The two new vessels of AIDA Cruises, the Rostock based unit of Carnival Corp & plc, will be designed to cruise year round from German ports, says Michael Thamm, CEO of the cruise line. “With these ships, we will run from Germany around the year for the first time,” Thamm said in an interview on the website of the company.

The 125,000 gross ton vessels will be delivered by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan in 2015 and 2016. They will run on diesel fuel rather than the customary heavy fuel oil. They will also be fitted with an air bubble system that will reduce friction and fuel consumption to about three litres per passengers per 100 kilometres.