By
Rebecca Gibson |
Port of Kiel welcomed its ninth and final maiden cruise call of 2018 on 2 October when it hosted a visit from Viking Cruises’ Viking Sky.
Viking Sky, which debuted in 2017, called at the port with around 930 guests during an 11-day Scandinavian cruise, which began on 25 September in Copenhagen, Denmark. The vessel berthed in port all day, giving guests time to embark on various shore excursions and tours in Kiel, the Hanse city of Lübeck, the seaside spa resort of Laboe and other destinations in the Schleswig-Holstein region.
The port’s operations director Jörg Demuth also boarded the ship to welcome the ship’s captain Robert Bamberg, presenting him with a commemorative plaque from the Schleswig-Holstein federal state capital.
Viking Sky then departed for Hamburg, Germany. She will be the first ship to visit Kiel’s Ostseekai cruise berth on 27 March 2019.
“We are delighted that Viking Ocean Cruises has taken our port into consideration in its route planning,” said Demuth. “Schleswig-Holstein and the federal state capital have much to offer travellers as tourist destinations and we look forward to their visits.”
Kiel has also handled inaugural visits from ships in the Cunard, Fred. Olsen Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Ponant, Pullmantur, P&O Cruises and Saga Cruises fleets this year.
“The high number of maiden calls underscores the fact that Kiel, in addition to its function as a base port for cruise shipping, is also being utilised more and more as a jumping-off point for day trips ashore,” said Nicole Claus, the port’s cruise shipping director. “International cruise ship travellers are increasingly discovering Schleswig-Holstein as a holiday destination in its own right.”