AIDAprima is the flagship of AIDA Cruises, built by Mitsubishi Shipbuilding at their shipyard in Nagasaki, Japan. The cruise ship entered service on April 25, 2016, after suffering several construction delays.[2] She is the first AIDA vessel not to be built in Meyer Werft since the completion of AIDAaura in 2003. She is also the first Carnival Corporation & plc vessel to be built in Mitsubishi since the completion of the Sapphire Princess in 2004.
History
Originally, the vessel was planned for delivery in the first half of 2015, with an inaugural trip to 22 countries, but the shipbuilder was unable to complete the vessel on time and the delivery was postponed to December 2015 after several minor accidents during construction.[3] The ship was christened on 7 May 2016 in Hamburg, Germany as part of the 827th Hamburg Port Anniversary (Hafengeburtstag).[4]