Start of a new era: Mein Schiff Relax handed over to TUI Cruises

First newbuild of the InTUItion ship class leaves the Fincantieri shipyard in Monfalcone

Hamburg/Monfalcone, 07 February 2025: Mein Schiff Relax, the first newbuild in the InTUItion ship class, was officially handed over to TUI Cruises at the Fincantieri shipyard in Italy today. Representatives of both companies, including Wybcke Meier and Frank Kuhlmann, CEO and CFO of TUI Cruises, as well as Cristiano Bazzara, Director of Fincantieri, attended the formal handover. The ceremony was attended by the Italian Minister for Relations with Parliament, Luca Ciriani, welcomed by Biagio Mazzotta and Pierroberto Folgiero, respectively Chairman, CEO and Managing Director of Fincantieri, and by Luigi Matarazzo, General Manager of the Fincantieri Merchant Ships Division.

‘It is a very special moment for us to receive the first ship of the new innovative InTUItion ship class,’ says Wybcke Meier, CEO TUI Cruises. ‘Eleven years ago, we took delivery of our first newly built ship. Today, with Mein Schiff Relax, we are opening a whole new chapter in the premium cruise segment. We would like to thank the shipyard and all those involved for working with our teams to realise this ship, which takes the ‘feel-good experience to a new level’.

Mein Schiff Relax offers regular guests and cruise enthusiasts an even more varied culinary journey through particularly high-quality worlds of pleasure. New and even more options are available for relaxing in architecturally spectacular oases of well-being. In terms of cabins and suites, Mein Schiff is responding even more to the needs of cruise travellers, creating a very special holiday feeling: for example, for the first time there are inside, outside and balcony cabins for solo travellers on Mein Schiff Relax. In addition to the numerous new features, the suites and the area for suite guests on the Mein Schiff Relax also have a new location: at the stern of the new feel-good ship. In addition to a variety of Junior Suites, Schöne Aussicht and Fernweh Suites, there will be Weitblick Suites and, for the first time, two Große Freiheit Suites, which extend over two decks and have a large terrace. Spa and wellness will also be redefined. Guests can enjoy perfect relaxation with fantastic views in the new, exclusive barrel sauna on deck 19. And brand new: an exclusive cold chamber for cryotherapy treatments, with temperatures down to -110 degrees, to help with regeneration, weight loss or improving skin structure. High-class entertainment and worlds of experience such as the Asian restaurant Fugu with its digital atmosphere and dishes created by Tim Raue are also available on this ship.

First ship with gas propulsion

TUI Cruises is also embracing technologies designed to support more efficient energy use and the reduction of emissions. Mein Schiff Relax is equipped with dual-fuel engines designed to run on marine diesel and liquefied natural gas, and in future will also be able to use renewable LNG (bio-LNG and e-LNG) without any technical modifications.

In addition, the new generation of ships features improved catalytic converters that can reduce nitrogen oxide emissions during port operations to a level comparable with Euro 6 limits. The ships are also equipped with shore power connections. While in port, which accounts for around 40 percent of operating time, the ship’s own power generation can be switched off when shore power is available. Compared with power supplied via the ship’s own systems, this can reduce the emissions generated while the ship is in port.

Hydro Treat: Organic Waste Processing

Mein Schiff Relax is also equipped with a system that breaks down organic waste using thermal treatment and prepares it for further use on land. In the so-called “HydroTreat”, heat and pressure are used to separate the liquid components of organic waste and channel them into the ship’s own wastewater treatment system. The treated wastewater undergoes a multi-stage treatment process designed for advanced wastewater treatment. The solid components of the waste are transformed into what is known as biochar, a highly versatile material in agriculture, used for example to improve soil quality or as a feed additive.