With AIDAbella, AIDA Cruises, Germany’s leading cruise company, will be stationing a ship in China all year round for the first time, offering cruises from Shanghai on the Chinese market.

"AIDA would not be so successful today if we had not constantly ventured into new territory in the 20 years since we commissioned our first new ship.
Now we are taking another important step and, with AIDAbella, are exporting our successful concept – Made in Germany – to China, the world’s strongest growing market for cruises. With our lifestyle-oriented and innovative product we will be providing further powerful momentum to the emerging Chinese vacation market, and captivating completely new guest groups," said AIDA President Felix Eichhorn.

While AIDA’s on-board services have been geared to German-speaking guests to date, with AIDAbella the company will be addressing the needs of the Chinese market. "The essence of our product, for which AIDA stands, will however be preserved. We have taken a very close look at what connects the Asian guest with Germany. What premium products does he prefer? What cultural differences, including those relating to consumption habits, do we need to bear in mind? Since we are part of the Costa Group, our colleagues at Costa Asia will be supporting us with their know-how, particularly in the area of Sales and HR," Felix Eichhorn continued.

The cruise ship AIDAbella – 252 meters long and 32.2 meters wide – has 1,025 staterooms, 457 of which are balcony staterooms and suites. The ship was christened by top model Eva Padberg on April 23, 2008. It will be readied for its deployment in Asia when it goes to dry dock at the beginning of 2017.

One of AIDAbella’s most striking features is the Theatrium, the vibrant heart of the ship, where theater, bars, the casino, various stores carrying premium German and international brands, and the adjacent restaurants all merge into a single, unique sensory experience across three decks.

In future, Asian guests will be entranced by breathtaking shows at the Theatrium. In the seven on-board restaurants, Asian cuisine will come together with high-end German dining. The youngest passengers will have a dedicated area with pool and separate sundeck at the supervised AIDA Kids Club. AIDAbella caters for teenagers as well; they too will have an area of their own, fitted with state-of-the-art digital entertainment technology.

The company will be announcing further details at a later date.