TUI Cruises's youngest vessel makes maiden call in the port of Kiel
The youngest vessel of TUI Cruises, “Mein Schiff 4”, arrived for its maiden call in the port of Kiel. Six days after its delivery from the shipyard Meyer Turku, Kiel is the first passenger port to welcome the new ship. Accompanied by water fountains of a harbour tug, the premium-class cruise ship of 293,5 m length and 99,526 GT entered the Fjord in the early morning of May 14. Many onlookers along the shore watched “Mein Schiff 4” berthing at the cruise terminal Ostseekai.
On June 5, it will be a big public event when the new vessel is christened by swimming legend Franziska van Almsick. Before that, the ship leaves for several short as well as introductory cruises and can be seen at Ostseekai for three times within just a few days (May 17 & 18, May 20, May 25 & 26). Dirk Claus: “The christening of “Mein Schiff 4” is a wonderful present to Kiel and the highlight of our cruise season. At the same time, this extraordinary event stands for the long-time trusting partnership between shipping company and port.” The subsequent maiden trip leads “Mein Schiff 4” to the Baltic metropolises followed by eleven more cruises starting from Kiel. Dirk Claus: “Kiel is homeport for TUI Cruises at the German Baltic Sea coast. The Fjord is starting point for attractive routes to the metropolises of the Baltic Sea as well as to the Nordland.” The shipping company has been a frequent guest in Kiel since 2009. The maiden call of “Mein Schiff 4” is also the 77th visit of a TUI Cruises ship to the State Capital of Schleswig-Holstein.
The PORT OF KIEL (SEEHAFEN KIEL GmbH & Co. KG) manages the trade port of Kiel as public mission on behalf of the State Capital Kiel being its 100 % subsidiary company. The terminal Ostseekai offers two berths for large cruise ships directly in the city centre. Furthermore, large cruise ships can also berth at Berth No. 1 in Ostuferhafen for passenger turnaround. Smaller cruise ships visiting Kiel berth at the terminals Norwegenkai, Sartorikai or Schwedenkai. In 2015, Kiel will welcome 23 different cruise liners with 127 calls in Kiel. This means that for the first time, more than 400,000 passengers will embark or disembark a cruise ship in Kiel.