With 135 years of experience, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, a specialist operator of luxury and expedition cruises for the German-speaking market, has consistently demonstrated its ability to anticipate emerging travel trends. This approach is rooted in the vision of Albert Ballin, who became Managing Director of HAPAG in 1899, thanks to his outstanding management skills.
His winning insight was to carry cargo on ships’ return voyages, solving a longstanding challenge faced by all shipping companies. On routes from Europe to America, passenger liners were filled with emigrants, but on the return journey they sailed almost empty, as migration flows were largely one-way. Albert Ballin began to rethink the concept of sea travel, opening up new opportunities for people to discover the world through a unique experience. It was a new way of travelling, in which the future was shaped by tradition.
Over the coming year, EUROPA 2 and EUROPA will both enter the shipyard, with the former scheduled for January in Singapore and the latter for autumn in Bremerhaven. Both ships will undergo a series of targeted enhancements in keeping with the Hapag-Lloyd Cruises style, including design updates, technical modernisation and maintenance work, as well as further developments to their onboard concepts.
EUROPA 2 will receive an enhanced look with a redesign of its atrium and adjoining Piano Bar. Around 250 suites will be refreshed with updated colour schemes, while the speciality restaurants Sakura and Elements will also undergo a stylistic update. Plans for EUROPA are still being finalised, and Hapag-Lloyd Cruises will provide further details on the scheduled works over the coming months.
For Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, EUROPA and EUROPA 2 are two distinctive ships that continue to evolve with the times and have long set benchmarks in the international luxury cruise sector. Both have been named “Best Cruise Ship in the World” by Insight Guides Cruising & Cruise Ships. EUROPA 2 has also recently received a Cruise Guide Award in the “Service & Comfort” category.
Isolde Susset, Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, stated that the company invests in what creates new opportunities while preserving the qualities that make its ships unique. Experience is the benchmark for change: having the confidence to make the right choices while balancing tradition and innovation. She also added that the ships’ continued evolution is guided by guests’ expectations, the changing concept of luxury and the opportunities offered by technology.
With their relatively small size, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises ships offer a more intimate and personalised travel experience, distinguished by high service standards and attention to detail. Alongside its luxury ships EUROPA and EUROPA 2, the company operates a modern expedition fleet comprising HANSEATIC Nature, HANSEATIC Inspiration and HANSEATIC Spirit, further broadening the range of destinations and experiences available to guests.
While further details of the refurbishment work planned for EUROPA are awaited, keep following Cruising Journal for the latest updates and in-depth coverage of the cruise industry.
Lucia Angeli
