VIDEO: AIDAprima’s Twin Sister Taking Shape in Japan

AIDAperla is the name of the second cruise ship being built for German-based cruise line AIDA Cruises in Japan. The video shows the ship under construction at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries shipyard in Nagasaki, with majority of the ship’s hull already recognizable.

The newbuild will feature a length of 300 meters and a width of 37.6 meters, with a gross tonnage of 125,000 t.

The vessel, which is the twelfth ship in the company’s fleet, will be able to accommodate 3,300 guests and 900 crew members.

The delivery of the cruise ship is scheduled for the spring of 2017.

The company says AIDAperla is the first cruise ship with an azimuth thruster as other AIDA Cruises’ ships are equipped with usual rudder systems and propellers. The vessel also has dual-fuel engines that will push the ship to a maximum speed of 21.5 knots.

The cruise ship’s first route is to be in the Mediterranean Sea, starting from Mallorca and encompassing Corsica, Rome, Florence and Barcelona.

On March 14, AIDA Cruises took delivery of AIDAprima from the same shipyard in Japan. The vessel is currently sailing on its first voyage from Nagasaki to Hamburg, its home port. Its arrival is scheduled for April 21.

In February 2015, AIDA Cruises’ parent company Carnival Corporation & plc signed a multi-billion dollar contract with German shipbuilder Meyer Werft to build four next-generation cruise ships with the largest guest capacity in the world. The four new ships, featuring a revolutionary “green cruising” design, will be the first in the cruise industry to be powered at sea by LNG.

The two of the ships will be manufactured for AIDA Cruises at Meyer Werft’s shipyard in Papenburg, Germany. Until now, Meyer Werft has built seven ships for AIDA Cruises.

World Maritime News Staff; Video Courtesy: inselvideo