''AIDAluna'' is a Sphinx-class

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

, owned by US based Carnival Corp and operated by

AIDA Cruises AIDA Cruises is a German cruise line founded in the early 1960s and organized as a wholly owned subsidiary of Costa Crociere S.p.A., which in turn belongs to Carnival Corporation & plc. Based in Rostock, Germany, AIDA Cruises caters primaril ...

. Built by

Meyer Werft Meyer Werft (; ) is a German shipbuilding company, headquartered in Papenburg at the river Ems. It was founded in 1795, as a builder of small wooden vessels. It has been owned and managed by the Meyer family for seven generations. Since ...

shipyards in

Papenburg Papenburg (; East Frisian Low Saxon: ''Papenbörg'') is a city in the district of Emsland, Lower Saxony, Germany, situated at the river Ems. It is known for its large shipyard, the Meyer-Werft, which specializes in building cruise liners. Ge ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, she is the third ship of the class, preceded by ''

AIDAdiva ''AIDAdiva'' is a ''Sphinx''-class cruise ship operated by the German cruise line AIDA Cruises. The ship was built at Meyer Werft in Papenburg Papenburg (; East Frisian Low Saxon: ''Papenbörg'') is a city in the district of Emsland, Lower S ...

'' and ''

AIDAbella ''AIDAbella'' is a cruise ship operated by AIDA Cruises. Built at Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg, Germany, she is a sister ship to ''AIDAdiva ''AIDAdiva'' is a ''Sphinx''-class cruise ship operated by the German cruise line AIDA Cruises. T ...

'', and is followed by ''

AIDAblu ''AIDAblu'' is a ''Sphinx''-class cruise ship, operated by the German cruise line AIDA Cruises. ''AIDAblu'' is the seventh ship in the cruise line. The vessel was delivered by Meyer Werft on 4 February 2010. She is a sister ship to '' AIDAdiva'' ...

'', ''

AIDAsol ''AIDAsol'' is a Sphinx-class cruise ship, built at Meyer Werft for AIDA Cruises. She is the fifth Sphinx series ship, preceded by sisters , , , and , and followed by and . ''AIDAsol'' was delivered in March 2010. She was christened on 9 April ...

'', and '' AIDAmar''. The ship has a capacity of 2,100 passengers and has a gross tonnage of 69,203. ''AIDAluna'' was initially deployed in the

Baltic Sea The Baltic Sea is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that is enclosed by the countries of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Sweden, and the North European Plain, North and Central European Plain regions. It is the ...

for the 2009 Summer season. In Winter 2009, she was redeployed in

Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...

. ''AIDAluna'' has an 8 × 4.5-m poolside theater, which is a first for AIDA Cruises.Countdown to AIDAluna: still 12 weeks to the maiden voyage
Press Release. ''AIDA Cruises''. 29 December 2008. Retrieved 22 May 2010

Concept and construction

''AIDAluna'' is the third ship, out of a series of six ships, ordered by AIDA Cruises at Meyer Werft, with expected delivery of one ship each year from 2007 to 2012. She is a sister ship of ''AIDAdiva'', ''AIDAbella'', ''AIDAblu'', ''AIDAsol'', and ''AIDAmar''. The first order was only for two ships, but the option extended to six ships.AIDA Cruises orders two new club ships
''Meyerwerft website. 19 October 2004. Retrieved 8 May 2010AIDAluna
''Meyerwerft website''. Retrieved 8 May 2010 She floated out of drydock on 10 February 2009.Undocking of third AIDA club ship
''Meyerwerft website''. 10 February 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2010 ''AIDAluna'' started her sea trials with her passage on the River Ems on 21 February 2009, departing Papenburg. The voyage culminated in Emdem the next day. On 23 February, departing Emden to continue sea trials, she ventured to

Blohm + Voss Blohm is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Hans Blohm C.M. (born 1927), photographer and author * Hermann Blohm (1848–1930), German businessman and co-founder of German company Blohm+Voss * Irma Blohm (1909–1997), German pol ...

shipyard in Hamburg for final inspection at dock Elbe 17. During the inspection, an object was seen, being tangled on ''AIDAluna''s propellers, which was supposedly caused by the ship's short trip. After a few days, ''AIDAluna'' was cleared and continued her sea trials in the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

.AIDAluna leaves for Hamburg
''Meyerwerft website''. 23 February 2009. Retrieved 8 May 2010 ''AIDAluna'' was delivered to its owners on 16 March 2009. She was christened on April 4, 2009, at

Palma de Mallorca Palma (, ; ), also known as Palma de Mallorca (officially between 1983 and 1988, 2006–2008, and 2012–2016), is the capital and largest city of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of the Balearic Islands in Spain. It is ...

by the German supermodel, Franziska Knuppe.

Amenities

The ship has 1,025 passenger cabins. ''AIDAluna'' has a 2,300-m² (25,000-ft²) spa facility. The ship has 7 restaurants and 11 bars. The focal point in the ship is the Theatrium, a three-level complex, which could be transformed into a Theater. An onboard 4-D Cinema is fitted with moving chairs.

Operational history

''AIDAluna'' started her maiden voyage on 22 March 2009, departing

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

. This 14-day voyage culminated in Palma de Mallorca, with stops at

Le Havre Le Havre is a major port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy (administrative region), Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the Seine, river Seine on the English Channel, Channe ...

, Santander,

A Coruña A Coruña (; ; also informally called just Coruña; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality in Galicia, Spain. It is Galicia's second largest city, behind Vigo. The city is the provincial capital of the province ...

Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...

, Cadiz,

Tangier Tangier ( ; , , ) is a city in northwestern Morocco, on the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. The city is the capital city, capital of the Tanger-Tetouan-Al Hoceima region, as well as the Tangier-Assilah Prefecture of Moroc ...

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

, and

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

. In Summer 2009, she was deployed in Baltic Sea and in Winter, she was redeployed in Canary Islands. ''AIDAluna'' made her first call in

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

on 22 April and in Rostock-Warnemünde on 8 May, departing from Palma de Mallorca. She made 10 roundtrip cruises in the Baltic during the 2009 Summer season. In 2011, ''AIDAluna'' was redeployed in the Caribbean and offered 14-day cruises, with additional 6 to 8-day sailings. On her way to the Caribbean, ''AIDAluna'' sailed the East Coast, calling in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

.AIDA's eight ships calling at 160 ports in 2011/2012
''Cruise Industry News''. 24 February 2010. Retrieved 8 May 2010

Incidents

At around 5 a.m. on 9 September 2018, the German

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

singer

Daniel Küblböck Daniel Dominik Kaiser-Küblböck (born Küblböck; 27 August 1985 – 9 September 2018) was a German singer, best known for placing third in the television talent show ''Deutschland sucht den Superstar'' in 2003. In the years that followed, he re ...

jumped overboard when the vessel was in open waters about north of

St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador St. John's is the capital and largest city of the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is located on the eastern tip of the Avalon Peninsula on the island of Newfoundland. The city spans and is the easternmost city in North Ame ...

in the

Labrador Sea The Labrador Sea (; ) is an arm of the North Atlantic Ocean between the Labrador Peninsula and Greenland. The sea is flanked by continental shelf, continental shelves to the southwest, northwest, and northeast. It connects to the north with Baffi ...

. The

Canadian Coast Guard The Canadian Coast Guard (CCG; ) is the coast guard of Canada. Formed in 1962, the coast guard is tasked with marine search and rescue (SAR), communication, navigation, and transportation issues in Canadian waters, such as navigation aids and i ...

launched a search operation, assisted by ''AIDAluna'' and the

Holland America Holland America Line N.V. (HAL) is an American cruise line operating as a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. Founded in 1873 in Rotterdam, Netherlands as the Netherlands-America Steamship Company (NASM), the company operated regular transat ...

cruise ship '' Zuiderdam''. The search was abandoned the following day, as the water temperature was and the maximum survival time in cold water had been exceeded, and Küblböck was later officially declared dead.

References

AIDAluna HamburgKreuzfahrtterminal20090813 Name

External links

Official website of AIDAluna

Photos

YouTube video clip during the launch of AIDAluna

passing the on the river ems convenyance]
Picture
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Aidaluna Ships built in Papenburg Ships of AIDA Cruises 2009 ships de:Jann-Berghaus-Brücke