The industry association CLIA anticipates a total number of 31.5 million cruise passengers world-wide this year: The cruise industry is back, riding the wave of success and shaking up the market. MARINE INTERIORS and Seatrade Europe are the right major industry gatherings at the right time: Both co-located trade fairs are opening today. Until Friday, 08 September, decision makers from leading cruise ship yards, interior design and outfitting firms as well as cruise destinations are meeting in Hamburg. “By cooperating with Seatrade Europe we are able to cover the entire value chain of the cruise segment. There is no other trade event that offers such a comprehensive combination of cruise topics. We are especially proud of our multi-faceted conference programme," said Christoph Lücke, Project Head of the MARINE INTERIORS Cruise & Ferry Global Expo at Hamburg Messe und Congress. In more than 40 conference and on-stage sessions, experts will be presenting their views on design trends, sustainability and the future of cruising.

Conference highlights include:

• In the session titled “ONE ON ONE – In conversation with Tal Danai”, Artlink CEO Tal Danai and TUI Cruises CEO Wybcke Meier will discuss the highly competitive cruise business (06/09, 15:10).
• Interior design for ferries will be the subject of the conferences headed “Creating and designing a first-class customer experience”, featuring Peter Ståhlberg, Managing Director of Wasaline, and Helena Sawelin, Partner & Business Director at Tillberg Design, among others (06/09, 10:30 and 11:20 respectively).
• Designing Ships – An Annual Update: The latest trends in ship and yacht design will be highlighted by Sascha Lang, Vice President, Architectural & Design, Newbuild & Innovation at Royal Caribbean Cruises, and Thomas P. Illes, owner and CEO of the coaching and consultancy firm Thilles Consulting (07/09, 10:30).
• What steps is the industry taking to make cruise shipping greener? A question Carla Guilbaud, Vice President Member Experience at CLIA, will look into together with her panel colleagues Gijs Streppel, Programme Manager Sustainability at Meyer Werft, Linden Coppell, Vice President Sustainability & ESG at MSC Cruises, and others (08/09, 10:30).

What makes MARINE INTERIORS and Seatrade Europe especially attractive to visitors is the fact that the two industry fairs are co-located. “These two events are a perfect match,” says Christoph Lücke. For example, interiors for river cruise ships, the featured topic at MARINE INTERIORS, is mirrored by the River Cruise Day organised under the auspices of Seatrade, which focuses on special requirements of river cruises.

Hamburg thrives on cruise shipping

Both trade fairs are accompanied by first-rate supporting events such as Wine o' clock, the CLIA Diamond Dinner or Cruise Night. For a thrilling finale, the Cruise Days, a festival for passengers, will see cruise, river cruise and expedition vessels calling at the port. “Hamburg is about to experience an exceptional maritime weekend,” says Lücke. The event benefits from the city’s location advantages, he adds: “Hamburg is located at the centre of the EU, with easy access to the common market, and with cruise and ferry lines, shipyards and suppliers located in close proximity. There is hardly another city that thrives on the cruise sector the way Hamburg does.”

For an overview of the full programme go here.

Attending the conferences at MARINE INTERIORS is free of charge. For trade fair tickets please go here. Media representatives may obtain an accreditation online.

About the MARINE INTERIORS Cruise & Ferry Global Expo, powered by SMM

The MARINE INTERIORS Cruise & Ferry Global Expo, powered by SMM was first launched in 2019 as the first stand-alone B2B trade fair for interior design, equipment and technologies for passenger ships. Exhibitors from all areas of ship interior design are expected to attend the second edition of the Hamburg event from 06 to 08 September 2023 where they will meet top-level visitors including decision-makers from shipowning companies, shipyards and design studios. The expo will be accompanied by networking events and conference sessions featuring top-ranking experts who will discuss all of the industry's current key topics. MARINE INTERIORS takes place every two years in parallel with the Seatrade Europe – Cruise and River Cruise Convention.