The “Disney Adventure”, the largest cruise ship ever built in Germany, has reached Bremerhaven. The final outfitting is to take place in the port’s “Überseehafen”.
Following the completion of a week-long initial shipyard trial run, the largest cruise ship ever built in Germany, the “Disney Adventure”, moored at Columbuskaje on Tuesday morning, somewhat earlier than originally planned. Prior to this, the 342 m long and 46 m wide mega-cruise ship of the US-American Disney Cruise Line turned in front of the north lock and then moved backwards to the southern part of the quay without any tug assistance. The ship has space for around 6,500 passengers and is intended to operate from Singapore for at least five years. Although there are still three months to go before the ship enters service in mid-December, time is short for the remaining work, as this is what the cruise giant, which is being completed by Meyer Werft, has come to Bremerhaven for.
The remaining work on the cruise ship will be carried out at the new outfitting quay in Bückingstraße in Kaiserhafen III. In order to reach this berth, the ship has to pass through the Kaiserschleuse lock, which is only 305 m long but 55 m wide, at high tide. Due to the dimensions of the Disney ship, this is only possible at high tide as part of a dock lock. This means that when the water level on the Weser and the port facilities behind the locks are at the same level, both lock gates are opened at the same time and the ship can be towed into the port. The cruise giant has just under 5 m on either side of the Kaiserschleuse lock for the cruise giant to maneuver the ship safely into the port with tug assistance. According to current plans, this dock sluicing will now take place in the night from Wednesday to Thursday at around 2.00 a.m., as Bremenports spokesman Matthias Koch explained on request.
Construction of the ship at Meyer Wismar
The “Disney Adventure” was built in Wismar by Meyer Werft, which founded the subsidiary Meyer Wismar especially for this purpose. After undocking in April 2025, the ship was moored at the shipyard’s outfitting pier, where it attracted the attention of both fans of the Mickey Mouse characters and cruise fans.
The fact that this Disney ship is now coming to Bremerhaven is also due to the situation in the Bay of Wismar. Due to the shallow water depth, this is only permitted for ships with a maximum draught of 9.50 meters. If the ship had been fully equipped there, it would have been too heavy and would therefore have had a much greater draught, meaning that the “Disney Adventure” would not have been able to leave the port. As a result, all the heavy furnishings that would have produced too much weight and therefore too much draught have not yet been brought on board.
In addition, not all the work on the ship has been completed. It was therefore decided to carry out this final extensive work in Bremerhaven. A location that has long been familiar to both Meyer Werft and Disney Cruise Line. For 15 years now, most of the final outfitting work for the cruise ships built by Meyer Werft in Papenburg has been carried out here. The first ship to be fitted out here by Meyer Werft was a Disney ship, the “Disney Dream”, built in 2010.
Maiden voyage in December
For the coming weeks, Meyer Werft will also have logistical and infrastructural support such as crane systems, supply and disposal facilities and, of course, the expertise of the employees of the traditional Bremerhaven shipyard at its disposal on the rented Lloyd Werft site. In the area of the new outfitting quay, there is now sufficient space for building materials or the installation of office and social containers. We are talking about around 4,500 workers, crew members and suppliers who will still be working on the ship.
According to current plans, the “Disney Adventure” will go on another test voyage lasting several days at the end of September, the exact date for which has not yet been set. After returning from the second trial voyage, the cruise ship will remain in Bremerhaven until October 13 and will then start its transfer voyage, presumably across the Atlantic and through the Panama Canal to Singapore, where the maiden voyage is scheduled to start on December 15.
The ship has 2,200 cabins and space for around 6,500 passengers and around 2,500 crew members. There are seven themed zones on board, including a Marvel Landing with the first Disney roller coaster at sea, a Toy Story Place, a Moana pool area and a Disney Imagination Garden. The ship can also use methanol as fuel when available, a first in the cruise industry to date. (CE)
