AIDA Cruises - company profile

Germany is the location of several renowned cruise lines, of which AIDA Cruises is the largest and best known. In the course of its existence, the Rostock-based company has awakened the interest in and passion for cruises among millions of German-speaking guests through skillful marketing and consistently good services.

AIDA Cruises - from newcomer to German market leader

The nucleus of AIDA Cruises was the Deutsche Seereederei, the former state shipping company of the GDR. It repositioned itself after the political change in Germany. The decisions made in the early 1990s included setting up and introducing a funship concept on the German market. The US Carnival Cruise Line served as a model for the shipping company.

It all started in 1996 with the AIDAcara; the AIDAvita and AIDAaura followed. After a few detours, the company became a brand of Carnival Corporation & plc, the world's largest cruise operator, in 2004. Carnival subordinated AIDA Cruises to the Italian Costa shipping company. That explains why AIDA ships have sailed under the Italian flag since 2004. Since then, the correct company name has been AIDA Cruises – German Branch of Costa Crociere SpA. The unmistakable trademarks of all ships are the kissing mouth on the ship's bow and the blue eyes with the eyeliner.

The 1990s were receptive to cruising, and being part of the Carnival group favored building a competitive fleet. The implementation of the ambitious corporate concept on the German-speaking market would hardly have been possible without the experience and influence of the partner Carnival. On the American Carnival website, the reader was told that AIDA ships were "tailor-made" for the German-speaking market; nowadays people still talk about the “unique German experience”. AIDA Cruises offers cruise experiences for all generations, German-speaking service, German food and entertainment tailored to German tastes.

AIDAprima - in Rotterdam

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Book AIDA Cruises

All cruises with the AIDA cruise ships can be booked directly on the Book the AIDA Cruises website.

AIDA Cruises - the seaworthy club resort

The Carnival Group wants the AIDA brand to be a seaworthy club resort. All of this is underpinned by a variety of onboard amenities and facilities designed to appeal to younger, active vacationers in particular.

AIDAcosma - Beach Club Atmosphere

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The company's requirements are well implemented. All ages are represented on board the ships, from small children to senior citizens. And there is something for all tastes: entertainment, sport and wellness satisfy all age groups. The gastronomy of the ships' buffet restaurants is generally satisfactory. In recent years, there has been a noticeable trend towards restaurants with waiter service, which are subject to a surcharge, and to expensive spa facilities, which are also subject to a charge. The growing ship sizes promote this development. However, the surcharge policy alone is not a special AIDA phenomenon, this form of differentiation through additional services from the standard offers can also be observed with other cruise brands.

AIDA ships obviously meet the needs of German-speaking travelers with pinpoint accuracy. Guests seem to be very satisfied with what is on offer. AIDA put the overall satisfaction of guests on board the ships in 2014 at 92 percent. More recent values ​​are not available. This and the number of ships explain the shipping company's high market share on the German market on the one hand and the number of "repeaters" on the other. In the pre-Corona period, the AIDA ships carried more than a million passengers within a year.

AIDA Cruises – ship classes and ships

Helios class

Ship Year of construction Cabins Class of ship

AIDAnova                   2018 2.626 Helios class

AIDAcosma                2021 2.732 Helios class

Encounter with the AIDAnova

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Hyperion class

Ship Year of construction Cabins Class of ship

AIDAprima                 2016 1.643 Hyperion class

AIDAperla 2017 1.643 Hyperion class

Show program on board AIDAprima

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modified Sphinx class  

Ship Year of construction Cabins Class of ship

Aida Luna                    2009 1.025 Sphinx Class (Modified)

AIDAblu                      2010 1.096 Sphinx Class (Modified)

AIDAsol 2011 1.097 Sphinx Class (Modified)

AIDAmar 2012 1.097 Sphinx Class (Modified)

AIDAstella                  2013 1.097 Sphinx Class (Modified)

AIDAstella

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Sphinx class

Ship Year of construction Cabins Class of ship

AIDAdiva                    2007 1.025 Sphinx class

AIDAbella 2008 1.025 Sphinx class

The AIDAaura, put into service in 2002, does not belong to any ship class. As a sister ship to the AIDAvita, which has since been retired, she was one of the first ships in the AIDA fleet.

AIDA Cruises put the total bed capacity on (last) 13 ships at 30.781.

AIDAselection

What to do with the old, small fleet members? Costa Cruises and its competitors have shown it. Under the AIDAselection program item, the tried-and-tested, manageable ships with around 40.000 GT have been offering alternatives to the fun ship atmosphere of their big sisters since the beginning of 2017. "Cosmopolitan explorers" were offered extraordinary routes off the beaten track. Other items on the programme: Insights into the local culture, culinary delights based on regional dishes, lectures by recognized lecturers and overnight stays in individual ports and ... and ... and. The small ships seemed perfectly suited for this. After the small ship units have been handed over, "AIDAselection Discovery Voyages" are now offered by the ships AIDAbella, AIDAmar and AIDAsol.

AIDA Cruises – the newbuilding program

With the (delayed) commissioning of the two newbuilds AIDAprima and AIDAperla, during the construction period there were massive problems at the Mitsubishi shipyards commissioned to build the ships, the company continues to focus on expansion. The company is investing in three large Helios-class ships powered by low-emission liquefied natural gas (LNG). The orders for the construction of the ships went to the MEYER shipyard in Papenburg. With the AIDAnova, the first ship of this class went into service in 2018. At the end of 2021, a second ship of this class was delivered with the AIDAcosma. The giants, which will probably each cost one billion euros, clearly beat the previous fleet ships in terms of size. They are measured with more than 180.000 GT, have more than 2.600 or 2.700 cabins and carry a minimum of 5.000 guests per trip when fully occupied.

AIDA Cruises – on course for a climate-neutral cruise

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) significantly reduces the ships' carbon footprint. That alone is not enough. AIDA Cruises relies on the shore power supply for the ships. Only a few ports still offer “green” shore power. The shipping company plans to use shore power for all ships in the fleet in the future. Even if there is still a long way to go before the project is fully implemented. – Another promising measure on the way to a climate-neutral cruise is the use of battery and fuel cell technologies. A large battery storage system with a capacity of 2 megawatt hours was put into operation on board the AIDAprima in the summer of 2022. From autumn 10, the first fuel cell on a large passenger ship will be tested in practice on the AIDAnova.

A company that invests heavily in new buildings and technical development does not shy away from the future. A resurgence of the German cruise market after overcoming the Corona crisis is to be expected. AIDA Cruises will benefit from this.

Update October 2022