# TUI Cruises

TUI Cruises is a cruise line based in Germany. It was formed in 2007 as a joint venture between the German tourism company TUI AG and the American cruise line operator Royal Caribbean Group, each of which owns a 50% stake in the company.

## History

The company started operations in 2009 and competes with AIDA Cruises for the German market. It targets German-speaking customers who opt for a premium cruise experience. The onboard product, including food, entertainment and amenities, is tailored for German tastes and German is the main language used onboard its ships.
Due to lack of new-building capacity, TUI Cruises started by acquiring the cruise ship Celebrity Galaxy, which was built by Meyer Werft and was owned by another RCCL subsidiary, Celebrity Cruises. She left the Celebrity fleet on 16 March 2009. After acquiring Celebrity Galaxy, the ship headed to Lloyd Werft shipyards in Bremerhaven, Germany. She arrived on 27 March 2009, and received a €50 million, 38-day conversion to upgrade her facilities to suit a German-speaking market. After the conversion, she was re-christened on 15 May 2009 in Hamburg, Germany bearing her new name, Mein Schiff (My Ship). TUI planned to build two 2,500-passenger, 100,000-GT cruise ships in 2011 and 2012.
On May 27, 2010, it was announced that another Century-class ship, Celebrity Mercury, would become the latest addition to TUI's fleet, renamed Mein Schiff 2. Due to this Mein Schiff was immediately renamed Mein Schiff 1. Mein Schiff 2 entered service with TUI in February 2011 after its extensive refurbishment, with the addition of more verandas, an expanded fitness area and design elements which are also found on Mein Schiff 1.

### Newbuilds

TUI and STX Finland announced a contract on 27 September 2011 to build a 97,000-GT vessel named Mein Schiff 3, first of the Blue Motion class, which was delivered in 2014.The vessel is approximately 295 metres (968 ft) long and approximately 36 metres (118 ft) wide. The ship has 1,250 staterooms, most of which have balconies, with a capacity of 2,500 passengers and a crew of 1,000. The ship includes several restaurants, a theatre, spa and nightclub. The contract included an option to build a second ship, dependent on the approval of TUI Cruises shareholders. It was announced on November 5, 2012 that TUI had taken up the second option for the sister ship to the Mein Schiff 3, to be named Mein Schiff 4. On April 22, 2014, Mein Schiff 3 entered service. In March 2015, Royal Caribbean International announced that they had agreed to sell Splendour of the Seas to TUI Cruises in the second quarter of 2016, and that TUI would lease the ship to Thomson Cruises to replace the Island Escape. In May 2015, TUI Group announced that as part of their modernization strategy, Mein Schiff 1 and Mein Schiff 2 would be transferred to Thomson Cruises over the next few years, as a result, 2 replacement ships neue Mein Schiff 1 and neue Mein Schiff 2 were ordered. On January 15, Mein Schiff 5 was launched. On April 28, Mein Schiff 6's was laid down.
The new Mein Schiff 1 debuted in 2018, followed by the Mein Schiff 2 in 2019. These were both enlarged version of the previous ships, and included modification in the layout of the open decks, with an enclosed sport court, expanded forward suite area, an infilled aft deck, and a new elevated jogging track.
In July 2018, TUI Cruises announces th order of two new 160,000 ton LNG InTUItion class ships at Fincanteri.
In February 2020 TUI announced the purchase of Hapag-Lloyd Kreuzfahrten. The take over was completed in July 2020.
The Mein Schiff Herz left the fleet in April 2023.
In 2023 it was announced the new InTUItion class would introduce a new naming convention, with the first ship named Mein Schiff Relax. The ship was floated out in November 2023 at Fincantieri's Monfalcone shipyard in Italy.
The final ship of the Blue Motion Class, Mein Schiff 7 debuted in 2024, and will be one of the first methanol ready ships.
On February 7, 2025, the Mein Schiff Relax was delivered to TUI Cruises. The first new prototype design for the line in over 11 years, it is also the first LNG powered and largest ship in the fleet.

## Fleet
### Current fleet

| Ship | Built | Builder | in service with TUI | Gross tonnage | Flag | Notes |
| Blu Motion Class ||||||||
| Mein Schiff 3 | 2014 | STX Finland | 2014 | 99,526 | Malta | First new build for TUI Cruises |
| Mein Schiff 4 | 2015 | STX Finland/Meyer Turku | 2015 | 99,526 | Malta | |
| Mein Schiff 5 | 2016 | Meyer Turku | 2016 | 98,785 | Malta | Modified form previous ships in class by removing the glass roof of the enclosed pool. |
| Mein Schiff 6 | 2017 | Meyer Turku | 2017 | 98,811 | Malta | |
| Blu Motion Class (enlarged) ||||||||
| Mein Schiff 1 | 2018 | Meyer Turku | 2018 | 111,500 | Malta | Stretched version previous ships. |
| Mein Schiff 2 | 2019 | Meyer Turku | 2019 | 111,500 | Malta | Sister to new Mein Schiff 1 |
| Mein Schiff 7 | 2024 | Meyer Turku | 2024 | 112,982 | Malta | Sister ship to Mein Schiff 1 and 2 Methanol-Ready propulsion |
| Intuition Class ||||||||
| Mein Schiff Relax | 2025 | Fincantieri | 2025 | 161,000 | Malta | First LNG-fuelled ship and will be the largest ship for the company |

### Future fleet

| Ship | Maiden Voyage | Builder | Gross Tonnage | Planned Flag | Notes | Image |
| Mein Schiff Flow | 2026 | Fincantieri | 161,000 | Malta | inTUItion-class Second LNG-fuelled ship and sister ship to Mein Schiff Relax Construction started in January 2024 | |

### Former ships

| Ship | Built | Builder | in service with TUI | Gross tonnage | Flag | Notes |
| Mein Schiff 1 | 1996 | Meyer Werft | 2009–2010 2010–2018 | 76,522 | Malta | Previously Celebrity Galaxy, transferred out of the fleet in 2018. Now sails as Marella Explorer. |
| Mein Schiff Herz | 1997 | Meyer Werft | 2011 - 2021 | 77,302 | Malta | Previously Celebrity Mercury, Mein Schiff 2, Mein Schiff Herz transferred out of fleet in 2022. Will sail as Marella Voyager. |