Tag Archives: AIDA Perla

Port of Southampton to Host Seven Maiden Calls in 2023.

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The Port of Southampton is set to host seven maiden calls in 2023 after it hailed 2022 a “successful and significant” year.

This year, the port is due to welcome 492 cruise calls and will host maiden calls from a further seven cruise ships, including new builds MSC Explora 1 and Silversea Cruises’ Silver Nova.

In 2022, the port saw 600 cruise days and eight plaque and key ceremonies for Azamara Onward, Celebrity Beyond, Silver Moon, Norwegian Prima, Aida Perla, Aida Cosma, Enchanted Princess and P&O Cruises’ Arvia.


Continuing its work to promote air quality initiatives, in spring the port switched shore power on at two of its five terminals – Horizon and Mayflower – and since then has supported 15 ships to plug in a total of 42 times for zero emissions at berth.

Rebekah Keeler, head of the cruise at Associated British Ports, said: “We’re proud to provide award-winning cruise operational support year-round to the world’s biggest and smallest cruise ships.


“Supported by our port-based cruise services providers, we look forward to another successful year in 2023.”

AIDA Status Update: The Latest and Greatest

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AIDA is one of the cruise lines that has managed to resume service after a pandemic-related break, at least partially.

In this short update, Cruise Industry News recaps what the German cruise line has been up to since it stopped sailing in March 2020.

Service Resumptions

Over the last year, AIDA continually looked for service resumption opportunities. While some plans ended up scrapped before the actual service start, others went ahead. The German cruise line already welcomed passengers back three times.

First, in October, it reactivated the AIDAsol in the Mediterranean, in an all-Italian itinerary visiting Naples, Palermo, Catania, La Spezia and Civitavecchia. After a couple of sailings, however, the operation had to be cancelled due to new travel restrictions in Germany.

After cancelling other restart plans, AIDA had its second service resumption on Dec. 5, with the AIDAperla in the Canaries. A second ship, the AIDAmar, was added to the program before Christmas. On Dec. 29, AIDA was forced to cancel the operation after IT issues. 

While plans initially called for a January restart, a new lockdown in Germany prompted further cancellations.  

Sailing in the Canaries

The AIDAperla then re-entered service on March 20, marking the third AIDA resumption. The ship is currently sailing in the Canaries, offering a week-long cruise departing Gran Canaria and visiting Tenerife, La Palma, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.

The operation was recently extended until June, replacing a set of previously announced Mediterranean cruises. 

Intact Fleet  

With the Carnival Corporation having sold 18 ships already since the start of the pandemic, the AIDA fleet remains intact. So far, none of its 14 vessels had to depart the fleet.   

After the sales in other brands, AIDA ended up with some of the older and smallest vessels across the nine brands of the corporation – including the 38,000-ton AIDAcara built in 1996 and the 48,200-ton AIDAmira built-in 1999.

AIDAcosma Delayed

AIDA’s 2021 new build, meanwhile, was significantly delayed. Initially scheduled for a spring debut, the LNG-powered AIDAcosma was pushed to the third quarter. With the change, the vessel’s inaugural season in Europe was entirely cancelled and the first voyage rescheduled to Oct. 23, 2021.

In other AIDA shipbuilding news, the cruise line announced in November that it is progressing on its way to emission-neutral ships. The cruise line also said that it plans to install batteries onboard the AIDAperla and fuel cells onboard the AIDAnova in 2021.

By the Numbers:

Ships:

  • Ships shed: -0
  • Ships added: +0

Result: No Change

Berths:

  • Berths shed: -0
  • Berths added: + 0

Result: No Change