AIDA Cruises, Carnival Corporation’s German brand, is enhancing a series of cruises aboard several ships with new sports and entertainment offerings for children and teens. The programming will be featured during the upcoming Easter and Whitsun holidays, and the summer and fall vacation seasons.
Sports, Dance Lessons Among AIDA Activities
German line AIDA Cruises will introduce new sports programs, creative workshops, puppet shows, dance lessons and other activities for vacationing families, starting with cruises departing during the Easter vacation week. Guest artists will be aboard select ships to lead the special programming.
New sports events will feature soccer workshops with the Unique Freestylers, who will entertain with acrobatics and teach soccer tricks and moves to youngsters and adults. The group will be aboard the Easter week voyages of the 2,050-guest AIDAdiva from April 6 to 14, sailing from Hamburg to Warnemünde and the 3,300-guest AIDAprima, cruising from April 8 to 15 roundtrip from Hamburg.
For young children, two ships will offer a puppet show of the classic German stories “Der kleine Rabe Socke” and “Das Sams.” The shows will be performed on the 6,654-guest AIDAnova from May 13 to 20 as the ship sails from Hamburg to Kiel, and the 6,654-guest AIDAcosma on a series of 7-day voyages in July and August, roundtrip from Palma de Mallorca.
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Children and teens can learn to cha-cha-cha, waltz, tango and salsa during dance lessons from professional dancers Renata and Valentin Lusin aboard the 2,050-guest AIDAmar from August 14 to 24, cruising roundtrip from Warnemünde. And on AIDAdiva’s July 29 to August 5 cruise, also roundtrip from Warnemünde, young dancers can take lessons from Patricija and Alexandru Ionel, the reigning world champions in showdance.
Other activities for families on select ships will include talent shows, football workshops, musicals for children, cabarets and a special interactive show called “Who Wants to be a Millionaire – Teens Edition.”
Special Fares, Discounts For Families
AIDA Cruises has special cruise fare pricing and discounts for families traveling with children. Youngsters under age 2 travel free, and children between 2 and 15 travel free during certain seasons or at low fares when sharing their parents’ cabin. Older children, up to age 24, also can receive a low fare when sharing a parent’s cabin.
Children up to age 15 in their own cabin receive a 35% discount off the cruise fare, while those ages 16 to 24 are entitled to a 25% discount. The cruise line has a variety of family-friendly cabins, including 3- and 4-bed staterooms plus junior suites and suites. Some family staterooms have connecting doors. The veranda cabin deluxe category on some ships can sleep up to five people.
AIDA Cruises has 12 ships operating, but the fleet will decrease by one ship in September 2023, when the 1,266-guest AIDAaura, the line’s smallest vessel, is retired from the fleet. Carnival Corporation announced in January 2023 that the ship, which launched in 2003, would be let go. The ship had been built for P&O Cruises before the line became a Carnival brand.
AIDAaura’s final cruise will sail roundtrip from Bremerhaven on September 9, 2023. The 12-night sailing will visit six ports of call: the Isle of Portland, Falmouth, and London in England, Saint-Malo and Rouen in France, and Antwerp, Belgium. AIDA Cruises’ newest ship is AIDAcosma, which entered service in 2022 and accommodates 5,228 guests.
