obtain shore power at the Altona terminal since 2016, and a new shore power system went into operation at the Steinwerder terminal in December. For this season, the operator CGH is planning to provide shore power for 180 of 270 calls at both terminals. The new cruise terminal in Hafencity, planned for 2025, will also receive a facility.
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The second shore power system for cruise ships in Kiel was put into operation at the Ostuferhafen in autumn 2023, with a third to follow in 2025. This season, more than 50 percent of the ships will be supplied with green electricity from land. “We are noticing a significant increase in demand for shore power from cruise lines in Kiel,” says seaport managing director Dirk Claus.
Criticism of insufficient use of shore power – shipping companies want to continue converting
Critics complain that the shipping companies alone decide on the use of electricity and that not all cruise ships are able to use shore power. In Warnemünde in 2023, out of 30 different cruise ships, only 13 ships received shore power on 42 calls; at Columbuskaje in Bremerhaven, shore power for the cruise sector will only be available from autumn 2025.
The shipping companies name converting their fleets to shore power supply as a priority. According to its own information, MSC has already expanded 59 percent of its ships accordingly, and this should be 72 percent by the end of the year. Investments are also being made in the construction and purchase of our own terminals in order to equip them accordingly. Tui Cruises wants to expand its cruise fleet from six to nine ships in the next two years. “In the future, the three new ships in the Mein Schiff fleet will be able to obtain green shore power from ports that offer this,” says Meier. In addition, five of the six ships in the existing fleet have shore power connections.
“Net zero cruise” – fuel as a future issue
Fuel plays a crucial role on the path to a “net-zero cruise”: biofuels, liquid gas, methanol – or something completely different? The shipping companies are introducing various ideas for new buildings. The upcoming “Mein Schiff 7” will initially run on lower-emission marine diesel, says Meier. In the future, the ship could be powered by methanol, and in the future also green methanol. According to Tui Cruises, another new building, which is scheduled to start sailing in winter 2024/25, will be powered by liquid natural gas (LNG).
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Aida Cruises already has two LNG cruise ships in operation: the “AIDAnova” and “AIDAcosma”. MSC Cruises is also building its new ships to run on liquid gas. They could also be retrofitted to run on green methanol, says spokesman Gebhard.
This is going too slowly for climate protectors. The environmental organization Nabu recently criticized the fact that emissions from the entire industry have recently continued to rise. However, when it comes to shore power, Germany is taking a positive pioneering role.