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Aida News

20 Dec 2023

China’s First Domestically Built Cruise Ship Delivered

Adora Magic City, China’s first domestically built cruise ship (Photo: CSSC SWS)

The first large cruise ship ever to be built in China has been delivered, potentially leading the way for a new market player to rise within the global cruise shipbuilding industry.The 5,246-passenger Adora Magic City, built by China State Shipbuilding Corporation’s (CSSC) Shanghai Waigaoqiao Shipbuilding (SWS) based on Fincantieri' Vista-class design, will commence its maiden voyage from Shanghai in January 2024, operated by Asian cruise line Adora Cruises.The Chinese-built ship will service the domestic market with four-to-five day sailings…

04 Dec 2023

Meyer Werft Delivers Cruise Ship Carnival Jubilee

(Photo: Meyer Werft)

German shipbuilder Meyer Werft announced it has delivered Carnival Jubilee, the latest cruise ship for Carnival Cruise Line.The 183,200 GT ship is 345.4 meters long, 42 meters wide and can accommodate 5,374 passengers in 2,626 passenger cabins, plus 1,551 crew. It has 20 decks.The RINA-classed Carnival Jubilee has a wide range of entertainment options and numerous restaurants. The highlight on the upper deck is the "Ultimate Playground" with a waterpark including large slides and the "BOLT" roller coaster.The newbuild is the first ship for Carnival Cruise Line to be built in Papenburg.

24 Jul 2023

Meyer Werft Floats Out Carnival Jubilee

(Photo: Meyer Werft)

German shipbuilder Meyer Werft has floated out its latest newbuild, a 183,200 GT cruise ship for Carnival Cruise Line.Carnival Jubilee left the yard's covered building dock on Friday and was moored at a pier in the shipyard harbor for outfitting. On Saturday, the ship briefly cast off from the pier for its bow thrusters and stabilizers could be tested.The RINA-classed ship is 344.5 meters long, with capacity for 5,228 passengers in 2,626 passenger cabins, plus 1,551 crew. It has 20 decks and an onboard roller coaster.Originally ordered for Carnival Corp.

27 Oct 2022

Floating on Bubbles: Carnival Corp expands use of Air Lubrication to cut Emissions

A 'bubble carpet' aims to help ships reduce drag and consumption. Image courtesy Silverstream

As the ship owners globally experiment with technologies to help incrementally cut emissions to meet stringent new IMO mandates, news out of south Florida indicates that Carnival Corporation, the world's largest cruise company, has made plans to expand the installation and use of Air Lubrication Systems (ALS) to a majority of the cruise line brands in its fleet through 2027; a move the cruise major expects witll generate "significant savings in fuel consumption and carbon emissions" by reducing hull drag by approximately 5% per ship.The pick for air lubrication is the Silverstream System ALS…

19 Sep 2022

Holland America Line Trials Biofuels on Board Volendam

(Photo: Holland America Line)

Carnival Corporation's Holland America Line brand announced it has completed a 20-day trial of cleaner-burning biofuel on board its cruise ship Volendam, reporting a decrease in lifecycle emissions compared to marine gas oil.Wrapping up at Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, the long-term test was conducted in partnership with GoodFuels, a producer and supplier of sustainable biofuels for the transportation industry, and Wärtsilä, manufacturer of power and propulsion technologies and lifecycle solutions for the marine market.The assessment was completed September 7.

27 Jul 2022

Carnival's AIDA Cruises Makes Biofuels Foray

(Photo: AIDA Cruises)

German cruise operator AIDA Cruises, a wholly owned subsidiary of Carnival Corporation, has for the first time started to use biofuels in regular ship operations as part of its CO2 emissions reduction efforts.On July 21, 2022, during its layover in Rotterdam, AIDAprima became the first larger scale cruise ship to be bunkered with a blend of marine biofuel from Dutch supplier GoodFuels made from 100% sustainable raw materials such as waste cooking oil, and marine gas oil (MGO).

17 Jun 2022

Costa Toscana: Costa Cruises Christens New LNG-powered Flagship in Barcelona

Costa Toscana in Barcelona - Credit: Bartolomej Tomić

Italian cruise line Costa Cruises on Thursday held a christening ceremony for its new flagship, the Costa Toscana, in the port of Barcelona, Spain.The LNG-powered, Italian-flagged ship sailed away from Civitavecchia, Italy on Monday, making a stop in Naples on Thursday, before arriving in Barcelona on Thursday for the christening ceremony. The 337-meter ship is one of the largest ocean liners and can accommodate 6,554 passengers. Chanel, a Cuban-Spanish singer, dancer, and actress…

15 Jun 2022

Batteries, Fuel Cells, Solar, Wind Power and More: Cruise Operator Costa Group Sets Up Decarbonization Department

Credit: Costa Group

The European cruise company, Costa Group, with its Costa Cruises and AIDA Cruises brands, which is part of Carnival Corporation, has created a dedicated decarbonization department within its Carnival Maritime unit based in Hamburg, Germany.The new department will be responsible for developing and implementing the strategy for achieving the decarbonization ambitions of the Costa and AIDA fleets by 2050. The effort will have a strong focus on research and development, energy management…

18 Mar 2022

Meyer Werft Cuts First Steel for Carnival Jubilee

(Photo: Meyer Werft)

German shipbuilder Meyer Werft said it cut first steel on Friday for Carnival Jubilee, a new 183,200 GT cruise ship set to debut for Carnival Cruise Line in 2023.Originally ordered for Carnival Corp. brand AIDA Cruises, the newbuild was transferred to sister line Carnival Cruise Line in 2021. It marks the first time a ship design has been transferred from Finnish shipyard Meyer Turku to Meyer Werft.Carnival Jubilee, like its fellow Excel Class cruise ships Mardi Gras delivered in 2020 and Carnival Celebration due to be handed over later this year…

03 Mar 2022

AIDA Cruises Cancels Stops at Russian Port

© Studio Porto Sabbia / Adobe Stock

Carnival Corp-owned AIDA Cruises said on Thursday four of its ships would not stop at St. Petersburg port in Russia this summer as were previously scheduled, after the country’s invasion of Ukraine.The move comes after most major U.S.

03 Jan 2022

Passengers Depart COVID-hit Cruise Ship After 5 Days Stuck in Lisbon

Copyright Mauro Rodrigues/AdobeStock

Disconsolate passengers stuck on a cruise ship moored in Lisbon's port for five days due to a COVID-19 outbreak began disembarking early on Monday, focused on clearing the final hurdle of a negative test before boarding homebound flights.The AIDAnova, carrying 2,844 passengers and 1,353 crew, had docked in Portugal's capital on Wednesday.The ship was en route to the island of Madeira for New Year's Eve celebrations, but its German operator decided to cut the cruise short after COVID-19 was detected among what it said was a fully vaccinated crew…

21 Dec 2021

MEYER WERFT Delivers Cruise Ship AIDAcosma to AIDA Cruises

AIDAcosma (Photo: MEYER WERFT)

German shipbuilder MEYER WERFT announced Tuesday it has handed over the AIDAcosma to Carnival's German line AIDA Cruises. The 337-meter-long AIDAcosma runs on cleaner-burning liquefied natural gas (LNG). Sister ship AIDAnova, delivered in 2018, was the world's first cruise ship with this propulsion systemThe newbuild is the fourth cruise ship delivered by MEYER WERFT since the pandemic began.According to the yard, various effects of the pandemic have caused challenges on board the AIDAcosma in recent weeks. "Overall, however, we managed these well until the end.

17 Dec 2021

Carnival Opens New Dubai Cruise Terminal

(Photo: Carnival Corporation)

Cruise ship operator Carnival Corporation has officially opened its new Dubai Harbor Cruise Terminal with Shamal Holding following their strategic partnership signed in 2018 to develop the new cruise port.With the arrivals of Costa Firenze and AIDAbella from the company’s Italy-based Costa Cruises and Germany-based AIDA Cruises brands, the official opening was marked by two passenger cruise ships visiting the Dubai Harbor Cruise Terminal for the first time, coinciding with the start of the cruise season and the ships’ homeporting seasons from Dubai.

21 Jul 2021

MSC to Resume Cruise Activities in Valencia with Arrival of 'MSC Grandiosa'

The MSC Grandiosa cruise ship is set to dock at the cruise pier of the Port of Valencia marking the MSC's resumption of activity at the port. The ship will dock at the Cap i Casal, an operation that will take place every Friday with a full day stopover until November 5, when the summer and autumn season comes to an end. This was explained this morning at a press conference by the, who was accompanied by the president of the Port Authority of Valencia (PAV), Aurelio Martínez, and the CEO of MSC Spain, Francisco Lorente.Vice-president of MSC Cruises, Gianluca Suprani said it was important that the sector was slowly but surely returning to normality…

14 Jul 2021

Meyer Werft Floats Out AIDAcosma

(Photo: Meyer Werft)

German shipbuilder Meyer Werft has floated out its latest newbuilding, the liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered AIDAcosma, for Carnival's AIDA Cruises.The 337-meter-long vessel is the sister ship of the AIDAnova, which Meyer Werft completed in 2018 as the world's first cruise ship to run entirely on LNG.Having left Meyer Werft's covered building dock II (Hall 6), the newbuild is now moored at the outfitting pier in the shipyard harbor, where the masts and funnel will be lifted onto the ship by crane and assembled, and the interior outfitting will be completed.

23 Jun 2021

Carnival to Add Two More Cruise Ships by 2023

(Image: Carnival Cruise Line)

Carnival Cruise Line announced plans today to grow its fleet by two additional ships by 2023, taking the delivery position of an Excel-class ship that had previously been assigned to sister line AIDA Cruises that will arrive in late 2023, as well as taking ownership of Costa Magica from another of its European sister lines, with that ship going through a dry dock, renaming and Carnival-branded conversion and joining the fleet by mid-2022.These two ships are in addition to the new capacity growth represented by Mardi Gras…

17 Jun 2021

Harren Bulkers Buys Its First Handysize

(Photo: Harren Bulkers)

Bremen-based ship owning and ship management company Harren Bulkers announced it has acquired its first Handysize bulk carrier. The company's fleet now counts 23 ships.The 37,000 dwt Pabari (ex Western Aida) was built in 2012 at Hyundai Mipo Dockyard, in South Korea. With an overall length of 186.96 meters, 28.60-meter beam and 15.6-meter depth molded, Pabari is currently the smallest ship in the Harren Bulkers fleet. The chartering is done by OneBulk from Hamburg.Joachim Zeppenfeld…

18 Feb 2021

Inside Cruise Shipping's Fight for Survival

Photo Source: Port Everglades

In early 2021, the somber news from the cruise sector continued. For some cruise brands, their own version of “lockdowns” will have spanned an entire year. By late January, 2021, Carnival and others were hesitantly pegging their restarts for April/May 2021, and for some markets, late summer, under a Conditional Sail Order promulgated late last year by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).What else to do but look ahead?In preliminary earnings guidance, Carnival Corporation (NYSE: CCL)…

16 Feb 2021

AIDA Cruises to Open Cruise Season on March 20. Earlier Trips Cancelled

Image by Philippe Alès - Wikimedia Commons - CC BY-SA 4.0

AIDA Cruises said Tuesday it would open its 2021 cruise season starting March 20 with AIDAperla ship sailing around the Canary Islands, "a favorite "fly and cruise" vacation for German travelers looking to enjoy the region's "eternal spring" weather and unique destinations." However, trips planned for earlier in March will not be taking place.The German federal government has extended the lockdown to contain the pandemic until March 2021. Many of AIDA's cruise destinations have also implemented measures that significantly restrict international holiday travel through early spring…

06 Nov 2020

Methanol-operated Fuel Cell System Gets DNV GL AIP

(Image: Freudenberg Sealing Technologies)

A methanol-operated fuel cell system from Freudenberg Sealing Technologies has received approval in principle (AIP) from classification society DNV GL, setting the course for further testing aboard the cruise ship AidaNova as soon as 2021.Converting the approximately 100,000 commercial ships on the world’s oceans to CO2-neutral propulsion systems is one of the maritime industry's greatest challenges. Since a large part of this fleet is operated on the high seas, the range of any new propulsion systems must be able to cover vast distances.

26 Oct 2020

Costa Cruises Completes Italy's First LNG Bunkering

Costa Smeralda loads LNG fuel from the bunkering vessel Coral Methane in the port of La Spezia. (Photo: Costa Cruises)

Carnival Corporation's Costa Cruises brand said its liquefied natural gas (LNG)-powered flagship Costa Smeralda has become he first vessel to bunker LNG in Italy.Carried out in the port of La Spezia and completed at 6 p.m. on Sunday, the operation was supported by the Italian Coast Guard, Port Authority of Eastern Ligurian Sea, local authorities and Shell, which is the LNG supplier partner for Costa Group and its parent company, Carnival Corporation.The operation took place with the ship berthed at Molo Garibaldi pier…

03 Sep 2020

Carnival's Shares Surge as Costa Cruises Prepares to Sail

Costa Cruises is initially restarting sailing with two ships, Costa Deliziosa (pictured) and Costa Diadema, calling Italian ports. The one-week itineraries are being reserved exclusively for Italian guests. (Photo: Costa Cruises)

Carnival Corp’s shares surged 11% on Thursday after its Italian brand Costa Cruises said two of its ships would resume sailing this weekend, with more to follow.Cruise companies, among the worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, were forced to halt voyages for months after ships in Japan, Australia and California made headlines because of large numbers of infections onboard.So far this year, Carnival’s shares have lost nearly two-thirds of their value, while peer Royal Caribbean Cruises Group has lost about 45% and Norwegian Cruise Line Holding Ltd about 67%.Shares of Royal Caribbean were up 6% an

17 Aug 2020

Carnival Hit by Ransomware Attack

© James Thew / Adobe Stock

Cruise operator Carnival Corp said on Monday it launched an investigation into a ransomware attack on one of its brand’s information technology systems.Carnival, which operates AIDA, Carnival and Princess cruises among others, in a regulatory filing said the attack included unauthorized access to personal data of guests and employees.The company did not identify the brand that was affected and declined to provide more details, as the investigation process was at an early stage.The attack adds to the woes of the company that has been already struggling with suspension of its cruises for months