German Port to Expand Cruise Facilities in Coming Years

In anticipation of a significant increase in cruise ships and passengers, the Hamburg Cruise Center in northern Germany will expand from two to three berths by 2009 and will open a new cruise terminal in 2011.

In 2006, as many as 56 ships visited Hamburg, more than double the 27 ships that visited the year prior. This year, the Hamburg Cruise Center will have 89 cruise ship calls, bringing 140.000 passengers, and by 2010 the Center said it is expecting 140 calls and 300,000 cruise passengers.

The cruise port will get a 14,000-square-foot terminal that will house a premium hotel, said a Hamburg Cruise Center spokesperson, and two berths that will be able to accommodate the largest cruise ships, with one for smaller vessels.

A temporary version of what the Hamburg Cruise Center opened in 2004, and was expanded in 2006 to accommodate the increase in traffic, the port said.