Carnival Corporation's AIDA Cruises Welcomes AIDAprima to Fleet

Carnival Corporation & plc officially welcomed its fleet's newest ship into the family over the weekend with the christening of AIDAprima, now the flagship vessel for its German-based AIDA Cruises brand.

AIDAprima made its debut with a spectacular light show and memorable naming ceremony witnessed in person by 1.6 million visitors at the 827th Hamburg Port Anniversary. AIDAprima launched as the corporation's most environmentally friendly ship and the first cruise ship in the world with a dual-fuel engine that can be powered by Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) while in port and at sea.

"The christening was an emotional moment for me – I'm very proud of our new ship," said Felix Eichhorn, president of AIDA Cruises. "With AIDAprima and the next three new ships to be built for our line, we are once again charting new territory in the tourism industry, and we will continue to drive growth in the German cruise market."

Several million people watched the festivities at the harbor, on television, online and on Facebook when the young actress Emma Schweiger christened the ship. A dazzling music and light show followed by brilliant fireworks turned the night sky over the Port of Hamburg's festival promenade into a glittering sea of color. AIDAprima was accompanied for the occasion by another member of the fleet, AIDAaura, which was also part of the christening ceremony.

"We are thrilled to officially welcome such a beautiful and technologically advanced ship to our fleet, and it was only fitting that AIDAprima's naming was celebrated with a show and ceremony as impressive as the ship itself," said Roger Frizzell, chief communications officer for Carnival Corporation. "This weekend marked another important milestone as we welcome four new ships to our fleet in 2016. Whether we are sailing our new or existing ships, our number one goal always remains the same – to do everything we can to make sure our guests have a great experience."

Carnival Corporation has now taken delivery of three new ships in 2016. In addition to AIDAprima, Carnival Cruise Line took delivery of its 3,954-passenger Carnival Vista on April 28, while Holland America Line celebrated the handover of its 2,650-passenger ms Koningsdam on April 2. The company is scheduled to receive its fourth new ship delivery of 2016 when the Seabourn Encore joins the fleet later this year. Including Seabourn's new Encore ship, Carnival Corporation has a total of 15 new ships scheduled to be delivered between 2016 and 2020.