# Celestyal Discovery

Celestyal Discovery is a cruise ship, built in 2003 by the German shipyard Aker MTW in Wismar, and was operated by AIDA Cruises for twenty years as AidaAura, as was her sister ship AIDAvita. In November 2023 the ship was sold to the Greek cruise line Celestyal Cruises and entered service in March 2024.

## Description

Celestyal Discovery is considered a mid-sized cruise ship measuring 202.85 m (665 ft 6 in) long overall and 179.74 m (589 ft 8 in) between perpendiculars with a beam of 28.1 m (92 ft 2 in) and a draft of 8.75 m (28 ft 8 in). The cruise ship has a 42,289 gross tonnage (GT) and measures 4,157 tons deadweight (DWT). The vessel is powered by a diesel-electric system turning two screws rated at 27,150 kilowatts (36,410 hp). The ship has a maximum speed of 19.5 knots (36.1 km/h; 22.4 mph).
The cruise ship has capacity for 1,266 passengers. Celestyal Discovery has 633 cabins, ranging from 13.5–32.0 square meters (145–344 sq ft) in size of which 60 are equipped with a balcony. The vessel is equipped with several amenities for the passengers including bars, lounges, a library and a two-storey theater. Celestyal Discovery has a crew of 389. The vessel has a swept-back funnel and a wedge-shaped stern.

## Construction and career

The cruise ship was laid down on 11 January 2002 at the Aker MTW shipyard in Wismar, Germany with the yard number 004. The vessel was launched on 14 September 2002 and completed on 3 April 2003. The vessel cost $350 million. The vessel was christened AIDAaura by International model Heidi Klum on 12 April 2003 at Warnemünde. The vessel made its maiden voyage in April 2003. In 2003, the vessel was built for P&O Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc, which took over ownership of the vessel and registered the cruise ship in London, United Kingdom. In 2004, AIDAaura was acquired by Costa Crociere and the registry moved to Genoa, Italy and the operator changed to AIDA Cruises, a subsidiary of the Carnival Corporation.
On 8 October 2018, AIDAaura departed from Hamburg on a 117-day round-the-world cruise. The ship visited 41 ports in 20 countries on four continents. AIDAaura, with about 1,200 people on board, was held on 3 March 2020 in the harbor of Haugesund, Norway, while two asymptomatic German passengers were tested who had been in contact with a person who subsequently developed COVID-19; their test results were negative.
In January 2023 AIDA Cruises said that the ship would be decommissioned in autumn 2023. Istanbul-based Miray Cruises announced in June that they had acquired a ship, for delivery in September, reported to be AIDAaura, for their Life at Sea Cruises intended 3-year world voyage, beginning in November 2023. Replacing the intended Gemini, the ship would be renamed Lara and undergo renovations in Istanbul. The last voyage of the AIDAaura ended in Bremerhaven, Germany on 21 September 2023. In November it was reported that Miray were no longer the buyer, with speculation that it would now be Celestyal Cruises.
On 16 November 2023, Celestyal Cruises confirmed their purchase of AIDAaura and that she will enter service in March 2024 as Celestyal Discovery after a winter refit, replacing Celestyal Olympia. The ship entered service on 22 March 2024. Celestyal plans to add 47 cabins.

## Citations

* 1 2 3 4 Ward 2019, p. 309.
* 1 2 DNV GL.
* 1 2 3 4 Miramar Ship Index.
* ↑ Ward 2005.
* ↑ "History". AIDA Cruises. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
* 1 2 Equasis.
* ↑ "AIDAaura Set for 2018 World Cruise". cruiseindustrynews.com. 21 July 2017. Retrieved 13 February 2018.
* ↑ "Coronavirus: Außenministerium warnt Deutsche vor Kreuzfahrten" [Coronavirus: crisis team advises against cruises]. Berliner Morgenpost (in German). 5 March 2020.
* ↑ "Coronavirus: German cruise ship held in Norwegian harbour as passengers tested". The Local De. 3 March 2020. Retrieved 3 March 2020.
* ↑ "AIDA Cruises eröffnet am 9. Januar 2023 die Farewell-Saison von AIDAaura" (in German). 5 January 2023. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
* ↑ "Miray Upgrades Ship for Three Year World Cruise". Cruise Industry News. New York. 29 June 2023. Archived from the original on 24 August 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
* ↑ Kalosh, Anne (29 June 2023). "Miray Cruises is the reported buyer of AIDAaura". Seatrade Cruise News. Colchester. Archived from the original on 30 June 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
* 1 2 Eckardt, Christian (10 November 2023). "Verkauf der „AIDAaura" in Sichtweite - und das soll der neue Käufer sein ("Sale of the "AIDAaura" in sight - and it is supposed to be a new buyer")". Nordsee Zeitung (in German). Bremerhaven. Archived from the original on 10 November 2023. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
* ↑ "Celestyal Acquires AIDAaura; To Sail as Celestyal Discovery". Cruise Industry News. New York. 16 November 2023. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
* ↑ Zelinski, Andrea (16 November 2023). "Celestyal acquires Aida ship and will rename it Discovery". Travel Weekly. Rutherford, NJ. Retrieved 16 November 2023.
* ↑ https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2024/03/celestyal-discovery-sets-sail-on-maiden-cruise/
* ↑ https://www.celestyalcruises.de/flotte/celestyal-discovery/
* ↑ https://cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/2024/11/celestyal-to-add-47-cabins-to-discovery/

## Sources

* "Aidaaura (G94691)". Vessel Register for DNV. DNV. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
* "AIDAaura (9221566)". Equasis. Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy. Retrieved 31 August 2010.
* "Aidaaura (9221566)". Miramar Ship Index. Retrieved 14 March 2020.
* Ward, Douglas (2005). Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships 2006 (21st ed.). Singapore: Berlitz. ISBN 978-9812-4673-9-3.
* Ward, Douglas (2019). Berlitz Complete Guide to Cruising & Cruise Ships 2020 (28th ed.). Singapore: Berlitz. ISBN 978-1-78573-250-8.