Cruises – Invented in Hamburg

The home port of Cruises is the Hamburg Docks. Albert Ballin, the former Director General of the Hamburg HAPAG (Hamburger-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Aktiengesellschaft), invented this earlier, primarily driven by an emergency situation.

During the cold seasons the transatlantic passages were booked much less due to unfavourable weather conditions, so Ballin decided to use the excess capacity for other purposes during that time. He organised so called "Educational and Enjoyment Trips" in the Mediterranean, which were very popular and increasingly in demand.

The first ship to be used in this way was the "Auguste Viktoria", which set off on her first cruise in 1891. In the following years there followed a series of real "dream cruisers", because the line ships taken out of service proved unsuitable after a while. In 1899 Ballin already gave the first contract to the local wharf Blohm+Voss to build a Luxury Liner. The cruises became fashionable, not least of all through the first official Cruise Liner, the "Luise Victoria".

The city of Hamburg and its residents have therefore always been closely linked to maritime pleasure travels.