<noinclude> TUI Cruises is a cruise line based in Germany. It was formed in 2007 as a joint venture between the German tourism company TUI AG and the American cruise line operator Royal Caribbean Group, each of which owns a 50% stake in the company.
History The company started operations in 2009 and competes with AIDA Cruises for the German market. It targets German-speaking customers who opt for a premium cruise experience. The onboard product, including food, entertainment and amenities, is tailored for German tastes and German is the main language used onboard its ships.
Due to lack of new-building capacity, TUI Cruises started by acquiring the cruise ship Celebrity Galaxy, which was built by Meyer Werft and was owned by another RCCL subsidiary, Celebrity Cruises. She left the Celebrity fleet on 16 March 2009. After acquiring Celebrity Galaxy, the ship headed to Lloyd Werft shipyards in Bremerhaven, Germany. She arrived on 27 March 2009, and received a €50 million, 38-day conversion to upgrade her facilities to suit a German-speaking market. After the conversion, she was re-christened on 15 May 2009 in Hamburg, Germany bearing her new name, Mein Schiff (My Ship). TUI planned to build two 2,500-passenger, 100,000-GT cruise ships in 2011 and 2012.
On May 27, 2010, it was announced that another Century-class ship, Celebrity Mercury, would become the latest addition to TUI's fleet, renamed Mein Schiff 2. Due to this Mein Schiff was immediately renamed Mein Schiff 1. Mein Schiff 2 entered service with TUI in February 2011 after its extensive refurbishment, with the addition of more verandas, an expanded fitness area and design elements which are also found on Mein Schiff 1.Celebrity Mercury to become second ship in TUI Cruises fleet. Cruise Industry News. 27 May 2010. Retrieved 27 May 2010
Newbuilds
TUI and STX Finland announced a contract on 27 September 2011 to build a 97,000-GT vessel named Mein Schiff 3, first of the Blue Motion class, which was delivered in 2014. The vessel is approximately long and approximately wide. The ship has 1,250 staterooms, most of which have balconies, with a capacity of 2,500 passengers and a crew of 1,000. The ship includes several restaurants, a theatre, spa and nightclub. The contract included an option to build a second ship, dependent on the approval of TUI Cruises shareholders. It was announced on November 5, 2012, that TUI had taken up the second option for the sister ship to the Mein Schiff 3, to be named Mein Schiff 4. On April 22, 2014, Mein Schiff 3 entered service. In March 2015, Royal Caribbean International announced that they had agreed to sell to TUI Cruises in the second quarter of 2016, and that TUI would lease the ship to Thomson Cruises to replace the Island Escape. In May 2015, TUI Group announced that as part of their modernization strategy, and would be transferred to Thomson Cruises over the next few years, as a result, 2 replacement ships neue Mein Schiff 1 and neue Mein Schiff 2 were ordered. On January 15, Mein Schiff 5 was launched. On April 28, Mein Schiff 6's keel was laid down.
The new Mein Schiff 1 debuted in 2018, followed by the Mein Schiff 2 in 2019. These were both enlarged version of the previous ships, and included modification in the layout of the open decks, with an enclosed sport court, expanded forward suite area, an infilled aft deck, and a new elevated jogging track.
In July 2018, TUI Cruises announces th order of two new 160,000 ton LNG InTUItion class ships at Fincanteri.
In February 2020 TUI announced the purchase of Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten. The take over was completed in July 2020.
The Mein Schiff Herz left the fleet in April 2023.
In 2023 it was announced the new InTUItion class would introduce a new naming convention, with the first ship named Mein Schiff Relax. The ship was floated out in November 2023 at Fincantieri's Monfalcone shipyard in Italy.
The final ship of the Blue Motion Class, Mein Schiff 7 debuted in 2024, and will be one of the first methanol ready ships.
On February 7, 2025, the Mein Schiff Relax was delivered to TUI Cruises. The first new prototype design for the line in over 11 years, it is also the first LNG powered and largest ship in the fleet. Her sister ship Mein Schiff Flow was delivered in June 2026.
Fleet
Current fleet Ship Built Builder in servicewith TUI Gross tonnage Flag Notes ImageBlu Motion Class Mein Schiff 3 2014 STX Finland 2014 99,526 First new build for TUI Cruises Mein Schiff 4 2015 STX Finland/Meyer Turku 2015 99,526 Mein Schiff 5 2016 Meyer Turku 2016 98,785 Modified from previous ships in class by removing the glass roof of the enclosed pool. Mein Schiff 6 2017 Meyer Turku 2017 98,811 Blu Motion Class (enlarged) Mein Schiff 1 2018 Meyer Turku 2018 111,500 Stretched version previous ships. Mein Schiff 2 2019 Meyer Turku 2019 111,500 Sister to new Mein Schiff 1 Mein Schiff 7 2024 Meyer TurkuMeyer Werft: Mein SChiff 7 2024 112,982 Sister ship to Mein Schiff 1 and 2Methanol-Ready propulsionIntuition ClassMein Schiff Relax2025Fincantieri 2025 160,000First LNG-fuelled ship and the largest ship for the company Mein Schiff Flow 2026 Fincantieri 2026 ~ 160,000 inTUItion-classSecond LNG-fuelled ship and sister ship to Mein Schiff Relax
Future fleet Ship Maiden Voyage Builder Gross Tonnage Planned Flag Notes(Unnamed Intuition Class)2031Fincantieri 160,000-gt Building slot originally for sister brand Marella Cruises(Unnamed Intuition Class)2032Fincantieri 160,000-gt Building slot originally for sister brand Marella Cruises
Former fleet Ship Built Builder in servicewith TUI Gross tonnage Flag Notes Image Mein Schiff 1 1996 Meyer Werft 2009–20102010–2018 76,522 Previously Celebrity Galaxy, transferred out of the fleet in 2018. Now sails as Marella Explorer. Mein Schiff Herz 1997 Meyer Werft 2011–2021 77,302 Previously Celebrity Mercury, Mein Schiff 2, Mein Schiff Herz transferred out of fleet in 2022. Will sail as Marella Voyager.
References
External links
TUI Cruises official site