Lord Mayor Dr Ulf Kämpfer: “May the new terminal be a place of anticipation of the cruise to be started for any passenger. It will provide first class handling quality and strengthen Kiel’s position in this contested market at the same time.” Up to now, two cruise ships were handled at one Ostseekai terminal, however, in the future there will be a dedicated building for each ship. PORT OF KIEL-Managing Director Dr Dirk Claus: „One terminal for each berth means optimum service for shipping companies and passengers alike. We adapt our capacities to the increasing number of passengers and the ever growing size of the ships.” The extension, which is an investment of 9 million Euro for the port of Kiel, will be taken into operation in the coming season.

The two-storey building of 3,700 m² has been designed by the consortium “Terminalgebäude Liegeplatz 28 GbR” consisting of eins:eins Architekten Hillenkamp & Roselius and the Architect’s Office Ladwig. Christoph Roselius: „I am very happy that through the close cooperation between city and port such a prominent draft could be created for this important place on the fjord.” The façade of the new building takes up existing features and its transparency will be captivating due to its large glass surface. The two buildings form a V-shaped place of reception for arriving guests. From here, travellers will enter the terminal and visitors can mount the outside staircase to the panorama terrace. Town Councillor Doris Grondke: “A high-class architecture was important to us as this terminal will be the first and also the last point of contact with Kiel for many passengers. At the same time, we also wanted to take the people to the waterfront and enable them to experience the unique location of the State Capital City. The panorama terrace is the key: direct access to the waterfront with due regard to all the safety regulations of the port.” The second terminal is going to be built at the northern side of the existing building and forming and ensemble with the latter. The functional features of the new building are adapted from the existing one. While luggage handling can be found on the ground floor, the top floor is for passengers and the check-in processes. A gangway leads the travellers directly on board.

About the Kiel Cruise Port

The PORT OF KIEL is one of the top passenger ports in Northern Europe. With the terminals Ostseekai, Norwegenkai and Schwedenkai, there are three modern passenger terminals for ferries and cruise ships located directly in the city centre. In addition, ships are also accepted at the Cruise Berth No. 1 in Ostuferhafen. In this year’s season, Kiel saw 167 calls (2017: 143 calls) by 34 different cruise ships. Almost 600,000 passengers (+16.5 %) boarded or left the ships. Kiel is starting point for cruises to the metropolises on the Baltic Sea and along the Norwegian fjords. During midsummer, the journeys even go as far as the North Cape, Spitsbergen or Iceland. In addition, international shipping companies visit Kiel during on-going cruises so that their passengers can go on shore excursions throughout Schleswig-Holstein and Hamburg.