By
Alice Chambers |
TUI River Cruises’ new ship, TUI Isla, set sail on its first itinerary on 1 April 2022 following its christening ceremony on 28 March 2022.
TUI Isla is the third and final vessel to join the cruise line’s fleet and travelled from Basel, Switzerland, before heading to Strasbourg, France, and then onto Rudesheim, Koblenz, and Cologne, Germany.
“We’re delighted to complete our TUI River Cruises fleet with TUI Isla setting sail,” said Chris Hackney, managing director of cruise for TUI UK. “Her addition allows us to visit ports of call and destinations we haven’t been to before. We’ve had some incredible feedback from guests sailing onboard TUI Maya and TUI Skyla since they launched last year so we’re thrilled to be able to offer even more itineraries to our guests.”
Godmother Courtney Smith, a TUI retail homeworker, named the vessel and pushed the button to break a bottle of champagne across the hull in accordance with maritime tradition.
“I am honoured to be TUI Isla's godmother,” said Smith. “It’s amazing to finally be able to christen her, and the fact she is the final ship of the fleet makes it really special. TUI River Cruises have been so popular with our customers and having sailed on TUI Isla now I can understand why. It’s a really special experience and I feel incredibly lucky to be playing such an important role in the brand.”
TUI River Cruises has expanded its summer 2022 offering with two new itineraries and one new port of call. The ‘Treasures of the Main’ itinerary features the new port of call Aschaffenburg in Germany, while the new seven-night Frankfurt roundtrip, named ‘Legends of the Rhine’, will call at Cologne, Bonn and Koblenz, also in Germany.
Guests sailing on the ‘Legends of the Rhine’ itinerary will also be able to attend the Rhine in Flames festival, a traditional fireworks display that takes place on the second Saturday in August each year.